Thinking about going to look at this 2wd....

just buy a set of chains and throw a couple sandbags in the bed when its snowy out. you will be fine.

 

Yeah, he is obviously on a budget though and having to weigh renting a car to get to work vs. buying a truck. Every day renting could be money towards a truck , lots for him to think about. If the job is secure and he can find a deal he likes, it seems like sooner is better than later due to the cost of renting imho. It really mostly comes down to his comfort level.

 

yup....and ive only had to go into the office for work a few times since this whole virus nightmare started...which means........its probably a wash so far as i am saving money on gas and hours sitting in rush hour ever day. Thats the what i have justified it when i have had to do it.

 

Saving on insurance too.

 

I'm the same way. Living in a northern climate I would never consider a non 4x4/AWD vehicle. That said, this seems like a really good deal and if your work allows WFH and you can avoid travel after snowstorms, it might not be so bad. I'd probably skip it and find one that's is 4x4 myself, but the price is good for a third gen model.

 

Funny thing is years ago hardly anyone had 4wd drive up here except plow guys. Everyone drove rear drive full size sedans and 2wd drive trucks. And Saabs, lots and lots of Saabs ;-)

If you are smart about outfitting your 2wd with proper tires and some weight it really isn't too bad. Obviously if you live in an area where 2wd absolutely won't cut it then yeah, 4wd is the way to go. My first 4wd was the 2008 Tacoma I bought brand new (when I joined TW). New house was off the beaten path and had a long, icy, hilly driveway. 4wd was a must in that case, I wouldn't have trusted my mad skills with 2wd ;-)

You are right though: Having only 2wd and needing 4wd at some point means you are kinda screwed.

 

It's not the year/ generation, it's the mileage, truck is almost halfway used up and its not that much less than a new one

 

found another just listed ......2012 4x4 50k miles.....21 grand. Prices are insane around here.....although at 50k miles i guess maybe thats not too out of line.....

I have no way to get to the dealership to even look at it at this point so i dont know why i bother looking but i need to do something here

 

This is why I go out of state when I buy cars. Got my 2018 trd offroad long bed brand new with 3 miles on it for $33k (out the door) from Pennsylvania. I looked at the same trucks here in MN all going for $38k. I still find used ones of the same trim with 30k miles on them for what I paid new for mine.

 

I wouldnt even consider a 2WD in a snow state. 4WD isnt necessary, but man does it help.

 

Living in upstate NY and western Mass., I wouldn't say AWD or 4WD is necessary for snowy weather. I drove a manual Honda Civic for many winters without issue. Between the 2, AWD is definitely better than 4WD as you will have better starting traction and grip at all times, not when you decide you need it and have to switch to 4 hi/low. But neither AWD nor 4WD will be of any extra help if you lose traction. Once you start sliding, nothing's gonna help. The best setup will prevent you from losing traction from the start.
A manual transmission, a good set of snow tires and experience driving in snow is the best setup for winter driving. With that you could drive a 2WD, 4WD or AWD in the snow and be fine.

 

I always tell my wife its 4 wheel go, not 4 wheel stop when she complains that her AWD rx330 doesnt stop better than her kia on ice.

 

4x4 fanboys will be along soon.

 

ive lived here in this frozen hell all my life. 2wd is fine. A lot of folks rarely see snow in the US and on the rare days it does snow in that state they all drive 10mph and shut the state down because they have no idea what to do. Here its just another day. You shovel like hell and you go to work. Back in the 80s i dont remember ANYONE that has a 4x4 and none of them died....

These days everyone thinks they "need" it. Dont get my wrong....its nice to have. NO doubt there. I love it.....but surely it isnt needed. You are right. It is 4 wheel go......not 4 wheel stop. A 4x4 does nothing for stopping and if nothing else causes a false sense of safety until you need to stop causing people to drive to fast. Again i am speaking about unexperienced drivers here. 4x4 is awesome to have and use if you can justify it.

I have never been offroading so i cant speak to that. Im a working stiff just trying to get back and forth to work for 45+ years so he can retire,ive about 5 years of my own life and then die. I think thats how that works anyway....

 

I assume 33K didn't include TTL?

 

Nope, that was everything. 33k got me everything, I saw the price, called them up and said put it on hold. My dad was passing through Pennsylvania so he picked it up and drove it over to MN. So I guess if you include my dads time, and the gas to drive 1k miles its a little more than 33k.

 

You'll be fine with 2wd, the only thing you will need help with is at stop lights after a snowfall. The pack ice wont let you move unless you put some good weight in the bed.

 

Solid price - 31.5ish for the truck (I figure 500 for title and another 2000 in tax). I thought I did good on my 19 at 34K before TTL.

Edit - I thought it was a OR double cab long bed 4x4. They were going for 39ish when I was looking. Still solid price.

 

Mine is a OR double cab LB 4x4, The dealer I got it from does a lot of mainly online sales and ships the cars to people. So they price them super cheap and make money in finance. I paid cash so I got my price, then just mailed them a check. Didnt even have to deal with finance other than a few texts back and forth about insurance and a copy of my license.

I think one of the things I had in my favor was that its inferno with the orange dash trim and orange seat stitching. Those dont seem too popular.

 

Welp, you did good. I'm jealous someone got a better deal than me. Bastard.