Should I sell my 2nd gen and buy a 3rd???

So, I’m kinda stuck right now with regards to my truck.

Back in 2015 I bought a brand new AC TRD OR 6spd before I had a family. Now I have a family and the extra room of the full cab is looking mighty enticing….

The problem is that my truck is in immaculate condition, with only 80k on it. I’ve done several mods to it and it’s completely paid off. The maintenance has all been done and aside from cosmetic stuff from off-roading etc, this truck is dialed in.

My gut tells me to just hold onto it and drive it until the wheels fall off (if they ever do ), but wanted some opinions….

Seems like a lot of people swear by the 2nd gens and recommend staying away from the 3rd gens. Is this accurate??? Are the 2nd gens that much better that I should just hold onto it??

I’m a stick shift guy, through and through. I’ve heard that after the 3rd gens, Toyota will be dropping the manual transmissions from their cars. Not sure if this is fact or not. There’s a nice 2019 TRD OR 6spd near me with 20k at a dealership. Should I swoop it up and sell the 2015, or nah???

 

If you really want room double cab ain't where it's at. 4runner. I've got 2 car seats in my double cab. Rear facing is impossible on driver side. Or for about same money Lexus GX 460

 

Second this. Gains from jumping to a double cab probably aren’t worth it, space wise.

4Runner for a family vehicle, keep the 2nd gen to drive to work and such.

But if you are set on a manual transmission and want a new(er) truck, a 3rd gen double cab is not a bad decision.

 

Cant live without a truck hahahaha!

Thats another option though. Was thinking about holding onto the Taco and buying a 4Runner, but that isn’t cheap, and would have two cars to maintain and pay the reg on….

 

Have you test driven a 3rd gen to determine if you actually like it? Lots of complaints on here from 3rd gen folks.

How often do you need everyone to ride in the truck and for what distances/time duration? We commonly rode around in my 2005 SR5 double cab with 2 kids (car seat behind driver, I'm not that tall and can scooch forward) and a dog in the back when riding around locally doing things. For longer drives, we opt for the 3rd row SUV.

I'd debated going Tundra for the extra space as the kids are getting older and my son is now taller than me, but ultimately decided to go back to the double cab Tacoma for my use case.

 

I stopped reading after this. These trucks can go to half a million miles or more. Just keep it and continue to do mods and upgrades.

 

I’d rather buy a clean used 4runner or used Lexus 470/460 like was mentioned. The small gains in cabin space for a DC aren’t worth it to me. I’ve gone from a DC to GX470 to an AC and the 470 hands down killed both Tacoma configs on useable and perceived cabin space for lower cost.

 

It's totally up to you man. I'd trust about anything with a Toyota badge on it.

I definitely agree with the above, if you want substantially more room, get a 4Runny. The ride is so nice, comfy, spacious, still has the 4.0, very capable on or off-road. No manual options in the 5th Gen 4Runnys tho.

Either way, I wouldn't pick an AC or DC Taco as a "family" vehicle.

 

Yeah. I mean nah.

Might depend on how often you might need to deal with a baby seat in your truck. If you have another vehicle that will mainly be used for carting the kid(s) around, and only occasionally need to use your truck, I'd keep what you have. If you often need to cart kids, the double cab is a better choice.

There's really not much difference between the generations, regardless of all the crap people throw around here. I've owned both, and I can't say one was significantly better than the other. Main difference is the power plant, and the 3.5 is a much more refined motor. First gens are the best, though, miss mine.

 

^

Yeah, dbl cab is pretty small, people make it work though. I took out my back seats 5/6 years ago (No family). Id say 4Runner also unless you dead set on a stick orrrrrr if needing a bed, Tundra Crewmax kids won't be kicking that back seat 14-17 (no TSS) 18-21 if not wanting to go 3rd gen.

 

Financially it makes more sense to keep your 2015. However, saving money won't make your truck any bigger, so if you need more room then you have to go with something else.

I'd suggest that you drive the 2019 and see what you think. 3rd gens aren't as bad as the complainers on here make them out to be. I liked my 2016 good enough to recently buy a 2023. The biggest problem I see with them is the AT. If you are going manual then you'll avoid all that shift show. The 2019's are supposed to be better than the early 3rd gens. The AT never bothered me that much. I used to be a manual guy to, so all autos feel like trash to me. I will say the 2023 does hunt less than the 2016, so something improved over the life of this gen.

You could also shop around and try to find a 2nd gen DCSB in good condition and go with that if the 3rd gen isn't your cup of tea.

 

If you’re 6ft or up only a small child will fit behind you. My 10 year old cant fit his feet behind my seat. No way an adult would fit

 

So, to be honest, I haven’t even gone up and checked them out yet. Seems like there isn’t much more room… Ugh….

Buy an additional 4Runner seems like the way to go, but I fing hate driving an automatic. I’m 43, and have only owned one auto. I had it for 3 months and sold it. I can’t stand auto transmissions and really don’t want to drop $40k on a car I’m not stoked on.

 

If you have a young family forget Tacoma and 4-Runner. Take it from a guy who raised 2 kids and currently has 6 grandkids. You NEED a full size 1/2 ton or bigger crew cab. I didn't figure that out until my oldest was in 10th grade and the youngest was in 5th. I would have been a lot better off if I'd done it when they were younger.

Here is the thing about kids, they grow, and they want to bring friends. BTW, buy your wife a full-size SUV while you're at it. My son was 5'3, 140 lbs in 7th grade. He was 6'3, 240 lbs wearing size 14 shoes in 10th grade. He doesn't fit in the back of my DC Tacoma. I waited until he graduated before every buying a Tacoma. Great trucks, but they don't work for a lot of people. And one won't work for you. At least not for long.

Keep both full size vehicles until your youngest is out of the house. One of my wife's brothers bought a new 1999 F250 diesel crew cab 4X4 when his kids were young. The youngest just graduated college and he still has the Ford. In 1999 you couldn't get a crew cab in anything but a 3/4 ton. Even with the cost of fuel, he spent less money than I did. That truck was just over $25K when he bought it and will still sell for near that. The old buy once, cry once philosophy.

 

Keep the AC if you have a good size second vehicle. We have my 2010 AC and an SUV. Family trips are done in the SUV, kids ride in the back of my truck truck fine. A rear facing seat fits behind the passenger seat ok, but the passenger isn't happy. You have a few more years before your kids will complain about the AC back leg room.

 

So my daughter is 11. She’s actually my step daughter, so I’m not dealing with car seats etc. but the issue is as you mentioned. We’re always toting around other kids. I coach her soccer team, we spend a lot of time at our cabin in Lake Tahoe- it’s a bummer. My wife drives a Subaru Forrester and it works well but I like taking my truck. For example- we went up to the cabin last weekend to enjoy the snow. Would have loved to have taken my truck. But with the dog, wife, kid and friend in tow, we had to take the Subie.

Definitely sounds like I need a 4Runner or full size double cab, but man I don’t want to buy an auto….

 

Drop $20k on a used one with higher miles like I did. 4Runners look pretty much the same for the past 13 years...

 

depends on how big your wife/gf is.

Yes I'm being serious. My wife is 5'2" and we have 2 boys; 8 & 2 1/2, both 100th percentile height. The only reason i was able to make the crew cab work for family hauling was because of my wife's height. Rear facing car seats dont work behind me (6'), and if you go rear facing on the passenger side, it makes it tight for the front passenger seat.

so if you are intent on only having one vehicle and having it be a tacoma, and your wife is somewhat small, then a crew cab taco can work and work fine. But if she's on the taller side of things and you want to keep it single vehicle, then 4runner or GX (assuming you dont need a bed). If you do need a bed, then tundra crewmax

we have a two vehicle setup with the other being a GX460, and it does most of the family-hauling chores, but the taco works fine in a pinch for camping/beach trips, etc.

 

Could always have a small trailer

 

If you are asking the question....you already know the answer.