Upgrading to a more efficient truck

[avacado11]

Are you sure you only had 2k in the bed? Tacos are known for weak springs. But unless if you are buying bags or blocks from Lowe’s then are you sure it was only 2k?

I wonder if a dump trailer (or similar) is needed here. That or just taking more trips with less in the bed. Anything can be overloaded. Anyhow. to me it sounds undersized. But if only 4 trips a year, why not rent or have it delivered? I get it, I hate renting too, so I just take more trips instead. Then you can keep a right sized vehicle that you otherwise like.

I had 60bags of 60lb concrete mix. 3600 total, plus the weight of the trailer(450lb) tongue was probably 200.

issue with renting is it almost never works out in time. Tried it when I didn’t have a truck/cargo van. The inconvenience was enough to justify buying a Tacoma. Allows me to space out the work instead of renting a uhaul and doing all of it at once.

I’ve considered just getting a trailer for hauling heavy loads that exceed payload, but that doesn’t work out well because the 2.7 is only rated to tow 3500lbs. Any trailer that can handle weight is pushing 1k lbs, which leaves 2500 towing capacity.

my current trailer can handle 2000lbs, puts the total towing weight just under 2500lbs.

 

[avacado11]

One ton load in a 1/2 ton truck with more behind it. I would guess that's pushing it!
If it was a stick, I get a garage to box the frame get the spring re- arched and a helper installed.
Might get that done under 900 bucks if you hit the right guy. Just rattle can the frame with rustoleum.zinc then
rustoleum low gloss paint over that

I couldn't tolerate the 4 speed AT. But AT's are better for load hauling. IMO.

You do landscaping?

no landscaping, but every once in a while I’ll pick up a fixer upper house that needs a full renovation. That may include landscaping eventually. This is when the truck comes in handy. But when I’m not doing it I rarely use the truck for truck things. Which is why efficiency is important.

 

[supton]

Hmm. IMO I think you might be better off with the current truck and taking two trips as needed. I mean, get a new(er) truck if it makes you happy, but I suspect you won’t like the full sized truck when not using as a truck. I say this as someone who is jealous, I just traded out of my full sized and kinda miss it at times, but can’t justify even a small truck, since I drive too many unloaded miles, and can’t justify a vehicle that sits outside that much (no garage space).

We did a fire pit recently and I think it was 3 trips to Lowe’s for that. One was for the pit itself plus sand, the other two were pavers around the pit. It was actually kinda nice to space out the work a bit, as we didn’t know what we wanted. I just kept the weight to around 1k or so, the Camry shrugs that off. (Shrugs off 1,500 too but at some point you start to wonder about safety.)

 

[4WD]

definitely considering 2wd on the next truck. I think I used 4wd 5 times this past winter. 3/5 times was because I wanted to use it and decided to drive up a snow bank. 2/5 times was actually getting stuck, but I could have made it with a set of snow tires, weight, and technique. I don’t go off road at all.

but the big factor on 4wd is resale. Nobody wants a 2wd truck here in the salt belt because they all think 4wd is the holy grail. Do I care about the next owner? Absolutely not. But it’s always a harder sell when time comes. It’s funny because people will take a fwd car but not a rwd truck.

What is 2WD ?

 

[AZjeff]

it’s been overloaded 4 times. Payload is 1500lb, I’ve had 2300 in the bed twice, and the other two times 2000 in the bed with 3000 on the trailer behind it. That’s just about what a 1/2 ton could handle.

FYI payload on most 1/2 ton trucks is 1500-1800, not gaining much. You really have to look at the sticker on the door jam to know. Would a full size handle overload better than a Taco? Maybe you need airbags no matter what you do.

 

[dareo]

If your taking on flip houses/rental fixup maybe your thread title should be “Upgrading to a less efficient truck and writing it off on my taxes.”

Perhaps a 3500 gas. 6.6 GM direct injected will probably give you the least crappy mileage while ending all concerns about payload or towing.
Get ya a big dump trailer to haul stuff off with.

I just spent $60k of your money!

 

[Ws6]

My current truck is a 2018 Tacoma 2.7 6AT 4wd. I average 14.5 mpg winter, 17 summer(hand calculated) It’s not bad for a truck...but IMO seems abit low for a 4 banger that has no power. I’d be happy if I was closer to 20 mpg but it’s just not possible when keeping up with traffic.

I placed a reservation on the new F150 lightning, but there are a few drawbacks so I looked into both the F150 PowerBoost Hybrid and Chevy half-ton Duramax 3.0 to see what their fuel costs are.

Currently
87 Octane $3.19/gal
Diesel $3.48/gal
I’ve been driving my other car lately and haven’t kept track of my monthly mileage. But I figure it’s about 1000/mo give or take.

Tacoma - 20 gallon tank - 280-330 miles per tank - roughly 17-18 gallons per fill up runs $60 each. Assuming I can feather the gas pedal and get 330 miles per tank, it’s at least $180/mo

F150 Hybrid - 36 gallon tank - fill up 33 gallons is equivalent to 800 miles per tank(estimated 24 mpg combined) - would be $105. To make it a complete 1000 miles figure another $30 which puts at $135 a month.

Silverado Duramax 3.0 - 22 gallon tank - fill up 19 gallons is equivalent to 494 miles(estimated 26 mpg combined) - $65 per fill up. 2x that for 1000 miles and it’s about $135/mo also

F150 Lightning extended range - no exact specs on the battery but I assume $10 per charge($0.04 per mile) 4 charges per month(250 miles). $40/mo? Is that too optimistic?

Am I doing the math right?

I don’t hate my Tacoma. It’s the perfect size, just wish it had higher payload/towing capacity or better MPG for how little power it has. And I know those numbers for the hybrid/diesel are just estimates compared to my Tacoma’s real world numbers. I’d assume the cost gap would be smaller in the real world.

ideally I want half ton capability with mid sized fuel economy. The new Maverick hybrid is great on paper but id probably snap it in half pretty quickly. My Tacoma is already starting to drive a little weird after hauling a few max weight loads.

There is absolutely zero chance I'd trade a Toyota for a Domestic for $50/mo savings. I am making a change too, but it will save me $150-250/mo at present prices, and it's from a Japanese vehicle to another Japanese vehicle.

 

[avacado11]

Hmm. IMO I think you might be better off with the current truck and taking two trips as needed. I mean, get a new(er) truck if it makes you happy, but I suspect you won’t like the full sized truck when not using as a truck. I say this as someone who is jealous, I just traded out of my full sized and kinda miss it at times, but can’t justify even a small truck, since I drive too many unloaded miles, and can’t justify a vehicle that sits outside that much (no garage space).

We did a fire pit recently and I think it was 3 trips to Lowe’s for that. One was for the pit itself plus sand, the other two were pavers around the pit. It was actually kinda nice to space out the work a bit, as we didn’t know what we wanted. I just kept the weight to around 1k or so, the Camry shrugs that off. (Shrugs off 1,500 too but at some point you start to wonder about safety.)

never really been a fan of half tons. Had one years ago. Then drove my friends around town for a day. Kept hitting the curb. Not that I don’t know how to drive a truck but the streets around here really aren’t wide enough for a half ton. And to deal with that over minimal payload gains doesn’t make much sense.

I was hesitant on considering the Lightning due to its size but it made sense being an EV. Seeing how GM is handling the Bolt EV recall I question wether or not it’s worth the switch over for now. Seems like manufactures still have some odd ends to figure out with EVs. So this leads to me looking at alternatives.

now that I think about it my truck gets dented and scratched from use. I rather dent up a 25k truck over a 50k truck at the end of the day.

Oh well. Not like I can even get my hands on any of these trucks at the moment. Local Chevy, GMC, and Ford stock is non existent.

 

[meep]

Something we forget about the Tacoma…. It is already a lifted vehicle with a lot of ground clearance and big tires for its size. an f150 does slightly better on the highway, with a 5” deep front air dam and a nose that drops low to the ground, though they cover it with stylizing - the taco right off the bat has better approach angles. If I remove the aero on the Ford, lift the front an inch or 2 I’ll probably be down two mpg right there.

while the 4 banger has to work to make big power, it’s not necessarily inefficient - theres a lot that goes into the equation of whether a worked 4 or a loafing 6 does better - gearing, programming, and I’m suspicious of stroke. I did a study years ago between stock blocks with different stroke profiles and found a strong correlation with better mpg from longer strokes.

my 06 tundra got 16mpg regardless of circumstance. city driving with all the idling and braking is murder on mpg, and trucks are at a natural disadvantage.

(it’s surprising to me, the significance of the 90 degree bend…. Fwd cars where there is no longitude-to-latitude gearing seem to have a 1-1.5 mpg advantage in general.)

if you like the taco, the money lost in the transaction will eat a lot of mpg savings. If you don’t, then the mpg is bad enough to trade for something that gets 25. Trading for a full-size that gets 18-19 in real city traffic isn’t adequate savings. Maverick could be ideal if you like the size of the taco, and the hybrid will rule in city stop and go.

 

[supton]

(it’s surprising to me, the significance of the 90 degree bend…. Fwd cars where there is no longitude-to-latitude gearing seem to have a 1-1.5 mpg advantage in general.)

I suspect it has to do with the long wiping motion of a hypoid gear? Lots of sliding surface. Just my guess.

 

[Nick1994]

I agree with supton. Haul it in 2 trips.

 

[eljefino]

i agree the first day in office and all domestic oil exploration on Federal lands and national preserves was stopped, so now we have to depend on OPEC and Russia to meet our oil needs, how stupid is that, you cannot cut your own throat and not expect not to bleed to death

nope nope

 

[avacado11]

Something we forget about the Tacoma…. It is already a lifted vehicle with a lot of ground clearance and big tires for its size. an f150 does slightly better on the highway, with a 5” deep front air dam and a nose that drops low to the ground, though they cover it with stylizing - the taco right off the bat has better approach angles. If I remove the aero on the Ford, lift the front an inch or 2 I’ll probably be down two mpg right there.

while the 4 banger has to work to make big power, it’s not necessarily inefficient - theres a lot that goes into the equation of whether a worked 4 or a loafing 6 does better - gearing, programming, and I’m suspicious of stroke. I did a study years ago between stock blocks with different stroke profiles and found a strong correlation with better mpg from longer strokes.

my 06 tundra got 16mpg regardless of circumstance. city driving with all the idling and braking is murder on mpg, and trucks are at a natural disadvantage.

(it’s surprising to me, the significance of the 90 degree bend…. Fwd cars where there is no longitude-to-latitude gearing seem to have a 1-1.5 mpg advantage in general.)

if you like the taco, the money lost in the transaction will eat a lot of mpg savings. If you don’t, then the mpg is bad enough to trade for something that gets 25. Trading for a full-size that gets 18-19 in real city traffic isn’t adequate savings. Maverick could be ideal if you like the size of the taco, and the hybrid will rule in city stop and go.

good point. I forgot the 2.7 originally sold in 2wd form with lower suspension/smaller wheel set up. That’s where the MPGs went.

right now I am not sure what I’m going to do. I don’t necessarily hate my Tacoma, but I don’t love it either. It works without too many complications. It’s paid in full and reliable. Although I think it would be different if it was the V6.

I have a reservation for the Lightning and at this point I’m on the fence about cancelling it. Do I want an EV? Yes. Do I want to pay for it? Not really. I figure if I’m gonna trade in this is the time to do it. Might as well get the extra buck on the Tacoma if I can find a new truck at msrp.

depending on how the next couple of months ago I may need to commute more. But all of that’s in the air right now.

 

[TeamZero]

If you are keeping it past end of warranty do not buy diesel.....VERY expensive to repair.

 

[BISCUT]

Exactly! From appliances to air conditioners to furnaces to vehicles very few people actually perform the calculation to see if it makes financial sense. Too many times the more "economic" choice will pay for itself...in 27 years...lol

Often people don't think. After my first winter in my home I felt I was losing heat via high hats (IC contact) into my attic. I put down an alternating layer of R19 atop the R30 I put in when finishing the house. Made a huge difference. I did the math and it was about 7 years as best I could calculate to break even. I figured I'd be in the house many years so a ok.

A friend of mine asked me to help him do the same; sure no problem. Then I said, your kid is a junior and your selling after he graduates, right? Yes was the answer....then why do this now? He never did the math and didn't even question how long to break even or to have a net gain.

 

[Rand]

Whats the towing capacity.. maybe a new trailer?
would help.. even if you get a new truck..

I wouldnt put 2500lb in the bed of a ram 1500 for example.. however you could tow a 5k-7k lb trailer pretty easy.

 

[simple_gifts]

A lot of grievance rolled into one paragraph; impressive.

 

[jrvn]

A lot of grievance rolled into one paragraph; impressive.

if only happy talk and Unicorn farts made a better world

 

[DirectRejection]

OP, I put 150,000 on a 2018 2WD model similar to yours. I previously put 750,000 on a 2005 Taco with this same 2TR-FE engine and a 5Speed MT.

Issues with your Toyota include heavier frame, tires and tire pressure.

What about Ranger Ecoboost w/a beefed up towing package ?
Plenty of torque !

 

[Crash Bandicoot]

Something is mechanically wrong with that Tacoma. Fuel economy can’t be remotely that bad. When I lived in CO even running 85 octane winter fuel we’d get 16.5-17 on the low end (16.5 was a aberration due to a fill-up where I had to lots and lots of idling working on a project at our property) and 20 highway with a V6 Frontier that has an engine design that dates back to the George Bush administration. Even on rental Tacoma v6s I got low 20s. 14 is close to towing Fuel economy