Is this '05 a good buy?

Thinking about picking up this tacoma, not too familiar with 2nd gens and the used market. Is this a good buy?

https://boulder.craigslist.org/cto/d/boulder-2005-trd-offroad-tacoma-low/7679182985.html

 

It’s an 18 year old truck.
It’s got a lot of good add-ons.
But you wonder how much life those head gaskets have left in them?
The 05’ and some 06’ had HG issues.
And then there’s the frame…..

I’m not a player at $24k
Not even at $20k

I wouldn’t even make an offer at the risk of “insulting” the seller.

 

Right on, thanks. Just for my knowledge where would you be at if it were the same truck but an '07 without the head gasket issues? Is it advisable to avoid the 05' and 06' tacomas entirely if I want a truck I can put put another 10 years/100k on?

 

It's hard to say anymore what is a good deal and what isn't. It seems like people have learned that they can just assign high values to "desirable" vehicles instead of letting normal depreciation occur.

It is a nice truck if you are willing and able to pay the price..

 

Having paid $25k for my stock 2015 Offroad during the pandemic when prices were really spiking, I still agree 100% with what he said.

Best years for 2nd gen IMO are 2011 if you like the early Gen2 grille style, or 13-15 for Gen2.5 style. 05-06 had headgasket issues, and all of them could have frame rust so even if you decide to kick the tires definitely check rust (and don't just eyeball it, bring a screwdriver and poke at it hard and if there are holes bail out).

 

While that may be true you can at least get some objective view of value by comparing with the market rate.

 

Having lived in upstate NY most of my life I've got zero interest in owning yet another rust bucket lol.

 

148,000 miles doesn't really seem like "low mileage" but somebody will buy it

 

The same truck and an 07’ model?
Maybe, $15-17k……maybe.

I have an 07’ with almost 170k. Stock with no modifications.
It’s not worth any more than $10k realistically. But the market isn’t realistic right now.

Unless you know you’ll be needing a locker “a lot”. I’d avoid an Off-road model from 2007-2008.
Unless you’re locked, the rear diff is fully open. There is no limited slip of any kind. Which means 2WD SUCKS.
I’m dropping it in 4WD just to make it up slight hills in wet grass.

I’d look for a 2009-2011 if you like simplicity. They also have the Auto-LSD, so you’re not sitting and skiing one tire in 2WD. (No secondary air system for emissions)

Or 2013-2015 if you want a solid, good reliable truck.
I can’t recommend a 2012 for the fact that the secondary air system is troublesome and there is no “fix”.
The fix is buying a 2013+ truck.

 

Awesome thanks, that helps a lot.

 

@bromeister

Ill sell you a clean 2015 DCSB TRD Off Road 4X4 with about 117,000 miles on it for that price.

 

Post it to the thread so these guys can let me know if I'm about to be taken for a ride again lol. I saw a '22 Utility 4x4 earlier that's looking better by the minute.

 

I'd rather start with a clean slate and build it my way. All the parts on there are only subjectively tasteful and no two people have the same taste. The only mods I would consider of value in a used truck are parts like a supercharger, high quality rebuildable suspension, gears, lockers etc.. Unless you dont want to build and just want something that looks the part then go for it but even 20k is a stretch.

 

05-06 truck is not bad
05-06 head gaskets are bad

they’ve either replaced them or haven’t

poster of the ad picked ARB front despite having time for other brands
chose non fog light option
and rear bumper that’s not HC
Calls it low mile and can’t spell mileage on a smartphone with autocorrect
didnt Replace known faulty components on a truck that’s marketed as being rugged
But of course put a sticker on a fender

crack is involved

it is not subjective. It is objective.

a fender sticker, non fog ARB front, non HC rear, etc are objectively shit.

dude even fucked up on camper shell choosing a crack open corner triangle window instead of sliding and/or windoor

 

NO,the extras only add a little too the price,its an 05 which at that mileage have had headgasket AND motor issues on some of them,almost 20 year old truck for $25k,no way.

 

It's not a good deal and it doesn't have anything to do with head gaskets.

 

Ended up getting an '89 pickup plus I'm gonna get a '21 camry with 30k miles for less overall than I could find a decade old Tacoma with under 100k.

 

My 2005 (179k) Tacoma just developed a slight leak in the #4 cylinder / head gasket. It's a known issue with this year.

So I'd say this is a touch too expensive. Maybe worth 15–17k.

 

It's very low mileage for a 18YO truck. 8.3K per year. The internet is full of 2~3 YO trucks with that kind of mileage.

 

The truck suffers from the Colorado Boulder tax. Everything is way over priced in that area.