What does it feel like owning/driving/being seen in a Tacoma versus another truck?

we are. the truth hurts.

 

Let's be real... the Tacoma (and my Tundra) are like a 160cc Honda engine. Can I get an amen from the first pew?

 

I mean...sure I like my truck. But it's not a "lifestyle" or a statement for or about me. And while I appreciate what it does for me....it certainly doesn't define who I am. No vehicle ever has or will for me.

I think some of you wax your rigs with your own jizm.

 

“Doesn't define me at all” he says in his 20,000th message on a truck forum!?

 

Having some "Internet friends" is completely different than a vehicle defining who I am. Those 20k posts are spread out over the 11.5 years.

Go look at how many of my posts are actually about Tacomas.....even more, how many are about MY Tacoma

 

The answer is always Point Break.

 

Point Break was a better action movie than this super hero shit we've been on for twenty five plus years.

 

Why can't we have a Friday thread where bear spray blows up in someones tacoma and their gf goes asthmatic in all the excitement and has to get taken to the er as the poster is more concerned about the headliner and how to get the smell out?

 

Not sure I buy your schtick at all. I've had a buddy who worked at W+K (PDX) for years and got to do cool shit before moving to a diff firm in (NYC); don't remember him posting pre-Friday threads in TW...

No one has bought any new Toyota since like 1998 for a visceral, emotional experience because of the vehicle. You buy a Tacoma or Tundra because of the experiences they allow you to have. Because it (should) run 250k miles with absolute neglect and keep chugging. You buy a Toyota (4Runner/Land Cruiser/Taco/Tundra) because you live somewhere you need to be able to access your camp spot/hunting lease/trailhead/drive the pan American highway/etc. and know you'll never get stuck for any mechanical reason. Because you can do that for 10 years plus your regular commute with your son or daughter in tow and then pass it on to them when they start driving at 16. And you'll know they have something just as safe and reliable until they can buy their own.

You get a Toyota because you want to make it your "own" and the aftermarket is immense and there's rarely new ground to break. You can have $25k in parts ordered, fab'd and delivered before you buy your truck and know that 9/10 times it'll all fit on just like the directions say. For some people it was the lifted, black pick up with yellow KCs that Marty McFly drove and we all imagined having Biff wax it in the driveway for us. Others grew up watching Fast and Furious and saw Brian's orange Supra and fell in love with the brand that way (spicy for a truck forum, I know). I thoroughly enjoyed all the Toyotas I've owned, and I'm certain I will own more in the very near future, but at no point did I shift to third, mash the gas and get some major "the thrill of driving" experience like the commercials show. It was reliable, safe and did what I asked of it - nothing more, nothing less.

This shit x10000. But yeah I already waxed poetic.

OA

 

It’s 2020. We all just need to get used to the fact that we can’t have nice things anymore.

 

It feels great when I commute to work or load the dogs/wife up to go camping. It feels like it’s time for a full size every time I shop for boats or think of the price.

 

I'm really not. I work for an ad agency that works for Toyota. My job is to understand a customers POV so we give people what they really want. I know these kinds of things smell fishy. I'm just learning here. For real.

 

Here ya go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U5TqIdff_DQ

 

I'm 58...I drive the Tacoma because of the practicality of the vehicle...dependable, very agile, 4WD capabilities are excellent, safe vehicle, comfortable, jack of all trades kind of truck. I have no emotional attachment to it, and I have honestly never thought of what others think about me in it. I'm not being sarcastic - perhaps it is age, perhaps it is me...when I was younger I admit I wanted to look cool in vehicles, wanted girls to look, etc - but to to me I appreciate this truck for what it does/provides me, and emotion is not in play. As a corporate guy - dealing with marketing often; I think emotions are overplayed/analyzed and the functionality of the product is too often overlooked. I believe Tacoma falls in the latter for marketing. Toyota does not do a lot of feel good advertising on this truck, yet the demand stays high, as it does with older models (i.e.: resale value - no marketing there). Marketing needs to realize their job is sometimes not to create the emotion, but shine a light of the strengths of the product it self. That is obviously not true on many things - particularly trends - with trends you need to capitalize on the moment and exploit every emotion. Tacomas are not about emotions - though many honestly LOVE these trucks, they spend countless dollars/hours on them. I believe these folks are not 'loving' these trucks out of emotion but they have a loyalty because of what the truck provides. I believe most of these folks are loyal to Tacomas rather than love Tacomas...marketing must identify if that is the case, as the strategy is much different and actually far more simple. Good luck to you!

 

I like my

I like driving my Tacoma because everywhere I go, it's like throwing beads at Mardi Gras. Women are pulling up their shirts and chasing me down the street, wanting a "ride".

But maybe that's just because it's me.

I've always been a Toyota fan, my first one was a '76 FJ40. I figure that the Taco is the next best thing to a true LC (forget the FJ Cruiser). It rides comfortably, tows what I need to pull, has a totally inadequate bed (I have the short bed), but it will do since I can trailer whatever doesn't fit. It will still fit inside a standard garage. It's reliable. And mainly, it isn't a Ford, GM, or Dodge.

 

The ad agency doesn't want to pay for research with tacoma owners to learn this stuff, so he came to the forum to try and learn it for free. I totally understand the reasoning since this forum is similar to a focus group of tacoma enthusiasts.

 

All 4x4 dudes are into military/tactical things lately. The more squared up, utilitarian, rugged, manly, boxy, and serious a vehicle looks, the more dudes will like it. They did a great job ruggedizing the 3rd gen Tacoma over the 2nd gen, it could even go farther. Look at the Jeep Wrangler, or the new Ford Bronco . . . . boxy and manly as hell. In my opinion, Toyota Should go MORE toward that direction and far less toward swooping curves and gentle lines and bubbly rounded edges. Guys don’t like that stuff. Look at the overseas market Toyota Land Cruiser 70 series for an idea of what I’m talking about.

 

I kinda get what you’re saying but any real ad agency would need to be able to reference the focus group or the exercise. And anyone worth their salary could’ve written what I wrote earlier mad libs style with any other truck and product placement and gotten the same points across.

OA

 

Lots of interesting points of view here. I'm among the older generation (65) who grew up with cars that you could actually work on without all of the implications of tight engine bays and electronics every where. Oil changes were easy and routine, as was doing a tune-up in your driveway. So, it s probably easier for us to feel more of an attachment to some of our vehicles. A 64 Ford Falcon convertible followed by a '66 Mustang Coupe to a '70 Mustang Boss 302 Fastback were my introduction to the world of cars. And then marriage, a son, a career that took me overseas often ....d the era of crap vehicles coming out of the US made it less likely for me to get a feeling of "enjoyment" when I drove my vehicles. There were ones though that were just fun to drive and that turned heads - a '80 Saab 900 Turbo and then my '96 BMW Z3, that I bought new and still own are in that category when I just get a feeling of enjoyment when I sit in the driver's seat and push them through the corners...and enjoy the compliments of a great looking ride.

I owned a '90 Toyota 4Runner - great vehicle, did everything I wanted it to do but just never captured the rush of driving a great vehicle. My first Tacoma was a 2004 ExtraCab OR that I bought used in 2012 - only had 27,000 miles on it and I was the 3rd owner. We bought it as work vehicle to use around our small farm to haul stuff. I was impressed by the practicality of it, the solid feel when I drove it and that t never let me down. After several years of owning it we began to work as a chase crew for a hot air balloon company in our spare time. We started taking the Tacoma because we sometimes got into areas where having the truck was more practical than Lynn's Subaru Outback. It didn't take long for us to really begin to enjoy the feel of the Tacoma..it hit that "fun to drive" button, not as much as the Z3 but in it's own way it gave enjoyment to the chase. I knew I needed to get a vehicle with full back seats and decided I'd buy a new truck when I retired this year. I looked at others - Ford F150 and Ranger among them - but none of the provided the "wow" factor for me of driving it. There have been few vehicles I've owned where I would sometimes just go out to the garage to look at them...my Z3 is one. And, I am happy to say that my 2020 Army Green Tacoma Pro is another. It's fun to drive, is a head-turner and I get that "wow" feeling whenever I drive it.