Tacoma or tundra?

If the Tacoma didn't have a mini van/Camry motor that is all high end with no low end torque...... An if the motor had good power...An if the ergonomics of the front seats were more modern and not just for a 5'4" person.... An if the auto trans shift programming was not programmed by a two year old and actually worked with the motor instead of hunting all over the place.... An if the chassis was newer than 15 years old and it had rear disc brakes.... An if the bed was strengthened so you finally would not need aftermarket bed stiffeners....I would consider it. Until then, if I wanted a midsize, I would buy the Ford Ranger which has all the things the Tacoma doesn't and then some.

 

You’ll get a lot of people telling you to go tundra over Tacoma all day long with just you saying you pull a camper. I’ve had a 2nd gen taco and some 3rd gen tacos. The new Tacoma is an overall great truck but only as a truck. Not for pulling a camper close to 5k pounds. It’ll pull it don’t get me wrong because I pulled my camper with it and it’s about 5,500. It pulled it horribly though. We have a tundra now and no regrets. You can get decent mpg with the tundra if you keep your foot out of it. The taco just couldn’t handle the towing with it jumping in and out of gears even while manually changing. It’s just not designed for heavy loads. Look at the power curve on a chart and the max torque and hp are pretty high in the range so it’ll drop gears for the smallest hill. Tundra all day long from experience and you can get a decent tundra for the same price as a Tacoma.


Also the leafs springs suck ass on the Tacoma’s. I hope you have a WDH anyway but you’ll definitely need it and adjusted high for the Tacoma.

 

Lol nothing is worse than the 3rd gen taco guys praising a minivan engine under that hood. I'm just saying, there's no replacement for displacement when it comes to trucks.

 

Bought a 16 right when they came out. Here was the day I got rid of it and went Tundra, "no regerts" here

 

“V8” power for ever!!! Says the Tundra owner.

“Dam it Scotty I need more power” Says the Taco owner.

 

Tundra x a million. I had a Tacoma and it was just to small to fit anything and it drove me crazy! Very happy to have switched, and I bet you will be too! They drive much nicer and do better in the snow as well, in my opinion at least!

-T

 

Tundra ... you won’t regret it. There is not much difference in mileage. I also upgraded from Tacoma.

 

I made the switch. I had a 2nd generation (2014) that I ended up hating, HATING. It was slow, wide and there was no head-space. I test drove a Tundra at least 5 times before pulling the trigger.

I was initially turned off by the enormous size, but this "flaw" turned out to be a blessing. Ample head space. Lots of space for stuff in the cab, and a big bed.

Let's talk about power. The Tundra feels like a hotrod to me, at least compared to my 2nd gen Tacoma. Gas mileage is nearly the same with my configuration (SR5 5.7 4X4), it gets about 14-21 miles per gallon depending on what I am doing. City is obviously lousy. Highway can be fantastic, I recently got 21.8 mpg according to the computer on a trip to the mountains, 130 mile stretch! But, gas is cheap, who cares.

I have absolutely no regrets making the switch.

If you own a first generation Tacoma... this is all up for debate. They are two entirely different animals. I still have a 1st gen Tacoma, and I love it to death. It is slow, it has no interior or bed space, but I still enjoy the thing. Cheap to maintain and it goes anywhere. Two different animals.

Can't vote in the poll:

2nd gen/3rd gen... ABSOLUTELY get the Tundra.
1st Gen... Purely preference. The 1st gen is a work horse that you will have for a very long time if you treat it right.

 

I did a test drive of both because I had the same question.
The Tacoma is a nice truck, but the Tundra won me over with:
- more space
- smoother ride
- bigger back seat area for my fam
- quieter engine
I would choose the Tundra again in a heartbeat...

 

So I'm thinking of getting this one

 

Dang....NICE CHOICE!!! $$$

 

Rib Eye Steak...............or.................Tofu.

 

At least it’s blue...

I really like them head lights.

 

I'm working on a deal just like yours.....just debating on leasing or financing it.

Oh and to answer the thread question - why not have both?! LOL

 

Idk the place I'm talking to says they have a special lease on the sr5. This one I'm looking at would be 480 a month for 3 years.

 

Cuz the Tacoma sucks!

 

I didn't vote because neither option applied for me. I drove a Tacoma from 2005 - 2019 when I bought the Tundra to pull a TT. I'll go back to a mid sized truck when I sell the TT and get a motorhome. I preferred the Taco for driving in town, off-road, and hauling my yak.

 

Yeah the taco and the tundra aren't my daily drivers. I have a 2019 Corolla hatchback that I use most of the time. I only out 5k on the Tacoma the first year I used it.

 

I also have a Tundra preservation vehicle. 2005 Camry with about 197,000 miles on it.

 

Tacoma is great if you only haul a few hundred pounds every now and then. Also better on trails. If you haul and drive interstate Tundra is best. Two mpg difference. I had a Tacoma. Now a Tundra. Best choice for my needs of 8K towing and hauling a bunch of stuff. Just did a road trip of 5K miles. Loved it in my Tundra.

 

I have an Element for this.......if you don't count my now spare Tundra I guess?
And the Sprinter?

I need more driveway really.

 

Tundra is 100% better for interstate and towing. But my Tacoma had more payload than my Tundra.

 

$50k....

 

I just got my 2020 Tundra about 2 months ago, and my wife asked "Have you thought about a Tacoma?"

We test drove one and I encouraged her to NOT look at the price yet. I made sure to get one as similar as possible to the Tundra we were looking at. Once we test drove it, she looked at the price - right around $41K. My wife said, and I quote, "Oh hell no, we're not paying more for a Tacoma than we spent for the last truck!"

We then drove the Tundra. She was impressed with the power, the ride, the space ("you could sleep back there!" she said), and that was BEFORE I demonstrated tow/haul mode. She said "Now I understand why you've wanted a Tundra all these years."

For the first time, she finds reasons to drive my truck. LOL She said "I get a lot more attention in this truck than I ever did in any of your other vehicles."

 

I will eventually go back to Tacoma. I had a 2016 after owning a 2010 Tundra and the transmission just didn't like the engine. I felt there was plenty of power in the 3.5 but the transmission really just doesn't want you to use it. Seems to be a programming issue to some degree. Interestingly enough I rode with a guy test driving a 2020 Tacoma and it seemed so much better at shifting than my old 2016. Also the seating position is slightly better now with the power height adjustable seats. How big are you? I'm 5'10 175 and if I was one inch taller and 20 pounds heavier the Tacoma would be too small but for me it's just right.

I will keep the 2017 Tundra for several more years as I have a 6yo and it's better for traveling. I have a work car so only put about 9k a year on the Tundra and that's with vacation miles. I don't tow.

Both are great trucks. The Tundra powertrain is amazing and the room is great on trips. Parking garages are no fun though especially around me where they wont let you back in to a spot. Long story short: if you tow at all, have a family, take it on trips, and are bigger than me go Tundra.

 

It's actually 44k that's just the msrp

 

tofu. do i have to give up my tundra now?

 

Get that sticker price down to $40K!

 

The only thing I kinda miss is the manual transmission with the supercharger. But in every other check box I love my Tundra, and with the selectedable setting on the transmission with Toy Haul, it gives me the manual control I need for most things. The V8 stock with out nannies, would blow my V6SC Taco away I am sure.