When it comes to topics I actually want to cover, new paint colors are pretty darn close to the bottom of the list. Most of the time, it’s just a new variation on the same grayscale theme that’s turned our roads and parking lots into a sea of generic sameness, hitting the minimum word count is almost always a pain and the overwhelming majority of our readers couldn’t care less. So when Toyota emailed me to announce a new TRD Pro color, I groaned. Then I clicked and was greeted with images of a new light blue that’s so good, it’s actually worth writing about.Â
It isn’t like Toyota is incapable of offering good colors. Just look at the Electric Lime Metallic it gave the 2022 Tacoma TRD Pro. And while Toyota initially refused to sell the redesigned Prius in the U.S. with a yellow paint option, 2025 Prius Nightshade Edition buyers now have that choice. But despite the press release’s claim that “Wave Maker joins an impressive pedigree of exciting TRD Pro colors,” if you hop on Toyota’s configurator, there are no exciting TRD Pro colors to be found.Â
For example, your choices on a 2025 4Runner TRD Pro are literally black, white, dark gray and mud. The Tacoma offers the same options, but no matter which one you prefer, the roof comes in black. Switch to either the Tundra or Sequoia TRD Pros, and again, the closest thing to a good color is Mudbath, and that isn’t even an actual color. Because of that, I’m not just excited to see that Wave Maker is an objectively fantastic light blue. I’m also excited you can actually get a TRD Pro in a real color again. More of this, please, Toyota.
Make your rowdy intentions known
Unfortunately for whoever Toyota tasked with writing this particular press release it’s hard to make a new paint color sound exciting while also pleasing the C-suite. And wow, this Wave Maker announcement sure does lay it on thick. I mean, just read the opening paragraph. I love it so much:
Color can evoke strong emotions and inspire our inner adventurer. A vehicle’s color makes a bold outward statement to the world about inner ambitions. The all-new color Wave Maker is exclusive to 2026 TRD Pro models and is a striking shade of blue that makes your rowdy intentions known to the world.
If you buy a TRD Pro in Wave Maker, you aren’t just buying the one good paint color. You aren’t picking the option that will make your truck easier to find in the Costco parking lot. You’re “[making] a bold outward statement to the world about inner ambitions.” Clearly, you have “rowdy intentions” and want to make that known. What those rowdy intentions are isn’t entirely clear, but don’t you dare keep them to yourself. You wouldn’t want to disappoint your inner adventurer.
Express your elemental spirit
Of course, you can’t conclude a press release without a statement from some sort of corporate boss, either. And here, the Wave Maker also delivers with a quote attributed to Benjamin Jimenez, General Manager at CALTY’s Ann Arbor location, that reads:
We had a few years of warm natural hues inspired by traditional landscapes like Terra and Mudbath as signature colors. With Wave Maker we were inspired by unexplored areas of adventure including extreme territory and even beyond earth. Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit that evokes images of glacial depths and the thrill of new frontiers.
“Inspired by unexplored areas…even beyond earth [sic]”? “Wave Maker expresses an elemental spirit”? 10/10, no notes. That’s 100% how you give a quote about a new paint option.
And now that you can finally get them in a Good Color again, I expect every single one of you to be a Wave Maker if you buy a 2026 TRD Pro. Don’t you want to express your elemental spirit and make your rowdy intentions known?
I mean, sure, Toyota still hasn’t revealed how much the Wave Maker paint option will cost, but the 2025 Tacoma TRD Pro is already a $65,000 truck before dealer markups, so it’s not like even an extra $1,000 or even $2,500 actually matters. It’s the only good color! Now, if only Toyota would let customers actually order the exact truck they want in the exact color they want…
