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We spill a lot of ink writing about TRD, TRD Off-Road, Sport, and Limited versions of the Toyota Tacoma. They’re fun trucks with a lot of options and a lot of off-road capability. Sadly, the SR and SR5 versions of the Tacoma can get lost in the shuffle, but they’re great trucks for work, play, and saving a little money. They’re both also getting a few optional packages for 2023.

In the 1980s, SR5 was the top-level trim

In the 1980s, the SR5 was the top trim on many Toyotas. SR stood for Sport Rally, and SR5 was the Sport Rally Five Speed, when a truck with a five-speed manual gearbox was a luxury.

But, that was when Toyota’s small truck was just called the Toyota Pickup. The Tacoma name didn’t come around until 1995. So what is the SR package on a modern Tacoma and what’s the difference between SR and SR5?

What is the SR package on a new Toyota Tacoma?

On the Tacoma the SR is the base trim, and it starts at $28,600. The SR is usually spotted by its lack of any decals. It comes with many features that would be unimaginable when that original pickup came out, including a deck rail system, projector beam headlights, three USB ports, and Toyota Safety Sense standard.

Safety Sense is Toyota’s suite of driver’s aids. If you order the V6, you can also get dual-zone air conditioning, which is an option on the SR, and for the 2023 model year a seven-inch touchscreen.

What’s the difference between SR and SR5?

2023 SR5 Tacoma | Toyota

The SR5 takes an SR and simply adds more options. It has a starting MSRP of $30,390. You can order it in an access cab, or a double cab with a five-foot or six-foot long bed.

It comes with either the 159-horsepower four-cylinder or the 278-horsepower V6. But the SR5 comes standard with a leather-trimmed tilt steering wheel and Bluetooth, keyless entry, a limited slip differential, and several different appearance packages.

For 2023 Toyota added two new optional packages to the SR5, a new Chrome package and a new SX package. The Chrome Package has, well, more chrome. The SX adds some TRD-look accessories, such as the black fender flares.

We suppose Toyota never imagined there would be more than five speeds in a transmission when it named the original Sport Rally Five Speed : the SR and SR5 both have six-speed automatic transmissions today.

The TRD and Limited packages up the ante

The 2023 Toyota Tacoma parked in the desert sand
2023 Toyota Tacoma | Toyota

Toyota intends the SR as more of the work truck of its compact truck lineup. The SR5 is intended as the nicer version of the work truck, with enough niceties that you can commute with it and do some road trips and feel comfortable. However, that isn’t enough these days. Now Toyota offers seven different trims on the 2023 Tacoma.

The TRD versions add special off-road suspension setups, with the Sport and the Pro fitting different needs for hard-core off-roaders. The $41,355 Limited turns the truck into a luxury truck, but at its heart, it’s still a humble pickup truck.

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Writer - Sedans & Coupes

Dan Mayfield

Dan joined MotorBiscuit in 2022 with over 20 years of experience in journalism and a lifelong passion for anything related to the automotive industry. He grew up wrenching a 1949 Ford pickup truck and an MGB with his dad, learning how not to wire a fuel pump (he inadvertently set the MGB on fire).

After earning a bachelor’s degree in photojournalism from the University of New Mexico, Dan has contributed his expertise to a range of local outlets, including the City of Albuquerque, US Eagle, and the Alliance for Local Economic Prosperity.

On weekends, Dan spends Saturdays enjoying “cars and coffee” chats and, on Sundays, he’s watching the Route 66 Cruise roll through town. He also races motorcycles, and it’s not unusual to find him elbows-deep in his latest cafe racer build.

Taking advantage of the local desert terrain, Dan also enjoys exploring and driving off-road in his trusty Ram Rebel pickup truck, which provides personal insights into his contributions to our Trucks, SUVs, & Crossovers coverage. Dan strives to give our readers unique information about the dynamic automotive market, reading anything that has to do with cars, trucks, bikes, 4X4s, and, in his words, “everything with a motor.”

Dan has earned a number of accolades from the Public Relations Society of America, and is a University of Southern California, Annenberg School of Communication and Journalism Fellow.