Why did you buy your Tacoma?

Curious as to what lead people to the purchase of their 2nd Gen.

Mine started as a long journey. I've owned a lot of trucks over the years. Full size, mid size, 3/4 tons, small trucks. My favorite pickup trucks were ford rangers. I had 4 of them, two 4x2 4 cylinder manuals, 1 4.0 auto 4x4 and 1 3.0 manual 4x4. Loved the size, they were good tough vehicles. The 2003 3.0 manual 4x4 last me for over 300k miles without doing any major repairs. Only maintenance items.

After those I went through a slew of quad cab Rams, Double cab chevy, ect ect.

I had a 2012 Toyota Camry that I really liked. But it wasn't a truck. I bought it when my job was paying me mileage and I was averaging 2000 miles a week on it. I was losing my butt driving a 2004 Quad Cab Ram 4x4 at 10mpg. I made my payment, gas, and maintenance with my mileage check. At .52 cents a mile I was getting over a 1000 a week in mileage.

So I decided I wanted another truck. Went out looking. I drove 3/4 ton trucks, diesels, gas ect ect. Finally ended up back at the Toyota dealership.

I test drove a 2014 Tacoma AC 2.7 manual 4x4 but the AC was too small for my family.

So after messing around I ended up with my used DCSB 4.0 auto. I am very happy as the truck reminds me of what I loved about my rangers. Perfect size and fun to drive, but only better quality than the Fords.

 

Necessity drove me back to the Tacoma!

 

I personally was going to convert mine to electric and the tacoma was a good base, so I bought it but I then decided nope and now I am just modding it

 

Best reliability, best quality, best resale value, best looking, best comfort, most complimented truck available in America.

 

I wanted to get a G35 or G37, but was afraid of tickets....................go figure

 

Best friend from home had an 05 and it was awesome, every time I rode in it, I wanted one more and more. So when I finally had enough money for it, I went for it.

 

I don't wear Affliction t-shirts or flat brimmed hats so the Dodge was out. I like the F150's but don't have faith in ANY of the domestic brands for longevity. I almost went for a Tundra but couldn't justify the higher gas bills for the next 10 years. I love my DCLB tacoma. Added a few upgrades like 10 ply tires and heated towing mirrors and looking at some lift kits now to improve off-road capability and increased load capacity.

 

Funny! My G-35 is going away on Sunday to make room for the new Taco. They are fun cars, but can get you in deep shit real fast....

 

cus i drove a chevy for 100k miles till it was 160k miles old..... and had to do tons of big maintenance.

While my dads 04 taco has 220k on it and still purrs along without a single issue.

 

I have Chevy's, a Dodge, and a Chrysler. I wheel a Jeep. I drive a Tacoma for the reliability factor, hence it's the DD and the one in my garage. Jeep stays inside in my shop, everything else gets left outside.

 

truck eats them up like nothing on the track

 

I have a first gen now but had a 2011 access cab 2.7 for awhile, be glad you went with the V6! The 4 cylinder is great but tremendously underpowered for highway driving if you throw hills or wind into the mix. I loved that truck, but got tired of shifting gears and wanted more space so I sold it and got my current 2004 double cab, I love the smaller size of the first gens, they feel like a true compact truck should and it's easy to maneuver and turns on a dime. The power over the 3.4 V6 keeps me satisfied and having an auto is a big plus, just put it in D and go.

Reason I like having the Tacoma is for one I have 400lbs of dogs. Most of the time they ride in the bed but when it's really cold or wet they come into the cab so I needed the space in the double cab. My truck came with a nice sturdy seat cover in the backseat already, the PO must've had pets so I have no qualms about putting the dogs in back. If the seat cover gets dirty, easy to take out and throw it in the wash.

Second, I live in Montana, it's cold, snowy and very icy here in the winter and I live on a steep hill. Having anything with 2wd would suck, if I only had my car for winter, it would probably have to stay parked down the block most of the winter and I'd have to walk up the hill to my house. My car hates the cold and only gets driven when it's nice out anyway.

Third, I work on the road, I need something I can trust to get me to different jobsites all over the state safely and comfortably, no matter what the conditions are outside. I have to be able to depend on my Tacoma to get me there.

Fourth, I just like little trucks, and always have! I have a big diesel for when I really need to haul and a Tacoma for everything else.

 

Started out with an 87 standard cab mini.....kept it for 17 years and it was replaced by an 02 Tundra TRD OR SR5 Access Cab (decided I wanted a bit bigger truck than the old mini with some creature comforts).....started looking for a replacement for the Tundra and didn't want the size of the new Tundra and the Taco is pretty much the same size as the 1st gen Tundra (just a bit narrower). Ended up buying a 2015 TRD Pro DC. Eventually it will replace both the Infiniti G35 and the Tundra...for now, the G is going away, and as I wind down my business, the Tundra will go away also. I guess my ideal truck would have been my Tundra 1st Gen with the 5.7 from the 2nd gen (or a Taco with the 4.7 from my current Tundra)....Thought long and hard about giving up bed length for the DC, but though I have lived with my Tundra AC for 12 years, I really hate the AC much of the time....real PITA to get into the back in tight places so I went for 4 real doors....if I need more bed space I'll use my trailer. Now if Toyota would just build & ship my truck I'd be a happy camper (build date 12-2-14 Delivery about 12-15-14).

 

This would lead me inexorably to the wanting of my own toyota.

 

You could have gotten a DCLB if you were worried about bed space you know.

 

I kind of touched on this in my intro to TW, but after I sold my 87 Supra out of necessity, went to AB for work, had seen an 05/06 Taco in St. Albert, Google the shit out of it, seen the TRD Sport, loved it, bought my first swb TRD sport from Lethbridge Toyota, brought it home, 2 years later got into one hell of an accident, wrote it off. Bought a 93 jdm Supra, traded it for a 5.7 Tundra. Came to realize I didn't need a full size truck, fun as it was. So it got traded for my current trd sport. I didn't need the 6' bed, but the extra bed room is handy, an atv fits perfectly in there.

 

Too bad you had to get rid of the 87 Supra, I am dying to have one of those someday!

 

I bought my first gen Tacoma because I was driving a Dodge Ram 5.9L and getting 10mpg. Loved the first gen so I naturally rolled that into my 2010 second gen. Couldn't be happier.

 

My beloved '91 300ZX finally became a money pit that even experienced mechanics didn't want to touch. Wanted a truck for hobby-type construction work. Thought the Tacomas looked pretty cool...checked Craigslist for months until I found a guy selling one less than a mile from me: 28K miles for (negotiated) 18.5K: Deal!

I burned out on handyman work soon after and just kept it a clean daily driver. Of course I'm the 'guy with a truck' when it comes to moving other peoples stuff; but parking in yellow zones in my city is a lifesaver. Thanks Tacoma...

 

had this as my daily for a few years. 98 s10 2wd.

needed something with 4wd as was going to move to the interior for school. bought the taco and ended up not moving lol .