Latin.
I think the word of the day etymology is affecting me.
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I switched from a Tacoma to a Jeep Wrangler 2 Door and bought a little utility trailer. Does everything a taco would do, is way more fun, your family will love it, and I'm getting 2mpg better than a taco to boot.
Get a 4 door with your family and a dog. Utility trailer for like a g. You'll come out 5-10k ahead of the taco price wise if buying new.
Highway cruising is not its forte, but since we are talking about Colorado won't you be in traffic until the trailhead anyways? Plus not daily driver makes a Jeep even better.
A fucking Wrangler? Gimme a break.
Well, yeah. You're going to have to accept that lots of space for kids, furkids and toys is going to come at the expense of nimbleness and off-road capability. I drove a couple thousand miles in rented crew cab/long bed 2016 F150s last year for work and thought they drove pretty well. They won't win any turn radius contests, but I didn't hate driving them. That included about 50 offroad miles getting to some old mines in the Mojave, but I drove those very gingerly since the rental companies put huge rims and low-pro tires on them.
On further consideration, I would at least try and drive a crew/longbed Tacoma. That may come as close as you'll get to the best of both worlds. Though, your mileage and price points may be hard to hit.
+1
FWIW, my impression of the Tundra was that it drove more like a boat than the new domestics. Older model Tundra handles much better. Both Ram 1500 and F150 have relatively quick, balanced handling. Unless size is a priority, there just doesn't seem to be any value in choosing midsize over fullsize.
why do rental companies do that? I had coworkers get stranded two falls ago with a rental 4x4 truck in eastern nevada with a blown tire (shitty tires). many years ago, we trashed a bunch of ford escapes doing a full winter of field work in the sac delta mud. we rented them enough we essential paid for the SUVs. We strongly encouraged them to change from the HT tire to AT tires, but to no avail. we only got stuck a few times.
OP, have you sat in a 4 door taco, tundra, F150, etc.? when i was figuring out my shit two years ago, i checked out the used frontier and tacos (budget $15k or less) and decided that there was no way my kids would be able to sit for extended periods in the back seat (e.g. road trips), especially when they become near adult height. i have three kids, but i thought it'd be a tough fit for extended sitting for even two growing kids, too. the dog would always be in the bed. i've heard similar complaints for the tundra with the suicide doors.
Shameless: Land crusher packed for a family trip. I made a little platform for the dog. We also keep a long and skinny Thule box on the rack. The roof is kinda a shit show :)
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...2d046ec50d.jpg
With boat (I usually use 4lo to access the little food paddling lake near me because it's a steep, creepy, and slow road.
https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/201...f1f0e74339.jpg
Go test drive whatever. There is no this is better or lasts longer etc. You'll see F-150's with the 5.4 that have 300k, and you'll see Taco's with 300k on them..same with the Tundra, or Frontier, or Ranger, or Landcruiser etc. I've had both a mid-2000's Tacoma and a F-150. I liked the F-150 better because A. it got the same gas mileage B. It had more room in the interior by far, and the bed was bigger. C. It had more comfy features + factory BOSE system which was tits. D. Comparing same years it was a good $3-5k cheaper than the Tacoma's because it isn't as cool here in Colorado. But, it was bigger therefore harder to work on, and harder to park. YMMV
Then I sold both, and bought a Subaru Forester which I fucking love.
Man that rack turned out super sweet.
You need a trailer.
Curious what you sold the f150 and taco for? I don't see many fords make it past 200000k/120000miles with out a lot of parts getting replaced. Only thing worse is the ram. I see a lot of next to new ones with serious problems. For American gmc is the only one I'd consider. Good power train. That little six banger is a great little engine. Only problems we have with those is the odd plastic bit. Other contractor company had fords and suspension, trani, and diffs were a crap shoot and the diesels never started in the cold. Cummins and gm's diesel no probs. chevys also hold their value. I prefer the piece of mind of the yota
The "opinions are like assholes" saying goes double for trucks. There's some great experience to pull from, but there's a lot of brand and other bias to weed through. Every single "what truck" thread ever posted in the world has somebody saying that, if you're gonna buy mid-size, you might as well go full-size.
All I can say is, go drive them. Drive everything that interests you. Hell, I test drive cars when I have no intention of buying cause it's fun. It's a huge financial commitment, and to me, too important to rest on opinions and a quick look-over of a vehicle or two.
I test drove about everything that could be considered a truck, including some SUVs, fully intending to get an F150. I ended up with a CCLB Tacoma. For me, the "might as well go full-size" didn't pan out. The Tacoma feels appreciably smaller than full-size counterparts, I prefer the way it drives, and ultimately, it just excels at different things. For my needs, the bed is plenty big, it tows more than enough, and has more than enough power. And, there's plenty of room in the back for my kids. Obviously, YMMV.
As far as SUV vs Truck, for me, it was an easy decision. Despite liking the 4Runner the most out of the stuff I drove, it just didn't fit. I hate shit piled on the roof of my car and I don't want to rely on a trailer for hauling and I need to be able to tow a raft and/or a camper. With a topper, I have secure(ish) enclosed storage that I don't care about trashing. I have a place to keep bikes and skis, haul stuff, sleep, and to escape the prying eyes of my in-laws and their neighbors while I'm visiting them and want to burn one.
This is the best advice in this thread. "Might as well go full size" is the primary reason why we, as 'Mericans only have the Tacoma, really, as a mid size truck, and it's now pretty bloated at that.
I'll add one thing to the test driving (which is excellent advice, BTW), test drive everything back to back, the same day.
Except for the 60K miles part, a first gen Tundra (2000 - 2006) might be an option. I just bought one, and think it's a great truck. Basically bigger than a taco, and smaller than the new Tundra, and comes with a 4.7L V8.
QFT. Had a 2007 2dr Wrangler that was riddled with electrical issues. Traded it in for an 2013 F150 crew cab with the "ecoboost". I get better milage in my truck, and even spent 5 months road tripping in it with Mrs. Spank (got a topper and built a sleeping platform). I'm at 90k now and haven't had any issues yet. Couldn't say the same with my Jeep which apparently the dealer ended up replacing the entire electrical system in order to sell it.
Had a 2001 Tundra that was awesome. Outside dimensions are similar to the new Tacos, but I think they are bigger inside. Those 4.7s are bomber, but there are a few maintenance things you want to make sure were done. Timing belts, etc. IMine got a small crack in the header that would make a ticking noise when the engine was cold, which is apparently a pretty common problem.
I bet they stack nicely in there.
Here's more on it: http://bringatrailer.com/2008/09/03/...agon-projects/
I kinda like the other one more. I wonder what became of them.
I was looking at the thread titles and thinking my buddy pointed out that BC skiers all drive toyotas and the parking lot is spotless after a season while the sledders drive large american trucks and the p-lot is always full of garbage
TGR is always about the same shit, toyota tacoma/highlander/ tundra , IPA, red wine yada yada
So somewhere there must be a forum where they are talking about which big diesel, where to get flats of Budweiser cheap, the best garbage to thro around the p-lot
There is no peace of mind with anything. Like what? My buddies 2006' Tacoma w/ 67k on it with a completely rusted out frame and now they are buying back his truck TBD and he has had a rental car for the past two months because they aren't sure what to do wit hit yet (Colorado Springs). I sold that truck to him 3 years ago for $12,500 with 52k on it. He has ad to replace a/c compressor, power steering pump, and an instrument dash that went south. Now, the entire fucking frame. So, I don't even entertain this one brand is better than others BS excluding Lada. I sold my 2004' Ford F-150 FX-4 with 190k on it for $5k. I had $10k in it. This was in "good" condition, full ARE topper, full thule rack, I just did the 5.4 spark plugs + boots, new BFG KO2 A/T tires with 1k on them, complete 200k maintenance myself. I did a 2600 mile road trip in it from Colorado to Indiana to Jackson hole to Denver two weeks ago. I took a $5k hit because it blue books at $5k. It was fucking awesome and would've kept it but I drive too much to justify 15mpg and live downtown so parking was always a bitch.
I have had
Ford 7.3 diesel
Ford F-150
Chevy 6.5 diesel, Duramax diesel
Dodge W250 Cummins, sold it with 330k on it
Toyota Tacoma 2006 crew cab tsp
Toyota Hilux x 2(lived in Europe for awhile)
The Ford F-150 was by far the least maintenance for the mileage. Like said, there is no GMC is shit, or Chevy sucks, it just depends on individual vehicle unless you buy a Ford Pinto
Good comparison. You made it past 120k with the ford(point where I usually see a lot of maintenance), so that's good and they're ok to work on. Blue book does suck with those . That usually doesn't matter a lot to me. I run them into the ground. Yota has been cheap to run for me(I usually buy older than 6 yrs because yota). Older duramax needed some tweaks. Newer is good. Pre 09 cummins is solid. People like the 7.3. I guess I just see lots of ford problems and lots of yota with crazy big mileage. There's always duds. Just what I see. I work in highway maintenance so I see/use/abuse a lot of trucks. You've had some yotas and some miles on that cummins so I guess they've been relatively good.
So, on all these trucks I had do some maintenance if you know what I mean. I don't think there is one vehicle out there that I've encountered that is going 100k with absolutely NOTHING. The Dodge W250 was falling apart around the motor, I replaced damn near everything and if I kept it I was going to have to rewire the entire truck because the wiring was falling apart. The 7.3 had about 195k on it, the 2006 Tacoma was a absolute dud. I would not hesitate to buy another Toyota product but just that truck came out of the factory wrong which is why I unloaded it to my friend for $4k below blue book value at the time(which he knew why). The F-150 had to have work done it but the only major thing was cam phasers. For a 200k vehicle, everything else run of the mill. Find a good deal, test drive it, and if you like it..buy it.
Ya I get teh beer goggles with new to me trucks so I kick the tires lots and go with what I know. My old 91 yota with purchase price used and all repairs was just over $1000/yr Canadian for the 13yrs I had it. I find it hard to look elsewhere. I wish the ridgeline had a standard size box. I hear a lot of good things on those and zero bad but then again not a lot of those out there . Talking to the tow truck guys(highwY vultures ) they where saying out of all the new vehicles they pick up off the highway most are Chrysler . Everyone has their bias so obviously take that w a grain o salt
ford ranger at 5 yrs 90,000kms is zero except for oil changes, replacing the rear brake pads and the sat radio going titsup on warranty
By comparison those 90 something Toys used to cost $$ for TB's, valve adjustments, front hub service, just about every one of the 3L V6's needed the head gasskettes replaced AND hopefully you got your s done on the exteneded warranty