Is the Tacoma enough truck?

[Clutch]

Honestly, I love sleeping in tents. We've got a nice canvas tent with a 6'6" roof. Plenty of room to stand in. 10x14 floor. Even if we're stuck inside due to rain, something about being in tents that kids love. Steel enclosures of a camper, not as much.

I have a 6 person tent...being in them is what I don't mind (that one doesn't leak like the 'Nest)...the whole setting them up, tearing them down is a pain in the neck.

Camper, open the door...done.

 

[phsycle]

I have a 6 person tent...being in them is what I don't mind (that one doesn't leak like the 'Nest)...the whole setting them up, tearing them down is a pain in the neck.

Camper, open the door...done.

That's true. Although, I'd hate to lug that thing around town (even the GFC), so I'd store it in the garage. That would be much more hassle for me.

Tent set up isn't bad, though. Few stakes and 4 poles. Done.

What about a Turbo Tent? Easy Peasy set up.

 

[Clutch]

That's true. Although, I'd hate to lug that thing around town (even the GFC), so I'd store it in the garage. That would be much more hassle for me.

Tent set up isn't bad, though. Few stakes and 4 poles. Done.

What about a Turbo Tent? Easy Peasy set up.

I have one of those old Columbia tents where you have to feed the poles through the sleeves. Pain in the neck!

My 2 man Big Agnes for moto camping is easy peasy....but sit up room only.

I am sure the new large tents are much improved over that Columbia, but I am pretty much done with tents. It is either OVRLND camper or cargo trailer for me next. I have a line on a 5X10 enclosed for dirt cheap. May try to make it a pop-up...either graft on a Westfalia roof or cut and hinge the existing roof.

Like this. Install some waterproof canvas walls, lift and 32" tires... call it good. All I really want is warm dry place to sleep.

 

[phsycle]

Sounds cool. And expensive!

 

[Trikebubble]

It would me, bit more room...hell of a lot more power

That there, a couple of the main reasons I went from my beloved mid-size Xterra to the full-size Tundra. I can't comment on the seating or interior of other full size trucks (though I imagine them to be similar) but I love my Tundra seating. In the old Xterra with the smaller seats lower ot the ground I found my hips started in on me after a few hours. A day's drive put me in incredible pain. I can drive in my Tundra all day without even a hint of back or hip issues. Having a higher seat that I can open up my hip angle is worth every penny I spent to me. Then their is the power of a nice big fire-breathing V8. My old Xterra had a 4litre V6 that wasn't weak by any means, but their is just no comparison in power between mid-size vehicle and their smaller V6's and a full size truck with the power they have available. Again, I'm sure most full size rigs have similar power, don't really know but I guess they do. My Tundra doesn't care what you throw in it, on it, bolt to it, it just keeps on motoring along with all the power of Thor's hammer.
So far the downsides of having a full size truck haven;t even come close to outweighing the advantages to us. It's not even remotely close.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I've read your posts for a long time Clutch and my $0.02 is you're as ideal a candidate for the #vanlife as anyone I can think of. I dunno why you constantly circle jerk about trucks and 'Nests and all of it. A high roof van or pop top, 4wd if you could swing it, would fit your use perfectly.

 

[jasmtis]

It would me, bit more room...hell of a lot more power, not that I need it...(well maybe for pulling an enclosed trailer)...better gas mileage...the Tacoma gets dismal fuel economy (or lack there of) for how small it is. Believe @Jnich77 is getting 23-25 out of his F150 2.7 Ecoboost. Mine usually hovers around 17. Had a guy checking my truck out the other day, asked me if it got 30 mpg...I laughed. He was shocked it only gets 17..."for that small thing!?" Yeah, it is a joke...but I like the truck.

Getting around is easy. Just about everyone here owns a fullsize in one shape or another on the out skirts of Boise. We live on the outskirts, but I work in the city. I find it very easy to get around here. Have a big parking lot at work...but even down town...don't see an issue. Might have issue in a parking garage...but I can't even remember the last time I was in a parking garage...dunno 20 years ago?


I also come from the mind set of bigger is not necessarily better, but I think in this case it is. Only thing that isn't better...is that buying a new truck would put a dent in my bank account since I like to pay cash for vehicles...as I did with my Tacoma all those years ago. I may own crap, but my crap is paid for. So that is pretty much the only reason I am reluctant to step up...really don't want to spend the money. As vehicles are horrible things to throw money at...




I actually don't carry all that much stuff, super easy to load...this is pretty much it, and a dirt bike on the trailer. Only thing missing from this picture is my chainsaw.

Love the simplicity of my setup, it just isn't the best in the cold and the wet.

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View attachment 473647

I average 20, not thrilling but I can live with it. I feel better about an N/A Toyota than a turbocharged Ford as a long-term purchase. I know turbo reliability concerns are mostly unfounded but when I set out to buy this it was the first time I spent more than $3500 on a vehicle so it had to be a keeper. I also drive a crapload(27k on the Tacoma since I bought it in December '17 plus a few thousand on the Rover) so I wanted something I felt confident could hit 300k. I also didn't really want to buy new but have you seen what a >10 year old 4x4 manual Tacoma or FJ with ~100k on the clock costs!? Might as well spend the extra few thousand and start with zero on the clock.

A full size would not fit in my garage, the Tacoma only has a foot to spare lengthwise and even though it's a two car garage if I don't have the Rover nestled right up against the wall(when I need room to wrench on it) the Taco doesn't really fit next to it. I also spend a lot of time in downtown Seattle and Portland where things can get tight.

My setup's pretty much identical minus dirtbike stuff. Box for food and cooking stuff, box of camping gear and box of tools and recovery gear. The tools permanently reside in the Rover besides when I'm taking the Toyota off road because well...

Agree. When I camp, I throw a sleeping bag, pad, stove, and my pre-packed camp box in the bed of the truck. I sleep in the bed of the truck and the kids get a basic tent, so camp set up and take down takes 10 minutes each. Simple is best for me. Plus with family and work schedule I will usually only do quick overnighters with the kids. Less set-up and take down give us more time to enjoy being outdoors.



Same here. Lots of very narrow and tight 4x4 trails. Likely 90% of vehicles are Jeeps on these trails. My 1st Gen Tundra has done well on them so far, but I have front-to-back pinstriping, and my kick out sliders already have battle scars. A full size can fit, but it ain't graceful.

Keeping it simple is so much nicer. Honestly the only reason I'm lusting after an RTT or something like a GoFastCamper is simplifying setup and teardown even more.

Also keep in mind that full-size trucks from the early 2ks have roughly the same dimensions as a modern mid-size. The full size trucks of today are (in my opinion) beyond unnecessarily enormous.

 

[phsycle]

That there, a couple of the main reasons I went from my beloved mid-size Xterra to the full-size Tundra. I can't comment on the seating or interior of other full size trucks (though I imagine them to be similar) but I love my Tundra seating. In the old Xterra with the smaller seats lower ot the ground I found my hips started in on me after a few hours. A day's drive put me in incredible pain. I can drive in my Tundra all day without even a hint of back or hip issues. Having a higher seat that I can open up my hip angle is worth every penny I spent to me. Then their is the power of a nice big fire-breathing V8. My old Xterra had a 4litre V6 that wasn't weak by any means, but their is just no comparison in power between mid-size vehicle and their smaller V6's and a full size truck with the power they have available. Again, I'm sure most full size rigs have similar power, don't really know but I guess they do. My Tundra doesn't care what you throw in it, on it, bolt to it, it just keeps on motoring along with all the power of Thor's hammer.
So far the downsides of having a full size truck haven;t even come close to outweighing the advantages to us. It's not even remotely close.

Man, the back seats of them CrewMax and F150 Supercrew are amazing. It's like a full on living room back there. I would love it.

Seats - I think they depend on the individual build. I didn't think Tundra's was anything special. I think the new 4Runner seats felt best to me.

 

[Trikebubble]

Man, the back seats of them CrewMax and F150 Supercrew are amazing. It's like a full on living room back there. I would love it.

Seats - I think they depend on the individual build. I didn't think Tundra's was anything special. I think the new 4Runner seats felt best to me.

My Sister has the Crewmax and yeah, their is a ton of room back there. I removed my back seat in my double cab ot make room for storage and for two dogs. I like the fact the full size truck has more room to raise the seat for more comfort for me. I found that the Tacoma (and Xterra) seats were too low, more like a bucket seat.

 

[Clutch]

I've read your posts for a long time Clutch and my $0.02 is you're as ideal a candidate for the #vanlife as anyone I can think of. I dunno why you constantly circle jerk about trucks and 'Nests and all of it. A high roof van or pop top, 4wd if you could swing it, would fit your use perfectly.

We had a couple E-Series vans for service vehicles. I hate those things. Have a couple dirt bike buddies that have done the 4WD conversion on them. Beastly! Love the idea of them...but hate the platform. The Chevy's aren't bad if you like replacing fuel pumps, the 4WD conversion is a little trickier than tossing on a U-Joint kit like on the Fords....and the Dodges....well it's a Dodge...

So vans are off the list, so to get something van like cargo, was looking to have Tradesman to build me one like this, that was before those new Wedge Style/ovrlnd campers came on the market. Was talking to the owner of this truck on TW...he said it was off a Ranger and the guy did haul a dirt bike in it...a bike will fit if you angle it. It is tight...but will work. Do have a roll-a-cot that would work in place of bed platform. So this would cover all the bases.

I average 20, not thrilling but I can live with it. I feel better about an N/A Toyota than a turbocharged Ford as a long-term purchase. I know turbo reliability concerns are mostly unfounded but when I set out to buy this it was the first time I spent more than $3500 on a vehicle so it had to be a keeper. I also drive a crapload(27k on the Tacoma since I bought it in December '17 plus a few thousand on the Rover) so I wanted something I felt confident could hit 300k. I also didn't really want to buy new but have you seen what a >10 year old 4x4 manual Tacoma or FJ with ~100k on the clock costs!? Might as well spend the extra few thousand and start with zero on the clock.

A full size would not fit in my garage, the Tacoma only has a foot to spare lengthwise and even though it's a two car garage if I don't have the Rover nestled right up against the wall(when I need room to wrench on it) the Taco doesn't really fit next to it. I also spend a lot of time in downtown Seattle and Portland where things can get tight.

My setup's pretty much identical minus dirtbike stuff. Box for food and cooking stuff, box of camping gear and box of tools and recovery gear. The tools permanently reside in the Rover besides when I'm taking the Toyota off road because well...



Keeping it simple is so much nicer. Honestly the only reason I'm lusting after an RTT or something like a GoFastCamper is simplifying setup and teardown even more.

Also keep in mind that full-size trucks from the early 2ks have roughly the same dimensions as a modern mid-size. The full size trucks of today are (in my opinion) beyond unnecessarily enormous.

Those turbos on the Ford are a concern, especially 10 years down the road, when the truck has a bunch of miles on them. I average 25K+ a year...won't take me long to hit 100K. So yeah, you do have to ask yourself...so the Ford does get better mileage, more power, and is a bigger. But at what price?

You get a garage!? Lucky! All of my vehicles sit outside ever since I have owned vehicles, except my bikes. We do have a garage, but my wife has it setup as an antique print shop. 1200 lbs letter presses, and all the lead type....the 900 lbs paper shear will take your hand off like a hot knife through butter.

Me, I avoid cities like the plague...Boise is even too big for me. I did the big city thing back in Pittsburgh, PA for 3 years while I went to art school in my late teens early 20's. Well over cities. I grew up in the country on a piece of wooded property. Definitely a country boy...that happens to listen to 70's and 80's punk...friends used to call me the farmer from hell, since I like garden, ride dirt bikes, drive trucks, run chainsaws and yet listen to punk and metal. I hate country music.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Man, the back seats of them CrewMax and F150 Supercrew are amazing. It's like a full on living room back there. I would love it.

Seats - I think they depend on the individual build. I didn't think Tundra's was anything special. I think the new 4Runner seats felt best to me.

The interior space is one of the main reasons I went with an F150 instead of a Tacoma. Once you toss in better fuel economy, better ride, cleaper price,and far more pulling power the Tacoma wasn't even an option.

 

[Deleted member 9101]

Those turbos on the Ford are a concern, especially 10 years down the road, when the truck has a bunch of miles on them. I average 25K+ a year...won't take me long to hit 100K. So yeah, you do have to ask yourself...so the Ford does get better mileage, more power, and is a bigger. But at what price

The turbos very rarely fail and if they do they are not hard to replace or terribly expensive. They build hundreds of thousands of them a year and even with that many on the road you rarely hear about a turbo failure. Typically if they fail it's when the truck is brand new.... or many, many miles down the road. I have talked to guys who have 200k+ on stock turbos.

Really if you run a quality oil and change it much sooner than Ford recommends (Ecoboost have a problem with fuel dilution) you'll never have a problem with them. Or you can use it as an excuse to upgrade them and get more power

 

[DaveInDenver]

We had a couple E-Series vans for service vehicles. I hate those things. Have a couple dirt bike buddies that have done the 4WD conversion on them. Beastly! Love the idea of them...but hate the platform. The Chevy's aren't bad if you like replacing fuel pumps, the 4WD conversion is a little trickier than tossing on a U-Joint kit like on the Fords....and the Dodges....well it's a Dodge...

I was looking to have Tradesman to build me one like this, that was before those new Wedge Style/ovrlnd campers came on the market.

Agreed on the platforms, built for commercial and fleets where they get abused and turned over quickly. As much as I'm a pickup + 'Nest kind of dude I have to admit I've always though the whole concept was lacking, you have cab space and you have camper space that are simultaneously too much and too little. When you need dirty space the bed is too small, when you need clean/dry space the cab is too small. A van is ideal, I realize that. I'd be driving a Hi-Ace camper if it wasn't such a PITA to get one.

 

[Clutch]

That there, a couple of the main reasons I went from my beloved mid-size Xterra to the full-size Tundra. I can't comment on the seating or interior of other full size trucks (though I imagine them to be similar) but I love my Tundra seating. In the old Xterra with the smaller seats lower ot the ground I found my hips started in on me after a few hours. A day's drive put me in incredible pain. I can drive in my Tundra all day without even a hint of back or hip issues. Having a higher seat that I can open up my hip angle is worth every penny I spent to me. Then their is the power of a nice big fire-breathing V8. My old Xterra had a 4litre V6 that wasn't weak by any means, but their is just no comparison in power between mid-size vehicle and their smaller V6's and a full size truck with the power they have available. Again, I'm sure most full size rigs have similar power, don't really know but I guess they do. My Tundra doesn't care what you throw in it, on it, bolt to it, it just keeps on motoring along with all the power of Thor's hammer.
So far the downsides of having a full size truck haven;t even come close to outweighing the advantages to us. It's not even remotely close.

I really like the Tundra....especially the RCLB...why the other manufactures didn't put that extra space behind the seats is beyond me. Of course Toyota did kill it off. This is roughly the same room as my Extra Cab. It is the mileage is what kills it for me.

There was a RCLB that already had Kings all the way around, the popped up on CL a year or so ago thought about flying down to CO to snag it, but all I can think about was that is only going to get 10-13 mpg if I am lucky. few buddies who have them...all they ********** about is how bad the mpg's are.

 

[DaveInDenver]

I dig the space requirement, that's why I got an XtraCab in the first place. But seriously in this photo, how the hell are you gonna want to routinely get a generator back there heaving it over the seats all the time? Even folded down that's got to be a PITA. LOL.