On the fence about buying an 09 Taco

I've got a local dealer with a 2009 Tacoma Double Cab SR5/TRD Off Road, Magnetic Grey. It is PRETTY. The price is 16k for the truck, but its got 169k miles on it. It's had one owner, carfax is meticulous with maintenance every 3k miles or therabout (which amounts to every couple of months.)

I've set myself up to really only want to spend 15k or somewhere around that, but it seems like I won't find a double cab 4x4 for anything close to that. My '99 Taco has 153k miles and I know it'll keep going for a long time, I expect the same from this '09 but the 169k is alarming for that price.

If you had the chance to pick up a well maintained 09 Taco for that price but with those miles, would you?

 

I had the same dilemma a few months ago, I ended up spending an extra 5k (20k total) for an 09 TRD sport with 80k miles. I am glad I spent the extra in the long run half the miles is well worth it IMHO.

 

Thanks for your experience. I'm trying to rationalize the purchase of the truck, it looks great and has a great history but going over $10k for a used truck with that many miles makes my ulcer act up. I'd like to prep it for mild expedition use and want it to run without question. Wish I could justify a car payment for brand new one.

 

You are right, you are not going to find one for that price with low miles. This is the logic I used when I purshased my 09 same as yours fully loaded with all the packages, but with 108,000 miles for 16k. If the motor ever fails, how much will it cost me to rebuild it or get one from a junk yard with very low miles on it? On both instances, it was cheaper than getting the same truck with 20k miles less, so it was a no brainer. Of course, now that I have it and have seen the inside of the engine ( digital endosscope/borescope camera ), I realize I made a very wise purchase. The engine is pristine with very minimal if any signs of wear, so I know it still have many miles to go.

 

Curse you Tacorriendo. o.0 Would you have done the trade for a truck with 169k miles?

So, did you figure out how much it'd cost to put a new engine in it? I'm fairly certain I can talk them down to $15k since thats all KBB says a truck with those miles is worth. Maybe I'll swing by the Toyota mechanic up the street and see what he'd charge to take a peek at it with his equipment.

 

I wouldn't trade your curreny truck for another with higher miles. I'm sure you will find something better if you're patient or open your search up. Private party on Craigslist may be a better source.

 

Thanks, guys, talked me down there.

I had made up my mind to just play with my '99 more and then got to worrying I might be passing up a rare opportunity. I suppose I'll head over to the Gen1 board and look for fun projects, maybe that'll tide my "new truck" needs for a while longer. (c;

 

here in my neck of the woods, a good low miles engine will run between 2,500 and 3000 buck. I can do the installation myself if need to. so that would put me at 19K max in your case. You can also low ball the seller and see if you can bring it down to 15K. that will put you at 18K for your particular truck if you would replace the engine with one with lot less miles. Which still lower that the 21k plus you are going to find online. I think you may be passing up a good deal here. I would inspect the inside of the engine ( open the oil cap, remove one spark plug. preferably one from the back and with a flash light, check for build up or carbon deposit on the piston.). Sure you may be able to find a plain jane Tacoma with lower miles for the same price, but then you may regret later on when you need one of the features of the one you passed on and kick yourself on the butt.

 

If I'm not equipped to swap an engine or even dig into it, would you think the local Toyota service guys would be willing to look at it or find a local Toyota specific mechanic? I would need some heavy reassurances from someone who knows what they're talking about. (c:

 

many people get intimidated with the many wires and electronics when doing a simple thing as an engine swap. All you really do is take away parts and put parts back. how hard is that? If you don't trust your memory to know how everything goes back, then take tons of pictures when disassembling. the only other mayor thing is to make sure to torque each bolt and nut to specs.

 

I wouldn't offer more than $13K for it. Averaging 40K miles/yr is crazy.If you can get it for $13k and still have your other Taco to share the miles, I would seriously consider it, especially if it's been well maintained. I think it's premature to talk engine swap on these engines that can far exceed 200K miles easily with routine maintenance. I would think the electronics would fail first before engine failure but this Tacoma is fairly new being 2009. That MGM color sure is sexy.

 

Well I bit the bullet. After considering that I was driving an older Taco with less technology to back it up (read no fancy offroad or driving stabilization or traction stuff) with 153k and feeling quite confident I had many years to go, I decided to dig in on the 2009.

The reason for wanting the double cab and especially the 2009 was all of the safety features which will keep my passengers safe. I also liked the TRD off road with locking diff and various traction options. So finding one for what ended up being $15.3k really works out well. The meticulous carfax, the obvious reason for being sold (drive it 3 years til the lease ended and return it) and the Toyota approved 120 pt inspection which tested compression and all the other major bits were enough to convince me.

So, in the end I'm graduating from the 1st Gen Taco board to the 2nd Gen, though technically I'm still authorized to be in both... I need to sell my 1999 now. I'll post pictures soon!

 

If it's well taken care of, I think you made a good purchase. I have about 127,000 on my 2009. It's been maintained as well as the one you describe, and if I were to sell it, I'd start at about $20,000 and hope to get $18,000 for it. So at $16,000, I think you did pretty good.

 

I've bought two new Tacomas because the used prices were too stupid.

 

Maybe next time. I do like that my '99 Taco (purchased 4 years ago) cost me $7k and I expect to be able to get at least $6k selling it now. The used prices are insane but justified.

 

You did well sensei. Do not look back. It will be well worth it. A lot of people put too much emphasis in mileage because we carry that mentality from our ancestors when vehicles were built with different materials. Metals, alloys, plastics, rubbers, fabrics are not like way back then. Way back in the 80's when you would open the hood of an american car with 100k + miles, even if it was a recent year, you could see the wear and tear inside and out. Now days, they look almost new on the outside, and you have to guess the conditions on the inside, cause you can't really tell.

 

I'm as giddy as a kid with a new toy, already spotting a handful of things I need to do and now I have to prioritize them. (Sliders/Steps, New Grill, chips in windshield, digitalfit mats, arb bumpers)

 

I just got a 06 white access cab sport with 78k miles on it for 17k. It was meticulously taken care of. Came with a leveling kit, 18 chrome wheels, a super nice canopy.

Are you specifically looking for a 09 or will any year work?

 

He already bought the 2009.

 

And I am liking it a lot.