14th May 2008, 10:26

It boggles my mind that people will buy one defective and poorly made import (Toyota), then as soon as it falls apart (usually 6 months or less with the newer ones) they rush to buy ANOTHER poorly built import!!

If you look at the reviews and automotive literature, you will find that FORD has the most reliable car (Fusion) and GM has the American car of the Year (Malibu), while GM also has Motor Trend's Car of the Year (Cadillac CTS). Fully a third of Car and Driver's "10 Best" are domestics. Toyota is now on a major decline in quality, and even the biased Consumer Reports agrees.

Lots of luck with your "transmission of the Month" Honda and "The Mechanics Favorite Money Maker" Nissan. You'll meet lots of nice mechanics along the way, and get to watch lots of TV in service department waiting rooms. You'll also love the rental cars you drive while waiting on new engines and transmissions to be installed in your imports.

15th May 2008, 12:09

10:26 I agree and saw your comment illustrated by my wife. She kept buying many imports over and over in spite of declining mechanical issues. At first its bewilderment, then maybe just a bad assembly day, a fluke then it's a lemon. Why it takes 3 or more new ones to find this out escapes me. She works simply buys what she likes. But your comments rang true in my household. The perceived notion or cachet that was once prevalent for whatever reason with having a true import is over. I see domestics as nicer today and she is driving one now. I fault the import manufacturers for slipping to lose such a fine customer. I see gas pricing affecting purchases at the moment, but long term reliability is of utmost importance for customer retention. A few people hang onto vehicles forever on here but many do not. It better be good service or they will certainly look elsewhere quickly.

18th Sep 2008, 17:18

What a trend. The once fantastic Toyota truck has become a has-been. Quality has dropped, noise has increased, design is more for show.

My opinion : once they started building them in Los Angeles the quality dove and the price went up. Toyota lost it.

Now what do I do with my 2007 TRD Sport? It has all the issues explained by other people. Noise, poor interior lay out, poor interior quality parts.

15th Oct 2008, 13:08

To 17:18. What to do with your 2007 TRD Sport? I'd strongly advise trading it for a 2009 full-size Ford F-150. These trucks are incredibly smooth, quiet, very reliable and are capable of hauling and towing that the small Tacoma could never dream of. Right now Ford is selling these awesome trucks (best selling truck in the world for THREE DECADES) at incredible prices due to gas prices and the economy, and they will get roughly the same gas mileage as your Tacoma. The full-size Chevy Silverado and GMC are also very good buys with a 100,000 mile warranty (which you won't need anyway).

I'm sorry you got taken in by ad hype. Toyota quality has really dropped in recent years (though it was never as good as Ford or GM). Our local Ford and Chevy dealers usually have several Tacomas on the used car lot that have been traded in for just the reasons this review and the comments point out.

27th Oct 2008, 00:08

I've been a Toyota fanatic for years but experienced the same issues as described above. I own two 94 Corollas that both have just under 300K miles. I've done little to them but oil changes, alternators, and clutches. However, my 02 Corolla began having problems almost immediately. The quality just wasn't the same. It feels like a cheap imitation. Sometime between 94 and 02 Toyota must have changed course and placed profit margins over quality.

17th Dec 2010, 12:05

Did any of you people actually test drive a Toyota before you bought it? 90% of the problems in here are things you should have noticed off the bat?

"Hey this truck is noisy"

"Hey this truck has a crappy interior"

Were you all so sold on a Tacoma that you didn't notice this stuff? Did you think the problems would suddenly go away? LOL.

17th Dec 2010, 16:48

Some people fall for ad hype and just impulsively buy. I even did, thinking quality was going to be guaranteed. Maybe the radio was turned up and it drowned the rattle.

18th Dec 2010, 07:30

1205: read comment 1209 for your answer. Regretfully some people overlook the current situation, and think they are getting the same from the past. Brief test drives of 10 minutes when you are driving an unfamiliar car and a salesman blabbing is distracting. I started buying after renting a similar car from Enterprise weekend specials. And putting on a hundred miles plus with my family without the sales pressure.

24th Dec 2010, 09:41

Wow, people really are bashing this Tacoma truck. Is it to push domestic sales or what? I own '07 TRD sport and love it. Close to 50k miles on it, and NOT a one thing wrong with it.

In '07 traded my '04 Tacoma to get this one; the '07 is so much smoother, and even with the bigger engine, it gets better mileage than '04 I had. I tow a 6x10 enclosed trailer, and it has no problems doing that.

DO NOT compare this pick-up to the Ford F-150 or 1500 series Chevy; those are full size ones, the Tacoma is not. My buddies '05 Silverado was in the shop constantly right after purchase. He traded his older Tacoma for it, and was sorry he ever did.

Back in '97, I purchased a new 4x4 1500 Silverado. On top of bad gas mileage (12mpg-14mpg) and other things, the front brakes were shot at 17k miles, 17k miles!!!

Now, no vehicle is perfect. I would insulate the roof better, and do something about getting a better gas mileage, but that's about it.

11th Jan 2011, 15:01

Why are you complaining about the gas mileage? The Tacoma is rated for 16 city, and 20 highway. And you're getting 18/ 19? LOL!!

12th Jan 2011, 18:03

I traded my 2005 Tacoma (98,000 miles and never a problem) for a Dodge Diesel 2500 to pull my trailer... outside of the Cummins Diesel, the truck turned out to be a hunk of crap... 6 months in, I had brakes squealing, shifter linkage problems, Death wobble, and I could go on... I am so glad to be done with that piece of crap! I now have a 2007 Tacoma again, and could not be happier! I will never own another truck besides Toyota.