I bought my 2014 Toyota Tundra last summer based on a couple solid attributes: reliability, reliability, and proven reliability. It seems like every time I check the internet. people are crapping all over the Tundra.....no new this...no new that....boohoo...... Then in the same breath people whine that "they don;t build them like they used to" I couldn't care less about the fanciest new techno gadgets that are on the new trucks. I like....scratch that...I love my Tundra. In my humble opinion it is the most reliable, best performing 1/2 ton gas powered truck on the market. Period. I don't need 35 usb ports in my dash, I don't need 46 warming and cooling cup holders, or air conditioned seat.....what I need, and what I got was a truck with a very proven track record, with a motor that has more power than I will ever ask of it, a truck that seems to climb to the top of reliability and confidence and overall customer satisfaction reviews all over the place.
I bought a truck to throw my Four Wheel Camper on, replace all the suspension with aftermarket top quality products, add some more goodies like a winch and sliders and stuff, and spend the next 20 years driving it around North America knowing that by my reckoning I wouldn't have found a more reliable 1/2 ton gas truck.
Mileage isn't and has never been, my main focus. I consider my "rig" akin to an RV in it's overall purpose, not to a daily driver. I need it to get me where I want to go in comfort and with with the power to tackle the mountain passes and whatever we may face off-road that we encounter, and to get me home again.
I have no interest in a "small truck". I had an Xterra, and while it was great at what it did, it was a little on the small side comfort wise. My brother in law has a newer Tacoma....no thank you. I like the added space and comfort that a full size Tundra offers, and their is no comparison between any of the smaller V6 powered trucks/suv's and what lays beneath the hood of my Tundra. I can pull my travel trailer all day long at any speed I want, up any grade I want, and hardly know it's there. I hauled my new Four Wheel Camper back across the mountains last month and honestly the truck didn't even break a sweat.
But hey, my poor truck doesn't have the latest early warning traffic avoidance sonar whatchamacallit, or parallel park itself doo-hickey's in it. Oh what will I do?