Learn Me 1st-Gen Tacomas

As the title states, I'd like to know more about 1st gen Toyota Tacomas. A buddy has one for sale, and I'm considering it to replace my Trooper.

Lately, the Trooper has been breaking a lot. I'm also frustrated by it's terribly slow engine, meager towing capacity, and poor parts availability. Not to mention driving at 70mph is like riding in a blender. Oh, and it gets 12.7 mpg.

But that's not why I'm getting tired of it. The real reason is that after only one semester of living outside at school, it has rust on the bottom of every door and under the windshield. The seals are quickly disintegrating in the sun, and the original single-stage paint is fading quickly, too. I doubt it will last much longer outside.

My friend has a silver 2002 Tacoma Extracab stepside 4x4 manual V6, which is nearly the configuration I've always wanted. I've liked Tacomas for years, and now find that I never use the back seat in the Trooper. This truck has been hit lightly in the front, but been fixed properly. I know this for sure, so this isn't a concern for me at all. I think I can work a deal where we trade evenly, as he's been looking for a Trooper to go mudding with.

Here's what I need to know:

Will a Tacoma stand up to 4 years of living outside?
Will this Tacoma tow 5,000 pounds? (preliminary googles say yes)
Will a Tacoma have terrible wind noise on the highway?
Will parts be available?
What kind of mileage will it get?
What is the Tacoma aftermarket like?

Thanks in advance everyone.

I have a second generation Tacoma and I understand that they are different trucks but, for what it's worth, I will tell you the following:

I have 81,000 miles on it and use it for towing and plowing.

My truck has lived outside since December of 2004.

It's rated to tow 6500 pounds. I have towed Jeeps, Miatas, Porsches and Subarus from South Jersey up through the mountains of Vermont and New Hampshire.

You will not need parts.

Aftermarket support is excellent.

My mileage (V6 Double Cab 4x4) is 17 mpg on every tankful, unless I'm towing a car and then it's 12 mpg.

Every truck will be noisy on the highway, especially after you put good tires on it.

Here it is with Dave, my good friend and enabler...

Limited knowlege but here's my take, the 5 speed is a bit cluncky and most people I have known who drove both actually prefered the auto. That being said they seem near indestructible. The aftermarket is there for it no doubt.

Will it have wind noise at highway? Yes. They're loud, and the big meaty tires don't help.Can be mitigated by a lower stance and more on-road friendly tires- but that's not nearly as fun.

the v6 can have problems with head gaskets, the 4 cylinder 2.7 is actually better imho.

In reply to icaneat50eggs:Is that true? I thought the 3.0s were the engines with the head gasket problems, did the 3.4s have this problem?

That 4 banger is a stout engine- I drove one with a 4 banger, automatic, shortbox single cab TRD (yeah, BIZARRE combo) and it was quite the little machine. Buzzy at speed- but i've driven a similar 4runner with the same v6 as mentioned, and that was a lot quieter engine-wise.

The 4 cylinder isn't an option, as only the V6 is rated to tow 5,000 pounds.

As far as noise, I'm not talking tire and drivetrain noise. I was more thinking window seal noise and the like. Am I correct in thinking that a 2002 Tacoma is more modern than a trooper in that respect?

Also, he offered to let me drive it for a day. What should I look/feel for? Common trouble spots?

Oh, and can I retrofit a factory e-locker in the rear?

My Dad's got a 96. I'd like to tell you what goes wrong with them..but in 180K that he's owned it, he's replaced... a clutch.

Granted it's a stripper model. 4x2, regular cab, 5 speed 4 cylinder, so in the end it doesn't mean much.

it'll be a whole pile quieter than a trooper from that end of it. I know the full-size trucks around that era had trouble spots with the frames and rust- if the car is going to be outdoors a lot, you might want to see if tacos were subject to those shenanigans as well. Beyond that, they've been awesome trucks for basically forever.

From my understanding, a 2002 Tacoma should be after all the rust issues, right?

It's a Toyota. From my experience, they ALL rust. A lot. IDK if the 2002 is after that or not, I'd double check anyhow. Granted, i'm a wee bit further north than you, so my point may be invalid.

http://m.autoblog.com/2008/03/07/toyota-extends-rust-warranty-on-older-tacoma-pickups-to-15-years/

Looks like it was only 1995-2000

Just remembered one of the guys I track with alot has had several tacomas and tows his MR2 on an open trailer all over the southeast (mountains included) haven't heard any complaints from him. Dad had a trooper II with the 4 cyl and driven friends Tacos with the 6 and they were worlds apart the taco felt so much more substantial.

You just knew someone would post this pic, right?

"officially" the last year Tacomas are susceptible to frame rail rust is 2004. The buyback program ended a year ago. The frame rail replacement program goes until 15 years from date of original sale, and the truck must have been inspected by March of 2011 to qualify, and be sold in one of the following states:

CT, DE, IL, IN, KY, MA, MD, ME, MI, MN, NH, NJ, OH, PA, RI, VA, VT, WI, WV, and DC

I owned a 2002 Tacoma Regular cab 4x4 with the 2.7 and a manual. It had already had it's frame replaced. All first gen tacomas will rust REALLY badly. If you're driving it through salt, it's going to rot out. I think that even the 2nd generation trucks have been having rust issues too.

The V6 should have no problem towing 5,000 lbs. The I4 was somewhere in the 3500lb range if I remember correctly. Mine wasn't particularly noisy on the highway even with the chunky off road tires. Overall gas mileage was somewhere around 20mpg on the highway and about 15 if I only drove it around town.

Mine had about 200,000 miles on it and didn't really have any mechanical problems. The interior held up incredibly well considering the high mileage. OEM and aftermarket parts are readily available and not particularly expensive either.

I had a 2000 4Runner for a few years and 70,000 miles. They do have some differences from a Tacoma, such as coil springs in the back instead of leafs, and I'm sure a few other things, but mechanically the 3rd gen 4runner and 1st gen Tacoma are pretty similar.

I had the 5 speed in my truck, and it worked as well as a manual transmission in a truck would be expected to. The throws were long, but it shifted nicely. The 3.4 V6 is a pretty stout motor, only needing timing belt and water pump service as any other motor would. I never had any rust issues, the factory paint was holding up nicely at 8 years old when I sold it. It towed my Integra on a steel double axle car hauler a few times, and seemed to do just fine. Tongue weight was pretty important when pulling at the 5000 lb limit, but it would maintain 70mph on flat land with relative ease. It was quiet and comfortable, and I did several 750 mile one day drives in it without issue. I got about 15 MPG in town, and almost 20 MPG highway (please note I tend to get poor MPG from all vehicles, due to my driving habits ).

As for parts availability, you won't need it. The thing was as reliable as a hammer. In 4 years and 70,000 miles, I only changed oil and added gas. Even little finicky stuff never broke. Trim pieces held up well, the interior looked brand new, and there were no squeaks, creaks, or rattles. Aftermarket support is awesome, and there are good forums available to help with mods.

In short, there is a reason Toyota trucks are the choice of terrorists the world over.

So, as long as I don't live where it snows (I don't!) it will be fine?

I just bought a 2001 tacoma last month - 4WD, Xtracab, 5-speed V6, SR5 with TED package and topper. 189K miles, never been hit, it's as tight and quiet as a brand new truck. Gets around 23 mpg highway, currently getting about 18 with 50% driving off-highway in Colorado snow in 4WD. Previous owner was a maintenance fanatic, I have every maintenance receipt from new, he changed the oil every 3700 miles, just had timing belt, water pump, and all fluids changed. No rust at all. I expect to have this truck at least 10 years. It's my 4th Toyota truck, all had excellent reliability.

It's been parked outside since new - but it's very dry here (average humidity around 15%), and we use very, very little salt on our roads.

YMMV

Yes, you can fit an elocker, various threads exist showing how. You can also go with a lunchbox type.

3.4 will handle a 5,000 lb tow, though it will be working doing it. It's not a powerhouse engine. No inherent head gasket problems, that's with the 3.0.

Parts availability is fine. Both from Toyota, and from the likes of advance or rock.

Aftermarket support for performance is drying up as the vehicle ages.

Noise is nominal. Air flows over and around the cab well enough to be considered quietish.

Figure 17-19 mpg on average.

Rust is the biggie, usually right behind the cab. Whack the frame rails with a hammer and see if it goes through. If so, well, you decide.

Front axle locker thingie (forgot it's name) can suffer vacuum leaks and not engage. Otherwise, pretty tough and bulletproof truck.

Straight up trade sounds quite worthy of serious consideration.

Tom Suddard wrote: So, as long as I don't live where it snows (I don't!) it will be fine?

As long as the TRUCK never lived there, you should be OK.

I can confirm 1) that the 3.0 is slow and eats head gaskets and 2) the 3.4 is a tough, tough little engine.

FM used to have a T100, which was the precursor to the Tundra. It had the 3.4 in it. Bill thought it was too slow so he put a turbo on it. Gave it more than 300 ft/lbs of torque. No real knock protection, you just had to downshift and wind it out if you heard knocking on a big climb. And we have big climbs around here. We used it to tow during a couple of the Open Track Challenge races with a 22' trailer full of race car, 110 gallons of fuel, tools and a spare engine/trans. In other words, it was worked far harder than Toyota ever expected. Never burped.

He sold that thing with well over 100k on it and it still had the original clutch. I have a lot of respect for Toyota trucks, and I'd still be driving one if they offered a diesel.

For what it is worth, I had a '96 ext cab 4x4, 4 cylinder 5-speed. I purchased it with 80K miles and sold it a few years ago with close to 150K. It was a daily driver for most of that time. Only money I ever spent on the truck was for a new clutch and normal consumables. Never had any issues with it. The frame was showing no signs of rust at the time. I only sold it because I needed something with a better towing capacity. I still miss it greatly.

My brother-in-law had a '98 with the V6. His frame almost rusted in-half and it lived its entire life in eastern NC; not much snow or salt on the roads there. Toyota bought his truck from him.

Don't freak about about the frame panic. Simply inspect the truck you're looking to buy. Voila.