2nd gen best and worst years?

Love my 08. 129k no issues to speak of. I have never wanted for the 2nd gen upgrade or a 3rd gen. I plan to keep her till the end of her days.

 

Wheelbases come in 3 diff. lengths:
109.6" reg. Cab
127.4" Access Cab & Dbl. Cab short Bed
140.6" Dbl. Cab Long Bed

http://www.cars.com/toyota/tacoma/2013/specifications/

 

Probably the 3 best/most common options:

1. OEM Bed Mat - Best look with "Tacoma" text in my opinion. Tough as nails. Reinforced with fibers (I cut my bed mat to fit some tie downs and noticed this). I bought mine for roughly $90 shipped.

2. Horse stall mat from a place like Tractor Supply or ACE hardware, cut to size: REALLY tough as nails (at least an inch thick or so). Relatively cheap, heavy as hell though, and don't fit the bed as perfectly as the OEM mat.

3. 3rd party mat like DeeZee or something. You may have to cut some of these to fit if you have a short bed. On the thinner side. Most people still say they hold up good. Not that much cheaper than the OEM mat...I currently see them around the $80 mark.


I'd vote OEM mat. That and my OEM cargo net have been great investments and quality items.

 

09 and up gives you traction control and rear camera as standard options. 09 to maybe 12 gives you built in sat. radio antenna (the "blob" on the rear).

This is going to depend on your area and current prices. I bought an 09 3 years ago for $24,000 with only 19,000 miles on it. At the time that was easily $10,000 less than any other new tacoma I could find.

 

With my '14, there are a few creature comforts items I thought would be standard that aren't. Sounds like the rear view mirrors had more features in previous years. No temp gauge bothers me for some reason and I don't even need one... living in San Diego its 70 all the time

 

I've owned both an MY12 and an MY13. Exact same features but the '13 Bluetooth, head unit, stereo and steering wheel controls all function much better.

Also '13 is the last year for the auto dimming rear view with temperature and a back up camera (where it should be!).

You also get a clock!!!

 

Well that sucks for my 09 Prerunner. I bought it last year and so far no issues. What makes the 09 "the worst"? Is there anything I should look at or be doing preventative maintenance wise? I've changed out most of the fluids and have been changing the oil well before I hit the 5k interval.

 

nothing you can do, your doomed.................(sarcasm)

 

2013 for sure.

You get the latest and greatest with all of the fixes.... but you still get your stand alone clock, auto dimming mirror, rear view mirror with back up cam and proper outside temp display.

 

I may be biased because ive got an 09 but...over the years that ive been reading on TW, always thought the 09's had the least amount of problems. Had the TSB done for leaf springs, reflash bad 1-2 shift for transmission and replaced radio as it was possessed. Otherwise been great. Have had problems with some suspension mods but stock it was fine.

 

The radio was replaced by the previous owner but agree it still sucks. No issues with my transmission or leafs yet. Like I said so far the truck has been rock solid. Thanks for the feedback.

 

I have 2012, I to liked the feature mix and thought Toyota would have had things perfected by now on the 2nd gen. Granted it's a solid built truck, 54k and not a rattle but it hasn't been problem free. I see so much hate on this forum for the other makes, but my past Chevy's were never at the dealer as much as this truck or had a major failure before 100k as this truck, here's my list.

Rear brake squeal-tsb fix

Takeoff vibration-tsb fix

Engine pinging- ecm reflash fix

Secondary air injection valve code @29k tested by dealer, cleared code told me it was fine.

Secondary air injection valve failure @ 53k truck in limp mode- no warranty coverage, fixed on my dollar.

 

I own a 2008 base Tacoma. No problem whatsoever in the year and 11,000 miles I have had her. Plan to keep her to the end of days.

 

Love my 2012 TRD Sport Prerunner!

 

What exactly was the symptoms of the rear brake squeal? My '14 makes an intermittent squeal somewhere from the rear that doesn't seem to be suspension related. Its very faint and just randomly squeals...

 

It has been scientifically proven that '13 is the greatest year.

 

2007 - 2008 most likely the best year.

They have stronger engine mounts and better head gasket than 2005-2006.

They do not have a smog pump and eletronic nannies that 2009+ have.

 

It would squeal just at the end of the stop , wasn't random ad happened every time.

 

Ahh but the 2005s that got a new frame got the new mounts as well. I stand by my statement. But all Tacomas kick ass so what are we really arguing about. Rock on!