Do People Really Keep Their Toyota Tacoma Forever?
The mythos surrounding that the Toyota Tacoma is a truck that can seemingly last forever has been around for some time. With proper maintenance, seeing a Tacoma with well over 200,000 miles on the clock is not surprising. This midsize truck has a reputation for longevity, and its owners also seem to keep their Tacos longer than other trucks.
Why do Tacomas last so long?
The Toyota Tacoma tends to be a midsize truck that lasts a long time because Toyota doesn’t change what’s broken. This pickup certainly is not perfect, and without proper maintenance and repair, it’s unlikely to last longer than a truck from a different brand. But when the Tacoma’s needs are attended to, it seems like it can easily achieve 200,000 miles.
One of the major issues that seem to face Toyota trucks is rust. But mechanically, it does seem like they can be put through the wringer without complaining. And that might be why folks keep them for so long.
Folks seem to love the Toyota Tacoma
Recently I was talking to a friend that owns a current-gen Tacoma. And although they say it’s objectively one of the worst new midsize trucks you can buy, they are planning to drive it until the wheels fall off. And they aren’t alone.
According to a survey put out by iSeeCars, 21.4% of Toyota Tacoma owners keep their vehicles longer than 10 years. That is even with issues like frame rot which seems to plague this truck. But in all fairness, Toyota has taken responsibility for that problem and has tried to correct it.
Will there be a redesigned Tacoma?
Toyota is notorious for taking a long time to redesign its vehicles, but the 2024 Tacoma could finally be a redesigned model. And that is probably a good thing. Other brands like Ford and Chevy have or have established plans to update their midsize trucks. And the Tacoma is certainly starting to show its age when compared to those.
Much of what we know about the 2024 Toyota Tacoma is still speculation, but there are probably some things that will be different about it. It will ride on the TNGA-F architecture, which is also used by the Tundra. And, it will probably take a lot of styling cues from the new Tundra, helping it fall in line with other Toyota products.
The current Tacoma is one of two midsize trucks that you can get with a manual transmission. It would be nice if Toyota decided to keep it that way. But with more and more new vehicles ditching the option for hand-made shifts, I’m not holding my breath.
This pickup truck will likely boast some new powertrain options. It could get the turbocharged four-cylinder engine featured in other Toyota products. That engine makes 275 horsepower and 317 pound-foot of torque. It would also be nice to see the 3.4-liter V6 featured in the Tundra. As it stands, the V6 in the Tacoma is less powerful than that of its rivals. So, it is time for a change there.
