Well thinking seriously @ getting a new taco real soon. I do @ 30,000 miles a year on the highway mainly. occasinally i haul fire wood, hay bales and 4 wheeler during huntin season.
75 miles round trip just to get to work, then use it for work. Seriously think the 4cyl is best choice only for the gas mileage.
do you guys have any regrets on 4 cyl vs. 6 cyl if you really dont do that much hauling? thanks:ballchain::ts:

you can do a search and find several post on this topic

i have just a tacoma ( reg cab 4, auto)

gets great millage and can haul a big load when needed ( home depot stuff)

it is a strong 4
good on gas if you drive it right! drive it like a 16 year old and not so good !
the sweet spot is 2k shift points, but for getting on/off the freeway i have to forget that rule !

IF you are thinking of the tacoma 4X2 like mine i suggest a small investment in "timbrens" for the rear. put a good load in the bed and it gets low ! and they do not affect the ride quality. the reg cab 4 has a "gentelman's ride, not harsh.

i have hauled 1400 pounds in the bed, yep the 4 was not too perky but did the job respectable.

BUT THE VERDICT SHOULD BE YOU DECIDE !!! YOU NEED TO TEST DRIVE BOTH AND DECIDE !
i am older and gave up hot rodding years ago and don't get speeding tickets and love my truck, but you might not !

:ts: i am getting older to 48. i mainly drive highway. but will need 4x4 for hunting and on the job. to use IF NEEDED & Snow Too. I had a 4 cyl 4x4 right before i bought my tundra 4x4. no problems with it then either. i guess i am pretty much going to go withthe 4 cyl. :ballchain::beavbutt:

:ts: i am getting older to 48. i mainly drive highway. but will need 4x4 for hunting and on the job. to use IF NEEDED & Snow Too. I had a 4 cyl 4x4 right before i bought my tundra 4x4. no problems with it then either. i guess i am pretty much going to go withthe 4 cyl. :ballchain::beavbutt:
Here's another vote for 4-cyl.
I do highway driving, city driving, and have frequent need to pull some very significant loads. I have a home made tandem flatbed trailer with 3500 pound axles and have loaded it to capacity with a medium sized diesel tractor. Won't win any indy races like that, but that little engine has a lot of grunt. Along a segment of highway with speed limit 100 kph and some moderate hills, never had to drop under 4th to maintain the limit.

Note that the 4x4 (or prerunner) has a favorable axle ratio compared to the 4x2 base model, and the 1st gear ratio of the MANUAL transmission has an EXTREMELY favorable ratio compared to the 1st gear ratio of the AUTOMATIC transmission, so this specific configuration is best for the ability to get a big load rolling.

If you find info on the gas mileage comparison, I would get right down to pen and paper and figure out how much you would save over the course of the year. For me, driving a V8 Tundra is expensive, but when I broke it down to mpg vs another smaller truck, the yearly savings was not big enough to get me to go with a smaller truck. I think you will find the same. Go with the V6 and you will be happier hauling that quad up north. I know I am.


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Well, I bit the bullet saurday and bought the 6cyl TACO. Short bed 4X4, double cab. Very nice vehicle. still on my 1st tank of gas. traded in my tundra 2001 with 293,000 miles on it, it was ready for a timing belt, serpentine belt, the transmission was starting to shift hard into the last gear @60-65 mph. and i could hear the front right wheel bearings starting to sound weird. SO yes i got my $ and use out of the tundra. and will miss it. great vehicle. I just hope i get 10 years or more out of the TACO or another 300,000 miles out of it. cant go wrong w/ a toyota. SO, Now i am in the process of refinancing the house. not too happy @ it but nothing i can do @ that. that sucks! oh well, ya only live once and you got to do your best to pay off your other bills. thanks :cool:

Toyota Tacoma's V-6 or 4 bangers are not very fuel efficiant.
Through no fault of the vehicles.
The areo dynamics of a truck Is terrible and you cant change that.
The 2.7 Ltr 4 cyl Is a rather Large engine and the Tacoma Is a up sized small Pickup.
The 2.3 Ltr Ford ranger Is giving 24 avg mpgs, smaller lighter truck.
the Toyota 2.7 is at 21 mpgs.
For a 4 cyl the toyota had good power If your willing to rev It.
The ford 4 cyl Is too small to mach performance on any front.

As for power,, For a year I pulled a 1800 Lb when loaded 5X8 enclosed trailer.
It stuck up 2 feet above the topper, the wind drag was real bad as I was on the Interstate alot.

My 2.7 Ltr auto could not hold 70 mph In overdrive. But In 3rd gear which Is direct drive(Planetairies are not In use)
It pulled great turning about 3,200 at 65-70 mph giving me 16 mpg's.
I pulled this for about 50,000 miles, never had a problem. My engine starts making good power at 2,700 rpms and
pull's hard at 3,200 and all the way to 4,700, after that Im over the Top of the Torque curve so no need to rev up there.

Something to ponder,,,
The 2.7 Ltr toyota motor has a timming chain. I am at 405,000 miles, the chain Is still fine.

Timming belts need changing so If I had a belt I would have spent about $2,500 In belts so far.....

Other than wear out parts, tires, brakes, shocks, battery, etc.
My Only repair was to replace the Alternator at 345,000 miles.

I will destroy this truck at 80,000 miles a year and thats fine.
I will Piss off the dealer sales people when I show up and fight for the absolute best price.
This Is fun when you pay IN FULL at time of purchase and they cant even sell me an extended
warranty.
I tell em,"What ? You think Im a fool ? extended warranty ? It's a toyota"

Toyota's Rock !

The 4.0 L V-6 has a timing chain too.

The 4.0 L V-6 has a timing chain too.

didn't know that,,,Was told back In 06 the v-6 had a belt,,guess they meant the 3.4L

My next truck may have to be the Ford F-100 v6 due to the Tacoma
pricing going way way too high,,we shall see.

Recent purchase by a friend,
2011 ford ranger extra cab 4 cyl 5 speed automatic a/c and towing package, Mag wheels,$21,000 plus tax tag and title.

Best deal he could make on the Tacoma was $24,000 plus TTT
and only a 4 speed automatic no towing package w steel wheels.

My 2006 Tacoma was $19,000 plus TTT when new
4cyl 4 speed auto extra cab w A/C

Toyota Tacoma's V-6 or 4 bangers are not very fuel efficiant.
Through no fault of the vehicles.
The areo dynamics of a truck Is terrible and you cant change that.
The 2.7 Ltr 4 cyl Is a rather Large engine and the Tacoma Is a up sized small Pickup.
The 2.3 Ltr Ford ranger Is giving 24 avg mpgs, smaller lighter truck.
the Toyota 2.7 is at 21 mpgs.

According to the specs on the toyota.ca website...

The 2.7 2TR-FE *on a 4x4* is 26.65 mpg US. And yes, I have measured fuel consumption and verify that this is correct. In fact, I've had tanks better than that.

30.81 mpg US in the 4x2. I haven't measured it to confirm though, since I don't have one.

For a truck, its extremely efficient.

didn't know that,,,Was told back In 06 the v-6 had a belt,,guess they meant the 3.4L

My next truck may have to be the Ford F-100 v6 due to the Tacoma
pricing going way way too high,,we shall see.

Recent purchase by a friend,
2011 ford ranger extra cab 4 cyl 5 speed automatic a/c and towing package, Mag wheels,$21,000 plus tax tag and title.

Best deal he could make on the Tacoma was $24,000 plus TTT
and only a 4 speed automatic no towing package w steel wheels.

My 2006 Tacoma was $19,000 plus TTT when new
4cyl 4 speed auto extra cab w A/C

The reason is that its a FORD. You practically have to pay people to take them away. EASILY worth the extra $3000.

Towing package also doesn't mean much when you have a towing capacity of 1300 pounds (3000 for the V6).... HUH WTF??? On top of that... they don't actually HAVE a towing package. Dealer may have just been making stuff up. Note that ALL Tacomas are equipped to haul MINIMUM 3500 pounds from factory, more than ANY ranger, no matter how it is equipped.