re: Why are Tacomas so popular?

Posted by Eli Goldfinger

Member since Sep 2016

32785 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 10:50 am to Chad504boy

Posted by dlambe5

Prairieville

Member since Jul 2009

692 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 11:11 am to dragginass

Yep, my 2006 V6 prerunner loaded was $25k.

Posted by arcalades

USA

Member since Feb 2014

19276 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 12:35 pm to Eli Goldfinger

quote:
The comparison is about price and bang for buck.

apples to oranges don't make good comparisons

Posted by arcalades

USA

Member since Feb 2014

19276 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 12:37 pm to jimbeam

quote:
have oversized off road tires and get 20mpg on the highway (I go over 100mph though)

maybe down a steep hill

Posted by jimbeam

University of LSU

Member since Oct 2011

75703 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 12:38 pm to arcalades

Believe what you will

Posted by WaltTeevens

Santa Barbara, CA

Member since Dec 2013

11509 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 12:44 pm to Eli Goldfinger

For a second I thought Tacomas was a chain of Mexican restauarants

Posted by hob

Member since Dec 2017

2340 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 1:45 pm to Eli Goldfinger

Avoid blue tacomas.

Posted by EA6B

Member since Dec 2012

14754 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 2:38 pm to Waterboy1972

quote:
And even in the South this hasn't been true for some 15 years. Last winter, I drove on shite in MT with my old forester and regular highway tires w no chains that was sending trucks and suvs into spins, all around me. Most notably a downhill-grade drive off the mountain after it had snowed about a foot during the day.

quote:
Not being ugly, but Im not sure what a lot of that means (MT, mountains, chains, snow, grade - just kidding). If driving is that complicated for your lifestyle, seriously I would just like move or something. I’ve not seen snow in over 20 years, so this is all like talking about make believe to me.

What he means is if you live in certain areas of the country like the Northwest everyone with good sense drives a Subaru, and you get tired of having to stop and pull out F250 4x4 that spun on the ice and went into the ditch. They always full of guys from the South that came up to hunt, and didn't understand how useless a full size pickup is in winter conditions. My son lives in Washington and complains about this all the time in the winter.

Posted by zeebo

Hammond

Member since Jan 2008

5394 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 5:23 pm to EA6B

I have a Honda ridgeline. Love it. 24 mpg fun to drive easy to park and is all the truck I need.

Posted by Starchild

Member since May 2010

13550 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 5:43 pm to CaptainBrannigan

Nope, I’d even say 20/23 mpg is a low estimate for Tacomas in my experience.

I have never seen a GM or Ford truck come close to the longevity of Tacomas. Not just that, if those are reaching to 200k+ there’s always major issues and $$$ to get them there. Tacomas purr like a kitten long after that and hold their value better than any others. Best vehicle I’ve ever owned, I’ve only ever had to do general maintenance and gotten above market value offer from several people over the years.

Personally, I don’t see the point in a full size truck unless you’re towing huge shite all the time. I don’t need to have that as some status symbol or to compensate for...whatever.

Posted by McLemore

Member since Dec 2003

34593 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:06 pm to Waterboy1972

quote:
If driving is that complicated for your lifestyle, seriously I would just like move or something. I’ve not seen snow in over 20 years, so this is all like talking about make believe to me

Trust me, this makes me happy.

Posted by nola000

Lacombe, LA

Member since Dec 2014

13139 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:22 pm to Peazey

quote:
Right. I'm not a car person, but in general Toyota has a great reputation for reliability and longevity

This.

You see, reputation is everything.

The Big Three thought they could get away with just pouring money into advertising to convince dumb Americans to buy piles of shite while their engineering and QC departments languished.

The Japanese get it. They are a prideful people and played the long game. What America used to do before quarterly profits became all the rage.

Posted by nola000

Lacombe, LA

Member since Dec 2014

13139 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:28 pm to Tigeralum2008

quote:
As a 6’3” dude, I hate Tacomas. It feels like the seats are really low to the foot well. Way too tight for me

This is the one shortcoming of Japanese vehicles.

They're really designed for the proportions of Asians.

I have a Civic and I get hip pain driving it because I can't get the seat far enough away to get my legs straight without having a crouch forward to hold on to the steering wheel and if I scoot up to get a comfortable hold on the steering wheel then my legs are cramped.

I'm only 5'11".

I think Americans just have longer legs in proportion to their arms than Asians.

Posted by nola000

Lacombe, LA

Member since Dec 2014

13139 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:41 pm to Ponchy Tiger

quote:
The thing they touched on most was how the Tacoma seemed to be dated a bit.

Because they thoroughly lab test designs before they put them on the street. The Big Three like to make us the test dummies. The Japs are in no rush to try to get new bells and whistles to market and risk their reputation.

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Keep it simple stupid.

Posted by nola000

Lacombe, LA

Member since Dec 2014

13139 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:45 pm to BottomlandBrew

quote:
Taco = Tacoma
Subbie = Subaru
Bimmer = BMW
Merc = Mercedes
OK = Ford
POS = GM Product
POS+ = Chrysler Product
WTF = Jaguar
No, seriously. WTF! = Land Rover

FIFY

This post was edited on 2/22/19 at 7:46 pm

Posted by nola000

Lacombe, LA

Member since Dec 2014

13139 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:48 pm to CptRusty

quote:
Full sized trucks are a PITA to drive/park and if you don't really need one (90+% of people) then a smaller is much nicer to live with.

I moved from an F150 to a 4runner and the 4runner feels like a go-kart by comparison. As for the lost utility, I've had to borrow my Dad's F250 maybe 2 or 3 times since 2014. If I hauled more stuff I would buy a trailer to pull behind the 4runner, but I just haven't made a habit of schlepping around rocks + lumber

This.

SUV/Minivan + utility trailer is the most practical combination anybody can own. 98% of the people I see you driving pickup trucks don't need them.

Posted by Ton Chou

On the Levee

Member since Feb 2010

757 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 7:59 pm to Roll Tide Ravens

You cray. My dad is still driving my 2003 f-150 supercrew 4x4. Has 283k and still runs just as good as the day I bought it. Driver seat and steering wheel need some help but that’s it.

Posted by Ponchy Tiger

Ponchatoula

Member since Aug 2004

48654 posts

Posted on 2/22/19 at 8:03 pm to nola000

quote:
Because they thoroughly lab test designs before they put them on the street. The Big Three like to make us the test dummies. The Japs are in no rush to try to get new bells and whistles to market and risk their reputation.

If it ain't broke don't fix it.

Keep it simple stupid.

I agree with this. Another video I watched was explaining why the Toyota Corolla was so so successful. They said it was because they kept things simple for the most part. They also didn't give up on a car after a few years like the big 3 always do. They would introduce a car build it for awhile then change to something else. The Japanese builders would continue to build the same cars while working through issues until it was perfected.