Interested in Opinions of GW Enterprises' 1st Gen Tacomas

There's a couple of old threads on this dealer in Virginia who only sells 1st Gens. These trucks have relatively low miles and look great. I'm interested in a 4x4 Xtra Cab, auto, V6 but maybe a 4. Prices are high, but hopefully in line with what you could get. I haven't called yet and the drive is a long doable one. He doesn't include any facts about rust, maintenance. Which one listed would you prefer? http://www.gwinterprises.com/cat_pages/pickups_1.shtml

 

Well this one definitely has my interest, but mostly for education;

http://www.gwinterprises.com/vehicl...999-toyota-tacoma-used-port-republic-va.shtml

I bought an extremely similar vehicle last October but it had a camper shell, no electric locks/windows and had 370k miles. I got that for $3000 and it just rolled 385k, is a great daily driver.

I am realizing that I found a cream puff...

 

those are pricey!

 

I think it's stories like yours that contribute to the high asking prices, especially at dealers. It also contributes to first gen Tacoma lore.

There is enough documented owner experience out there that you get a pretty good idea of what to expect from a reliability and cost-of-ownership perspective. And consider the body of knowledge that allows DIYers to cut costs; "how-to" videos are one of YouTube's few redeeming qualities.

Paying $18k for a truck with 60k-ish miles on it doesn't seem so farfetched when you consider that you can reasonably expect to clock 250-300k relatively low maintenance. With my driving habits, it would take 20 years to reach 250k.

What new, similarly equipped truck can you buy for the same price and expect to get the kind of mileage people get out of these trucks?

 

The prices on those trucks are INSANE... IMO, I'd recommend probably looking elsewhere, simply because you'll be able to get a much better deal with a little patience.

 

To take it up a level or three, here's a 2003 with only 31,228 miles, for $21,900. Probably as close to new as around. There's a long run of information and 50+ photos. http://davisautosports.com/tacoma_22517-black-tacoma. It's probably sold.

 

That's a great looking truck! Crazy low miles... I will mention though, just because it has low miles doesn't automatically mean that it will be running perfectly, since many of those parts are getting old and have probably sat unused for quite some time - so you may still have a lot to do in terms of getting something like that up and running perfectly. I'm not trying to dissuade you, just wanted to let you know that it's not always as good as it may initially look.

@eon_blue may have some useful input, he bought his truck with crazy low miles like that one.

 

Too rich for me. I prefer doing my homework, watching craigslist and saving $5K....

 

I'm not thinking about buying this truck, but I fully believe that it will sell at or very close to that price. I am planning though to increase what I now think I will pay for a 03-04 with 100-150 K miles in very good condition, between $14- $16K.

 

I got my 04 4x4 TRD 5 spd (with supercharger) last year for about $20k, had 24,500 miles on it. Worth every penny but it was exactly what I wanted...a clean low miles, late model 1st gen so I jumped on it.

 

That's a very strong argument, that you got exactly what you wanted, so what's a couple of $K more for a very long term enjoyment. Goes to, you couldn't buy a new 2017 one like it. The point is that 1st Gens are very desirable and as such, the price for the models at these two dealers is higher. They haven't gone out of business.

 

https://sfbay.craigslist.org/scz/cto/d/2004-toyota-tacoma-v6-at/6236941205.html