Thoughts on the 2005-2008 Toyota Tacoma...

[Crystal_Mt_Dreamin]

Nothing. Nissans actually have better frames (fully boxed), dont have plastic bedliners like the yotas, more hp, more torque, and at least for a couple years could get a long bed crew cab with a 6 speed stick. Reliability is equal. Yotas are like Subarus, I just dont get the blind love.

Good on you Chup if you can get that price, I certainly wouldnt pay it considering you can get brand new 4x4 Rangers for that much brand new with a warranty. Paying almost new car prices for a truck with well over 100k is retarded.

I thought they were having a lot of probs with the Frontier auto transmissions?

[XXX-er]

Having owned a myriad of vehicles, including several Toyotas, including an 08 Tacoma; I'm going to have to disagree with you on the ABS/TC issue. The TC on my 08 Tacoma saved my life more than once. And for Mags, driving a lot on witner roads; it will save your life, too.

Case and point: While owning it, I was traveling west-bound on I-90 west of Missoula. Road was straight, but weather was shit. Near 30 degrees and black ice, as I found later. With no warning or input from me, the truck broke loose, nosed left, then right, then left again - right towards a very snowy median. All this at about 65mph. Then, the ABS and traction control kicked in. Not only did it get me straight, it also stopped my vehicle wildly nosing and spinning all over the place. Had it not done so, I would have invariable hit a dry spot, caught, flipped and ended up all sorts of FUBARed.

On Thursday, September 1, 2011 Canada celebrates a life-saving milestone by requiring all new passenger vehicles (trucks, cars, vans up to 10,000 lbs) to have Electronic Stability Control (ESC), the most important safety invention since the seatbelt.

my lawyer in PeeG embarked on a 1 man letter writing crusade to have ESC mandatory it was probably inevitable but i think he rattled a lot of cages

even in my stripped ranger and I think ESC is a good idea so is ABS

[Bobcat Sig]

I will say, ESC and TC are only bad when you're trying to spin some epic donuts or otherwise hoon the shit out of your truck. In my 08, there was a switch to turn it off. But in reality, it only reduced how soon it cut in. I never could get totally sideways or break all four wheels loose in a dirty powerslide.

I still wouldn't trade it for anything.

[BenWA]

That is a great looking job on the interior.

Thanks! It's one of my favorite mods, and I love the smell of fresh leather every time I get in my truck

[BenWA]

Nothing. Nissans actually have better frames (fully boxed), dont have plastic bedliners like the yotas, more hp, more torque, and at least for a couple years could get a long bed crew cab with a 6 speed stick. Reliability is equal. Yotas are like Subarus, I just dont get the blind love.

I'm not starting a brand war, and I like Frontiers pretty much just as much as I like Tacomas, but... the specs you cite aren't as meaningful as the Nissan marketing hype would want you to believe. Fully boxed frames are not necessarily "better" (but they are considerably heavier and more difficult to maintain), and more hp and torque don't necessarily translate into better performance. There are many more varirables that need to be factored into the performance equation, and at the end of the day Tacomas and Frontiers are virtually identical in performance. Really, they are both awesome trucks.

[RTR]

That rear bumper is sweeeet!

How are those tires holding up?

The rear bumper is a Demello bumper that I picked up, here in Utah, for about $250. I think they probably run about $700 if you order from Demello, direct (I forget...) It required that I chop off the butt end of the bed, at an angle, but my angle of departure bumped up quite noticeably.

The tires are actually holding up quite well, but only because I've put on less than 2,000 miles on them. (I've been driving the work truck all summer.) I will say that I recently went down to St. George, and about 750 miles on the freeway showed wear that was a bit noticeable. In other words, I would only purchase these if I could use them as an exclusive off-road/4-wheeling tire. They're just too soft/aggressive for a daily driver. If I had to choose an off-roading tire as my daily driver, I would probably go with the BFG KM2 or Goodyear MT/R's... I might consider the Toyo M/T's or something like a Cooper.

...the specs you cite aren't as meaningful as the Nissan marketing hype would want you to believe. Fully boxed frames are not necessarily "better" (but they are considerably heavier and more difficult to maintain), and more hp and torque don't necessarily translate into better performance. There are many more varirables that need to be factored into the performance equation...

You beat me to it. To claim that a fully boxed frame is "better," or even stronger shows a lot of ignorance in terms of materials science. True, all other things equal, it would be stronger, but you throw in the type of welds and joints, the type of steels and added alloys, along basic vector mechanics, and you'll probably find that the added material is superflous. But even more importantly (in my opinion), as BenWA notes, a fully boxed frame can be, "more difficult to maintain." If you're building a truck for serious off-roading or rock crawling, you limit possibilities with a fully boxed frame (e.g. options of adding body armor like sliders, be they bolt-on or weld-on).

[robnow]

BenWa, where did you order the leathers from and about how much did it cost? Looks really good.

Also, anyone know of any particular issues with the first year of the current generation Tacoma, 2005? Looking at one later today.

[bsavery]

BenWa, where did you order the leathers from and about how much did it cost? Looks really good.

Also, anyone know of any particular issues with the first year of the current generation Tacoma, 2005? Looking at one later today.

Also would like more info on the interior.

[AdironRider]

I'm not starting a brand war, and I like Frontiers pretty much just as much as I like Tacomas, but... the specs you cite aren't as meaningful as the Nissan marketing hype would want you to believe. Fully boxed frames are not necessarily "better" (but they are considerably heavier and more difficult to maintain), and more hp and torque don't necessarily translate into better performance. There are many more varirables that need to be factored into the performance equation, and at the end of the day Tacomas and Frontiers are virtually identical in performance. Really, they are both awesome trucks.

Not going to argue that they arent both pretty awesome, but is the Tacoma 5k more awesome, not at all. Thats the point.

[Todd Zander]

Price check.
Used car dealer with a 2006 TRD taco package with 227k on the clock.

is their asking price of $11,500 legit?

i know they hold value but i have yet to really look into them seriously until now and at this point am re-considering a similiar purchase in december.

[oldblue]

Hah, that's absurd (and I am a toyota fan). Not saying someone won't buy it because "it's a Taco" but 227k is quite a few miles.

[XXX-er]

the Taco has spring and frame recalls check that out before you buy

[Todd Zander]

this one appears to have a new frame. i dont like the idea of a vehicle being ripped apart only to be put back together.

i will buy used but not in that direction, thanks.

[XXX-er]

Angle Parking Only had his frame done and he seems pretty happy with it,

the dealers are doing lots of frame jobs so they know what they are doing, they charge it back to the factory and so its also good money for them

for APO incidental shit came up, the dealer kept calling him sayin we found this probalem so he got the incidental shit done cuz the truck was completely apart which makes a lot of sense

and so if someone else payed for incidental shit when the truck was apart they already have done a major inspection & repair which ... you won't have to pay for it ^^