TOYOTA TACOMA 2003 Owners Manual (in English)

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
1752003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
To cool off your Toyota after it has
been parked in the hot sun, drive with
the windows open for a few minutes.
This vents the hot air, allowing the air
conditioning to cool the interior more
quickly.
Make sure the air intake grilles in front
of the windshield are not blocked (by
leaves or snow, for example).
On humid days, do not blow cold air
on the windshield. The windshield could
fog up because of the difference in air
temperature on the inside and outside
of the windshield.
Keep the area under the front seats
clear to allow air to circulate through-
out the vehicle.
On cold days, set the fan speed to
high for a minute to help clear the
intake ducts of snow or moisture. This
can reduce the amount of fogging on
the windows.
When driving on dusty roads, close all
windows. If dust thrown up by the ve-
hicle is still drawn into the vehicle after
closing the windows, it is recommended
that the air intake selector be set to
FRESH and the fan speed selector to
any setting except “OFF”.
Air flow selector settings
Double cab models
Operating tips

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
1762003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
If following another vehicle on a dusty
road, or driving in windy and dusty
conditions, it is recommended that the
air intake selector be temporarily set to
RECIRCULATE, which will close off the
outside passage and prevent outside
air and dust from entering the vehicle
interior.Heating
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed— Any setting except “OFF”
Temperature— To w a r d s WARM
(red zone)
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—FLOOR
Air conditioning—OFF
For quick heating, select recirculated
air for a few minutes. To keep the
windows from fogging, select fresh af-
ter the vehicle interior has been
warmed.
Press the “A/C” button on for dehumidi-
fied heating.
Choose floor/windshield air flow to heat
the vehicle interior while defrosting or
defogging the windshield. Air conditioning
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed— Any setting except “OFF”
Temperature— To w a r d s COLD
(blue zone)
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—PANEL
Air conditioning—ON
For quick cooling, move the air intake
selector to recirculate for a few min-
utes.
Ventilation
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed— Any setting except “OFF”
Temperature— To w a r d s COLD
(blue zone)
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—PANEL
Air conditioning—OFF

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Defogging
The inside of the windshield
For best results, set controls to:Fan speed— Any setting except “OFF”
Temperature— To w a r d s WARM
(red zone) to heat;
COLD (blue zone) to
cool
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—WINDSHIELD
Turning the air flow selector to the wind-
shield or floor/windshield position turns on
the defogging function with the purpose of
clearing the front view.
When turning the air flow selector to wind-
shield or floor/windshield position, the air
intake selects FRESH automatically. This
is to clean up the front view more quickly.
If you want to return the setting to
RECIRCULATE mode, press the air intake
selector button once again.
Vehicles with “A/C” button—
Press the “A/C” button for dehumidified
heating or cooling. This setting clears the
front view more quickly.
On humid days, do not blow cold air
on the windshield—the difference be-
tween the outside and inside tempera-
tures could make the fogging worse.
Defrosting
The outside of the windshield
For best results, set controls to:
Fan speed— Any setting except “OFF”
Temperature— To w a r d s WARM
(red zone)
Air intake—FRESH (outside air)
Air flow—WINDSHIELD
Turning the air flow selector to the wind-
shield or floor/windshield position turns on
the defogging function with the purpose of
clearing the front view.
When turning the air flow selector to wind-
shield or floor/windshield position, the air
intake selects FRESH automatically. This
is to clean up the front view more quickly.
If you want to return the setting to
RECIRCULATE mode, press the air intake
selector button once again.
Vehicles with “A/C” button—
Press the “A/C” button for dehumidified
heating or cooling. This setting clears the
front view more quickly.
To heat the vehicle interior while de-
frosting the windshield, choose floor/
windshield air flow.

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If air flow control is not satisfactory, check
the side vents. The side vents may be
opened or closed as shown.
Side vents

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1792003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
OPERATION OF INSTRUMENTS AND
CONTROLS
Other equipment
Clock180
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Cigarette lighter and ashtray 180
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Power outlets 181
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Glove box 182
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Auxiliary box 182
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Rear console boxes 183
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Front cup holder 184
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Rear cup holder 186
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Seatback table 187
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Grocery bag and cargo net hooks 188
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Roof luggage carrier 188
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Floor mat 189
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Installing front license plate 190
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SECTION 1 9

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
1802003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
The digital clock indicates the time.
The key must be in the “ACC” or “ON”
position.
To reset the hour: Push the “H” button.
To reset the minutes: Push the “M” button.
If quick adjustment to a full hour is de-
sired, push the “:00” button.
For example, if the “:00” button is de-
pressed when the time is between
1:01—1:29, the time will change to 1:00.
If the time is between 1:30—1:59, the
time will change to 2:00.If the electrical power source has been
disconnected from the clock, the time dis-
play will automatically be set to 1:00 (one
o’clock).
When the instrument panel lights are
turned on, the brightness of the time in-
dication will be reduced.CIGARETTE LIGHTER
To use the cigarette lighter, press it in.
After it finishes heating up, it automati-
cally pops out ready for use.
If the engine is not running, the key must
be in the “ACC” position.
Do not hold the cigarette lighter pressed
in.
Use a Toyota genuine cigarette lighter or
equivalent for replacement.
Clock
Cigarette lighter and ashtray

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1812003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
ASHTRAY
To use the ashtray, pull it out.
When finished with your cigarette, thor-
oughly extinguish it in the ashtray to pre-
vent other cigarette butts from catching
fire. After using the ashtray, push it back
in completely.
To remove the ashtray, press down on the
lock spring plate and pull out.
CAUTION
To reduce the chance of injury in
case of an accident or sudden stop
while driving, always completely close
the ashtray after use.
The power outlets are designed for
power supply for car accessories.
The key must be in the “ACC” or “ON”
position for the power outlets to be used.
NOTICE
To prevent the fuse from being
blown, do not use the electricity
over the total vehicle capacity of
12V/120W.
 To prevent the battery from being
discharged, do not use the power
outlets longer than necessary when
the engine is not running.
Close the power outlet lids when
the power outlets are not in use.
Inserting a foreign object other than
the appropriate plug that fits the
outlet, or allowing any liquid into
the outlet may cause electrical fail-
ure or short circuits.
Power outlets

’03 Tacoma U (L/O 0209)
1822003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
To open the glove box door, pull the
lever.
On some models, the glove box light will
come on when the glove box is open with
the instrument panel lights on.
CAUTION
To reduce the chance of injury in
case of an accident or a sudden stop,
always keep the glove box door
closed while driving.
To use the box, do the following.
Pull up on the lock release lever and
open the lid.
This box is equipped with a coin holder
and a cassette tape holder.1. Coin holder: To use it, push coins down into the holder. The coin holder
is detachable.
To remove: Pull the coin holder straight
up.
To install: Push the coin holder straight
down.
2. Cassette tape holder: The dividing plate for the cassette tape holder is detach-
able.
CAUTION
To reduce the chance of injury in
case of an accident or a sudden stop,
always keep the auxiliary box closed
while driving.
Glove box Auxiliary box
(xtracab models)

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1832003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
Upper box
Lower box
Rear box
UPPER BOX
To use the upper box, pull up on the
lock release lever and open the lid.
This box is equipped with a coin hold-
er. To use it, push coins down into the
holder. The coin holder is detachable.
To remove: Pull the coin holder straight
up.
To install: Push the coin holder straight
down.LOWER BOX
To use the lower box, rotate upper box
up until it is fully back, then pull up
the lock release lever, and open the lid.
REAR BOX
To use rear box, pull on the handle.
CAUTION
To reduce the chance of injury in
case of an accident or a sudden stop
while driving, keep the upper box,
lower box and rear box closed when
it is not in use.
Rear console boxes

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1842003 MY TACOMA (OM35800U)
The cup holder is designed for holding
cups or drinkcans securely.
CAUTION
Do not place anything else other than
cups or drinkcans in the cup holder,
as such items may be thrown about
in the compartment and possibly in-
jure people in the vehicle during sud-
den braking or in an accident.
The cup holder is designed for holding
cups or drinkcans securely.
CAUTION
Do not place anything else other than
cups or drinkcans in the cup holder,
as such items may be thrown about
in the compartment and possibly in-
jure people in the vehicle during sud-
den braking or in an accident.
The cup holder is designed for holding
cups or drinkcans securely.
To use the second cup holder, pull it out.
CAUTION
Do not use the second cup holder
when you sliding the bench seat
(regular cab models) or move pas-
senger ’s seat for rear seat entry
(xtracab models). The seat may in-
terfere with second cup holder and
the drink may spill over the occu-
pants. If the spilled drink is hot, it
may cause burns.
Front cup holder (type A) Front cup holder (type B) Front cup holder (type C)