Considering Tacoma to replace Tundra

I haven’t posted on here in a long time. But here is my short history I had an 05 Tacoma for 5 years and I loved that truck. I then went to a duramax diesel which was nice but not practical for me. So I ended up buying a new 15 tundra TRD crewmax. I have really enjoyed the truck. It’s nice truck my only gripe as I’m sure you can imagine is the fuel mileage. Things have changed in my life and I am now daily driving my tundra. I drive 25 miles one way to work. I have 295s on my truck and if I drive it really nice I can manage to pull 15. But more often than not it’s 14 or even 13. I just find myself contemplating whether it’s worth it for me to drive the tundra daily. I’m not hauling anything and I don’t own any trailers of significant size. So I have been contemplating on trading it for a Tacoma. My fear with that is size. I do have a family of four. But 9 times out of 10 if we are going somewhere we take my wife suv. I don’t know do any of you or have you had a similar situation?? What opinions do you have???

 

Realistically you can expect to get 18-20mpg overall with a Tacoma. Family of four will be tight but I have an access cab and have had three adults and a kid on board.

 

I think a big piece of it depends on what you plan on doing to the Tacoma. In its stock form it gets pretty good mileage but once you add a lift, bigger tires, etc. it gets pretty bad. My truck on 33’s gets 16mpg or so and on my 60 mile round trip to work the gas adds up. With that being said, I would keep the Tundra if I was in your position. A family of 4 would be pretty tight plus the mileage really isn’t that much better in a Taco. You get a lot more truck with the Tundra in exchange for a couple of miles per gallon.

 

I love my Tacoma, no doubt about it. But you've got a great truck there (that you're close to not, if not making payments on anymore). I bet your ride is more comfortable than the Tacoma. My dad always used to say "gas is cheap". You have to get a LOT better mileage to make it worth switching. You won't. It's not like the Taco is some sort of petrol miser.

Then again...I sure do love my Taco.

 

You’ve already had a Tacoma so you know what the size is, and so I’m not sure what you’re hoping to gain.
I would love to have a tundra, but it’s not practical unless it’s for a specific purpose like a work truck, hauling, or pulling.

I have 3 friends who all wanted a tundras.
Told them all the same thing...it’s a hog on gas and you commute. It’s a bitch to park. You can’t put it in your garage. You don’t have anything that “requires” it.
they all wanted the big D full size truck status so none of them listened.
All 3 drive Tacomas now.

 

25 x 2 x 5 x 52 = 13,000 miles

13,000 miles ÷ 18 miles/gal= 722gal
13,000 miles ÷ 14 miles/gal= 928gal

$3/gal x 722 gal= $2166
$3/gal x 928 gal= $2784

$2784-$2166= $618

You'll save $618/year...Woohoo!? (Ok, you could probably eak out slightly better mileage from Taco... but not likely, especially with any mods)

You'll save probably less than one payment on your new truck per year.

Don't do it for the mileage

(Also, someone check my math. I haven't been in school for a long time)

 

Option 3, get a 40mpg beater for the commute:

13,000 miles ÷ 40 miles/gal= 325gal
$3/gal x 325 gal = $975

$2784-$975 = $1809

After a few years of that, it's paid for itself, at least if you buy the grade of beater that I would go for.

And you still get the tundra for the weekends.

 

Me, I'd keep the tundra. I would have bought one if it wasn't substantially higher priced

 

For the reasons you stated, I think you would be disappointed in the Tacoma.

The seating position is so different I would worry about your overall experience with comfort etc.

 

You will be disappointed in the power of the Tacoma possibly, do a really good test drive. The 6 speed manual will kind of make up for it unless you don't like a manual.

 

I went from a tundra that I had twelve years before switching to the Tacoma this past February. There are a lot of advantages and disadvantages. It all comes down to what’s more important for you, but don’t do it for the mileage if you plan to mod because it won’t be a big enough difference.

For me, I didn't need to haul anything anymore, don’t have a large family with kids and a dog anymore, and certainly don’t have the room to store a large truck anymore. Wanted something I could seriously off road in tight places with a bit better mileage. The Tacoma ticked all those boxes for me. Those are the pros.

In the cons column: You’re going to give up a lot of comfort comparatively speaking. The smaller interior and bed take some getting used to after all the comfort and roominess of the Tundra. Going from a Tundra to a Taco is almost claustrophobic until you get used to it. If you don’t need the extra room, the increased maneuverability will more than make up for it. But comfort will still be an issue. If you get a 2020 with power seats it shouldn’t be. If you go with a 2019, you may have to play around with some seat spacers to get it where you want.

Going back to mileage, as was said if you plan to keep it stock, it’s pretty good. If you throw a lift and bigger tires on it, you’re going to throw most of your gains out the window. You’ll see maybe a 2 or 3 mile increase, depending on how you drive.

Be honest with yourself about what you want and add up the positives and negatives before you decide. For me, despite a few negatives it was a great move. the positives far outweighed them.

Edited to add: Almost forgot. The tranny/shifting issues a lot of people complain about is non-existent in my truck. It shifts just like any other vehicle I’ve ever driven and while it obviously doesn’t have the power of the tundra’s 5.7, it has plenty if you don’t need to tow anything large.

 

I was in a similar situation to you. I had a crew max Tundra, wife had a 4Runner. Wife would drive the 3 kids to school and errands in the 4R, then when we went anywhere as a family I would do the car seat changeover (which I found really annoying) and we would take the Tundra. Loved the truck but me having the bigger family vehicle was stupid. Mine was stock and could get 17-18 mpg if I babied it.

So I sold her 4R and got her a Sequoia which is now the family ride, then traded in the Tundra for a Tacoma for me. I like the smaller size and better mpg for commuting. I haven't got less than 22.5 mpg and my best tank was 24 mpg, with the manual transmission. I'm happy I switched but ymmv.

 

Also, I'll echo what others have said in that coming from my Tundra, the seat angle in my 2019 Tacoma really sucked. I got 1" spacers for the rear, much better now. That was my biggest gripe about the new truck. Next would be losing the slide down rear window.

 

I had a 12 Tacoma and traded it for a 16 CrewMax Tundra and missed my Tacoma. I found a Gen 3 Tacoma and traded the Tundra for it.

I loved the Tundra but hated the mileage. I, like you, was typically the only one in my Tundra and I was driving it daily. I towed a boat here and there but that's about it. My Tacoma tows the boat just as well as the Tundra and gets a bit better mileage.

That said, the ride quality of the Tundra will likely have spoiled you and once you drive the Tacoma again it will feel cheaper for a few months but you get over it.

I have the shifting issues in my Tacoma even after the TSB's have been performed. They aren't as bad but they are there and it's annoying AF. It's the one thing that makes me regret my decision.

The Tacoma is IMO more fun than the Tundra. My final thought is if it were me and I could go back....I would have kept my Tundra.

 

Family of 4 will be extremely tight.
@BillyToy is right, don't do it just for the mileage.

I'm not trying to be an ass, but are you sure you're just not ready for a new toy?
Serious question; coming from a former and recovering, every 2-3 year vehicle switcher.

You have a nice truck, keep the miles down, and buy a shit/eco box to drive yourself to work. They'll only make fun of you the first day at work, you can handle it, no one really cares what you drive.

 

The minimal fuel savings won’t compensate for the car payment

 

Don't do it....

The mileage isn't much different and frankly, the Tundra is twice the truck a Tacoma is. As already pointed out, the $500 or $600 fuel savings per year isn't going to have much of an impact on your fiscal bottom line. If I had an extra $10k laying around I would have picked up a Tundra rather than a Taco. In retrospect, the extra room, build quality, comfort and power would have been worth it.

Not being a wise-guy so don't take it that way, but you need to spend some quality time with a Ridgeline. Bring the family with you when you go to check the Honda out...they will probably love it.

 

With the difference in MPG between both trucks. It'll take you a very long time to recoup the savings in fuel costs to cover the new truck payments. Unless your going to break even somehow.

I understand what you're saying. But does it make financial sense in the longer term. .

 

Drive what you want. You'll be dead one day and it won't have mattered what your MPG was. Life is too short to drive something you don't like.

 

I went from a Tundra with the 5.7 to a Tacoma. I don't regret my decision, the Tacoma is much lighter and more maneuverable than the Tundra. I don't tow anything anymore, so that isn't an issue for me. Also, my Tundra was too big for my garage, so it was exposed to weather (sun damage) 24/7.
Only thing I miss about the Tundra was the V8 sound through the Borla exhaust and having plenty of power.
Both trucks serve different purposes, the Tacoma isn't a work mule, to me it's more of an off road toy (like a Jeep, only more reliable).
Also, while not too common, the iForce V8 engines have had problems that can cost several thousand dollars to fix. It's a very complex engine and a pain in the ass to work on.