Summary:
Old faithful
Faults:
At 125000, I replaced the water pump and the timing belt.
I replaced the front brake pads for the first time at 150000.
This truck was mechanically awesome.
Gas mileage was not the best, but the reliability was outstanding.
General Comments:
Great truck.
Had the 4x4 off road extended cab package. Plenty of room in the cab with the extended area behind the seats. Did great off road. 4 low in second gear; you could climb a wall.
CD player, AC, heat, electric windows and door locks -- nothing on this truck ever failed.
Seats were not comfortable for long trips. Shoot, they weren't comfortable for short trips. Flat with no lumbar support at all.
I moved to the Midwest where they salt the roads. Seven years after moving to Kansas, the truck started rusting, and in 2010 Toyota bought it back from me as part of a recall: the frame had rusted through. I was sad to see the truck go, although Toyota was very fair with what they paid me. I know that if I'd have stayed in a state that didn't salt the roads, my truck would still be my daily driver. That truck had at least another 100000 miles in her, easily.
Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? Yes
Review Date: 23rd August, 2011
30th Jan 2012, 21:06
These are some tough trucks. I'm a mechanic for a local courier service, and there are several of these trucks in the fleet. Currently, an '01 Tacoma holds the company record for the highest mileage on the original drivetrain: 652,000 miles on it. It's an unbelievable little beast. It uses only a quart of oil every oil change. Dozens of different drivers use it every week, it's been smashed, dinged, backed into, you name it. The body doesn't look perfect, but the engine sure runs perfect. Oddly enough, Toyota did not buy back this truck (and yes, it did suffer from the frame rot) instead they replaced the frame... when the truck already had 487,000 on it. With the current condition of the frame and engine, it should be good for another 652K.
All of the Tacoma's in our fleet have over 350K miles on them. All of them are completely original (minus a few small odds an ends, but no major repairs have ever been required.) We also use Ford Rangers and and a few Superduties for some heavier work. We have a tough time keeping the Fords out of the shop it seems. The most I've seen on one of our Fords was 217,000 miles. And I was completely rebuilding the front suspension on it as it was totally shot.