Need help deciding, Why a Tacoma over a full size truck?

[Dalko43]

Lol two Toyotas one was a single owner Land Cruiser had many factory taped wires. Only vehicle I have ever been impressed by wiring harness attention to detail is Mercedes. When you have 4+ sensors on every moving part wiring becomes important lol

Toyota trucks are much better laid out as they come from the factory...no if's and's or but's about it. Everything looks nice and neat and they maintain that organized function over the long run.

Some of the newer Ford vehicles tend to use flimsy looking wiring harnesses and some sort engine insulation material that looks like tin foil...I know it's not tin foil but it really has a cheap and temporary look and feel. The Ram's and GM's I've seen as of late are even worse. These companies are building trucks to serve as daily drivers because, well, they can't rely on sedan and CUV sales as much as they used to. And they cater to a crowd that buys a new truck every few years...so they're really not too worried about longevity and long term reliability. Toyota build trucks to serve as trucks and they do focus on long term reliability...hence why used Toyota's generally fetch a higher resale value. Market forces dictate what is preferred and what isn't, and used Toyota trucks are definitely preferred over used domestics for a reason. THere is a big difference in design mentality for sure.

And Ford's reputation for reliability is certainly less than stellar...sure JD Powa gives the company fair rankings, though I don't know any serious auto enthusiast who treats that silly ranking scheme as credible. The Ford Explorer's piss-poor performance as of late is just yet one example of how a mighty giant is struggling to maintain its place within the market. They've already lost significant ground to the foreign companies in sedan and CUV segments.

The Launch Of The New Ford Explorer Has Been A Mess

Ford can’t get the new Explorer right, Volvo will be making an electric XC90 in South Carolina, the United Auto Workers’ General Motors contract ratification vote is happening, and more for this most glorious Morning Shift for Monday, Oct. 21, 2019.

jalopnik.com

By the way, if you're someone who takes JD Powa awards as credible and you're incapable of doing any reading on the topic, then I encourage you to watch this guy's youtube videos. He does an excellent job of highlighting the hilarity regarding the JD Powa awards that are handed out like candy to brands and models that hardly deserve it:

 

[DaveInDenver]

Out west we have really big trees. ?

Sometimes we don't even have trees.













This is Photoshopped. But in reality some shelf roads (Schofield and Black Bear Passes come immediately to mine) feel narrow to me, can't imagine going wider and longer.

Or the occasional rock and a hard place, like on the Rubicon.

 

[esh]

Since OP is gone, let's make this a shelf road thread! Dave's pic made me think of this one.

For the places I tend to go, the narrower track width on older Toyotas works better for me.

 

[Tex68w]

The Launch Of The New Ford Explorer Has Been A Mess

Ford can’t get the new Explorer right, Volvo will be making an electric XC90 in South Carolina, the United Auto Workers’ General Motors contract ratification vote is happening, and more for this most glorious Morning Shift for Monday, Oct. 21, 2019.

jalopnik.com

By the way, if you're someone who takes JD Powa awards as credible and you're incapable of doing any reading on the topic, then I encourage you to watch this guy's youtube videos. He does an excellent job of highlighting the hilarity regarding the JD Powa awards that are handed out like candy to brands and models that hardly deserve it:

Correction, the JD Power BS is handed out like candy to GM vehicles, it's a joke. "Initial Quality" hahahahaha

 

[Deleted member 9101]

I'm gonna respond to this because I said earlier that my fullsize pickup would have trouble fitting thru the trails around here.

It would.

And if you're buying a truck to go four wheeling in, one of the things you probably ought to take into consideration is whether it will fit where you want to take it. If you just want something to bolt crap to so you look cool at the mall, or you live out west where you don't have to squeeze through trees every ten feet, then a midsize toyota might not make sense.

I don't personally know a single person who has ever encountered a trail to narrow for their fullsize truck. If you look at the width of a Tacoma vs. an F150 it's ~ 10". Most people don't take their family vehicle down trails to tight where 10" makes a major difference.

Also...the OP is not looking for an off road only vehicle. He has to haul his family, which any rational person rated above off road abilities.

While you might need a narrower truck (which is 100% fine) the overwhelming majority of truck owners don't (which is also 100% fine).

As for bolting stuff on a truck to "look cool at the mall" ...have you seen the trucks on here....lol. This website is literally the home of the "how much farkle can you bolt to the exterior of your truck to look cool."

 

[tacollie]

I don't personally know a single person who has ever encountered a trail to narrow for their fullsize truck. If you look at the width of a Tacoma vs. an F150 it's ~ 10". Most people don't take their family vehicle down trails to tight where 10" makes a major difference.

Also...the OP is not looking for an off road only vehicle. He has to haul his family, which any rational person rated above off road abilities.

While you might need a narrower truck (which is 100% fine) the overwhelming majority of truck owners don't (which is also 100% fine).

As for bolting stuff on a truck to "look cool at the mall" ...have you seen the trucks on here....lol. This website is literally the home of the "how much farkle can you bolt to the exterior of your truck to look cool."

The op had stated some interest hitting trails so it may be something to consider. It's not just width. Full size trucks are freaking long.
Personally, I'm glad my step dad shoe horned a family of four in a small SUV and took us exploring all over Colorado and Utah. Those are some of my best memories growing up. Plenty of families do fine in a mid size.

 

[nitro_rat]

I can't think of a reason other than there's a better aftermarket for the Toyota fanboys so you can drop more $$$ on aftermarket bolt ons...

 

[Bayou Boy]

The op had stated some interest hitting trails so it may be something to consider. It's not just width. Full size trucks are freaking long.
Personally, I'm glad my step dad shoe horned a family of four in a small SUV and took us exploring all over Colorado and Utah. Those are some of my best memories growing up. Plenty of families do fine in a mid size.

Plenty of us do exactly that in fullsize trucks. We're just more comfy doing it and our kids get the same memories.

The following comment isn't directed at you tacollie, it's just a general observation.

For some reason, there are a ton of people on this particular site that interpret "overlanding" as driving on some crazy tight difficult trails. Let me let you in on a secret, your family hates that constant jostling around while crawling down a trail. They just want to get out and do cool stuff. The truck is simply a way to get there. Camping beside some remote lake or stream doesn't have to require the rough 4wd travel you guys want to believe it does. It just doesn't.

When I learned to keep everyone comfortable first and make rock-crawling ability way, way down the list, my trips got a lot more enjoyable for everyone, me included.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Op, buy what you want now because your life is going to go through many changes, what ever you buy now will be changed out in x amount of weeks, months or years.
Asking for outside opinions muddles your thinking.

 

[thezentree]

Out west we have really big trees. ?

Out east we have a shitload of little trees ?

I don't personally know a single person who has ever encountered a trail to narrow for their fullsize truck. If you look at the width of a Tacoma vs. an F150 it's ~ 10". Most people don't take their family vehicle down trails to tight where 10" makes a major difference.

Also...the OP is not looking for an off road only vehicle. He has to haul his family, which any rational person rated above off road abilities.

While you might need a narrower truck (which is 100% fine) the overwhelming majority of truck owners don't (which is also 100% fine).

As for bolting stuff on a truck to "look cool at the mall" ...have you seen the trucks on here....lol. This website is literally the home of the "how much farkle can you bolt to the exterior of your truck to look cool."

I think we're arguing two different points. A trail rig is not necessarily the same thing as a family vehicle, and that's not what I was trying to say. My point was that no, your (and also my) fullsize truck is not, and will not be as capable offroad as a midsize truck/SUV. They're just too big for tight, technical trails. 10" makes a lot of difference, and that doesn't even get into wheelbase and turning radius.

I also wouldn't want to cram a family of five into my 4Runner and go drive around for months. I spent 10 days in a Prado driving the ring road in Iceland with my wife and her family and am lucky to have lived through it. I wish we had had a 15 passenger van. Actually I wish we had had 3 of them.

Different tools for different jobs. Pick the one that best suits the task at hand.

Oh and bolting farkle to trucks? You're talking to the guy who is gonna go bolt a new Warn winch to the front of his 4Runner in literally 14 hours. I MIGHT need it over the 5 days this year that I will be pretending to overland with my friends, but it'll damn sure look cool the other 360 days. At least I don't have a snorkle.



yet

 

[KWJohnston]

As the OP, I feel like I should jump back in. I thought the thread was winding down, so I thanked everyone for there input and moved on. Guess I shouldn't have wandered off! Based on the input gathered here, and my own observations, here are my thoughts:

*The Tacoma is a better dedicated trail vehicle in tight spots over technical terrain. F150's are significantly bigger.

*A Tacoma has a higher floor, better ground clearance, approach, departure, and breakover angles. The F150 is inferior here as well.

*For mechanical reliability over the long term, the Tacoma has an excellent reputation. F150's have had some trouble over the years with certain engines.

*The lighter weight of a Tacoma could benefit flotation in Sand or Mud. An F150, being heavier might get sunk easier.

On the other Hand......

*An F150 has amazing payload, probably more that I need. A Tacoma could potentially become overloaded without some thought.

*The F150's useable bed area is larger in length, width, and height. A Tacoma will run out of useable room sooner.

*An F150 has a larger interior for "dry storage", securing valuables such as a hunting rifle, and occasionally my Daughter's enormous car seat. The Tacoma is inferior here as well.

*On the used market, F150 crew 4x4 is cheaper than a similar condition Tacoma doublecab 4x4 by several thousand dollars.

I had to make a checklist and see which one gets the most votes. It was very close because I wanted it all. My priorities favor the better gear hauling abilities, and cheaper price of the F150. My motivation for Overlanding is to reach Hunting and Fishing destinations. Sometimes the best spots are the most out of the way places. If I ever feel like the F150 is limiting my ability to reach the most remote inaccessible areas, I my swap to a Tacoma.

Best

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Good comparison, the only elephant in the room is the payload of the 150 is more than you need.... For now..

 

[JTM]

As the OP, I feel like I should jump back in. I thought the thread was winding down, so I thanked everyone for there input and moved on. Guess I shouldn't have wandered off! Based on the input gathered here, and my own observations, here are my thoughts:

*The Tacoma is a better dedicated trail vehicle in tight spots over technical terrain. F150's are significantly bigger.

*A Tacoma has a higher floor, better ground clearance, approach, departure, and breakover angles. The F150 is inferior here as well.

*For mechanical reliability over the long term, the Tacoma has an excellent reputation. F150's have had some trouble over the years with certain engines.

*The lighter weight of a Tacoma could benefit flotation in Sand or Mud. An F150, being heavier might get sunk easier.

On the other Hand......

*An F150 has amazing payload, probably more that I need. A Tacoma could potentially become overloaded without some thought.

*The F150's useable bed area is larger in length, width, and height. A Tacoma will run out of useable room sooner.

*An F150 has a larger interior for "dry storage", securing valuables such as a hunting rifle, and occasionally my Daughter's enormous car seat. The Tacoma is inferior here as well.

*On the used market, F150 crew 4x4 is cheaper than a similar condition Tacoma doublecab 4x4 by several thousand dollars.

I had to make a checklist and see which one gets the most votes. It was very close because I wanted it all. My priorities favor the better gear hauling abilities, and cheaper price of the F150. My motivation for Overlanding is to reach Hunting and Fishing destinations. Sometimes the best spots are the most out of the way places. If I ever feel like the F150 is limiting my ability to reach the most remote inaccessible areas, I my swap to a Tacoma.

Best

Looks like you got it figured out. I traded my 08 Taco Double Cab for a 18 F150 Super Crew because I was having to tow a larger trailer for work. The Taco was great for trips to the ranch, or going fishing, or up into the mountains of Colorado, and it was so much easier to park in down town; but the F150 gets better mileage, handles my work trailer over mountain passes, is more comfortable, and really has some much more space inside and the way the back seats fold up is a sportsman's dream. Plus my wife's 2016 Taco DC, TRD OR 4x4, Tow Pk, Entertain Pk was within $500 of my 2018 F150 SCrew XLT, 302a, FX4, Tow Pk, 5.0l V8, 3.55. For payload the second gen Tacos aren't too bad at 1100-1300lbs depending on options, but if payload is really a concern then pick the V8 over the EB F150 because the V8 has a higher payload capacity.

For us the Tacos still have a purpose and a use that my F150 will not see. Trips to Moab or Ouray, going to remote trail runs (actual running not wheeling), and going anywhere inside of 610 that is not for work.

 

[Tex68w]

OP, I think you've made the right choice for your needs. It's so easy for us to get carried away with what we "think" we need versus the reality of what we "actually" need, @Bayou Boy hit the nail on the head with this. I find myself using the vehicle itself less and less for the harder trails and more so simply as a vessel to get me to the trail head so that I can then use my dirt bikes to tackle the gnar. I have much more fun and can travel further and faster on two wheels and they are cheaper to purchase, mod, and maintain as well.

So do I really "need" this over built rig protected to the moon and back to travel some fire roads and carry a dirt bike, no, but I enjoy the build and I like knowing that when and/or if I need or would like to do such terrain that the vehicle can handle it. As I reflect on my needs I often times try to reel myself in and back to reality in regards to the mods I would like to make but there are times that having the over built option is comforting.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

Tex.. you've figured it out..
Funny how things change.. eh