Tundra to Tacoma

I am a current 2012 white tundra 4x4 owner currently have Iron bumpers, 3 inch leveling kit, stock 20s and tires. thinking about going to a Tacoma due to the mileage i am getting with the tundra 5-8mpg city and 10-12 highway. The Tundra is paid off but this gas mileage is atrocious. found a used 2017 i like TRD 4x4 offroad.

I have 2 kids in car seats 2 year old and 7 month old so 1 rear facing and the other front facing. current set up in the tundra is rear facing is in the middle and front facing is rear passenger side. wife usually sits behind me when i drive, in-case the 7month old starts getting wild. Anyone 2 kids and a Tacoma doing well?

Also i go to home depot to get your occasional wood, dirt, sheet rock, etc home improvement stuff.

I guess what I'm asking is does anyone who previously owned a Tundra and went Tacoma miss the size? or does anyone who currently owns a Tacoma wish they went bigger?

 

I’ve read of quite a few people on here who switch to a tundra and love the extra room. The back seats in the Tacoma’s are small, no way around it. It’s a small truck.

I don’t have any personal experience with this, but my opinion is to keep the full sized. If mpg is that killer, check out the f150 eco boost. The 4cyl twin turbo get damn near as good a mileage as a sedan. I’ve ridden in one and it’s quite nice.

 

Have u driven a 3rd gen?
It sounds like driving a civic to me.... your gunna miss your tq

 

Test drove it today, I guess I should've said i used to have a 2009 Tacoma and a 2016 4Runner with the 4.0L, only test drove it for a little bit though

 

Crunch the numbers. Getting half the mpg and no payment is probably cheaper still. I always calc total cost including increase in insurance if there is any.

I would have gotten a tundra but I got a better rate on taco and I got a manual. Other than that I think tundra wins in most categories.

That being said, this is “tacomaworld” so there might be some taco bias.

 

I have two daughters who capped out at 5ft 4 in. They are fine in the back seat of the double cab.

I have a wife who is 6ft, and a stepson who is currently 6ft 2in (and younger twin stepsons who will soon dwarf him).

At 5ft 8in, it is fine. At 6ft with long legs, it is tight.

The Tacoma bed is not 48" between the wheel wells, so it will not fit 4ft wide plywood or sheetrock. But the Tacoma's composite bed has a couple of notches for 2 x 6s at the height of the wheel well. If you know you are going to buy sheet rock, then stick the 2x6s in the notches, and you will not have a problem. You can also use them for a platform and slide stuff under them.

And get the 6ft bed. Every time I get in a car, I am reminded how much attention it takes to park it (as opposed to a go-cart of a car). But when you need the length, you have it. I have carried 4 x 6 x 12ft beams home in the back of my Tacoma (You have to use the front tiedowns....)

 

I used to own a 16 Tundra TRD Pro and sold it when I originally was supposed to be stationed overseas to a country that didn’t allow me to ship US spec’es vehicles. When my orders changed I got a Taco. I have one baby, but two dogs. While I love the extra manueverability of the smaller Taco, there are times when I miss the massive extra space of a CrewMax Tundra, especially with the baby and dogs. To put into perspective, I was getting 16mpg with a stock TRD Pro Tundra. I get 19-20 mpg with a stock Taco TRD OR DCSB with a MT. I also miss having the full power rear window for the dogs. A feature I didn’t think I would care much about. I love the taco, but when Toyota comes out with an all new Tundra, it may be a tempting switch. The ability to park in city spaces is a big plus though.

 

Coming from a full sized to a Tacoma in regards to interior size is a big disappointment. You said you took it for a test drive but did you happen to kid the car seats up and recreate scenarios that are your basic daily driving and use scenarios? If not I’d highly recommend you do so. My daughter is 14 and having her, her friends or anyone else in the back can be quite bother some with the seating position. I’m not tall either, and usually have to move my seat up. Just not a lot of room that never was an issue in a full sized. I’m just glad I don’t deal with that every day. Couldn’t imagine having car seats in the rear. Few of pictures then in here and they’re usually pretty wedged in and the seat only able to go back a few notches

 

Take your car seats to the dealership with you and see what its like, I see a lot of guys upgrade to tundras from tacomas for the very reason of limited backseats and having multiple backseats.

But keep in mind big tires and steel bumpers are going to decrease mpg on any truck, tacoma included. I feel like you could end up missing the large cab space.

 

Thanks for the advice guys, I guess I should've said in my original post that we did do the car seats and it was a tight squeeze.

I also probably should've mentioned that the entire family me, wife, and 2 kids have all probably rode in the tundra a hand full of times, like count on one hand. Usually when we go anywhere we take the minivan.

It is usually just me in the truck or me and my son just cruising around doing random things to entertain him.

I have also learned my lesson on iron bumpers, lift kit and tires. I will probably keep the taco stock with only minor cosmetic upgrade like blacked out badges.

 

I have a car seat in the back of my tacoma. For me to sit comfortably the car seat is pressed against my seat pretty tight. My wife sits behind with my son. Her only complaint is that the back seats are too straight, but that comes with any truck.

If your main concern is mpgs’s try going back to stock with the tires and heavy bumpers. You will also make some money trading/ selling the after market parts.

Anyways, my opinion..
1) you will definitely notice the size difference. Up to you if it bothers you or not.
2)Not having a car payment is amazing, try to keep it that way.

 

a tacoma is way too small for that..

after my lease is up i'm going full size truck.. tacoma is just too small inside for me the wife our 9 year old and a couple of dogs. i couldn't imagine trying to fit 3 car seats in a tacoma..

i have a couple of friends that have full size trucks and are actually getting decent MPG.. they aren't toyotas though..

i like the tundra and its on my list of full size trucks to check out when the time comes but the more i think about it the more i think if i'm gonna get that bad of mpg i may as well get a 3/4 ton and have better payload and towing then the tundra..

 

a ford eco boost might be worth looking at. mileage similar to a tacoma, and comfortable in the back. and room for your family to grow. (I have a taco access cab and love it.)

 

I own both a 15' 5.7 Tundra crewmax and a 18' TRD Pro Tacoma double cab. First off mpg is closer for me that most would think....I get around 15.5-17 mpg in the Tundra (2wd Crewmax SR5 TRD with 275/65-18 KO2) and I get 17-18 mpg in the Taco. Not a huge difference in yearly running cost and perhaps closer mpg for me personally as I have to zing the torque deprived 3.5L in the Tacoma quite a bit to get my desired acceleration rate. The Tundra is significantly faster, roomier, and more comfortable (seats are awesome for long days). I can tow whatever I need with the Tundra, but prefer not to tow more than 3-4k lbs with the Taco personally. I live in a fairly rural area so no issue with size, parking, etc. of the Tundra.
I like the Tacoma for my commute, but if I had to choose one it would be the Tundra for sure. Love the torque of the V8, it has a much better auto transmission, and it is the most comfortable vehicle I have owned and have done many long distance trips with it. Everyone has their thing, but I'll take the reliability and resale over a few extra mpg when comparing to newer refresh designs from Ford, Dodge, Chevy, etc. When compared with the Taco I think the Tundra is long due for a re-design, but still find it a better overall vehicle for me than the Tacoma. Lucky to have both. Maybe keep your paid off Tundra and get a 4runner for kid hauling?

 

I own a 2015 Taco and a 2018 crew max 5.7... the mileage isn't that different, but the space definitely is. Both are bone stock. 17mpg on the taco, 15-16 on the tundra. Put your tundra on a diet and go back towards stock. You can't have giant tires heavy bumpers and 30mpg!!!

 

I gotta say I don't understand the sentiment that having kids=need full size truck. My parents rocked a late 80's Dodge Colt hatchback for many years with me and my sister. My access cab is spacious compared to that thing, and we'd even do road trips in it.

I think a Tacoma would be great for OPs occasional kid hauling.

 

I went from 05 Tundra Off Road access cab to a 11 Tacoma DCLB. The drivers position of the Turndra is much more comfortable, the seating position is dramatically better. The 18/20mpg gas mileage is great compared the Tundras 14/17mpg. I saved $3000 in 125,000 miles. Some may argue that $3000 over seven years is peanuts, but it’s 10,000 rounds of M855.

 

Was about to say the same thing. Makes me wonder what people were driving/riding in before vehicles started getting bloated in size.

 

I have a 18 Tacoma DCLB. I have a 3 and 4 year old. With both seats a permanent fixture in the back there isn’t much room. But it works and I’m able to get in and out of parking lots etc better then a full size. I’m 6ft tall and my son sits behind me in a forward facing seat. I don’t adjust my seat when he is back there and he is just fine. Having more room would be nice but not worth it for the drawbacks of MPG, parking and up front cost of a full size.

We are able to fit all 4 of us, a bunch of crap (my wife severely overpacks), coolers, bikes and camping gear just fine. Be creative when packing, use the space between car seats, the floorboard under the kids dangling feet.

The payload is a little low with a Taco but plenty good for the average load of DIY goods to carry home. I used to use my 09 Tacoma with airbags on the rear to carry a lot of lumber when I was building custom homes.

If you don’t mind the wonky shifting of the new Taco it’s a great truck. It doesn’t bother me and hopefully it’s even better after I get the new TSB.

Fully loaded with wife, 2 toddlers and camping gear etc for 4 days.