Which 3rd gen year to buy?

I am looking into a full size truck purchase. Was b/w f150 and tundra. Leaning heavily toward tundra for toyota reliability and hearing of lots of electrical issues on fords. I was on Edmunds.com reading reviews and was disheartened a bit. There seemed to be driveability issues with seeing the screen in front of the steering wheel and no handles for getting in the vehicle. I know hamdles can be purchased and added though. Some lighting issues as well (non-lit buttons at night and headlights and tail lights that need replacing). Not having looked at one in person yet i was wanting some input on these issues and maybe what year to specifically search for to buy. Any help would be appreciated.

 

Welcome from NC!

 

Pick any year, there all solid.

 

Welcome aboard from Oregon!
2015 has been the highest reliability year with zero recalls and zero TSB’s.
You are correct about needing to add the driver grab handle.
Also make sure you don’t get the little 26 gallon fuel tank

 

Another vote for 2015!

 

I had a 15 and the small fuel tank was an issue on road trips. I was planning on changing the headlights out. It was a SR5 so pretty plain but I liked it that way after having a GMC Sierra that was loaded up but had a recalls and electrical gremlins.

I traded the 15 for the 17 so I have the bigger tank. Luckily whoever had it before changed the headlights so I don't have to and it is a huge improvement over the old ones. I added the grab handle on the drivers side (not cheap) and added LED interior bulbs (cheap) I'm sticking with this one.

The Limiteds and Platinum's look really nice and have a few extras like heated seats and sunroofs. The 18's and up have a few more safety features with TSS. I avoided the 18's and up for that reason but that was more to do with the issues I had in the GMC. Toyota's version has to be better than theirs.

 

2015 to 2017, no extra nannies!

 

Thanks everyone! Has anyone had the 48-50mph vibration in 6th gear i read about or the air problem code that were on the earlier models?

 

I drive an ‘18 and have had 0 issues. That said if you prefer less safety stuff go 15-17. If you want safety stuff go ‘20 to get CarPlay. That’s my opinion.

 

Called “safety stuff”, if you like it, called “nannies”, if you don’t.

there is probably at least 5 threads and 100 posts about problems with this stuff. I’m glad it’s not incorporated into my 2015

 

2017. And I own a 2018.

 

Can't recommend a year. My 2018 has 25,000 trouble free miles

 

The internet in a nut shell.

like I said if you want safety features go for it. If you don’t get an earlier model. Pre collision has saved my ass at least twice. My .02

 

2018. And I use my legs to get into the truck, not a handle.

Welcome from Oregon!

 

2014-17 is my preferred year for used. New oem LED head lights fix the lighting issue. And you can purchase a grab handle for the driver side.

 

I have a 14. Love it. Just wish it had the larger fuel tank. There are aftermarket options if you are mechanically inclined (I’m not).

 

And it is strangely accurate, too. I like it.

 

Ive put 65,000 miles on my 2016 and had to empty my wallet once for a passenger side front light bulb.

The big three trucks at 65k miles will start to show their age. A Tundra starts showing it's age around 300k. Some much later.

I'm a homer because all I've driven for the last 18 years is a Tundra and after the first one died (after 15 years) with my hood welded shut, I spent the (staggeringly inflated) money for a new one.

Good luck and let us know what you end up with.

 

My 2107 with 31k has had ZERO problems!!!!!

 

At 6'5", I use my legs as well. However, I installed the driver side handle to help my bride with ingress and eggress.

 

I had a '16 116k no issues. Now '20 with nannies no major issues, it's not even an issue. Just occasional pre-collision turning off due to condensation, covered with snow, bugs, lizards etc.

 

Another vote for 2016-2017 with the larger fuel tank. If I recall correctly, some 2014s had issues with air injection or something like that (sorry, bad memory). By 2018, all the safety nannies were added and in 2019 the external transmission cooler was removed.

 

Yeah, but it does collect a lot of garage dust that has to be dealt with and beer runs can be dicey....

 

I had a 17 and now the 18. I love the 18 and haven't had any issues with tss. I drove it from Tampa to Moab towing a Jeep. Zero issues. I also did a 3/1 lift. Zero problems. I also love the cruise control feature. It slows down and speeds up on its own. Part of having the safety features.

 

@BTinAZ
In 2015, some Tundra models came with the 38gal tank, some with the 26gal. A used truck buyer needs to check.
Also, repeated pulling sideways on a steering wheel to assist getting into a truck can make it get pretty loose. (This has always been the case, in the past, at least)

 

They didn’t add the built in trailer brake till 15. I love my 14 but the built in trailer brake would have been nice and clean.

 

Aren't we still on second gen?