Long bed vs Short bed?

I had a Toyota truck with a true 8 ft bed at one time in 1993. T-100. Worst Toyota truck I ever had but it sure did serve it's purpose at the time with the huge box. Had it one week and hauled about 25 cut tree logs 4-6 inches in diameter and 4 ft long stacked 3 high in the back about 400 feet on a smooth gravel road to the wood shed. That quick trip caved in the wheel wells inside the box on my then brand new truck. Had to install a 3/4 inch plywood box liner to cover up the damaged inside of the bed after that. Very light weight body panels. Hauled a full round lift of 100 four inch banded fence posts about 50 miles with very little front steering. It was underpowered and not heavy duty in any way shape or form, but man I did a lot with that truck clearing trees for a road and building my house. Manual trans but not great on gas.

 

If I recall, the T100 was exactly the same running gear as the 3rd Gen pickups. Same engine, same suspension, same drivetrain, same frame. They just inserted steel to make it wider and longer.

 

Thats interesting if it is correct. The T-100 was Toyota's first attempt at a full size truck. They figured they wanted to compete with Ford, Chevy and Dodge, but really missed the mark there. I can't recall what engine I had other than it was a 6 cyl. Toyota tried to keep it light by using very thin body panels. Leaning on the box on the outside left a dent- not an exaggeration. It was not a powerhouse. The T-100 was re-designed a couple of times and eventually became the Tundra for those in need of a full size true long box. But thats a different forum.

 

The reason I went long bed is I love the longer body lines. Not to mention it’s different, I dont seen nearly as many LBs as shortys. It’s cool being different in my opinion. Either choice is a good one though.

 

Short beds rule!

The idea that you need a long bed to haul big stuff is silly and only spouted by folks with a LB.

 

It's really personal preference, no right or wrong choice if based on needs. Owned both DCSB and Access Cabs. A DCLB will ride a bit smoother, harder to park and manuever in some situations. On snowy roads the longer wheel base of the DCLB tracks better, harder to spin out.

 

My $.02 if i need a long bed i wouldve bought a tundra

 

I went DCLB-OR because I wanted max utility from my first truck (towing/camping >off-roading for my needs). Plus, my old man would have chided me for getting a "useless SB" (his words). Nothing wrong with the SB; obviously its the most popular config.

 

I do a lot of the same things as you it seems. I have a short bed and it works fine for hauling work tools, heavy ass equipment, ski/snowboard gear, 11’+ fishing poles, coolers, camping gear, hunting rifles, deer and elk quarters, etc (not at the same time lol). I think you’d be ok with a short bed for what you listed.

I will say that when I bough the truck, I test drove a long bed and the driving dynamics of a long bed felt quite a bit different. The long bed felt like a full size truck whereas the short bed had a better turning radius and drove like a smaller vehicle. Just $0.02 of opinion

 

For many people a Tacoma is just like a 4Runner with an open rear. How many people have 4Runners that never put anything in the back? Extra cab small trucks came around in the mid-80s, and true 4 door small trucks did not come around until about 2000, was Frontier, the first? Crew cabs in 3/4 ton were actually pretty rare, and now are common place. I think in the old days, 1970s real trucks were so spartan and rough riding people did not consider them as everyday vehicles, but with modern advances even the biggest trucks can have a car like ride and creature comforts. We know that lots of people prefer to have a commanding view of the road and we still have fairly low fuels cost in the US. The Tacoma has a similar interior volume as a Civic or Corolla with a more commanding view and a bed for occasional, or perhaps never use. Many, many trucks on the road are never used as trucks.

 

comfort them or the smack em? Sorry, gave me flashbacks of my childhood. I was the older brother so got lots of “if you don’t stop picking on your brother and sister...”

When my parents upgraded to an Aerostar and I was out of reach, I really got ballsy. Pulling the car over to smack was a lot more effort. Still happened though

 

I owned a 1st gen DCSB 4x4. It worked fine at the time as there was no DCLB Tacoma in 2001.

If you need to travel a couple of hundred miles in the rain with some housewares, tools and a 5’9” cardboard box in the bed, and the cab loaded to the ceiling, the extra 13 inches just works a lot better.
Completely filling the long bed with stuff crammed up to the ceiling has been a regular occurrence for me during the last year.

If Toyota built it, I’d buy a DCLB Tacoma with a 6”6” bed.

 

You need a placard on either side of the wood for angle parking at the shopping center.

 

My mid-size truck has a mid-size bed ;p


But to OP:
I couldn't justify buying 20% less truck for the same money.

 

With the long bed, you get almost 22% more bed length. 60.5” vs 73.7”

Don’t sell yourself short.

 

Also helps that I'm 73.5“ tall. I've got 0.2“ extra to lay down!
Id really hate to have to chop off my ankles to fit.

 

I got a longbed soo I can sleep in the back.... But i'm only 5.2.... I GOT A LOT OF LEG ROOM. and for actives....