Can a high mile tacoma drive the grapevine I5? CA

Seriously? It's made it 290,000 miles. Why wouldn't it make it 200 more miles?

You take care of it, it's fine.

The fake lawyer in me feels the need to say there will always be exceptions, and there are always going to be those "unknowns" or random failures, but those can literally happen at any time or any mileage.


Just drive it.

 

Ahh the Grapevine.

My brother and I were driving over the Grapevine, don't remember why, but it was in his (which became my) 86 turbo 4Runner. He decided doing 75 all the way up the grade was a good idea. We got to the top and popped the hood. Turbo was, shall we say, glowing brighter than normal, lol... It was singing its death song.

 

If there's one thing that doesn't seem to hurt these trucks, it's more miles.

 

I also took an 86' 4runner 22re up and down the Grapevine, but did great at 40-50 mph!

The high speeds on I-5 are what make me anxious about that highway. Just about everyone is going 80 mph, I can never keep up.

I say do any pre-trip maintenance you would normally do and go for it. Use your gears up (and down) the steep grades and don't push it anymore than you have to.

 

how many miles is that grade up or down approximately

 

6% for 5 miles.

 

Around here LA means Lower Alabama. My 07 has 201,000 miles on it. I'd hop in it tomorrow if I needed to drive from GA to CA and back.

 

I'd rethink the "and back" part if I were you.

 

Why?

 

It's really not that bad. Like 6% I think for not more than 5 or 6 miles. Back in the 80's, and definitely earlier, you'd see people pulling over and those water trailers topping off their radiators all the time. I remember my dad stopping at a store near the base to stock up on water and check the oil etc... Was kind of a big deal.

Now you rarely if ever see anyone. Even most of the VW vans all have subaru conversions, now... Not only do they not break down, they can maintain the speed limit too!

My 2010 V6 Accord could do 80 the entire way up without breaking a sweat.

You want steep, take the Hwy (22 I think) that goes from Idaho Falls into Jackson Hole. Some of that hit 10+% (Google Earth has the max at 12.9%). Goes from 6000' to 8300' and back to 6000' in about 20 miles. And I was towing a travel trailer over that. Talk about pucker factor!

 

The turbo made all the difference in the world. My brother had done a few things to it to give it a little more pep, but nothing nuts. It was fun in the dunes at Pismo.

 

2 to 3 hours? Are you kidding me.

 

As long as you keep up with the maintenance it will make it no problem.
Doesn’t matter how many miles it has. I drive 2-3000 miles a month.

4 banger will definitely go slower so depending on how fast you hit those hills and keep the momentum going.

 

ummm that's not really long distance

 

Just passed 299,000 miles on my '03 & I'm confident I could drive it across the country without a problem.

 

Nah man, neutral all the way down. You'll catch up with all those smug people who still need to make car payments just so they could pass you going up hill.

 

I wouldn't hesitate to drive a well maintained older tacoma anywhere.
Will yours make it? I'm sure you have heard the old saying that the only things guaranteed in life are death and taxes.
Yesterday morning I jumped in my 2002 tacoma 2.7 / 5 speed (226k on it) for a 3.5 hour drive to my vacation house (4 hours with a stop at lowes for some concrete blocks). I got here no problem.
Last spring I bought a 2019 Ford F250 XLT to tow my boat & make the weekend trips with. The Ford had more room than my single cab tacoma. That truck didnt make it 3k miles before the motor started to knock. See what I mean about no guarantees? Sure the truck had a warranty, but that doesn't guarantee it wont have problems.
Ford bought the truck back and I replaced it with a 2019 tacoma 4 door TRD off road. I still find myself driving the old tacoma more. Unless I need the extra cab space, I'm just as happy driving my 2002.
I'll let you know if I make it back home In it...

 

I drove my '96 with 414,000 miles on it from Richmond Va to Daytona Beach FL (700 miles) for bike week up until it had around 275,000 miles on it. Typically left around 5:00pm and arrived in Daytona around 4:00am. Never let me down. Alternator went out once but made it to the dealership in Daytona where I left it. Picked it up with new alternator and drove it home. I will still sometimes take it on 150>200 mile trips even thorough I have a '18 TRD Sport.
Wife says I'm crazy and she's probably right.

 

And they base this recommendation on what?

Then you should be as well off as any vehicle out of warranty, because I'll assume 'very good' also means your cooling system is up to snuff as well as your tires.

Interstate cruising is the easiest miles any vehicle will ever see. At legal speeds. The op temps stay steady, minimal braking, no off/on action, all of which are the harder things in terms of wear and tear.

Can it break down? Sure. So can a new vehicle. Question is, if it does, are you prepared to handle it? Meaning fix it, have it towed, etc etc.

 

Here's the deal....how many miles have you put in the truck in the past say 3 months? 2,000?? 3,000?? Did it break down?Conceivably you would do the same driving the next couple months and put 2k+ on it and not even bat an eye.

So what's the big deal to put on 500 in a day or 2? Or a 2000 mile trip for that matter! Check all the stuff you can, make sure it's in good shape, and give er.