Anybody else kind of miss their 1st gen Tacoma????

I had one for about 2 years, drove it from 170k to 190k, zero problems.

It was the stripper special, 2wd, reg cab, 5 speed, 2.4 liter 4 cylinder, but even by the 2004 model year the standard feature list included such nice things as air conditioning, nice door speakers with separate tweeters, plush carpet, carpet floor mats, great wearing dark grey cloth seat upholstery, power brakes, power steering, easy hydraulic clutch, dual air bags.

The real flaw with that truck is that it was real light in the ass end. Easy to spin the wheels when it was raining. That lead to me losing control on a wet interstate at 40-50mph, ass end came around on me, I couldn't get it back into shape and went head on into the center wall at 30-40mph. Moral of the story is to make sure you have good tires on your vehicle, tires were old Goodyears with marginal tread, I was thinking about getting new tires for the past week or two.

Still there are a few things I miss about that truck. #1 was how easy it was to park. #2 was the low bed height, even short people like me(5'6") could reach right over into the bed. #3 25mpg on regular gas,

#4 I took a lot of pride in that truck, dad bought it new in 2004, he had to put me and my sister thru college at that time, he wanted a new, cheap reliable truck. He just gave it to me back in late 2015 when his new 2016 Tacoma came in, felt guilty about paying more for her college than mine. Truck had 170k when I inherited it, put 20k care free miles on it up to 190k, it looked really damn nice too, very straight body, no rust, clean interior. I put new chrome bumpers on it, new stereo with 6x9's behind the rear seat, soundproofed the cabin(big improvement).

 

I had a 2002 Tacoma from new through early this year when I traded in on the Tundra. 16 years and I never spent a penny on repairs - oil changes, tires, brake pads and wiper blades - that's it. Trading it in was like giving a child away. I do miss it, but I like the Tundra, so I am getting over it. I would have liked to just keep it as a second truck for ever, but I could not justify having another vehicle in the driveway.


Next to the Tundra at trade-in day:

 

Never had one, but constantly look for a rust free one in the classifieds, etc.

 

Yes. I had a 2004 Tacoma, with the 3.4 V6 in 5 speed manual. I had her for 6 years, and got rid of it in 2010 to get a 4Runner. Anyway, one of the things I liked best about the Gen 1 Tacoma was that it was a truck that knew what it wanted to be - a smaller, "compact" pickup. The Gen 2 Tacomas were rock solid, my good friend has owned 2 of them, but they are almost as large as the Gen 1 Tundra. I feel like the small trucks are now like stunted versions of their full size brothers, and this goes for all the manufacturers. I made the mistake after my 4Runner of buying a Gen 3/2016 Taco, and aside from being a mis-engineered disaster (in my opinion), it was so much larger than my Gen 1 Taco that I should have just gotten the Tundra. 2 years later, here I am. Live and learn.

My Gen 1 Taco was plain, very utilitarian, and very reliable. The 3.4 got lousy mileage and it wasn't going to win any drag races, but it was a perfect sized little truck. So yes, I do miss it, even if my Tundra is much, much nicer overall.

 

I had a 2004 tacoma and loved that thing. I used to jump tracks in that thing and it never failed me. Traded it in on a Sequoia for a value of $11,500 after 100,000 miles. Held its value for sure.

 

my 2001 is still my daily driver. i love it and actually hate to get rid of it but I’m going to be upgrading to 2019 pretty soon. I’ll be selling the one I have, 160k miles, rust free, bomb proof. i’ve got the v8 in mine, mpg not great but better than a new one. i’ve got the access cab and don’t like that. had a baby, need 4 full doors now.

 

I had a 1994 Toyota pickup. Last year becfore the Taco iirc. It was my first vehicle and I bought it at 330,000KMS. I took it to over 500,000KMS. I really do miss that truck. Extended cab, 4x4, 5spd, 22RE 4cyl...so many memories of exploring the BC backwoods looking for remote fishing holes.

 

Hell ya I miss my 2001. Wish I still had it!!
Awesome truck! Mine was 5spd manual!!

 

My 16 year old purchased one last year (well I bought it he makes monthly payments to me), great truck.

 

Awesome truck!

 

First truck I had (second vehicle) senior year jet black 99 prerunner. Greatest truck I had this far other than my current tundra!

Sadly, two years later, fell asleep at the wheel and flipped it (4 times IIRC and no seat belt). Completely unsalvageable, but learned two important lessons......coffee is life and wear your damn seat belt!

 

I have a 98 as my current project, it was rolled but still ran and drove until here recently. 2.7, 5 speed 4x4 with manual locking hubs and 340k miles. Currently has full OME suspension then the idiot stacked a spacer on top of that.. gonna pull the spacer, cut the fenders to clear the 35s, swap in a e locked rear axle and wheel the shit out of it!

 

Yeah but I love my 1st gen tundra. Kinda wish I could afford to keep both. I had both prerunner trd 99 and an 03 before I got my 06 tundra 4x4

 

I miss my Gen 1 Tundra, does that count?

 

Just ran across the pics of my wreck aftermath back in 2002-2003 ish.

Man, with no seatbelt, no idea how I made it out alive! I do miss my wild child (nickname I had for it)

 

^Man you lucky to be alive. I was surprised after looking at my wrecked Tacoma that I didn't get hurt. I did a Dale Earnhart type of turn into the inside wall of the interstate at 30-40mph, hit the driver's side front corner dead on. Bent the chassis bad enough to where the bed didn't line up with the cab at all.

I've had a couple of other Toyota mini-trucks before that 2004. Beat to shit 1993

$230 Toyota 2wd TOYOTA Tundra Interior BURL Wood Dash Trim KIT Set 2000 2001 2002 2003

Toyota 2wd/Reg cab/5 speed/22-RE I bought for $600, it needed work but was great transportation for the 4 years/20k miles I owned it(I had another much nicer car as well at that time).

Also had a 1988 Toyota 2wd/reg cab/delux/5 speed/22R with the carburetor. Owned that back in college, rock solid reliable, sold it with 150k on the odometer for $3500 back in 2007(gas was high, it did 25mpg and was really nice) Sharp looking truck, baby blue with the stripe package, cold a/c, no rust, no accidents, no dents, ran great, had good paint on it even when I sold it, had some rad 15" enki honecomb wheels on it as well. Really wish it had the fuel injection option, as it was a dog compared to that 1993 with fuel injection that I owned later. Still kick myself for selling that truck.

 

This is just crazy. I paid $19,800 for this truck brand new. Had for 16 years, got $8,900 trade-in, and dealer is asking $11,000 (We all know the $14,559 is a bogus price so I won't even go there).
Only lost $8,000 in value over 16 years. There is no other truck on the market that can do anywhere close to that. I compared similar Dodge Dakota and Chevy S-10s and they were trading for about $2,700.

 

How many miles were on your truck????

I know resale on the 1st gen Tacoma is insane, especially 4wd models(and even Pre-Runners). My 2004 reg cab/2wd/lowrider model, the cheapest one on the lot, dad bought it for $12,000 brand new in 2004. After that wreck a few months ago, it was totaled out, insurance gave me $5,900 for it. That's a truck that was 14 years old, 190,000 miles on it, great condition though(they offered me $4500 originally), no dents, no scrapes, really nice paint, perfect interior.

I mean they basically gave me half of what it cost new 14 years ago, after 190k miles were put on it. That's crazy, especially because the reg cab/2wd/lowrider body style really isn't worth all that much/desirable 2nd hand. Everybody wants the lifted 4wd now days.

 

I miss mine like crazy. Had to sell my first 98 xtracab because my daughter was going to pop out soon.

1st one I owned - Black 1998 3.4V6 Manual Xcab taco from 2001 to 2010 - it was bulletproof, and made me a Toyota fan. Bought for $14K, put 130K mi on it, and sold it for $10.5K.

Next was a white Double cab - didn’t keep it long, it wasn’t work friendly.

And of course the 96 SC 4runner I recently let go after a 10 year relationship - bulletproof as well.

The 3.4 V6 is the 22RE of Toyota V-6’s.

 

Had a 01 std cab 4x4 with the 2.7 and manual transmission. Dearly loved that truck. Traded on an 06 tundra double cab when kids showed up.

 

I had 126,000 on it. Low mileage for the years.

 

I guess this thread is a year old now, but I just found it....

I've just joined the 1st gen Tundra club, and soon to be missing my 1st gen Taco.
I've had this 2003 TRD DCSB Taco for a few years now. 190k miles on it, but bulletproof, simple, and reliable. Absolutely loved it, but its become a bit small for some of my needs. The shortbox is.... very short. Really hope the Tundra lives up to it, or I'm gonna regret selling my little buddy.

 

Had an 03 with 168k, 3.4 5 speed that I drove for five years and just sold to the father in law about 2 months ago, when I bought a 2014 DC. Just in time for the birth of kiddo #2.

Told him I'd help with any repairs and undercoating the chassis to protect from rust. Sold it cheap under the condition that once he was "finished" with it I would take it back.

The reason for this morose and twisted plan was the countless threads I read across the forums of guys selling their first gens and then pining about never seeing their trucks again.

 

Didn't know the Tacoma ever offered a V8 ?

 

I do at times. I had a 99’ Limited extended cab that I bought with 130k on the odometer.

I saw very few of the limited models back then. There wasn’t much extra that came on them, moonroof and elec. mirrors may have been the only extra features.

I hauled a lot of lumber in it building projects at home and towed my 3600 lb car and 1400 lb (-ish, 5k rating) trailer to tracks all the time. I drove it for about 5 years and sold at 215k. It still ran smooth and drove well. They were some tough trucks.

 

He is probably talking about a 1st Gen Tundra, not Tacoma. Tacoma never had a V8. (Although that would have been awesome)

 

I had a 99 and 00. Both were extended cab, but the 00 had the v6 and super charger with manual transmission. It was a fun truck. I had to put about 300 lbs in the back to keep it from burning out at every traffic light. I wish I had never sold that '00. The 99 was a 4 banger, and it could crawl a mountain without any problem. Both had around 100,000 miles and I only replaced a fuel pump on the '99 and the injectors on the '00, the SC needed more fuel.

Got Sandwiched in the '99

But it was great off road! Especially for a 4 Cyl. Manual EVERYTHING, windows, hubs, and Trans.

SOLD the '00 Just before my son was born. We needed a family car, and the Taco isn't very baby seat friendly. Yes the shell is from the '99, it gave me the weight for the rear.

 

I do miss mine. Had a '96 Extra Cab 6cyl 4x4, damn thing was so nimble and light it never got stuck. MPG wasnt great with 33's but sure beat the '15 on 33's. Fantastic truck really, the V6 is another great example of Toyota's overengineering, so if you have one with a perfect frame, then it'll outlast pretty much anything that isnt another 'yota.

 

correct, i was talking about Tundra. my bad