The 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR5 Has a Very Misleading Name
SR5 is an old Toyota badge, dating back to 1973. You might be surprised to hear it first appeared on the Corolla before becoming common on Toyota trucks. But whatever the model, the SR5 badge originally meant a sporty trim with a five-speed manual transmission upgrade. You can still buy a Toyota Tacoma SR5 in 2023. But in an ironic twist, you canāt order the Tacomaās famed manual transmission option in a modern Tacoma SR5. An updated use of the classic badge could be a cool nod to Toyota history.
What does Toyotaās SR5 badge mean?
Toyota began slapping āSRā on the fender of the performance trim of various models in the 1970s. Depending on the market, this stood for āSport Rally,ā āSports Runabout,ā or āSporty Ray.ā When the automaker added a five-speed option across its lineup, it doubled down on this badge with the āSR5ā designation.
Wait, SR had multiple meanings? Yup, my colleague Peter Corn revealed that the original meaning of SR on Toyotas is up for debate. The global automaker probably stuck the badge on vehicles, and then local marketing teams interpreted it. So, in the U.S., you might have heard āSport Rally,ā while āSports Runaboutā was used in places where people actually use runabout to describe a type of car. āSporty Rayā seemed to suggest the vehicle was fast as sunlight.
But for the mechanically-minded, Toyota might not have needed to interpret the badge at all. This is because āRā was the famed Toyota engine family of I4s that powered the Corolla and Toyota truck in the 1970s and 80s. So, āSporty Rā spoke for itself.
In the U.S., āSRā first appeared on the 1973 Corolla. It spread to the Toyota truck in 1979.
Is the 2023 Toyota Tacoma SR5 a good truck?
The SR5 is an entry-level trim of the 2023 Tacoma, one step above theāSRā work truck. It enjoys a touch of chrome, leather-trimmed seats, and remote door locks. You can order it with a V6 engine but not a manual transmission.
The SR5 is a popular trim of the Toyota Tacoma because it offers a bit more style and comfort than the SR, but wonāt break the bank like the opulent top-trim trucks. It is the first ānamedā trim level of the Tacoma as the SR doesnāt even wear āSRā badges.
But because the Tacoma SR5 gets its name from the old āSport Rally five-speedā trucks, it is ironic that you canāt get it with the manual transmission. Both the I4 and V6 SR5s come with Toyotaās six-speed automatic transmission. The manual transmission was once the entry-level option, but now it has morphed into a premium Tacoma feature only available on upper trim levels.
Toyota, what about a Tacoma SR6?
So hear me out: I think the old āSport Rallyā and āSport Rally 5ā trims are wasted on the entry-level Tacomas. I know ābadge inflationā happens, and Toyota has come out with many better-equipped trims since the days of the SR5. But it could still have a cool function in the modern Tacoma lineup.
What if the automaker renamed its entry-level trims with any other pair of letters, then slapped an āSR6ā badge on the fender of any Tacoma equipped with its six-speed manual transmission?
This badge could be similar to the ā4Ć4ā fender stickers that most pickup trucks wear when equipped with 4WD. These stickers make sense because 4WD is an expensive option that changes the truckās capabilities and is something people like to brag about.
An āSR6ā badge on a manual Tacomaāof any trim levelāwould call out that the owner had ordered a stickshift, which is often a point of pride. And it would do so in a way that would nod subtly to the rich history of Toyota trucks.
Next, find out the secret ingredients to Toyotaās legendary reliability or learn more about Toyota pickup trucks in the video below: