2009 Tacoma 4 x 4

My truck just hit 85,000 miles and of course is paid off and I considered buying new truck but I love my Tacoma and it has never been in shop for repairs, just maintenance.

 

Welcome to TW Tracy. Seems to me that your 2009 is treating you right. I hate truck payments, but upgraded my 2007 to a 2015 in May. The reason was that the 150,000 mile 2007 was starting to become unreliable and costly. Looks like your 2009 will run for you for awhile longer.

 

I have a 2009 TRD 4x4 with 102,000 miles and other than replacing an a/c hose nothing has ever gone wrong with it. I just make sure the required maintenance is done on time and I’m good to go. The paint started peeling on mine so I had it he truck painted, looks like a new truck outside and inside. Your truck is just broke in. Keep the truck and bank the money it would cost to buy a newer one.

 

Okay then keep it,why buy new when what you have is paid for,your truck will easily go 350,000 miles if you take care of it.

 

I vote continue to do routine maintenance.
Save your money for when you “need” to spend it.

I have an 07’
With 134k on it.

Only issues other than “standard maintenance” I’ve done is
Rear axle seal and front wheel bearings.

I will say, keep the u-joints greased, and fluids changed - this includes the differential, transfer case, and transmission fluids.

If you pay some one to do these, it’s probably around $400.
I’d would recommend to do it every 60k or so.

Others have waited longer *even me* but you shouldn’t.

 

Sounds like you have a great truck there. Why bother spending $35,000 - $40,000?
You'll never spend that much on maintenance!!!

 

Welcome to TW, Tracy! 85000 miles that’s a drop in a bucket. My ‘08 has 349,613 on it, and still runs great. Normal regular maintenance and your truck will last a long time.

My truck is loaded 95% of the time with a minimum of 500# in the bed everyday. It’s been the best truck I’ve owned.

good luck with your truck.

 

Keep it. It’s practically an investment.

 

IME a 10 year old truck with 150,000 or less miles on it will bring roughly 1/2 of the initial cost in trade value. A bit more than 1/2 the initial cost if you sell. You're at about 12 years, but well under 150,000 miles. I wouldn't be surprised to see you get 60-65% of what that truck actually sold for in trade. I'm talking about 50-60% of the actual price paid, not necessarily sticker price.

Considering that at 10 years and 150,000 miles you'll likely never pay for a major repair this isn't a bad time to trade from a financial perspective. Borrowing money for a new truck isn't a bad investment especially with the 0%-2% loans available today along with a big down payment which you could get with this truck. The people who get into trouble are the ones with small or no down payments who end up upside down on value and have huge monthly payments.

I could have paid cash for my last few vehicles, but chose to let my trade be the down payment and finance the rest. The monthly payment on my F150 were under $300/month @ 2% and I paid it off 18 months early with very little in interest charges. Had I pulled money out to pay cash for it I'd have lost money.

That's true, but you're just kicking the can farther down the road. Your truck will never be worth more than it is today. In another 5-10 years it will be worth far less, and a new one will cost far more. And the money you do spend on repairs you'll never get back. If you wait another 5 years you'll end up with a huge monthly payment and upside down unless you have substantial cash for a down payment. Trade now and you'll have a small monthly payment and a paid off truck in 5 years.

I think you're at a tipping point. If you do decide to keep it at this point you need to keep it till the wheels fall off. That is the decision I made with my 2007. It currently has 208,000 miles and isn't worth much money. It's worth more to me to keep it as a 3rd vehicle. I'm not sure that was the best move financially for me. But that is where I'm at.

 

Welcome to TW. I can only understand the decision to sell if you are needing a full size truck for obvious reasons but not for another midsize truck. You won't find one with better reliability and resale value as the one you currently own, especially one with low mileage and 4WD.

 

I’ve got an 09 as well, paint is starting to go. What was the cost to have your truck painted?

 

Depends where you live. Get a local shop to quote you. Can you post pics of your paint? Curious how bad it is.

 

I understand what you're saying. But a truck's value is more than its trade in value. If it's in good shape and well maintained, it'll save you those truck payments during that whole time that you own it. I do agree that the value as a down payment does diminish as well during that time, but not as much as the value of a truck payment.
In this situation the Tacoma is different than most trucks l guess. Usually long term ownership is full of expensive repairs which would definitely count against any savings against a monthly payment. Plus the hassles of getting those repairsdone.. While luckily a Tacoma usually doesn't fall into that category.
The number of 20 or 30 year old Tacomas you see driving around down here, makes me think of all the vehicle payments those people gave saved. But, the climate is a big factor in that as well. No salt and snow to rot it away.
So many factors play into this, that l guess it depends on which specific one works for that specific person.
I bought my 2012 three years ago. Since that time I've only done regular maintenance, a heater motor and l just put on 4 new tires.
In my specific situation l think I'm ahead of the game.

 

I plan on driving the wheels off my 2013. Got it a few weeks ago. It’s got 88,700 and I want to get it into the 300,000s

 

I got my truck painted at MAACO (a National chain). They painted the truck including my camper shell with their premium 2 stage paint process for $2600. Here are a couple pics (the truck is dirty, hasn’t been washed for a couple weeks)They did a great job, looks great. 0

 

Looks great!!! Is that the Barcelona Red Metallic?

 

Yep Barcelona Red Metallic. I also had the interior detailed by a pro. The interior also looks like new.

 

I find the best remedy to rid of urges for buying a new vehicle is upgrading your current one whether new paint job, wheels/tires, bumpers, lift etc.. especially if it's paid off. The newness and truck payments gets old rather quickly but not the "play money/emergency fund" account from no payments.

 

Tacoma curse - they do so well into old age that you really have to wonder why you're buying a new model. I just cant get there yet. My 2006 is ridiculously resilient, perfect with a 2" OME lift and easy to maintain. I love having something that I can depend on and really not care about the occasional ding and dent when off-roading.

Also what helped was a bit of happenstance when Hertz gave me a DCSB on a work trip last year. Really drove home how the 3rd gen is fundamentally the same vehicle. But new is new, and no shame in wanting to freshen up the stable.

Edit: Upgrading to a carplay/android deck also helps stymie the upgrade for tech urge.

 

Toyota just issued a 3rd gen fuel pump recall. Keep the 2nd gen!