Help me decide what Taco fits my needs

Hey guys,

I am looking at buying a used truck this summer. I have heard all about the Tacoma's reliability and whatnot so I have been looking into getting one of those. My budget is around 10-12k; less is good, more would take some consideration. I am in Florida so 4x4 is not needed at all, I just need something as a daily driver and to haul things in the bed every now and then. I also want to tow a 17' boat with it, but that wont be that often.

I have been looking into used 2005-2010 2.7L I4 Regular Cab Prerunners (manual tranny). I have seen a bunch of them on craigslist and Autotrader with less than 60000 miles for around 8-12k. I figure that it will suit my needs, be easier to work on and get better gas mileage than a v6.

I was also looking into 1st gen Tacoma's, I have heard that the new gen has reliability issues. I want this truck to last a long while, be easy to work on, and not cost an arm and a leg to maintain so reliability is a must, but the new gen is just so much sexier.

I'd appreciate any input from you guys.

 

i vote an X-Runner.

But i'm a little bit biased.

 

What does that 17' boat, trailer and all your gear tip the scales to read?

 

I would say no more than 3000lbs.

 

Well a Gen II four cyl has a MAXIMUM towing capacity of 3500 so you would want to be sure. I always give the advice to have more truck than you need for the towed load. Running at Max is a recipe for getting in trouble, even for an experienced combination driver.

I am not talking mean here, just offering information and suggestions.

HTH

 

I would probably invest in a 1st generation V6, manual transmission. You will probably be able to buy it in your price range and it would do a good job towing your boat around. If you can get one with a 4x4 option that would be a plus, you never know when you get stuck trying to pull the boat out of the water.

 

I am just worried about the v6's reliability. I have heard that the v6 has issues while the I4 is bulletproof and will last 300,000+ miles.

I mean, towing is not my primary concern for me, just maybe a nice feature to have since I have other means of towing my boat.. Reliability and gas mileage are much more important.

 

You heard wrong about the V6. I've never heard anything negative about them except the tick some have. Mine don't have it.

 

I have been doing some more browsing and it seems that all v6 Tacomas in my price range are already at 100,000+ miles. I am just not confident in buying a used truck with that many miles so it is looking like a 2nd gen 4 banger will be the best option.

Any suggestions on base model vs prerunner?