Toyota

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Family Friendly Car Review: 2014 Tacoma Double Cab 4X4 V6

I’m the kind of guy you’ve heard about through a friend, but never met or have even seen in person.

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There are people in America who get to test-drive a new car each week to write reviews. And I’m one of those guys…

And I will say, my most favorite vehicle so far, out of all the vehicles I’ve reviewed now, is without a doubt the 2014 Tacoma Double Cab 4X4.

For me, everything about it just came together perfectly. It fit me very well. I even had two different fellow parents tell me that, separately, when I picked up my son from daycare last week.

Getting to drive this Tacoma last week was a great 33rd birthday gift for me.

I know this may sound like a strange thing to feature, but what I loved most about the Tacoma was the cab space.

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If you take away the fact the Tacoma is indeed a pick-up truck, the space inside reminded me of the Rav 4; which is another one of my most favorite vehicles I’ve driven for Toyota.

Another positive feature I want to point out about this truck is that the truck itself isn’t too big. I had no trouble parking it or keeping it in the lane, unlike other larger vehicles I have driven.

There’s my opinon, here are the stats…

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Government Vehicle Safety Ratings: Out of 5 Stars

Overall Vehicle Score 4

Frontal Crash- Driver 4, Passenger 3

Side Crash- Front Seat 4, Rear Seat 5

Rollover 4

Fuel Economy: 16 city/21 highway; 18 combined

Annual Fuel Cost: $2,900

2014 Toyota Tacoma car review

Standard Equipment:

4.0L DOHC 24V WT-I 236HP Engine

5-Speed ECT-I Automatic Transmission

4WDemand: Part-Time 4X4 Sys w/2-speed

Coil-Spring Double Wishbone Front Susp

Total Price as Shown: $32,768.00

Disclaimer: The vehicle mentioned in this story was provided at the expense of Toyota, for the purpose of reviewing.

P.S. Here’s a collection of my Toyota family reviews so far; just click on title to read the full story:

2014 Toyota Tacoma: My Son Thinks Our Car Windows Are Voice-Activated

2014 Lexus LS 460: 2014 Lexus LS 460 Review, From The Dad’s Perspective; Journey To Howard’s Chapel (The Church Built Into A Rock); Ironically Driving A Lexus To See A Dinosaur Named Junkasaurus Wrecks; What Parents Do When The Kids Are Asleep With The Grandparents; Grandma Regifts As-Seen-On-TV “Perfect Polly” To Great-Grandson; I’ve Heard Of Sleepwalking, But… Sleep-Eating And Sleep-Playing?

2014 Toyota Corolla: Surviving The Polar Vortex Of 2014, Icicles And All

2014 Scion tC: Lightning McQueen, Donatello, Batman, Play-Doh… Nuff Said!

2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid: 2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid Review, From The Dad’s Perspective; A Family That Recycles Together Doesn’t Decompose

2013 Toyota Rav4: 2013 Toyota Rav4 Review, From The Dad’s Perspective

2014 Toyota Tundra: Dad Gives 3 Year-Old Son A Monster Truck For Birthday… Sort Of; Nashville Dad Introduces 3 Year-Old Son To Country Music; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Build-A-Bear; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Little River Falls, AL; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Mountain Driving; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Canyon Land Park; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Canyon Mouth Park

2013 Toyota Sienna: We’re Ready For A Family Road Trip… Minivan Style!; It’s Officially Cool To Drive A Minivan Now

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Family Friendly Car Review: 2014 Lexus RX 350

Hi there. My name is Nick Shell and this is my family friendly car review of the 2014 Lexus RX 350.

2014 Lexus RX

Normally when I write an article it’s because I’m the daddy blogger of Parents.com, with my blog called The Dadabase. I write to my son on a near daily basis and have been doing so since 7 months before he was born. He’s nearly 3 and a half years old now.

You’re welcome to check out my main writing gig. But as for now, it’s time to catch a glimpse of what it’s like driving a 2014 Lexus RX 350… with wife and kid in tow.

If you’re here today because you’re curious about this vehicle and would like to “test drive” it online before heading to the Lexus dealership, then I think I might be able to help.

I’ve thrown together these photo collages so you can see what the vehicle looks like “with human life in it.” I’ve also included all the important stats.

Something I particularly appreciated about the Lexus RX is how easy it was to see out all the windows when passing other cars.

Have fun. Check it out…

Lexus RX car review

Description: 2014/ 9426A RX 350 5-DR SUV

Standard Features:

3.5 Liter 270 HP Four Cam 24-Valve V6 Engine

8-Sp Auto Transmission w/Paddle Shifters

Full Time Active Torque Control All-Wheel Driver

19″ Aluminum Alloy Wheels with All-Season Tires

Tire Pressure Monitoring System

F Sport tune Suspension with Front and Rear Performance Dampers

10 Airbags: Driver & Front Passenger: Front, Knee & Side (6), Rear Side (2), Side Curtain (2), Anti-Lock Braking System (ABS) with Electronic Brakeforce Distribution (EBD) & Brake Assist

Automatic Xenon HID Headlamps

LED Daytime Running Lamps (DRL)

Vehicle Theft-Deterrent System with Engine Immobilizer

F SPORT Front Bumper and Spindle Grille

Nick Shell 2014 Lexus RX car review

Safety Connect: Automatic Collision Notification, Stolen Vehicle Location, Emergency Assist Button (SOS), and Enchanced Roadside Assistance (1-year trial subscription included)

Rain Sensing Wipers

Lexus Premium Audio System, Automatic Sound Levelizer (ASL), USB iPod/MP3 Control, SiriusXM Satellite Radio (90-day All Access trial subscription included)

Auto Dual Climate Control Sys w/Rear Vents

10-Way Power Heated/Ventilated Front Seats Driver’s Memory System

Power Tilt-and-Telescopic Steering Column

Recycling/Sliding 40/20/40 Split Rear Seat

Premium Roof Rails

Power Moonroof/Power Back Door

Rear View Mirror- Auto Dimming, Homelink Garage

F SPORT exclusive Leather Interior Trim, Aluminum Pedals, Steering Wheel, and Shift Knob

Blind Spot Monitor

Mark Levinson Premium Surround Sound, Single DVD/CD Player, HD Radio with iTunes tagging & 15-spkrs

car review Lexus RX family friendly car review

Navigation Sys w/Voice Command, Backup Camera, Lexus Enform w/Destination Assist & eDestination, SiriusXM NavTraffic, NavWeather, Stocks, Sports & Fuel prices (1 yr- trial subscription included), Subscription-Free Enform App Suite

Intuitive Parking Assist

Cargo Mat, Cargo Net, Wheel Locks

Total price as featured: $53,375.00

Fuel:

18 city/26 highway/21 combined

Annual Fuel Cost: $2500

family friendly car review Nick Shell

Safety, According to Government 5-Star Safety Ratings:

Overall Vehicle Score: 5

Front crash: 4 Driver, 4 Passenger

Side Crash: 5 Front Seat, 5 Rear Seat

Rollover: 4

That’s it for today’s family friendly car review… Feel free to leave comments. I welcome this space as a place for conversations about the Lexus RX.

Stay tuned for my next family friendly car review on the 2014 Toyota Tacoma…

Disclaimer: The vehicle mentioned in this story was provided at the expense of Toyota, for the purpose of reviewing.

P.S. Here’s a collection of my Toyota family reviews so far; just click on title to read the full story:

2014 Lexus LS 460: 2014 Lexus LS 460 Review, From The Dad’s Perspective; Journey To Howard’s Chapel (The Church Built Into A Rock); Ironically Driving A Lexus To See A Dinosaur Named Junkasaurus Wrecks; What Parents Do When The Kids Are Asleep With The Grandparents; Grandma Regifts As-Seen-On-TV “Perfect Polly” To Great-Grandson; I’ve Heard Of Sleepwalking, But… Sleep-Eating And Sleep-Playing?

2014 Toyota Corolla: Surviving The Polar Vortex Of 2014, Icicles And All

2014 Scion tC: Lightning McQueen, Donatello, Batman, Play-Doh… Nuff Said!

2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid: 2013 Toyota Avalon Hybrid Review, From The Dad’s Perspective; A Family That Recycles Together Doesn’t Decompose

2013 Toyota Rav4: 2013 Toyota Rav4 Review, From The Dad’s Perspective

2014 Toyota Tundra: Dad Gives 3 Year-Old Son A Monster Truck For Birthday… Sort Of; Nashville Dad Introduces 3 Year-Old Son To Country Music; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Build-A-Bear; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Little River Falls, AL; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Mountain Driving; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Canyon Land Park; 3rd Birthday Monster Truck Road Trip: Canyon Mouth Park

2013 Toyota Sienna: We’re Ready For A Family Road Trip… Minivan Style!; It’s Officially Cool To Drive A Minivan Now

7 Comments Posted on People, Storytelling, Uncategorized, Writing

I am the Human Spell Check

Bring me your misspelled words and incomplete sentences.

In school, I never studied for spelling tests (at least I never needed to) and I always got a “104” (perfect score plus I got the “challenge words” right as well).  The English language, as random and pieced-together as it is, has always made sense to me.  I wasn’t too bothered with the fact that the word “know” has a silent “k” (originally it was pronounced).  Nor was I ever really annoyed with the “I before E except after C” rule.

Somehow I’ve made sense out of the consistent inconsistency of our junkyard Spumoni language, borrowed mainly from our European ancestors- and also surprisingly from Yiddish, the universal language of the Jews, being that there are almost exactly the same number of Jews living in America as there are in Israel; accordingly, the United States has the 2nd highest Jewish population in the world.  Examples of adopted Yiddish words – bagel, klutz, schlub, schmooze, schmuck, shtick, schnozzle, tush, schlong.

And I’m convinced that my love of words has a lot to do with why I don’t really have a Southern accent, despite only living in the South (AL, FL, VA, TN).  Because I know how words are supposed to sound.  It’s not “ahss”, it’s “ice”.  It’s not “Toeyohduh”, it’s “Toyota”.  To speak in any distinct accent would be to stray from the standard American way of speaking.  I’m overaware of the way I pronounce words- only in rare occasions does a hint of Alabama come out of me.

I am the person in any given room who people ask, “How do you spell ‘initiate’”?  Then immediately, the word pops up in a translucent white font outlined in black, in my head.  I am that guy.  That can always save the day in times of a spelling crisis.  In college, I was the guy that all my dorm mates would bring their papers to for me to correct them the night before they were due.  And not only was it fun for me, but I took pride it doing it.

The downside of being a human spell check: I’m horrible at math and science.

The irony of writing about being a human spell check: I misspelled the word “spell check” in the title for this post by combining two words as one.  The real spell check caught it for me.

For a similar post by a similar but different writer, read http://stuffwhitepeoplelike.com/2008/05/12/99-grammar/.