Buying a new (to me) Tacoma

[Rando]

Wow! You are lucky, Tacomas are way cheaper in UT than in Denver area! It makes me think about taking a long weekend to come out and buy a truck. However the actual logistics of driving out, finding a car having it checked by a mechanic, buying it and driving it back make it seem less feasible.

I am looking at a '99 with 120K for $8500 tomorrow, hopefully it is in as good condition as it looks in the photos.

Seems to be a lot of Tacoma's out there in the $14k range w/47,000 miles. If you are willing to travel here is a pretty good resource.

http://www.ksl.com/index.php?nid=443

This is from a quick search on KSL - quad cab but you could probably do up something in the cab to sleep.
http://www.ksl.com/index.php?sid=&nid=443&tab=list/view&ad=1157494

 

[fatrat]

I am looking at a '99 with 120K for $8500 tomorrow, hopefully it is in as good condition as it looks in the photos.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes and post up pics if you make a deal!

 

[Rando]

No deal so far. The '99 was a little basic, no ABS, bench seat and had a replaced front fender at some point. I did look at another '99 SR5/TRD with bucket seats, ABS and no damage for about the same price. The problem with this one is that it lived in Wisconsin for a good part of its life and has some rust on the frame/suspension/muffler. The owner took it into Toyota for the frame rust inspection which it passed, and Toyota confirmed that the warranty would be in effect to 2015.

Any opinions on the rust issue? It seems to me that it is probably OK as it is warranted to 2015 (by which point I will probably get a hybrid Tacoma!) however it also seems that beyond catastrophic frame perforation the rust will make any work on the truck much more difficult.

Good luck! Let us know how it goes and post up pics if you make a deal!

 

[Cackalak Han]

I have no ABS and no problems or complaints from me. In fact, I'm glad I don't have ABS. No extra parts to break or replace.

 

[Rallyroo]

I have no ABS and no problems or complaints from me. In fact, I'm glad I don't have ABS. No extra parts to break or replace.

I agree on the ABS part. ABS is really annoying on loose dirt/gravel roads.

 

[Martinjmpr]

As you're finding out, that Toyota name plate comes with a hefty premium. It's up to you to decide whether it's worth it.

If I knew I didn't need a rugged 4x4 for the trails, I'd look seriously at the Ranger. Lots of them in your price range. Just something to consider. It doesn't sound like you need a real rock crawler, just something to get you to the trail head and something to sleep in. A Ranger with the 3.0l V6 and a 5 speed could fill that bill. Plus if you get the right vintage the 3.0l motor was flex fuel for a few years (my '99 was) so if gas prices shoot up again you can save a bit of money by pumping E-85.

My only gripe with the 4x4 Ranger is the push button T-case but that was enough for it to be a deal breaker for me, plus my budget was a bit higher than yours so picking the Toyota was easy.

But if I was budget minded and could live with the limitations of the Ranger I'd definitely go for it. They're really pretty decent trucks. A little bigger than the 95-04 Tacoma and IMO much more comfortable "road trip" vehicles.

Another bonus for the Ranger is that their bed dimensions and cab configuration have remained the same for at least 15 years which means finding a used topper should be easy and cheap.

 

[jh504]

I feel the same way about the ABS. Is that really a deal breaker for you? I am in the process of pulling the ABS out of my Toyota as we speak. I don't like not having the control I want on the side of a wet mountain. If you want ABS thats cool, but I dont like it at all.

 

[Rando]

Thanks for all your help! I ended up getting a '99 X-cab TRD SR5 with ~120k on it that got a clean bill of health from a mechanic! ABS was not a deal breaker for me, but the bench seat in one I test drove was.

Now the fun begins! I am going to look for toppers today, and start on some other scheduled maintenance tasks to get ready for some UT road trips.

 

[Martinjmpr]

Thanks for all your help! I ended up getting a '99 X-cab TRD SR5 with ~120k on it that got a clean bill of health from a mechanic! ABS was not a deal breaker for me, but the bench seat in one I test drove was.

Now the fun begins! I am going to look for toppers today, and start on some other scheduled maintenance tasks to get ready for some UT road trips.

Craigslist. Look at all of the CO CL sites and don't forget to post in the "Wanted" section - I found both of my toppers by posting "wanted" ads and the sellers contacted me. In both cases the sellers did not advertise the toppers themselves.

 

[Rando]

I will do just that. Particularly since I want a 'tall' topper.
Thanks for all your suggestions Martinjmpr!

Craigslist. Look at all of the CO CL sites and don't forget to post in the "Wanted" section - I found both of my toppers by posting "wanted" ads and the sellers contacted me. In both cases the sellers did not advertise the toppers themselves.

 

[Cackalak Han]

Nice. If it's a V6, make sure the timing belt is in good shape. Normal maintenance schedule calls for a 90k mile change interval. There's usually sticker on the timing belt cover of what date and mileage the change was done (if it was done).

 

[Martinjmpr]

I will do just that. Particularly since I want a 'tall' topper.
Thanks for all your suggestions Martinjmpr!

Hmmm....Okay, but be advised that in my experience "high rise" toppers are harder to find. Good luck.

My recommendation would be that if you get to a point where you have to put a topper on the truck and can't find a decent high-rise, go ahead and put the cab high on and continue with your build.

What you can do then is keep your eyes open for a high rise and when you find one, go ahead and buy it and then sell your cab-high on CL. That's what I did and it worked out great.

 

[jh504]

Congrats on the buy! Now where are the pictures???