Seeking advice for weekend warrior truck

Hey everyone. I need your help and input. Why? Well, Thomas Shelling said it best when he said:

"One thing a person cannot do, no matter how rigorous his analysis or heroic his imagination, is to draw up a list of things that would never occur to him."

Thanks in advance for reading this post and chiming in.

The Gist

My wife and I want to sell my car (2002 BMW 525i) and buy a pick-up truck. Aside from the usual reasons for owning a truck, the biggest reason is that we want to sleep in the bed while we camp and travel, so that we’d avoid airfare, rental cars, and hotels. Spending time in the mountains is HUGE for us, especially at this point in our lives.

Stage One: KISS

Money is tight (IVF kind of tight) so stage one is to simply buy a truck with a bed cap/cover to sleep under.

The Usual Suspects

We’re currently considering early generation Toyota Tacomas and Tundras.

It seems there are a lot of 4 door Tacoma trucks out there but they really have held their value, which is both good and bad. The bad is that it’s just outside of our price range. Also, the length of the bed is a major concern as I’m 6’2”. Anyone that tall sleep in the bed without going diagonally?

The prices of Tundras are more reasonable but the lack of a decent backseat could be a concern. We do hope to have kids and I’ve heard mixed reviews on getting a carseat to fit. I don’t truly mind the lack of fuel economy, and it may also come in handy if I ever need to carry or tow something heavy.

Note: We are very much of the mindset that we should "buy once, cry once” and I’ve heard so many good things about Toyota. However, I’m completely open to other ideas as we won’t be doing any kind of difficult off road driving where a winch or a buddy may be involved.

Planned Use

For annual travel, we plan on spending two weeks in Colorado and one week in New Hampshire in a “camper” setup. At home, it’ll stay in a daily setup as a regular pick-up truck.

Needs

• Reliability
• 4 doors
• 4x4
• “Quickly” go between a daily truck setup to 2 week camping trip setup

Wants

• Hitch
• Can accept larger pop-up style camper later

Price
There’s is where it gets a bit hairy due to our extremely tight budget.

We’re entertaining ideas in the $10,000 and under range. Even that’s stretching it, and it will also depend on how much I sell my car for.


What do you think?


Update 01: As I’ve read some responses and did more research, I’m all but completely settled on 04-06 Tundra Double Cab. Check out this video where a family of 5 (small kids obviously) traveled and slept in the bed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3AaUOMoSx4

 

I think that, if the IVF does what it's supposed to, and you buy a Toyota (years and years!), it'll be the Tundra you need.

Although a CrewMax back seat is big enough to make babies in, you'll need a 6.5 bed for sleeping (until you eventually get an RTT), so that means a Double Cab. Don't worry; the back seat is large enough for most adults (who've never sat in the back seat of a CrewMax) to sit comfortably. I'm 6' and sat back there to check it out, before I bought a DC to transport 5 of us (2 adult in the back) on a long road trip. Caveat: it'll be your truck; you get to sit in the front, and the front is awesome for tall people.

Welcome from San Diego, Mike!

 

Looking at older Tundras, first gen specifically, do you think the AC would work? It seems that members in forums with kids and car seats and the Access Cab Tundra, are all saying that it's usually technically possible.

My wife could always move her seat up if needed though. She's not nearly as tall as me.

 

Yep. But that access cab is smaller than the newer DC's so wound accomodate teens. But you could count on 10-12 years probably. And, realistically, even if you find a used 2006 with 100,000 miles , you'll put significant miles on in 12 years. During that time, you can save for a newer, bigger model.

Where are you? In some parts of the country, rust can be a problem for otherwise healthy Tundras....

 

At the risk of someone else buying it up, can anyone chime in on why I shouldn't pay $3250 for ? One owner and looks sharp but has 330,000 miles and the "dealer" doesn't seem to have any service record. I got to see the title and called around some Toyota shops where the owner lived and it doesn't really have any records in the Toyota system. I would just love to know the story of the miles so I could make a decent assessment.

 

I'm in Delaware and I've found a smattering of Tundras across the northeast. Yeah, I'm worried about the history of most of these due to the salty roads.

 

If you get an RTT (roof top tent) you really don’t need a bed long enough to sleep in. Then you can get a Crewmax for the car seats.

 

We don't have the money for a RTT at this time. That would have to come later. In fact, our budget is more in line with first gen Tundras. I've seen a few decently priced Access Cab Tundras and not many double cabs.

 

That truck looks great! But the 330,000 miles is high even for a Toyota, which is probably why it's so inexpensive. It could go a million more, but I wouldn't buy a high-mileage vehicle without complete service records.

 

That was my reasoning too. Thanks for chiming in.

 

If that truck is as clean underneath as it looks from that pic, and does the current owner have any maintenance records? 3k is a good deal. If it drives good, goes in and out of 4wd ok. Take it for a ride, see how it feels.
I’ve bought some high mileage vehicles before that have been well worth the $$$$.

 

At 330,000 miles and no service records, I’m confident in saying you would need to put some work into it to safely make it a road trip vehicle.
I can’t comment on the back seat room of an access cab but the double cab has more than enough room for car seats plus much more. If I were you, I would search and hold out for a double cab(04-06). Chances are you will spend more but you will be getting more in the long run. 250k miles+ seems like a lot but there are plenty of owners on this site with more than that. The service history is the most important factor.

 

What does IVF mean?

 

In vitro fertilization. Makin' babies the expensive way.

 

That’s no fun.

 

Well. It doesn't preclude continued practice, which can be fun!

 

IVF sucks but you're 100% right

Really appreciate everyone's replies. I think I'm going to lock down the search for an 04-06 Tundra Double Cab. Check out this video where a family of 5 (small kids obviously) traveled and slept in the bed: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z3AaUOMoSx4

 

"...the back seat is large enough for most adults (who've never sat in the back seat of a CrewMax)..."

Sitting in a CrewMax back seat and then a DC is like trying out first class and then sitting in coach. You can go from smaller to bigger, but never the other way around.

You have plenty of time. DC worked for my family of six until I had two teenagers taller than my wife. With a little, little one(s) you should be good to go.

 

I had an 06 with 420,000 miles on it. Ran great. The key is the service records. I changed the timing belt every 90,000 miles, changed the oil every 5,000 miles and if something needed fixing I fixed it (never did). Same set of plugs. Only thing that ever broke was a ball joint at 310,000 miles in deep sand. Only reason I got rid of it was the seat was killing my back. Could have had it rebuilt, but I put a lot of miles on trucks. Got the 2017 Tundra end of last August and I will have close to 60,000 miles on it by the end of this August. They are great trucks, but I would be hesitant without service records. Be patient and find the right one. Good luck it's out there.

 

In other words, you are telling people not to buy your truck although it was maintained properly by you.

 

Why do you think that? I have all service records. It would make someone a great truck. All I am saying is don't get in a rush and make sure you find the right for you. Anything you buy high mileage, well maintained or not is probably a roll of the dice...in my opinion.

 

Depends how long you plan on keeping it. If you are sleeping in the bed it limits which model you can get. But if you plan on needing room for littles you will want a crewmax. Have you tried to see if you fit in the smaller bed?

 

If you decide to trade it in fir some reason, do you think your records will get transferred over to the potential seller? Highly unlikely. Different story if you sell it yourself, but even than it is hard to prove you did that said maintenance on that specific truck and not on another one. I went through the same scenario and decided to buy a certified truck that only had 13.5k on it and with 5 documented oil changes on it.

 

Gotcha

 

We did the IVF route so I feel your pain. When you are successful, car seats now days take a huge amount of room. They want kids rear-facing until they are 2 or 3 - this means even larger car seats as they get older. You will want the double cab over the access cab just for the ease of getting the kid(s) in and out and them having enough room. The car seat will take the space it needs and if there is not enough room then you end up having to move the front seat(s) forward.

Good luck with the IVF.

 

He's 6, 2". He can't fit.

 

Im 6'7" and if i bend my legs a lot I fit.

 

All 1st gen’s, which he is looking for, have a 6.5’ bed. He should be fine.