What have you done to your 1st gen Tundra today?

I can offer a few anecdotes, but I’ll sleep on this one and get back with you.

 

1st gen tacomas are tiny. Easier to deal with in city and stuff. Amazing offroad too, and dead nuts reliable. That’s why people like em.

 

A few small maintenance items today.

Fuel filter and these:


The densos were new at 125k and the truck currently has 174k on it now.

 

It of course is highly subjective, but I have always thought the Tacoma to be the finest looking truck to ever putt-putt around my abode.

The Tacoma quickly became the young adult's favorite truck based on the look and based on affordability - they were typically less expensive to buy and had better mpg's than their slightly larger brother. They were great to drive on short trips around town and great fun in the boonies. And their parents were more likely to buy into the smaller 4-cylinder package. [So these young adults have told me on numerous occasions when prompted.]

The Tundra, on the other hand, was thought to be the truck for the older folks who were more inclined to use them to haul things, typically drive farther, and valued comfort over styling. They needed the extra power that the V-8 delivered and the extra room the cab provided. [This short paragraph is more or less my spin on what little I have heard from those same young adults.]

 

My first vehicle was 1995.5 Toyota Tacoma Ext Cab. I remember wanting a Toyota 4x4 Truck for some stupid reason. When I did get it, tons of people at school wanted it.

During that time, the T100 was the only competitor. I think they appeal for their size, reliability/capability, power, simplicity, and style.

 

Found em here:
https://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/173996341570

 

Oh I like them too. I'm just saying that when you compare the two trucks I think they Tundra is the better pick. And it surprises me that more people don't agree.

 

That’s a stupid good price.

 

The first gen tacos were legendary

 

It just depends on what you want to do with the trucks. The 3.4L gets only slightly better mpg than the 4.7L and with the TRD supercharger, the 3.4 has about the same HP as the non vvti 4.7L, but less torque. So it can be pretty zippy and amazing off road because it's light and nimble.

The taco was a great truck for my family from 2001 to 2018. But I absolutely adore my Tundra

 

This is such a loaded topic, crack open a beer and have a seat. We have to get in the way back machine and go to when production was on, then hit the important time that followed.

The Taco showed up in late '95 and inherited the fan base of its predecessor, the nameless pickup which had a production run of about 20 years and a huge cult following. It stayed in production without major change until 2005, a solid ten year run of reliability, small refinements, and repeat customers.

During that time frame the oddball T100 appeared on the scene as the intro to mid size. It had a very short run but featured more a comfortable cab and a really good V6. It gave America a taste of a bigger Toyota, some of us liked it and wanted more. The Tundra came out and had to build it's own reputation and only had 6 years of production to do so before being replaced with those behemoths we know as 2nd and 3rd gens.

The Tundra was a different animal and not a lot of people were willing to leave what they knew to buy Toyotas new V8 powered truck. Fortune favors the bold and we're all happy to have found them. About the same time our beloved first gen was being phased out, the Taco beefed up to be midsized and really became what the T100 could have been. It morphed into what the first gen offered without the fear of a V8, winning over a lot of consumers who were considering a first gen Tundra.

Now we visit 2007, this is where the first gen Tundra started becoming available used to a wider market. The economy was tanking hard, gas prices were up, and the last thing most people in the small/mid sized truck market wanted was to pay the bar tab on a gas chugging V8. The V6 Taco had very good frame and suspension (rust aside) and a good power to weight ratio. Not a lot of fans would hop over but those who did were happy about it.

I personally remember being shocked by how low the first gens were being priced when I bought in early 2008. My 03 Tundra was half the cost of the 03-04 Tacos I was looking for. Some were sitting on lots for extended periods which only helped them become bargains. It speaks to how consumers viewed the little known V8 with a burp of a production run vs the championed Taco.

 

I'll never give up my taco. thats all i know. and the goes for the 01 and the eventually pieced together one from leftover parts.

the tundra fills a need for now. i love the thing so far (it feels like a bigger tacoma.) but if i had to get rid of a car it'd be it or the avalon. (Corolla has been too good to me to ever get rid of. 800k mile on the bastard and its cost me 300 bucks in 2 years for repairs! lol)

 

Yeah I miss my tacos and I plan to buy another 1st gen taco or T100 asap. My tundra definately feels like a big taco. Hence why I call it the gordita. I just want a 97-04 taco/T4R/T100 (know the years are wrong for last two models) for a 2nd vehicle w/ a 3.4, manual trans and supercharge it, throw in a short shifter and upgraded clutch and long tubes and straight pipes and just burn rubber

 

It's tomorrow already so bare with me. I had a date night so I didn't get much done. The boot I purchased to go from a flex pipe to an abs pipe didn't work so I improvised. It's a more or less trial run for the intake anyway. Tomorrow I throw my stock fenders back on and cut cut cut. I have to do this to drive the truck while I reinforce, bodywork, paint, and then bedline the inside of my fiberglass fenders. It may be tomorrow already, but that's what I did today. Oh and tomorrow is a procrastinator's next week anyway.
Detailed info in the cowl intake will be in my build thread(when completed) linked below in my sig.

 

Yeah, I'd rather have a Tacoma too but they are about twice the price as Tundras up here so here I am.

 

Tundra rules, especially in Nascar

 

I've owned an 02 Tacoma, an 09 Tacoma, and now the 00 Tundra.

They're all great trucks but all very different.

The 09 had the 4.0 with six speed manual and was the most fun to drive!

Tacomas are way better off-road then the first gen tundra. Lighter and easier to turn/maneuver.

The first gen Tundra is very easy to drive and I would drive it across the country today without hesitation. It is the perfect size with a rear seat that is actually usable.

 

Well, no need to type anything about Tacos other than this is how I see it.

 

That price on your link is real nice.

Stealer wants $120.

ToyParts Deal.com wants $90ish.

Big Gurrll wants $58

And your link $28.

The math seems too good to be true and from all the readings I’ve done you’ll know you have cheap knock offs right after the 30day warranty expires even though these say ‘Lifetime Warranty’.

These are the ones I bought last year. The Denso model number on your link is the OEM Toy #. The model number on the Denso is Densos as pictured.

As Marbles astutely stated above, the Chinese like playing numbers games so buyer beware.

 

Yeah they have the right model numbers but i tried to cancel the order and couldn’t. Ill take a look at the quality when I get them and go from there

 

Round 2 on the leak today. This is the first time I’ve looked at it while its RAINING.

Ends up I’ve circled back to my original cowl clip repair. Seems as if the CLIP itself has a crack or by design leaks on its own. I caulked the topside pretty well last year and there is no other way to fix this except from below (unless I want to pull the cowl off again). Loaded up the index finger and went at it through the blower hole. Easier said than done!

 

I have one of each. They have different purposes. Guess more people need a runabout.

 

I don't get it... They make sizes smaller than 35" for trucks?

 

I’ve got the 01 taco and the tundra. The 01 just doesn’t move under its own power and the things spread out between a storage unit, my basement, and my garage.


My fathers 02 taco is doing great though

 

Removed the step bars today. Trimmed a little more on the passenger side so it wouldn't scrape but minor trim.

 

I’ve got a 96 Taco also and it’s basically a four wheeler with a cab and a heater. It’s literally my favorite truck I’ll
Have it forever.

 

At this pace by Thanksgiving the whole truck will be painted in fuze this is how new trends start off.

 

Finally someone who shares my sentiments toward the T100 and newer Tacomas.



And this one's just for fun (ok so are the first two)

 

Spent about 5 hrs this gorgeous Fall morning cleaning Matilda up in preparation for VC gasket replacement by me and brake fluid flush, timing belt, WP, seals if needed and serpentine belt by my Local Greenway Toyota dealer in Tuscumbia, Al(50 miles away)

Took out basically everything that could easily come out....battery and it's plastic tray, air filter box all the way to throttle body(stuffing rag inside TB and big plastic garbage bag over engine that drapped over coil packs). Too many years since I have cleaned her and being parked under trees has left just a fewwww acorns, leaves and what not.

Any comments on what I may have missed in first sentence in what I am having the dealer do when changing Timing belt ?

couple of great threads here among many others for those considering VC gasket change !

https://www.tundras.com/threads/intake-manifold-and-valve-cover-gaskets.37347/
https://www.tundras.com/threads/changing-valve-cover-gaskets.10035/