Thinking of switching from Ram to Tacoma, need advice

I traded my 14 v6 ram for the taco. I loved the power and drove like a dream with similar mpg than the taco… why did I trade? With only 75k miles had to change lifters and cam on une side to a tune of $ 1000. Both back windows stopped working and the airbag light would turn on at times ( no big issue this was the connector under the seat) too many issues for me.

 

Thats exactly why I bought the extended warranty through 8 years/85k. Sucks that I had to but.. Dodge is still rebuilding reliability despite the 5th gen Rams being the most reliable trucks they’ve ever built. (so far anyway..lol.)

 

Access Cab is great - finding exactly what you want in a Tacoma is hard.

Tacoma has less towing capacity - but the long term reliability is hard to beat.

 

I went from a 2017 Silverado with a 5.3 to the exact Tacoma you want in lunar rock.

The Chevy was gonna start to nickel and dime me so I wanted to dump it. 6l80, ac condenser and lifters.

Do I miss the power of the v8 sure. But that's about it. The little Tacoma does amazing for me and does everything I want so far. The 6 speed manual is so much fun to drive. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I'm single, no kids, just a foster dog once in a while so the access cab is perfect.

Basically just realize it's not a full size and you'll love it.

 

I like the size of the Tacoma for sure.

When I first got it the wife said: Honey it's so big.
I pretended I didn't hear what she said and had her repeat that back several times.... I've never heard those words from a woman before.

Yesterday tho, while out for a spin she said: It's not really that big after all...
Yea yea well they all figure that out.

 

I don't think anyone was saying that mpg alone is a reason to switch.

 

I've had way more shit go wrong with my 16 tacoma vs the 2004 silverado I had. Thought maybe it was just bad luck of the draw but reading online the rear diff, front needle bearing, carrier bearing, shitty paint is just how toyota builds them these days. And rattles! Fucking dash and door rattles all over the goddamn place.

 

Is your truck stock?

 

First model year is not a great time to buy either. You also need to add leaking 3rd brake light to this list. And there was also a leaky coolant pipe in the first two years as well as shitty transmission programming until 20

 

I had the leaking brake light too add that to the list.

 

Well OP is coming from a 19 Ram, they were just as prone to leaky 3rd brake lights as 16 Tacomas. Actually, they might of been worse. Never heard of a Taco that was lemon lawed over it, saw 2 Rams that were though.

 

Yep the leaking 3rd brake light is a huge issue on the Rams. Got mine redone under warranty my 2nd year I had it. Also, the broken exhaust manifold bolts and that Hemi “tick”.. haven’t had those issues yet. Still absolutely love the truck and like I said earlier, gonna hold off on a Taco until I can buy a used manual while keeping the Ram.

 

I’m glad you decided to keep the Ram. It was sounding to me like that was the better option for you. Also, if you have some sort of keyless start in the Ram, you'll definitely miss it in the MT Tacoma. For some reason, Toyota decided that we still have to put a key into an ignition and turn it if we want to shift manually, even though my 10-year-old Challenger with a manual transmission has keyless entry and start.

 

Thanks, agreed. I do have the keyless start, as well as remote start. Definitely makes it convenient.
My truck also has heated front seats/steering wheel so when you remote start it, all the heat comes on automatically if it’s below 40F (and a/c comes on if above 80F.) Not sure if the taco has that but man I’d sure miss that stuff! But that’s why I believe the best of both worlds is to keep the Ram and buy a used manual Taco some day.

 

Heated seats, but no remote start either. The key is actually a key (not a fob) that you stick into the column and turn it to start. And it seems like it has to crank for a little bit longer than usual to start, which I'm getting used to. My Challenger has heated seats and steering wheel, and the heated steering wheel is SOOO nice.

 

Oddly enough, the keyless start Tacomas are significantly easier to steal than the ones which require an actual key in the ignition. FWIW, my wife's car has a 6MT and a push button start; I prefer using an old-fashioned key; it seems to work better when switching to accessory mode or when trying to operate power windows without the engine running.

 

I like my Tacoma. So do most people, as evidenced by the resale. Supply and demand.

 

Resurrecting a year old thread. Well if you check out my profile pic and the two below you’ll see the decision I made two months ago. The Ram is history and I’ve been thrilled with my Taco. It’s a slightly used 2023 that I found in Tennessee… 7900 miles. TRD Sport 6MT. Leather/heated seats, moon roof, tech package. Last month I did the OTT tune with the mild medium. I also replaced the stock grille with the Pro grille and switched out the white TRD stickers with the black/red. This thing rocks! Very happy with my decision so far and I don’t really miss my Ram.
Thanks for all your suggestions.