2nd gen taco thoughts/seeking “financial” advice

Literally just clicked on this news article for kicks n giggles

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/used-c...xyNTWgKRnc8kwlR--Fwk4G7J2keBK9crjNfKEvBS-kc8E

And then come here to see this thread. OP im sorry man, real question is, what is your current loan terms (length, rate) and if you cant tweak something there you might consider a NON tacoma as a vehicle as there is a huge price premium for them.

Its going to be hard pressed to come out of the deal you are currently in, theres lots more than just trading, you have sales tax, registration etc etc that all has to be REPAID on the next truck.

While you should definitely look at minimizing costs on your truck loan and any other debt you have. Also take a look at the low hanging fruit a big one is cellphones. Traditional postpaid plan through major carriers ~100 for one line, a PREPAID plan on the same carrier is ~50$.

+1000% to this. Been debt free since I was 26 - 33 now and its amazing how much flexibility the lack of debt gives a person. About the only debt i wish i had was a home mortgage (under the right circumstances), I shoulda coulda woulda bought back in ~2016 when i was looking, if only i had a crystal ball.

 

Every insurance company should allow you to pay your contract in full up front (whether it be every 6 months or 12 month cycle). NEVER EVER pay monthly insurance payments.

 

I guess I have to look into this. I know they show it as a 6 or 12 month plan. However all mine does for that is simply multiply the monthly such as by 6 making it still the same price

 

Doubtful, there is almost always fees / interest on monthly payments on a contract term greater than a month.

 

Hard to say with so little information. But my gut reaction is to ride it out and save money somewhere else. Or take a 2nd job temporarily to increase income. You will probably be better off down the road. Trading down is just kicking the can down the road a little further and will cost you more long term. Once you do get it paid off you'll have many years of no payment before you have to trade again.

The only way I'd sell, is t0 completely get out of a truck. If you don't need a truck and can sell it, pay it off, and still have money in your pocket then a small car or crossover SUV will cost you less. If you're upside down on the trucks value keep it till you aren't.

 

How much are monthly payments on these 3rd gens?

 

I can pay yearly, or every 6 months. But I have mine set up with a monthly bank draft. There is no extra charge through my insurance company as long as they do bank drafts. If I pay monthly there is a $1/month service fee. Which wouldn't be a deal killer.

 

Gotcha, yeah in that case then you are good. I know progressive definitely ups their rates if you pay on a payment plan, same with other major names.

 

nobody seems to like to say it
But I think it’s $700
Which is a lot

that’s what my co worker with one said
Which he got tired of
So he got rid of it and got a cheap daily used/old commuter and put some maintenance/work into it that it needed

 

I guess it's happening sooner than I guessed it would. I've been guessing for the last 6 months that repo's would sky rocket in early 2023. Inflation sky rocketed that into over drive and caused it to start early.

I also pay my insurance 1yr in full every year. I never make payments on it. Paying in full saves me almost $100.

Oh, on a positive note (for those that care). I got a very favorable interest rate back in 2021 when I financed my truck, and even got a rebate. It was right before prices took off and spiraled out of control. At the rate I'm paying down the loan, it should be 100% paid off by the end of Sept of this year. It will feel awesome to pay off a loan in 18months.

 

I do need a truck, and it will be an adjustment going from a full size 8' bed that I'll eventually (hope to) sell to the Tacoma's size. I may look into those bed extenders, or whatever they may be called. I saw one with the tailgate shut, what's kind of nice is if you've only got a few things in the bed like fuel containers they could useful to secure them a bit.

A big plus about the Tacoma is if you can deal with the smaller capacity the fuel economy gains can be significant. My 2.7L has averaged over 23 mpg the last 3 tanks. Even the V6s must be doing at least a bit better than a full size truck's mpg.

 

My first gen was a 2.7. Miss that truck. I did end up regearing to 4.56 after putting on bigger tires but i feel like i hardly ever went to the pump. 4.0s a different story obviously

 

Maybe $700 if you put no money down and finance everything to include taxes. Which is a terrible idea on all accounts. I’ve had much nicer and more expensive vehicles than Tacomas and my payments have never been anywhere close to $700 a month.

 

Many variables control payment amount. There is no '3rd gen payment'.

Amount financed, interest rate, rolling in unpaid debt on a trade and term all matter.

Too many people decide based on payment amount and ignore the other factors.

 

Look at the annual bill when it arrives. There’s a one time lump sum payment if you choose to pay for the whole year all at once. Then there’s a much lower amount you can pay if you choose to finance and make monthly payments. The insurance company will charge you a ridiculous interest rate, think of it as a bad loan. Or you can call your favorite bank, ask for a loan for the amount of the one time payment, ask for 1 year to pay it off. The bank loan interest rate is going to be better than the insurance company interest rate.

I suspect even if you have a bad credit rating, it’ll still be true. When I got divorced 30 years ago, I didn’t exist according to my bank. Because every was in her name. Still, I saved some cash doing it that way. To begin to exist, I had to do things like get store credit cards, use them and pay on time every month. Buy a motorcycle, get a loan, pay on time every month.

 

Ram Rebel with 5.7L Hemi gets better MPG than 2nd gen Taco

Other automakers put in many speed transmissions that have been the latest for years
Except for Toyota using 5AT; a 20yo design

a weak 5-part Toyota engine will struggle to move the vehicle unlike other more powerful engines designed to be efficient and struggle less
kind of like old school big engines that made 100hp and got 11mpg

 

OP, there are plenty of choices given here that you can go with. Unfortunately, it's a horrible environment to sell then buy another vehicle or even a home. I don't do car payments so can't speak on that but I can tell you that there are plenty of available jobs out there you can do as a side hustle that can help with the financial burden and pay off the truck quickly. IMHO, I would suck it up for a couple years with another part time gig and pay off the truck.