My 2005 Tacoma's life and death.

The Toyota dealership finally accepted my application. I was super excited to be able to buy my first new vehicle. I knew what I wanted. I wanted a superior off road machine, light and nimble like my friend's 1998 tacoma. His truck would go anywhere and was super cheap on gas with the 22r fuel injected engine. Lets not talk about the reliability. This was late 2005 when I arrived to buy a new vehicle.

The dealership told me that I was allowed 20k credit and that it put me into the Celica and Tacoma territory. I didn't want a used vehicle or an automatic. It had to be 4x4 so the Celica was out. The 2005 model trucks filled the lot. I settled on a single cab 4x4, white in color with the 2.7 inline 4 and 5 speed at 19k and some change. They found me a left over fleet truck previously destined for a gas company in Virginia. I left my truck untouched except that I upgraded the tires to a larger size and tinted the windows.

I once pulled a 14x65 mobile home about 3 miles. It was riding on the bumpstops and I was waiting to break an axle but it survived. The 4 cylinder didn't have what I needed to pull a 14 foot boat up a very steep incline or out of the water at the dock. I had to use 4 low but it worked. I once was turning tight in 4 lo offroading and heard a loud pop. Never did I find what that was. I crossed a huge mountain in West Virginia during a snowstorm that had caution signs that said, "tire chains required"... not heeding the warning, I crossed it unharmed but I was super tense the whole time. The truck was awesome offroad.

I was totally not expecting nor was I familiar with the "new" tacomas or the 2.7L vvt or the drive by wire which took me a little bit to get used to. I was surprised how good this truck was compared to the super compact tacomas of the previous years.

The year is 2012. I have my truck paid off. No more payments! My tires still have plenty of tread. The bench seat has a lot of stains so I use a cheap seat cover. The body has its share of scratches from offroading. I keep the oil changed religiously. I keep check on my brakes but they still look fine after 5 years? Its true that it hasn't had its first brake job yet I figure due to the 5 speed and proper engine braking. One rainy night a drunk driver veered across the road and struck my truck in the rear at an angle, shoving the truck against a power pole and turning the frame into a banana shape. My hitch was bent straight up in the air. It was a very hard hit. The driver's camaro didn't fair very well at all. That evening my tacoma was taken from me, after that I lost my job and I don't think I will ever own another new vehicle.

6 problem free years! The insurance company paid me off for 12k and I ended up buying a camaro which I then sold to buy a Dodge truck. Later I sold the truck and started driving a cavalier. Nothing ever has compared to my tacoma before or after its shorts lifespan.

 

Oh and by the way.... 89k miles in 5-6 years...

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Sounds like you almost have yourself talked into another Tacoma.

And my 2007 regular cab 4x4 5 speed now has 271,000 on its original pads. Had them looked at 7,500 miles ago and they’re still at 35%. Unbelievable.

 

Welcome Ted! Great story especially towing the huge mobile home. Hope you wind up in another Tacoma bro! Don't listen to the naysayers. You can hit the ignore button so you don't see any of their posts.

 

F'n drunk drivers. This is an essay that belongs in Reader's Digests. We need a happier ending. Get a new job and start putting away some money.

 

I had 160K on my 1990 Toyota when it was crushed by a semi truck. It was my first new vehicle and took great care of it. Had it not been wrecked, it would have gone 300K miles on the 22RE engine, no problem. Twenty years, fifteen of them with no vehicle payments, of totally reliable transportation at 28mpg. Take care of them, Toyota trucks will last a long time.

 

Toyota used to make a few all wheel drive Celicas. I owned one until a idiot totalled it and I bought a almost new 15 Tacoma.