Quality between Tacoma & the competition

I think Netscape is the only one to still do it.

 

Its typical GM. Cheap interior and large gaps between the lines of the interior and yes I test drove one for shits and giggles. The ride was nice but its just cheap feeling.

 

Before I purchased my Tacoma, I test drove the full sized offerings from each of the "Big 3". The first stop was the Chevrolet dealership. Hopped into a brand spanking new 1500. First thing I notices was how generic and cheap the interior looked and felt. Once I got out on the road, I noticed the horrible view. Large blind spots, and awkward mirror positioning pretty much killed any motivation to buy. I've yet to see any change from this practice from GM.

Next up: Ford F-150. First thing I noticed was the interior felt more sturdy. The knobs and vents had better fit and finish and looked much better. The ride was a bit stiffer than the Chevy, but I could see my surroundings much better and it was actually easier to maneuver.

Lastly: Dodge. Yes, even after all of the horror stories from many people of exploding transmissions and cheap materials, I wanted to at least give it a shot. Steering was much more responsive and it was very easy to park in tight spaces. The interior was the middle ground between the Ford and Chevy, with hints of cheapness, but felt sturdy.

I purchased the Dodge. I was assured by my mechanic that the transmission was outside of the range of numbers for the explosions, and quite frankly, it hit my price point. That is, until the maintenance started happening. I understand things wear out. However, at 80,000 miles, suspension components needed replaced. The wheels needed replaced as pitting had caused havoc on the inside.

So I traded for my Tacoma. Yes, I have a 1st gen. If I were to purchase something else today, it would undoubtedly be a Ford F150. Recent test drives have proven they are moving towards high quality interiors and ride quality. Innovation seems to be in the forefront of their engineering.

 

The alignment I would say probably has little to do with it. I would still say that the IFS front end as a whole is still to blame for its lack of weight in general which makes it susceptible to transmitting more road feedback and vibrations.

The GSP9700 is an awesome machine and that's what I balanced mine with. That's odd you had such issues. You can never rule. Tire out that is improperly manufactured and not perfectly round though either. Not even the roadforce balance machine can fix that problem.

 

Cheap feeling...
kind of like the Taco.

 

Another quality comment from Mr. Gadget.

 

Thank you sir.....

 

How many threads must I go in tonight with the same people bitchin at each other? How many threads are you trying to lock?

 

I'm good .

 

Maybe its only fair to compare the Dodge Ram, F-150 and Silverado to the full sized Tundra. Having said that, I would disagree that the tacoma feels cheap like some here are saying. I have a few friends who own a Frontier, older gen Colorado and Jeeps and they just don't compare. The electrical issues within said vehicles not illuminating the gauges, dash, etc is just one issue. Cheap plastic materials another. I Have owned my taco for 5 years now and ran into some issues that i would have rather not (tsb leaf springs) but never felt it to be cheap.

 

i am thinking about getting a 16 tacoma but i see honda is comming out with a new ridgeline , so i gunna wait to check it out

 

So you resurrect a thread from a year ago? It was dead!

 

The Colorado could turn out to be great but I'd still stick with the Tacoma. It comes down to what is more appealing to you personally. Little problems here or there I could deal with on either model as long as it was the truck I wanted.

 

I see the ups and downs here, and this thread will most certainly prove to be biased or at the very least opinionated (which is to be expected). But, here is my two cents, for whatever it is worth...

I get the GM and Chrysler discounts due to family employment. My dad's side has 60 years of employment with Chrysler/dodge/jeep/ram and my mom's side with GM-chevy/gmc/buick/caddy. Here is the breakdown of all of these vehicles I have owned in the past 15 years.
-1996 Chevy S10
-1998 Chevy 1500- 3 transmissions in first 30k
-2000 Pontiac Grand Prix- Kept on shattering rear third window (5 times pressure point issue)
-2004 GMC 1500- Lemon Lawed
-2005 GMC 1500- Just general falling apart issues
-2008 Chevy HHR- Excellent car (built in Mexico), It was just embarrassing to drive lol
-2008 Pontiac Solstice- Fun, too small had a family (also had an 04 terminator track car at this time)
-2011 Jeep Wrangler Unlimited- Owned for just 5k, wanted the new motor
-2012 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon- New motor brought four clutches in just as many months- lemon lawed
-2012 Chevy Malibu (Ex-Wife)- Ok car until my ex went on a drinking a driving off road adventure, but still showed longevity issues
-2012 Chevy 1500- Replaced the diff in 30 days, still popped and banged and had a hard time stopping throughout it's 30k mile life with me
-2014 Chevy 2500 Duramax- Bought a tacoma because I was sick of dealing with it all.

I know the list is a lot... I kind of had an addiction and believe it or not I was looking for quality. After I rolled my 1996 S-10 back in 2003, I searched and searched and searched for a call built at least as well as that truck (I put over 200K on the ODO with only a clutch replacement and two alternators in that time).

EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THESE CARS WAS A HUNK OF JUNK! I mean window motors, clutches, drive shafts, transmissions, electrical issues, bearings, alignment issues, differential slips, rusting. You name it I have seen it! Could it be bad luck? sure, it could be.

One thing I will say, and then I will get off of it. I have never owned a car, and my list is bigger than that above, that was as well put together as this truck. Everything is solid, has a reason behind it, and seems to fit. There have been a couple cosmetic things in my year of ownership, but never has anything made this impression on me. I finally replaced my 1996 S-10... It just took me 20 years to do it.
Opinions are like ass holes, every one has one, but mine is built on first-hand experience and desensitization. Hope it helps. Roger out.

 

My 2006 Tacoma has 146k and has been rock solid. I got free front headlights due to the DRLs very slightly burning the lens but Toyota stepped up big on a 10 year old truck and covered it...who does that ?
Our last 4 cars have been Toyota, 2 Lexus and an MDX and they've all been great. If someone out there wants to buy junk that has terrible resale value with a company that won't stand behind their products, buy the Colorado/Canyon. I'm not worried about Toyota and a few issues on a web forum won't change that.
These are things either i can fix or Toyota can fix IF I happen to encounter them.