New Member from Northern MN w/ Questions

Hello all, new guy here from the North Shore of Lake Superior. Looking to potentially get into a 3g Tacoma over the next handful of months. I know with absolute certainty that it needs to be a Double Cab Off Road. Odds are that I will end up with a lightly used one.

- Are there any sort of problem areas I should keep my eyes peeled for?

- Are there any specific areas I should watch for corrosion, being in a heavily salted area during winter?

- Are the automatics truly as bad as a lot of the articles I read on the net say? I have driven a couple but don't feel like I've been able to put them through their paces enough to really know for myself.

- If so, are there any trans tuning options that make them function any better?

- Real world driving, what am I looking at for MPG? I would be coming from a full size truck and MPGs are part of the reason for the potential downsizing. I probably drive 60/40 hwy/city.

Thanks for any info, and I look forward to having you guys help me spend my money if I get into one

 

Welcome to TacomaWorld!

 

Welcome Steve.
Test drive one as many times as you can in the handful of months you have.

 

welcome

 

Welcome to TW...Many variables will decide your mpg. I get 13-14 mpg on average but I have a 4 inch lift, 33 inch tires and I drive with a heavy foot.

 

Welcome to TW

 

Welcome to The Forum!

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Welcome!

 

OK, a Minneapolis-area owner here. I purchased my 2017 DCSB Off-Road last January. I bought certified used, it is stock. You can expect 16mpg in the winter and 20mpg in the summer. After I purchased mine my first mod was to purchase the OVTune package and after testing the various tunes I use the 87 octane base tune. It greatly improves the engine/transmission "feel" and prevents a lot of gear hunting. I highly recommend you consider that as part of your cost of getting into a Tacoma. As for problem areas and corrosion, most are well documented on this forum but I can't think of any that are universal to all of them. Certain trucks run into issues that others have seen, I haven't been having issues so far after 8,000+ miles (25,000 miles on truck).