Toyota Tacoma and Tundra

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I am looking to buy either a Toyota Tacoma (v6) or Tundra(v8). Looking for opinions on problems with them in general. For example any driveline problems like vibrations or strange problems with timing chain, etc? I am looking and no older than 2013 and 40000 miles.

Also any years to avoid?

thanks
 
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What is your intended use?

They're both good, but the Tacoma doesn't have nearly the passenger room, bed size, or tow capacity of the Tundra.

If I were just buying the truck for me and general use, I would go with the Tacoma. Much smaller, more nimble off road, slightly better MPG (they both get lousy MPG, by the way). But I wanted to be able to tow the Packard, so it was the Tundra for me. It gets worse mileage (about 14 in town, 17, sometimes even 18 on the highway) but it's got an awesome back seat in the crewmax configuration and the 5.7 V-8 is a nice engine. The Tacoma went through a big redesign for 2016. Lots more legroom (still nothing like the Tundra), bigger frame and bed, more power.

The 2015 and earlier Tacomas are smaller (and better looking IMHO).

The 2007-2017 Tundras all have the same power plants and running gear. There's a 4.6 V-8 in the lower trim levels along with the 5.7. Same architecture and block, just a bit smaller stroke on the 4.6. All are thirsty.
 
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No problems I'm aware of.

My brother swears by his Tacomas, both his first mid-90s one and the one he has now. His quote: "only need brakes, tires and fluids for 200k miles."

Tundras, from what I hear, are the same.
 
I should add that the market for used Toyota trucks is bizarre - very expensive. I ended up buying new as the slightly used trucks were within a few thousand of new. They hold their value - but at an almost ridiculous level.
 
The new style Tacoma with the 3.5 V6, has a very peaky powerband compared to the older 4.0 V6. I had considered buying a new one to replace my old 4Runner. I wasn't impressed by a truck engine with such a peaky power delivery.

As mentioned, the Tundra is a bigger truck, has a strong engine in the 5.7, but the downside is worse fuel economy compared to the Tacoma.

Ultimately I decided to keep the old 4Runner for winter driving and Four Wheeling trips, and bought a Diesel 3500 for towing duty.
 
I have a 2012 Tacoma and I love it. However like the posters prior to me said, they are not gentle on gas. I average about 19.5 mpgs and that is mostly conservative highway driving (90% around 2k rpms and no faster then 65 to 67 mph). OP I noticed you are not near the salt belt which is good cause there is a common frame rust problem on both trucks. It you plan on towing I would either install airbags or Sumo suspension enhancer because the Tacoma rear leaf springs can be very soft. I have the airbags and highly recommend them for their adjustability and it gives the truck a very planted and stable feel. Overall the the 2nd generation Tacoma's (2005-2011 & 2012 to 2015=minor facelift) are a little rough around the edges but they are bomb proof if taken care of. In addition they are very easy to work on if you a DIYer. In all honestly OP you have to figure out what you NEED and WANT because they are two very different trucks but both great. ...Even though I am bias towards the Tacoma...I am on my third one and miss my old ones.
 
I have owned three Tundras (2006, 2011, and 2017) and one Tacoma (2015). The Tacoma and 2017 Tundra I still have.

I would avoid the Tacoma for 2016 and newer. The design of the 2016 is totally new, and I have been reading of many problems. From what I have heard, they are working through these bugs, and I would tend to believe the 2018 year and beyond should be much better than the 2016 Tacomas.

I don't think you can go wrong with a Tundra 2013 or newer, or a Tacoma 2015 or older. Nearly all the comments I have read to this point are pretty much valid. The resale value of used Toyota Trucks is very high. So the cost difference between a brand new one vs. a year or two old might not be a huge difference, so you might consider buying new. In fact, I sold my 2006 Tundra back in January. It had about 160,000 miles on it, and I sold it for $10,000, which I think is pretty darn good for a vehicle with that many miles. I sold the 2011 Tundra in 2014 for about $28000, which was only about $7,000 less than what I paid for it new. I had about 45K miles on it when I sold it.

The only potential problem I have heard with the Tundras and Tacomas is they have an air pump system that occasionally fails and is expensive to repair (as in $2,000 or more). It's not that common, but it does happen. Other than that, the drive train of both these vehicles is pretty much bulletproof.
 
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I own a 2013 Tundra which I bought new. I love the truck. One issue I had is what is commonly refered to as the front end growl. Read up on that. I guess its fairly common. Expensive fix if you have to pay to have it done. Basically a bearing in the front axle starts to wear and you can hear a growling noise that goes away when you put it in four wheel drive. You can read up on it on tundratalk.net
 
my father in law always had tundras and then got a new tacoma. That lasted about six months and he went back to a tundra. Apparently you get more for your money with the tundra
 
American brands do trucks really well. I would buy a Silverado, Ram or F-150 if it was me. FWIW I have a friend who gets worse gas mileage from a manual transmission Tacoma than what I get from a fullsize. No brainer to me plus no expensive inherent problems. Buy from the home team.
 
There were frame rusting issues with Tacomas somewhere along the line. Good looking vehicles were pretty much write-offs. Watch the video of the guy doing a rust repair of his Tacoma's frame!

Probably older than what you're considering but it's still worth reading (and knowing) about.

But come to think of it I've never heard an "all clear" on that matter.
 
Originally Posted By: oilstudent24
I think the new Tacoma now has port and direct injection vs the 4.0 engine in the past.



Yes, Toyota uses their D-4S system on the 3.5 V6.
 
Originally Posted By: ecotourist
There were frame rusting issues with Tacomas somewhere along the line. Good looking vehicles were pretty much write-offs. Watch the video of the guy doing a rust repair of his Tacoma's frame!

Probably older than what you're considering but it's still worth reading (and knowing) about.

But come to think of it I've never heard an "all clear" on that matter.


Dana Corp. incorrectly made frames for the Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia, in the early 2000's. Toyota replaced lots of frames, and won a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Dana Corp. I haven't heard of any frame issues since those vehicles with improperly made frames were fixed or scrapped.
 
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: ecotourist
There were frame rusting issues with Tacomas somewhere along the line. Good looking vehicles were pretty much write-offs. Watch the video of the guy doing a rust repair of his Tacoma's frame!

Probably older than what you're considering but it's still worth reading (and knowing) about.

But come to think of it I've never heard an "all clear" on that matter.


Dana Corp. incorrectly made frames for the Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia, in the early 2000's. Toyota replaced lots of frames, and won a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Dana Corp. I haven't heard of any frame issues since those vehicles with improperly made frames were fixed or scrapped.


My mechanic was telling me that rotted Tacoma frames still happened as late a 2010 models and frames replaced on earlier models rotted again. Of course I'm in NW NJ, our "mountainous" region,
smirk.gif
. They use an extreme amount of liquid salt brine on the roads in the winter months if there is even a hint of a snow flurry. That stuff is real bad and rots and rusts vehicles at an accelerated rate, even compared to them just spreading crystal salt on the plowed snow.

Whimsey
 
Originally Posted By: Whimsey
Originally Posted By: 02SE
Originally Posted By: ecotourist
There were frame rusting issues with Tacomas somewhere along the line. Good looking vehicles were pretty much write-offs. Watch the video of the guy doing a rust repair of his Tacoma's frame!

Probably older than what you're considering but it's still worth reading (and knowing) about.

But come to think of it I've never heard an "all clear" on that matter.


Dana Corp. incorrectly made frames for the Tacoma, Tundra, and Sequoia, in the early 2000's. Toyota replaced lots of frames, and won a multi-million dollar lawsuit against Dana Corp. I haven't heard of any frame issues since those vehicles with improperly made frames were fixed or scrapped.


My mechanic was telling me that rotted Tacoma frames still happened as late a 2010 models and frames replaced on earlier models rotted again. Of course I'm in NW NJ, our "mountainous" region,
smirk.gif
. They use an extreme amount of liquid salt brine on the roads in the winter months if there is even a hint of a snow flurry. That stuff is real bad and rots and rusts vehicles at an accelerated rate, even compared to them just spreading crystal salt on the plowed snow.

Whimsey


I worked as a Master Tech in a former career, and live in an area where the roads are salted heavily all winter long. ANYTHING will rot away under the right conditions if the vehicle is neglected.
 
I will do no towing. Just like a truck, thanks for all the advice. I am leaning toward the Tacoma with a king cab and 6 foot bed, v6 but they are very hard to find. This is very good advice from everyone. Thanks! I definably don't want the 2016 or new Tacoma.

FYI. Chevy or Ford or Dodge is out. My last Chevy truck was a nightmare.
 
Originally Posted By: stcif
I own a 2013 Tundra which I bought new. I love the truck. One issue I had is what is commonly refered to as the front end growl. Read up on that. I guess its fairly common. Expensive fix if you have to pay to have it done. Basically a bearing in the front axle starts to wear and you can hear a growling noise that goes away when you put it in four wheel drive. You can read up on it on tundratalk.net


I think by 2013 that issue was done with. I haven't read up on it in a while. I know my 2010 was bit by that issue. But there is a TSB for it, and if one is still inside of warranty, it should be "cheap" to have the dealer fix it (I had mine done under CPO warranty). I think 2011 or 2012 the issue was done with.

AIP is an unknown. I haven't looked into it for a while, all I know is that I have until 150k left on that extended warranty.

IMO if you go for the 4.6L version then get the tow package. It comes with deeper rear gears, and in NH I can't imagine what a non-tow 4.6 would feel like--other than it'd downshift twice for every hill I think. IMO the 4.6 is ok in flat lands or not being worked; but it's a bit under powered if you plan to use it for truck-like stuff. That said it gets the job done. Mine gets 16mpg on snows in winter, and I've seen 21 with careful driving in summer on LTX's, both tires in the 255 width. A 5.7 and/or wider tires will do worse, as will any amount of city driving.

Not sure if they are still sold in flex fuel (only the 5.7's have flex fuel option?) but there used to be complaints about the truck getting horrible mpg. Apparently the computer can get stuck thinking it is being fed E85. I haven't read the forums in a couple of years but I'd look over there, if you are serious.

The 4WD system is an old school part time system. It's not something that can be used on dry bare pavement--or any surface that doesn't have give, really. I see you are well south but will point that out.

*

Me, I went Tundra as I wanted something with more space for family. I figured, similar highway mpg but more space for a family of 4. But I bought four years ago so things may have changed. I know both have undergone updates.
 
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