Talk me out of a short box.

Close to pulling the trigger on 2020 DCSB (TRD Off-Road base here in Canada). I just rented one for 4 days on a business trip to LA and it was great, really helped me decide it was what I want to buy... just one question:

Has anyone who's bought a short-box (5') regretted it and wished they'd gone with a model with a 6' box?

My thought is that both box sizes are pretty much useless compared to a full-size truck, and I'm not buying a Tacoma to haul plywood / long items all the time. I'm buying it because of how it drives, 4x4 ability, how it looks, and I found that the shorter wheelbase is actually pretty manageable in the city. It'll also fit in my garage (barely) whereas the long box won't.

I have access to an 8' trailer for home depot trips if/when needed.

Just getting some final thoughts before buying in the next month or so (saving a bit more $ first).

 

If the bed capacity doesn’t matter then go for the 5 foot.
But there’s a chance that later you’ll wish you had the 6.

 

4x10 sheets.



I also camped out the back of mine this weekend. No wet tent to mess with.

My teenage daughters fit in the back seats nicely.

Nuf said.

Perfect situation.

 

Long bed if you want to use it as a truck, short bed if you want it as a car/off-ing vehicle.

 

Sounds like the 5 ft bed is fine for you.
There are some claims that the long beds ride better. Not sure how those people made that comparison (its always long bed owners making the claim), but yea, there you go.

 

Yea, if you don’t need it, 5’ is fine. If you think you might, get the 6’

 

looks like you just answered your question. When I upgraded from a 2011 to my 2020 one of the main things for me was the longer box. But I put my bikes and fishing gear and camping gear and bonfire/beach gear and... well you get the picture. For me the longer box was worth it, but from the sounds of it having a short box is not going to have any negative side effects to your ownership.

 

If I bought a long bed I would have to get a lot of stuff out of my garage!

 

I would start by walking to the rear of the box. Lean over the tailgate at the middle. Pull up on the black handle to unlatch and the let the tailgate drop on the slow open hinges. Once the tailgate is down walk to the edge. Here you have a choice. Jump down to the ground, sit on edge of gate and drop down or fall out clumsily and hurt yourself. Turn back to the tailgate and close it securely. There you go. You have now been talked out of a 5 foot box. Also note these instructions will work on a 6 foot box as well. You just might have to travel an extra foot to reach the gate.

 

don't get a short box

 

Long bed AC or DC Short bed...it's the wheelbase that you will treasure. Being canuckian, I'd recommend ACLB MT OR...or DCSB Sport MT. Wheelbase bro, wheelbase

 

Tacoma long bed guys are like vegans.

They have to tell you they have one and how great it is.

 

DCSB here, coming from a DCLB 2nd gen.

No ragrats.
Everything I've towed and hauled has been a breeze.

The LBs do look good though.

 

Short bed for me. I got the DCSB because of the advantage off-road. I also have kids so the access cab was not an option

 

The nice part about the short bed is that it parks easily, Also I can park my truck in the garage and still being able to work on it and get around it easily. I don't really need a longer bed that often and I have a utility trailer for whenever I do need to carry larger loads.
My one regret is that I did not not look around more for a manual transmission though. The auto transmission hunts up and down for gears occasionally when I first got it, but seems to hunt less after I downsized from 265/70R17 wheels to 245/75R/16 wheels.

 

I may be the exception, I feel having the proper tool for the proper job. If I was still doing aggressive technical trail I would have stuck with the short bed, as the break over angle and turning radius is much better for trails. But for me carrying more things in the back was much more important and I do feel like it is a little bit more stable, probably the longer/heavy vehicle makes it more planted to the ground

 

If you off road a lot, short bed.
Carry a lot of stuff, long bed.

I have a short bed and have a bed extender so it makes it a little better than not having it.

Long beds look better also in my opinion

 

Long bed guys and MT guys...the vegans of TW

 

The first look at a long bed Tacoma pretty much sealed the deal for me with a solid "hell no"

If you need a big bed, you need a fullsize. Simple as that in my mind.

 

If one considers the long box in a DC configuration they really just need to buy a full-size truck.