Considering buying a Taco, a few questions...

I went from a 2013 Subaru Outback to a DCLB. Took me about a 2-3 weeks to get used to driving a truck. I went with a used 2015 DCLB Limited with 15k mi over a new 2017. My price out the Door with Mass tax title and reg was $30K.

The long bed does have a little longer turn radius, barely will fit in my garage but I certainly like the Long bed.

 

4door long bed done. I had a K2500 Suburban turbo diesel before. Taco turning radius, high center, blah blah....
I was manual specific owner until the 'burb and realized that the automatic was easier for how my wife and I use the vehicle. And you cannot get a 4DLB with a manual. I prefer the 6' bed over the stick, and Crawl going uphil works very well.
Sleep in the 6' bed comfortably if needed and all yer stuff fit in the bed. Be wise and at least get a hitch rack like the wicked Thule T2 Classic or Pro, over the tail gate pads which are ok at best (I work in the bicycle industry, 25+ years) and you get what you pay for.
Yeah the OR package has more body roll and softer suspension, though it is better that you would belive on the pavement.

 

You got me curious. Ford Super Duty Crew Cab w/ 8' bed - 50.4. Okay, that was an issue too.

 

I went with a long bed. Only bad thing is they are hard to find. When I bought mine I had 3 to choose from in 400 mile radius of Charlotte NC. I did choose the SR5 you may have better luck tho

 

Or you just order the truck you want once you decide, mine took about 7 weeks from order to delivery. That way there's no pressure to "drive then buy" only what's on the lot and you can take your time in deciding.

I also have 7 dealerships in a 100 mile radius so just waiting to see what shows up and get lucky was a gamble.

 

Are you sir bummed you did not wait to get a 3rd gen?

 

LoL Exactly the opposite. I'm very glad I DIDN'T wait. Because I almost did.

 

I was the same way when I bought my 04; happy to get the most updated of the 1st gen when that shitshow debut of the 2nd gen first came out.

 

I remember the Forums when the 2nd Gens came out, most of the complaining was about the physical larger size with guys being afraid they would not fit on the trails, and the squared fenderwells drew much criticism of saying Toyota stole an ugly GM design feature.

 

Cool! Glad the truck is working out for you.

I work with a woman who has a late 2nd gen DCLB, I showed her a pic of the one I drove, and she was like "Get it, you'll love it!". I asked her if she ever thought her LB was too long, or had trouble parking it, and she seemed a little surprised at the question and was like "huh? no, it's great. No problem at all".

I actually already have a good hitch rack, it's a Kuat 2 bike tray style rack. It lives permanently on the back of my Volvo, I use it all the time.

I was thinking if I got the SB to get a hard tonneau for it, and just use it like a trunk, and use the rack for the bikes. Unless I'm shuttling, chances are I'll only have one or two. My friends and I never carpool to ride or camp, we all live in different places and like our freedom as far as how long we stay, and also, nobody seems to want to take their bike gear out of their car anyway. Generally I prefer to be in the car alone anyway. I prob should just get an AC, then I won't need to worry about the bed at all, only one choice! I really like the idea of the DC and the extra cab space though, so I doubt I'd go the AC route. The salesman I talked to even said his one regret was going AC over DCSB.

I was actually thinking the DC with the rear seats removed would be great.

 

So did you buy your truck yet, mike?

 

I was on the fence as well for a long bed, but after months of searching for the truck I wanted I could never find one in my price range, options, color or within my radius I was willing to drive. I lucked out and found a 2016 SB with a shell preinstalled with only 9k miles for $35k close to home with everything I wanted so I took my chance and never looked back. I've taken it camping a few times already and I've hadn't an issue packing my equipment along with my 5 pits. This is my first Tacoma coming from a Scion tC and it makes a world of difference. Not hating on a long bed but the short bed does me just fine for what I need.

 

See my replies (IndyZen) within your text above.

 

imho I dont think the long bed can really do a whole lot more than the shortbed can. Your payload capacity is still the same and for the most part there are options out there that allow you to maximize your space. If you are a packrat with a topper you can cram more in but from what I've seen its a lot of underutilized space. With a tonnau cover, rack or topper in whatever configuration you want, you can accomplish what you want in a shortbed.

 

I don't think there's been a single time in nearly 2 years of ownership that I've said "Shit I wished I had bought the Long Bed"

In fact the short bed is just more practical for every day use, driving and maneuvering around town.

I bet @jsinnard kicks himself all of the time, secretly, for having wasted that extra $650 on the long bed and now having to deal with parking that weiner mobile. Every time he sits at the stoplight, the folks next to him are thinking "wonder why he felt the need to compensate with a Long bed".... Oh the Shame!

 

Get the frickin long bed you need the room. You won t regret your choice.

 

I was just rereading this thread, I got some great advice here! To update everyone, I'm still waffling, haha.

I decided that I'd prefer the shortbed, and my 2 top color choices are now Blue Pearl and Super White. Still dead set on a OR.

My local dealers still have plenty of 17'son the lots, and in those colors, so I'm going to email them after Xmas to see what kind of deals are to be had.

I finally rolled 200k in the Volvo a few weeks ago, btw.