Anyone else feeling better about their 3rd gen.

Have you ever owned a first gen?

 

You mean the little truck that you could get with manual windows, a way underpowered 4cyl, minimal bed space that was extremely shallow, not to mention pre bluetooth, lack of USB, etc. Should I go on? Yeah, great truck. I'm sure they would sell a bazillion of them now. Not a lot different than those that kept crying for a manual and it represents a fraction of total sales. Sure. They just don't build 'em like they use too, pops.

 

I had a blue rear wheel drive 1979. Ran it in western NJ when it used to snow. Put snow tires on it and just went .

 

And it is so true for the 3rd gen! They should have worked more details on the 3rd gen and forget the 4th gen for a while. Hard to beat the awesomeness of the third gen!

 

Still have one, drive it about once a week. Great little truck, but like my 3rd Gen more, it is just nicer truck in so many ways, sure the 4th will be even better.

There are a lot of standard features in the 3G, that aren’t in the 1G. Don’t realize how nice those little touches are until they are gone. It is quite apparent jumping back and forth between the two.

 

Since I am being punished and can’t ask in the 4G section. How does that thing ride?

Have driven the Tundra and loved it. Assuming the Taco is similar. With the leafs in the rear of the 3G you’ll get a buck and chatter every once in awhile. Guessing the linked rear there is none of that. My old Trooper was linked, thing rode like a couch.

 

Ah, your ignorance is fully revealed, child.

 

All vehicles are mass manufactured with thousands of parts, wires connecting various bits, and software orchestrating it all. I am amazed most vehicles fire-up at all at the end of the line - let alone carry our crap around over hill & dale for hundreds of thousands of miles. (Potentially... at least for some).

As a teenager (& friends), we used to venture out into the sticks in some sketchy vehicles. (Sketchy from the point of view that they were all purchased used, on the cheap, with unknown histories. They were typically well maintained - after that.). We did not worry about breakdowns. We were fairly resourceful and besides, we were not going to get a potential future incident get in the way of an adventure.

These trips were my first experience with Toyota trucks. They were beat-up, but great in every other way. We were not picky; we took all kinds of vehicles. Whatever was available. I was never badly stranded. Maybe bogged mid-river being pulled out with the help of a horse... but never stranded. I remember breaking an alternator pulley on a Fiat once while on a trip in the boonies (NOT a common car at all...). There was a junkyard within a few hundred yards by chance - I looked through the WHOLE place as there was no inventory. It took me a while, but I found a replacement...

Another time we were allowed to use a family-company-car. We had to go pick it up. It would not be available (from the dealership!) until the morning we were supposed to leave. (It was a mid 80's nissan pick-up - with a double cab. - I thought it was the most hideous thing ever!)

I remember taking off on an off road trip in a FORD (a sedan - likely some mom's car). Only 5 out of 6 cylinders were firing when we left. We had a great time (90%+ off-road). We were fortunate to still have 4 cylinders firing after the week-long trip - It was horrible but we made it back likely making some 30HP by then...

My folks bought a jeep once. (I was against it...). It left them stranded several times. They dumped it after 3-4 years. They did not like it. My mom never trusted it. The landcruiser that came after, they kept for 20+ years. They loved it until they decided they were too old to go off on adventures. - It never missed a beat. Needed nothing but maintenance - my father's 3,000 mi OCI.


The '24s do not impact my enjoyment of my Taco. - it is irrelevant as I enjoy my Taco. It met the criteria on paper (I'd never seen a 3rd gen Tacoma before looking at buying one...). The 24's do not offer much that I don't have, or can work with on my taco. There is no incentive at all to pay to upgrade. (I'll still test drive one - in time, just for kicks).

The taco met the main needs required:
- Manual Gearbox
- Accommodate the fam
- Capable off road - good camping vehicle.
- Able to carry boat stuff / MTB stuff. Sails, bikes. etc. (Just in case, because I USED to have a sailboat)
- Solid 4x4 and capable
- Good looking
- Reliable. I do not want to be car shopping again. (I love/hate buying cars. it is stupid. But can be fun)

As you can see, there are not many viable options available in the US per the above... I am lucky to have a Taco that does so well on the criteria. It is not perfect, but I'm happy with it. Largely because the manual makes even heavy & lumbering (relatively) slow-tacos fun to drive slow!

Wish-list for Toyota (Gen 3 only relevant):
- A little smaller outside; Just a tad (The Taco is the largest vehicle I've ever owned)
- A little bigger inside; Just a tad (How hard can these two minor asks be! )

- A bit torquier on the low end for off-road. (I have 2LoMod!! ftw) - nevermind, I'll put up with this (with 2LoMod) without complaining as long as this taco lasts long enough to be replaced with a practical & capable full-BATTERY Electric off-roader that is 2-way-charging capable!

(- it does NOT have to be a TOYOTA...)

- Note: a granny gear would be awesome! (Can we keep at least one stick! (I know it would be a button!))

I figure I have a few years wait ahead, but I am patient...

 

And behind every part, subassembly, assembly and vehicle is an inquantifiable number of compromises and management-driven choices skirting the engineers and designers better judgment. It’s easy to forget how astonishing the modern vehicle industry is, when you stop and think about it.

I never, ever thought I would be one of those guys preaching this, but here I am…OTT is your friend.

I took the plunge (from a different tune!) last week, and I have to echo that it’s made a biiiiig difference in how the truck drives with the 6MT. It’s actually fun to rip around in now, where as before it was “this is so boring..maybe I will just see how many MPG’s I can squeak out..maybe I should have just gotten an automatic..”

 

i’ve been to three dealers in the last two weeks I just purchased a 2021 Tacoma Trd pro double cab long bed the amount of tundras I saw on the lot were crazy. Love the truck, but just too big for my lifestyle. I saw one 2024 Tacoma SR5 that was already sold. But you’re right the amount of tundras on lots is nuts right now I won’t be paying for gas my employer will, and even so a tundra is just too big for parking around cities, etc.

 

On my second 3rd gen
Is exactly what I know it is.
Won’t change unless I have too.

 

I don't think that is a thing...

 

@OZ TRD

Right!? Man! Some of the crap we used to drive around waaaay out into the boonies, surprised we aren’t still stuck out there, yet we somehow made it back home. Lol!

All of the engineering and design that goes into vehicles is mind boggling, amazing it works at all. And here we are nit picking it all, know full well hardly any of us could design, engineer and build a vehicle from scratch ourselves.

 

It seems like in the old days vehicles were less reliable overall; but there was somewhat of a better chance that you could jury-rig something up to get the vehicle to the trailhead if not all the way home. Today, if the computer says you are done. Then you are walkin'.

-- And Yes. It is mind-boggling how few vehicles explode upon the new owners taking delivery. I'd call it good if out of 250,000 internal combustion tacomas, maybe 20 of them each year just happened to explode while going down the road...

Maybe such occurrences being kept quiet by the auto lobby. (Is this how the much-loved conspiracy theories start??)

(To be clear - The above is a (bad?) Joke!)

Yep - Not a thing... @Liam1234; I'd check your paperwork and VIN to make sure you got what you paid for - if in fact you have a Long bed...
Creative labeling would not be out of the question with some dealerships...

Post a pic?

 

Being emboldened by 90% of potential problems being at least temporarily solvable with duct tape and bailing wire is definitely fodder for youthful hubris; but one advantage of modern vehicles in these modern times of interwebs, you can research every real, hypothetical, and imaginary problem you need to stress about before you even get to the dealer!

 

Chances are... those who yearn for the pre-computerized days of the auto industry are not, those who had to daily drive the same.

 

The 4th gen taco is hideous, has a pos 4-banger and yeah no thanks. I will stick to my Inferno Orange 3rd gen.

 

Wait until your 3.5 needs a $5000 timing cover reseal or the cylinder head goes bad or any of the other $$$$ repairs those motors need.

 

The 4th gen's wheel base is just too long. I kind of like the way the rest of the truck looks but I don't think I could get use to that wheel base. I am sure that in a couple of years, if Toyota is able to make the Tacoma off road capable, I will compare the Tacoma to the Ranger, Colorado, Ram?, or what ever mid sized 4x4 pickup that is on the market. Ventilated seats, that you don't have to add 15,000 dollars of crap you don't want, are number 1 on my goodies list.

 

Once, not too long ago, I had a 1st gen. A 99 single cab m/t with roller windows and manual door locks. Super uncomfortable bench seat and the zippy but powerless 2.4l. However, only major repair over 18 years of ownership and 275k miles was the radiator at 250k miles. I loved that truck.

Now, I have the 3rd gen with the V6 and I love it more than the 99. By comparison, my 3rd gen is a racecar! We'll see how it holds up, but with consistent routine maintenance I'm hopeful.