Alternatives to Gen 3 Tacoma?

OP.......look at the 2015 Tacos, there are still a few deals to be had. I, too, was not a huge fan of the 2016, but would have still ordered one if they configured it the way I want. Looked hard at the F150 but chickened out and instead got a killer lease deal on a 2015 SR5. Now I can postpone my decision 3 years.

 

I think if your primary focus is off road use, then no there is very little or no overlap. If your goal is 95% commuter and need a bed to put stuff in, then there is a lot of overlap with positive and negatives to both imo.

 

NO OFFROAD?!

 

LOL.. some people just want a good truck that crazy reliable and has outstanding resale value without the need for stellar off road capability. If this is the case and they don't care about the size of the vehicle midsize vs. full, then they are very comparable and a good argument can be made to go full size, pretty much same money and mpgs for the 2.7 f-150. I'm not saying I favor the idea, because I love Toyota trucks, but just that it's a valid argument with the current pricing structure.

 

This is madness.


But I guess I see your point. I would argue that the actual cost of ownership for an F150 is MUCH higher, even if that fat rebate off the sticker makes it look pretty close. If you actually want a suburban grandpa truck, you probably have to throw ridgeline in the mix as well.

 

If you want some comfort and off road capability and reliability, there is no other choice...Taco
If you want comfort and reliability but not strictly off road, Ridgeline too. If you want full size......Ford.

 

1/2 ton seems like no man's land to me. Why would anyone want a 1/2 ton. Gimme a big deeezul. Ok, I get it. Gimme an offroad juggernaut midsize. Ok, I get it. 1/2 ton is just not really good at anything. I mean, I guess I did consider a Tundra, but literally the only selling point to me was it looks cool.

 

LOL.. I was just making the case that there can be a some crossover depending on the individuals needs; however, I do agree with your assessment. I think even at a higher price point the Tacoma is the best choice. I worry about the long term reliability of ecoboost engines including carbon buildup issues that would keep me away from that engine. If it was out for 10 years and people were getting 300k out of them it wouldn't be a concern.

 

Nah, you did make the case. I just can't imagine myself ever thinking oi, lemme get one of them "not really good at anything" half tons.

 

Tundra Pro/Con versus Tacoma

PROS
looks cool

CONS
everything else


Then again, I guess that's one more tick than the F150

 

As you know, what additional measures that kill off road is length and width. That's why the Taco can never be the all around player the standard cab was that they stopped making like your picture. Full size ford is out of the picture and the last would be the access cab and DC with SB. What ever is tough in traffic, is difficult off road.

 

What about towing a 6500lb trailer, or loading a pallet of wood pellets, or what if I'm 6'5 and can't fit in a Tacoma, what if I have to haul my family of 5 and they're big peoples? Tacoma just doesn't quite fit those scenarios, but I don't want to spend 50k on a nice 3/4 ton.

 

Fortunately I have an '05 Tundra 4WD which isn't as good offroad as a 2016 TRD OffRoad (but what is really). Good enough with 10.5 inches stock ground clearance. Best Toyota truck I've owned by far.

 

The Tundra needs to be redesigned in order to be more competitive. Its a good truck but it doesn't feel like Toyotas effort. They say that they are at capacity and can't build anymore trucks. So build a new factory and force yourself to be more competitive. I am sure they lose tons of sales a year due to the crappy fuel mileage on the Tundra alone.

 

I don't own a toyota pickup no mo, sold the gen2 as well. I'm not gonna lie. Even though I've been advocating pretty hard for gen3, I'm seriously considering buying a Lexus ES or GS instead. And an early 90's regular cab toyota pickup.

 

Other than the 4Runner, there are no better off-road alternatives in the same price vacinity to the Tacoma. Peace of mind of the fact that I can go almost anywhere reliably, to me, is more valuable than the 2mpg saved with the Colorado and Canyon. The Ridgeline, SMH, isn't even a real truck and redundant compared to the Tacoma. It's literally a crossover with a bed. The Frontier is dinosaur bones even when compared to the 2nd gen Tacoma. Pretty much any full-size truck right now is a good value, especially since you can get a lot of them with the $10K incentives due to fleet sales. But other than the Raptor, Rebel, and Tundra TRD Pro (which are in the high-end of the full-size spectrum), none of them are good off-road.

 

The best off road truck that Toyota will never make, is a standard cab, with the off road appointments and a 2.7 four six speed auto or manual. Off road ATrac, locking diffential with crawl control with a small truck and well balanced four is the epitome of off road potential...you will never see !

 

I was going to buy a 4Runner but am going with the Tacoma due to the fact I can do more with the box. Already have 2 SUVs at home and would be way more convenient having a truck.

 

The off-road argument is the most important point for "off-roaders", but Toyota states that only 40 percent of their car buyers go off road. That leaves 60% who are buying for hauling, commuting, resale value and reliability. That's a lot of people who may see more value in a full size or other midsize choice if off-roading is out of the equation.

 

MPG isn't end-all/be-all to me, but the Tundra is just unacceptable on mpg. I had a Silverado (don't ask), which fell apart as you'd expect, but I always, always got 23mpg on the highway. A friend has an '08 Tundra and I drove it on a 2 hour highway trip. On the highway, I drive like a fairy...I got 13.xmpg. I couldn't believe it. That's not a trivial difference, that's a couple thousand a year for me. I have a real hard time justifying that. I do pretty well for myself, but pissing away money just doesn't sit well with me.