Toyota FJ or Tacoma

[gwayms]

I am looking at buying a FJ or Tacoma. Will be daily driver but also used for camping, trails, light expo stuff. Any info on why people think one is better than the other. I like the tacoma because I would have a bed and could put a camper on it. But i think the FJ has a better ride. Seems like the FJ would be more comfortable on long trips. Just my opinon on that, havent really been in either one for a long trip.

 

[EverRidesurf]

I drive an FJ and sometimes I gaze upon the tacoma for the following reasons. Truck be like you said. True four door. But I love my FJ. I figure a two behind trailer should fix the truck bed problem.

 

[nucktaco]

ive got an 08 tacoma as my daily and love it. i looked into the FJ back in 08 before getting my truck and the visability sucks and the back seats didnt have a ton of room. the nice thing about the tacoma is you can throw stuff in the box and dont have to pull a trailer all the time like you might have to with an FJ.

that being said im in the process of buying an 08 FJ as a project and the seats appear to be waterproof, it has a rubber floor instead of carpet and has a rear diff locker. those are some pretty killer options to have depending on what your intended use is.

 

[1911]

Well they're very similar platforms with the same engine (if your get the six in the Taco) and the same front end, so it really comes down to if you want a truck bed or an enclosed cabin. The FJC does have a lot more head room for the driver, and has coil springs on all four wheels so yeah the ride is probably a little better and it is very comfortable on longs trips. Either one would do you well off-road.

 

[RR1]

Tacoma...

 

[Corey]

FJ Cruiser...

And you can cram a lot of gear in it too

 

[nucktaco]

to the op. how many people do you need to seat? cause you dont have much storage in the FJ if you are gona be seating 3 or more. the trunk aint too big.

 

[Danimal]

I've owned my 2011 Tacoma for about 3 months, and I've spent quite a bit of time around 3 different FJ Cruisers on and off road (never owned, though). I wanted an FJ for about 3 years but after spending time around them and thinking hard about my priorities, which are admittedly more suburban based than urban, I chose the Tacoma.

* I like the FJ quite a bit, but felt that it's off road capabilities are only slightly better than the Tacoma due to better approach/departure angles & shorter wheelbase.
* I was more interested in passenger comfort, and the Tacoma wins here for back seat room/accessibility/visibility. The front passenger area in the FJ is cavernous though...
* The FJ interior handles mud/dirt significantly better than the Tacoma. My truck has carpet on the floors and seats that hold every crumb and piece of dirt you get on them. Rubber floor liners and possibly seat covers are a good idea if you use a Tacoma off road or live in a snowy climate.
* I love the utility of the truck bed on the Tacoma over the rear cargo area in the FJ, though I do have to worry about water and theft now.
* The FJ takes some serious getting used to as far as visibility on AND off road, so I would make sure you put in lots of seat time to determine if you can deal with it.
* The FJ does ride better around town due to coil springs, but with that said, the Tacoma is the most car-like ride of any leaf-sprung vehicle I've driven. Long distance trip comfort is exceptional in both vehicles, IMO.
* The FJ was too expensive for it's semi-limited space. I can hold quite a bit more gear/people and a similarly equipped FJ was about the same price as my truck.

Long story short, I love my truck and I thankfully don't regret my decision.

Dan

 

[gwayms]

toyota fj or tacoma

Would prolly be me and the wife most of the time. With a couple of labs on some trips. I have a rooftop tent also that I will be mounting no whatever vehicle I drive.

 

[Corey]

to the op. how many people do you need to seat? cause you dont have much storage in the FJ if you are gona be seating 3 or more. the trunk aint too big.

Very important.

My kids are grown, so I took out the rear seat all the way to make room for the ARB fridge behind the drivers seat, and more room for camping gear.
It all lays down nice and flat.

It is just me and the GF that ride in it now, so plenty of room.

 

[Tacovendor]

Get both!

 

[STREGA]

Very important.

My kids are grown, so I took out the rear seat all the way to make room for the ARB fridge behind the drivers seat, and more room for camping gear.
It all lays down nice and flat.

It is just me and the GF that ride in it now, so plenty of room.

Agreed. If I had kids/other passengers I would go with the Taco for sure. I ended up with a FJ for many reasons, one being the fact That I have owned/ driven pu trucks for the last 35 years and wanted to try something different. Another was that I only needed two seats and I was more comfortable in the FJ over the Taco.

I removed the rear seats about 2 1/2 years ago and it makes all the differance in the amount of stuff you can fit inside. I can easily carry enough food/water and camping equiptment for the wife, me and a small dog for 5 days in comfort (RTT helps with that) and still get into the back country with ease.

A lot of people don't like the clamshell doors, but I find they make it easier to access gear thats behind the front seats they make a really large opening. Visability is another big concern, but adapting to it is not hard, a flexible neck comes in handy and using the mirrors is mandatory, I drive a school bus for a living so its no big deal to me. I guess it all comes down to what you are comfortable with and what your needs are.

I enjoy driving the FJ more than any vehicle I have ever had and its never failed to get me where I want to go.

 

[Wilbur]

I currently drive an FJ, and love it. If I needed to travel with family then I'd look at taco with flippac!

 

[Corey]

Agreed. If I had kids/other passengers I would go with the Taco for sure. I ended up with a FJ for many reasons, one being the fact That I have owned/ driven pu trucks for the last 35 years and wanted to try something different. Another was that I only needed two seats and I was more comfortable in the FJ over the Taco.

I removed the rear seats about 2 1/2 years ago and it makes all the differance in the amount of stuff you can fit inside. I can easily carry enough food/water and camping equiptment for the wife, me and a small dog for 5 days in comfort (RTT helps with that) and still get into the back country with ease.

A lot of people don't like the clamshell doors, but I find they make it easier to access gear thats behind the front seats they make a really large opening. Visability is another big concern, but adapting to it is not hard, a flexible neck comes in handy and using the mirrors is mandatory, I drive a school bus for a living so its no big deal to me. I guess it all comes down to what you are comfortable with and what your needs are.

I enjoy driving the FJ more than any vehicle I have ever had and its never failed to get me where I want to go.

I have had two Toyota trucks, a 2nd gen 4Runner, and now the FJ.

I do not get the blind spot thing though that many complain about.
We were taught in Drivers Ed in the 70s to use our mirrors, and then a neck check if you can.
I drive rigs at work for a living that have a lot less viability than the FJ, so no worries for me.

So far the FJ is the nicest rig I have owned, I like it very much.
And yes, you can fit a weeks worth of gear in it if the rear seats are not needed.

If I had to replace the FJ for some reason, I would be right back at the dealer ordering a brand new one.

 

[Putnam dan]

Well I had the same question and ended up with the Tundra

The build has started