Disappointed...

Sorry for your luck OP...it seems like you got a bad egg. I've had mine since April, not my first Toyota or Tacoma but my first new truck and I've yet to have a single issue with it. I'm crossing my fingers it stays like that, but in your situation I'd consider trading it out for a new one.

 

I agree with the OP. After owning my taco I highly doubt I get another one. Next truck will probably be a Frontier 09+

Edit-
Problems I've had:
-timing chain seal leaked
-blower motor
-tranny lurches at times
-thuds when I stop at a light or stop sign
-interior plastics squeak
-steering wheel shales like shit
-seals on LCA's blew out
-squeaky leaf springs
-funny noise coming from the motor(clatter)
-coolant seems to disappear

 

Two trouble free years for me so far (knock on wood)!

 

feel ya man, had a creaky windshield, squeeky something else, chirpy blower and rusty bumper all within 1k miles.

 

Some of you folks are just to picky to be driving trucks. Its a truck and not a Cadillac.

 

I would say sell it and get a 1st gen. Mine is 10 years old and I have not had any problems at all.
It is sad that Toyota's quality has gone down the drain (somewhat). I still think they are better than the other choices out there.
When it was time to trade my wife's Honda minivan last year (211,000 miles) I wanted her to get a Toyota because I am a big Toyota fan and they had just brought out the new shape, but we looked at it and compared it to the Honda and the Honda was definately better quality - fit, materials, options etc. Like I say it is very unfortunate, because I will always be a Toyota fan - I am just too scared to upgrade now.

 

Yea I wish I had bought a first-gen now, simply for the smaller size. My dad has almost 200k on his without any issues with it. Plus new truck payments suck!

Edit: That said, I do love my truck, haha. It's nice to have a ride nobody else has modified or messed up.

 

I have most of the minor problems that a lot of you have, but the one that really pisses me off is the crappy paint on this truck. I know its just a truck, but the paint seems to chip and scratch if I look at it the wrong way. Still love the Tacoma though.

 

I had a 1st gen 95 Tacoma. It was a great truck.

I did do my research, and I will tell you with pure conviction that
I WILL NOT be buying a used or new 2nd gen Tacoma.

Toyota is laughing at the American consumer.

They build crap now and they know it, and now we definitely know it.

What a shame too. I've been wanting to get back into a Tacoma.

I will just continue to rent a truck as needed.

 

How early? I have 07 and have no problems

 

You're entitled to your opinion...but I wouldn't call these trucks "crap" by any means. You're reading online reviews and threads made by people bitching about their issues they've had...which represent a small majority of the actual owners out there. Nobody feels like taking the time to write "Oh I love my new Tacoma, it's so nice and cushions my fat ass while I drive down the road...", etc, and I'm included in that group. I'm far too lazy to relate my positive experiences in the same way I would some negative ones...

 

carcomplaints.com take a look and you'll see what manufacturers have the most complaints all I can say is I'm glad I don't drive a Ford Explorer! you'll see the tacoma has a lot more complaints than the Frontier but there are 4 times as many Tacomas on the road so you have to take that into consideration....Toyota still makes a far superior vehicle than any domestic brand.
As for the complaints from Tacoma owners here, yes there are some issues but to one person the ticking may be a huge problem and to another it may not even be noticeable! so you have to take someone's online complaint with a grain of salt unless you were there and able to confirm its as severe as someone says it is. Like it was mentioned earlier people are very quick to complain about the smallest thing but it takes them forever to give a compliment!

 

Thats what I think a lot of people forget when they read these complaints. With as many 2nd gens there are on the road just about every single problem is going to be called out on. I'm not saying its right that some of the problems are there but when you mass produce vehicles like that they aren't all going to be perfect and there's really nothing you can do about that. Other manufactures have just as many, in most cases way more, problems than toyota. I had a 2006 Jeep wrangler rubicon I babied and never even took off road and I had a lifter collapse at 55k miles and it ate my cam up. Jeep refused to even help with the price of replacement parts for something I later found out was a VERY common problem on 2005-2006 wrangler 4.0L's. Also for some reason they made the 2006 wrangler only get a 3 year 36k mile powertrain warranty but the 2005's had a 7 year 75k mile one. So if I had an older jeep it would've been covered. Working for toyota I can say I've seen them step up on stuff sometimes that I didn't think they would help the customer out on.

 

For those who say the only people on the forum are those that only bitch about their Tacoma's, I do love my Tacoma, even though I have to put up with a steering wheel that shakes like shit at highway speeds & there seems to be no cure after 3 1/2 years of dealing with it. Yes, I have tried RFB 4 times, new tires, replaced bad rim, alignment, factory rep, etc. I also had clutch pedal replaced, only to have a part on the new one break while stopped at a busy intersection. I have made references to dumping my Tacoma for a F150, but in reality, I don't think anyone does make a truck that's any better. I had a 97 Tacoma for 11 years before I traded it in on my 08. The quality in the 97 was much better in my opinion.

 

my truck is a base model and i have had no problems with it

 

X2 , I've had 2 second gen tacoma's with zero problems. I've also owned a Nissan frontier. Look at the tacoma's competition, There is NONE!!. Try out a different make compact truck and you'll really have something to bitch about. I don't believe the quality has slipped at all. Someone on here recently posted 250,000 miles on a 2nd gen Tacoma!

 

I disagree, personally, I got rid of a 97 dodge ram with no air, no heat, manual everything, no tilt wheel and no cruise. It was too loud to even think about talking on a cell phone or with a passenger and rode like a lumber wagon. I didn't spend 30K for a Tacoma upgrade and have the cabin sound loud, squeeky, and creeky.

 

nothing is going to be perfect man.

 

agreed, but it's all about tolerances, and there are a few things that are not within my tolerances. Most everything else is well within my acceptable range but random noises, crappy blower motors and rusty bumpers are not.

 

I hated the Frontier I had. It was only for a day, but it was uncomfortable to drive. I'm not knocking the taco, I love it. I just wish Toyota would have caught the issues I had in some kind of quality inspection.