Thinking of a Tacoma

in article snipped-for-privacy@storefull-3238.bay.webtv.net, Charles H. at red_z snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com wrote on 1/28/06 6:58 PM:

Look at Tundra's, too. The gas mileage isn't much different. Taco's seem to me to be aimed at young people, especially now with that bug-eye faceted center console ("bling!"). Plus, if you intend to use it as a truck, that plastic bed in the Taco, with all the little doors and stuff, would be a nightmare. How do you haul a load a gravel in THAT?

What made you give up on GM?

-jeff

I wouldn't do that in any brand new truck!

Sand, topsoil, stone, gravel, and mulch are ~ $25 to have any quantity bulk delivered and dumped exactly where I need it. Large quantities of building materials like lumber and roofing, larger than _any_ pickup can carry includes fast, free delivery in my area.

My favorite landscape supplier charges $25 per _trip_, for one yard or ten, or pallets of brick or river stone. If I didn't pay the $25, I'd also have to break my ass unloading! Unloading and restacking 3 or 4 pallets of river stone (you can't dump it) is certainly worth $25 in my book.

Typical loads in mine are hand-made doors and windows, hardwood lumber & sheet goods, large tools, large avgas and water jugs, wide cut mowers, fertilizer bags, snowblowers, and my kayaks & bicycles.

A nice feature of the plastic bed is the ability to easily drill & add tie downs pretty much anywhere you need them, with no chance of rust. Since I regularly move a couple of bulky stationary tools, I added tie downs just for them, which saves time every time I move them. The bed also won't be affected by corrosives like battery acid, fertilizer, pool chemicals, etc...

As far as the interior styling goes, I'm 40 and I like it, but there's no accounting for style.

So, when used like 99% of the pickups sold, the plastic bed is great! The one percent of professional landscapers, ranchers, roofers, etc... probably are better off with a steel bed. This is my fourth truck (in order - '78 Chevy, '85 Toyota, '96 Nissan, '05 Toyota) , and I love the plastic bed.

well i dont really use my truck as a truck everyday, i just love trucks. reason i am giving up on GM is the looks and styles are not that good looking any more.(i know i will be bashed for that) i fall into the 40s age group too. i just want something different and was wondering about the tacoma, i agree tho about the bed of the truck. to me, it dont look like it would hold up. look at GM, a few yrs ago they made there beds same way BOTH inside and out, well it didnt last long, they changed back to metal.

in article snipped-for-privacy@4ax.com, Bonehenge at Keep_it_in_the_newsgroup snipped-for-privacy@aol.com wrote on 1/29/06 4:29 AM:

My Tundra has 665 miles on it... so far all I've hauled is firewood and straw bales. I will admit that it's hard to haul that first load of gravel or whatever, but I bought it to use it. I'm hoping I can afford to get a spray-on bedliner before i start hauling loads of gravel! the guys at the bedliner place said it doesn't matter if i scratch it up since they are gonna spray over it anyway... but it's still hard to think of scraping that shovel across the new paint, I'll give you that.

You can't really get big trucks into my driveway because of the big trees, so it's just as easy to just buy a yard here and there of gravel than to have a big pile 50 yards away out by the gate that I then have to either wheelbarrow in, or shovel into the truck then back out.

I think you are correct; most people who buy Tacomas aren't really planning on hauling anything "dirty" in them. I guess those plastic beds would work for them. For me... no way.

-jeff

If I haul music equipment or fishing/boating paraphernalia, do I have to get it dirty first in order to be an official member of the truck club and get the secret decoder ring?

On Wed, 01 Feb 2006 17:17:23 GMT, "Doug Kanter" found these unused words floating about:

No, but if you're going to put the back axle in water, raise the differential vent!

No decoder ring but you will get a 12 pack of Old Milwaukee.

I want Rheingold. :)

stretching the budget a little but sure.

ok going down saturday to test drive one, anything thing any of you can tell me to look for or listen for would be great. the one i will testing is a 06 4x4 double cab 4.0 liter auto. thanks again

in article snipped-for-privacy@storefull-3236.bay.webtv.net, Charles H. at red_z snipped-for-privacy@hotmail.com wrote on 2/2/06 6:00 PM:

So it's a new one? What do you mean, what to listen for? How about the sound of that V6 happily motoring you into your future? :-)

It'll have a 3-year bumper to bumper warranty anyway... if it's a used one, screw that, buy a new one if you are looking at an '06 (or an '05 or '04); you won't save enough on a low-miles used one, IMHO, to make it worth it. Spend a couple thousand more and get the peace of mind of knowing exactly what has happened to that machine.

-jeff

Charles:

How did you make out? I actually picked up an 06 Double Cab 4x4 on Saturday. I got the long bed. Damn thing barely fits in my garage! Its a pretty nice ride though. I got the TRD version (not my first choice). Its a little stiffer than the standard pickup, but not too bad. Can't figure out what the hell I would use the 115V outlet in the bed for, but seems pretty cool!

Charlie

Charles H. wrote:

well was raining to hard, so i told them i be back, didnt think i would like to check out truck in pouring rain. it is a 05 crew cab long bed 4x4. it has the sr5 package 7 on it. they did say they would beat any other dealer tho. when i got home i had a e-mail from another dealer saying they give it to me for 99 cents over invoice. yes i am dealing on the internet sales side of both dealers. as it stands now tho the one i am looking at is 28,8??.00 and there down to 25k even. i will still see if they will go lower, or i will go to the one that said 99 cents over invoice. i am in no hurry as my 04 gmc 4x4 only has 19k on it. as far as fitting into garage i dont care, my wife has one side of garage and the other i have a tools and work bench. what kinda deal did you get?

I also bought my Tundra to actually use as a truck (41 miles right now). My

1990 Chevy Silverado has made as many as three dump runs a day full of asphalt shingles from our remodel. This last fall, I left it at home most days so the nail pounders could just throw the crap right in it.

I'm replying to ask what spray-on bedliner you are looking at? Rhino is thick, but I've heard it chips. Line-X is thinner, and I suspect if it scratches spray paint would make it new. Have you done any research?

- Curtis

Old trucks are great for that, I did exactly the same thing, but with a

5x10' dump trailer.

The funny thing about trailers, is that you can get one used in good shape, use it for a year or so, and sell it for nearly what you paid for it. My state piggybacks the trailer on to the tow vehicle's insurance, so there's no expense there, but registration and property taxes cost a total of $40 for (2) years.

Of course, you'll need a vehicle capable of comfortably towing 3500-4000 pounds when the trailer needs to be emptied.