Is the Tacoma enough truck?

[Clutch]

Ok I got you. Ford’s quality has improved. But let me call you out and go on record for this: IF, underline bold italics, you get a new truck, it’ll be a Toyota. Ford and others have made strides but Toyota seems to be still at the top. Ronny Dahl, on one of his videos within the last couple of years, said one of his mates sold his 79 saying it was too boring, and went with a Ford. After two years of constant fixing things, he went back to a 79.

Well unfortunately you can’t get a 79 here....well not one that isn’t 25 years old. Kinda defeats the purpose of trading out my old beater for a new truck.

That said! Price of a new Tacoma is generally $35K. Can get a lot of stuff for $35K...doesn’t have to be new either. Have been looking at used Alaskans...nice ones are generally $10K...that with a used 1ton. Girl i work with husband is a dealer, said I could tag along to the auction with him.

So there is that...

View from camp this morning, not far off the main road either. Small herd of elk were on that tree line at the edge of the meadow last night. Couldn’t get the phone camera to capture a picture though too far away and not enough light.

 

[jasmtis]

There's more to the equation than just lbs or kgs. A 70 series and the Hilux both have large cargo capacities but they are small trucks. The 70 series in particular, when you see one stock they really aren't very big at all. So trying to use them in the U.S. as a substitute for a F350 would I think be inappropriate based on the how unstable it must be at Interstate speeds. That's something we've talked about before I think. I certainly want a Hilux to replace my Tacoma, but I can't see a Hilux carrying 2000 kg on I-80 keeping up with semi traffic as being all that safe.

But that's also aside a typical use here for trucks, which is towing. A 70 series is going to be easily out matched with a large trailer. Not to mention the point of the 70 series in particular is doing work over poor roads, rather than strictly a large number game but about carrying a significant cargo without breaking for decades. But it's not going to be doing it at 80 MPH all the time. This is the root of why I want them. So carrying my relatively meager payload while 'wheeling compared to the vehicle max doesn't wear it out as fast.

I never meant to imply that the LC 70 is a substitute for the domestic 3/4 and 1 tons. My meaning was that both vehicle types are designed and built with a bias towards functionality and durability rather than comfort and on-road handling. Both vehicle types are designed to endure long working lives in austere environments. I think the 'poor roads' attribute is applicable to our HD's, but the caveat is that the poor roads are generally a bit bigger here than they are in Australia and other parts of the world.

I do agree that the overseas vehicles would be out their element when towing/hauling at the speeds which are common on North American highways. I think the Hilux's payload is closer to 1k kg's (~2.2k lb's), and, to be honest, I would still prefer a bigger, more robust vehicle to carry that amount of weight. I believe the Aussie's rely on OEM recommendations rather than a standardized rating system (the SAE standards that most domestic trucks now adhere to). Here's an article covering that issue: Payload and Tow Ratings.

Yeah, a lot of this comes down to how payload and tow ratings work. Hiluxes and LC70s exactly as they are sold elsewhere in the world would have much lower tow and payload ratings in the US. Thus, the Tacoma is very closely related to the Hilux except the chassis and suspension are designed to be more compliant because it wouldn't receive a high enough payload rating for a stiffer structure to have any benefit. This doesn't have any bearing on how well it'll hold up to abuse off road. Rigidity != durability. Also having a load rating above and beyond the actual payload the vehicle is being used to carry means that the suspension won't give and flex like it's designed to which will both hurt capability and increase the likelihood of breaking something.

 

[phsycle]

Well unfortunately you can’t get a 79 here....well not one that isn’t 25 years old. Kinda defeats the purpose of trading out my old beater for a new truck.

That said! Price of a new Tacoma is generally $35K. Can get a lot of stuff for $35K...doesn’t have to be new either. Have been looking at used Alaskans...nice ones are generally $10K...that with a used 1ton. Girl i work with husband is a dealer, said I could tag along to the auction with him.

So there is that...

View from camp this morning, not far off the main road either. Small herd of elk were on that tree line at the edge of the meadow last night. Couldn’t get the phone camera to capture a picture though too far away and not enough light.

View attachment 474330

The point was, the guy went back to a Toyota. "Boring" because they had been so reliable for him. I'm sure there are a lot of people who'd want a 79 here. Wasn't there some April fools joke Toyota was bringing it over?

New Tacoma's....you could get a DCSB TRD OR, 6MT, for $32-33k. Few thousand less for an AC.

Sweet camp spot! I love fall camping.

 

[Bayou Boy]

Well unfortunately you can’t get a 79 here....well not one that isn’t 25 years old. Kinda defeats the purpose of trading out my old beater for a new truck.

That said! Price of a new Tacoma is generally $35K. Can get a lot of stuff for $35K...doesn’t have to be new either.

You can get used 4th gen Powerwagons in the mid $30s. Swap the rear springs out for some regular 2500 springs or Carli or Thuren springs so you bring the payload back up and go to town.

 

[DaveInDenver]

Rigidity != durability. Also having a load rating above and beyond the actual payload the vehicle is being used to carry means that the suspension won't give and flex like it's designed to which will both hurt capability and increase the likelihood of breaking something.

Nah, I'm hip to what you're saying. You want what needs to flex to flex, what shouldn't not to.

But in this case I can speak with some experience. I had to add bed side stiffeners to my Tacoma this year because the sides were starting to open. This in and of itself isn't exceptional, all pickups can and will do this in time when you use them as intended and especially when you have a topper. But what is different is this on a 10 year old truck at 82k miles, only my 40k so far with the topper on it.



My old truck did start failing here, too. But the truck was made per typically Hilux-esque (so to speak) so the gap had grown to roughly the same (as gauged unscientifically by the tailgate being difficult to open) at 287k. But also with a WilderNest on it for 187k of those miles. Which you may or may not know when closed has a large spring that puts a spreading force on the bed sides. The spring is designed to prevent the lid from slamming shut and to assist in opening the camper, it's under some considerable force when closed.

It's little things like that this that in my mind indicate the Tacoma is built down to a level they view is suited for us. Which is fine, I don't blame Toyota for their decisions. Whether a more rigid frame has anything to do with it or not, I dunno. I have to think any flexing through the frame gets transmitted to the box. These trucks are not designed to flex offroad like a Unimog or something might be. Any twist is going to stress the body and box as they are mounted with several fixed points with firm rubber pucks. In the case of the Tacoma box they didn't do that. There's only rubber sleeves around the hold-down bolts to allow the box to shift. I put 1/8" thick shim pads between the frame and the box to give it at least a little cushion and give and ability to slide (I actually used UHMW).

 

[Buliwyf]

If you have to split hairs, and get exactly the right spring rate, you'll have to have custom springs built. I recommend proper shocks if you go that route, not OEM-ish junk.

Sometimes there's a rare combo that works, like the weakest f250 spring on a Super Duty with 2000# in the bed. But almost always something custom is nicer. OEM springs are a compromise. Deavers, 2.5's, and air springs can do beautiful things.

But you still need to start with a door sticker that can carry the load.

Not sure why vaporware like the 70 or 79 is even in this conversation. I had that diesel engine in one of my tow motors. Was flawless, but has nothing in common with any other Toyota.

I
I mean if were going weird with vaporware and uber expensive Aussie like stuff, i'll start with one of these weird things.

 

[DorB]

I still contend that the Ranger, Hilux and other work-oriented 'utes' aren't in the same class of vehicle as something like a LC 70 series. .

Never said that..

North America. I've loaded my 4runner (NA version of the LC Prado).

The Prado is what you have as Lexus GX450, not the 4Runner.
The point is,
If you drive a Tacoma/equivalently sized pickup, when it’s you, your girlfriend and maybe a dog (reminder.. this was the starting point for this treed..), , and you’re short in cargo space, the problem is not the Tacoma..

It’s easy to say let’s go full size, but the right way is to pack smart.

 

[Dalko43]

The Prado is what you have as Lexus GX450, not the 4Runner.
The point is,
If you drive a Tacoma/equivalently sized pickup, when it’s you, your girlfriend and maybe a dog (reminder.. this was the starting point for this treed..), , and you’re short in cargo space, the problem is not the Tacoma..

It’s easy to say let’s go full size, but the right way is to pack smart.

The 4runner is the built on the same chassis as that of the Lexus GX and the LC Prado; the main differences are the engine options, body panels, and interior.

The Tacoma has cargo space; it lacks load carrying capacity. The 4runner and certain midsized 4x4's sold overseas have a bit more load capacity, but I'd ultimately prefer a bigger truck to handle heavier loads...I admit that's a subjective assessment and I'm perhaps biased by my experiences with the 4runner's sluggish powertrain.

 

[phsycle]

Tacoma's payload is just sad. Mine is under 1k lbs. Yup, under 1k! Those Hilux's at 2,700lbs.....that's better than 1/2 tons here. Although the question mark is the method of calculation.

 

[Dalko43]

Tacoma's payload is just sad. Mine is under 1k lbs. Yup, under 1k! Those Hilux's at 2,700lbs.....that's better than 1/2 tons here. Although the question mark is the method of calculation.

That is what I was alluding to in my earlier post. I think different parts of the world have different views on safety for towing and hauling loads.

 

[DaveInDenver]

The Prado is what you have as Lexus GX450, not the 4Runner.

LOL, that ol' can of worms.

 

[phsycle]

That is what I was alluding to in my earlier post. I think different parts of the world have different views on safety for towing and hauling loads.

It certainly isn't brakes, as they are about the same with the Tacoma's. I'm assuming it's mostly in the frame, along with the different standards.

 

[DaveInDenver]

It certainly isn't brakes, as they are about the same with the Tacoma's. I'm assuming it's mostly in the frame, along with the different standards.

It's actually not much different for towing. A 4x4 Hilux is rated to tow either 3,000 kg (for petrol), 3,200 kg (for diesel automatic) or 3,500 kg (for diesel manual). If you're quick at the maths 3,000 kg is 6,614 lbs, so basically the same as a Tacoma at 6,500 lbs. The brakes are probably basically the same between them and the lower payload is probably handling as well as the frame and rear springs, but that's really anyone's guess who isn't a Toyota engineer.

 

[bkg]

Not sure. I assumed it would follow the Tundra refresh cycle, but I don't know that either TBH. I believe it's due for something soon, right?

I thought it was due 8 years ago. Lol

 

[DaveInDenver]

I thought it was due 8 years ago. Lol

The next revision gets the Cummins diesel.