Non-offroaders, why did you get a truck?

Well i have a camper shell, but in your case you should put him on a much shorter tether. Mine do sometimes ride in the back seat so I protected the interior as well as wet okole seat covers underneath.

 

If you want the safest crate money can buy, here you go. Then just strap it down.

https://gunnerkennels.com/crash-tested

 

Or you could also secure a kennel in the bed of your truck...

 

Damn, that's a nice crate! $$$

 

love the question..

my last vehicle was a very modified VW R32 with $20k in modding. took her to 136k miles, hit a loose semi truck wheel sitting in the fast lane at 75mph in the dark and my VW was totaled.

now i gotta get something tough. no more diva shit, gawd.

and it's gotta have an MT or bust. no MT, no purchase.

some utility would be nice, about to move into a new house so being able to haul a little..

hey, that new Pro looks nice... put down a deposit and 5 months later I got the first MT Pro delivered in Texas.

best move i every made in my vehicle history. it's great, love the drive and all that comes with it.

 

You should watch the testing that center for pet safety does with it! It's unreal the abuse it lives up to. I'd get one for my dog if they made one big enough.

 

2-3 time a week during the spring/summer/fall I am towing my boat. Now with a bigger truck (I upgraded from an S10) I have the ability to tow my buddies larger bass boat. I also like having a locking topper so I can keep all of my ice fishing gear in it during the winter.

I also live in MN, so having 4wd is very very nice.

 

Camping, fishing, And their very little trails in Chicago. I also like to be able to transport my 3 buddies and all of our gear.

 

Hauling allthethings!
Both in the bed and trailering.

Also, https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/long-bed-vs-short-bed.512798/#post-16144878

 

Same with me. Older 4runner I can have fun on the trail. Tacoma will have fox lift but won't see much trail use.

 

I rarely go off-road and get into a position even rarer that I NEED 4x4 action. I am just a 'truck' guy. My 1st vehicle at ~15 y/o was a '54 Ford F100. I've owned 9 trucks in my life and still have 2 of them- the '54 and '01 Taco. I've owned 3 cars, one of which was just a 2 month, clean-up and flip (57 Chevy wagon), and I still have the other 2- original '69 bug and '40 Ford Deluxe. I use my trucks to haul shit- motorcycles, landscaping material, dump runs, moving, etc... I use a truck for what it was designed for. I feel comfortable stepping into a truck. I dislike crawling into a car. I have no wife/kids, but do have dogs. As long as I have room for them, I am good to go.

 

Killer username, and some damn good reasoning. I like this guy.

 

For the past four years, our Fam was getting by with one car, a motorcycle, and a sidecar rig (Ural). The sidecar was the Daughter shuttle when needed and was also my first DS machine. It made it stupid easy to do goofy stuff offroad and in the mud and snow. Being that it was unreliable as any 'modern' vehicle could possibly get, we all decided that it needed to go.

I wanted something reliable with some good offroad chops that would be a commuter for half the week and a hauler / grocery getter on the weekends. An MT was a must. Basically, it had to take over for the sidecar. A Taco was the only real answer. The Fam was heavily in the Jeep category, but there just wasn't enough carrying capacity unless it was a 4dr, which I didn't want. Used AC Tacos were just too pricey compared to new, low payments.

Sooo, the Taco has only been offroad once since I got it. I'm looking for opportunities, but it does everything else so well.

 

kinda surprised this hasn't been said yet but to compensate for my little ....

 

we dont openly admit that.

 

I spent 45 minutes tieing a door to the top of my rav4, it was cold, my fingers were numb. The door fell off and smashed going down the road. I was super pissed and said I'm done with SUV's, bought the Tacoma and gave my wife the Rav4.

 

duuuuddeeeeeeeee

 

I still almost bought a 4 runner when we were shopping for the Tacoma. Now we've traded the Rav4 in on her 4runner so I get best of both worlds, when she's not lookin' and I swipe the keys!

 

Everything you said for me too except the lawn business

- 4x4 for New England snow
- towing a boat in summer
- like sitting higher off the ground for visibility
- hauling bikes, kayaks, dogs, lumber for home projects, spring landscaping supplies, wet/salty boating gear, kids smelly soccer gear, other greasy, oily, dirty, wet, or large things....

 

Ah that was my other option.
Really wanted them to ride in the bed with the fresh air, but their safety is my priority so I don't mind going this route. I even found little seatbelts for them!

So tempting...but my wallet...