New guy here & a question

[Tim]

First some history,
When I was a kid (I'm 31 now) my dad had a pretty righteous 74 FJ40.... Dad why did you ever sell that thing?!!! We camped and trailed in that rig all over the Sierras and So-Cal and Nevada deserts, starting my love of camping and outdoors and luckily so does my bride. In a fit of stupidity I bought a '72 Blazer K5 and wheeled it a bit on some Bay Area OHV areas. I sold it because of maintenance and reliability issues. Now i have the means and desire to get a new or newer truck, leaning toward Toyota or Nissan because of reliability and friends' experience. A new job starting next week is cutting my commute from 70 miles per day down to about 6... So mileage isnt as critical as it has been. i would prefer to buy new and know that i am the only one who ever did anything to it, but i was at the Toy dealer last nite and they had a '05 Access Cab Taco, manual tranny, TRD off road with only 2k miles! for about 4k less than a brand new similar equipped rig if i could find one this late in the model year. When i asked if it was a roll back or what, they wouldnt give me a strait answer excep that he thought a manager had been driving it around. Wouldnt a dealer demo still be considered new ? Isnt a used car one that has been previously registered. So they will offer the Toy certified used with 7 years &100k miles. normally thats not that big a deal with other used they had on the lot with 50-70k miles but this thing is almost brand *** new. Is this too good to be true? Should i jump on it ? Or should i get a Nissan frontier NISMO, more power & torque. 3k less than the Toy. Anyway, i am hoping to get a truck soon and get back into the multi day camping trips of my youth. Not really into rock crawling or extreme 4x4 but mountain & desert trails that require 4wd and are off the pavement.

Great website here, thansk for listening to me
Tim

[The BN Guy]

I hate to say it but I'd lean towards the Taco probably. WHAT?!? Yep. While I do like the new Fronty and it's power, the stance sucks. My wife's Escape has more ground clearance! But it does have that rear locker.

Calmini already has some serious lift kits for the new Fronty but I think the Stock Taco can beat it hand's down.

If you choose the Fronty (or even an Xterra for that matter) I'll give any helpful advice possible.

Also where are you located?

Oh and welcome to the group! :wavey:

[erin]

I would go with the Tacoma just because of aftermarket support as well as there seem to be many more shops around intimate with Toyotas and their products.

Just my 2 cents, both seem to be very capable vehicles.

[Tim]

thanks for the replies so far.
I'm in the San Francisco Bay Area.. Local wheeling areas include hollister hills and clear creek and a friends private property (400 acres!) as well as national forest roads 2 hours east of me

I am leaning towards the Taco though i am also torn about the new FJ Cruiser coming out next year. seems to built on the same chassis as the 4 Runner so mods should be readily available.

[flyingwil]

Hmmm. I would actually agree with all the above, but my recomendation is to find an 04 TACOMA. The '05 for what ever reason is lowered a bit and is also a bit wider and longer, pushing the envelope to a midsize rather than a compact truck. Most '05 owners love their truck, so depending on your needs and wants pick the one that works for you.

Wil

[datrupr]

tim, I would love to help you out on this tough choice, but I am a die hard Isuzu fan. I would recommend the Taco though. If you are concerned about the story behind the great deal on that particular Taco, go back up to the lot and get the VIN and carfax it. Though it may be too soon for that. Still, go for the Taco.

[Scott Brady]

Welcome :) :wavey:

In stock form, the Toyota and Nissan are a wash. Buying new, you will save a little on the Nissan, but you will do better on resale with the Toyota.

I like the fact that the NISMO will have traction control plus the diff lock.

When it comes time to modify, the Nissan will be a bit more of a challenge due to availability, but that is slowly changing. Nissans (especially the Xterra) are very popular on the trail now.

If you are going to do a lot of modifications, I would go with the Taco. If not, the Nissan would make for a better value IMO

[Jonathan Hanson]

I'd go Tacoma as well. I believe Toyota still has the edge over Nissan in long-term reliability.

You should be able to bully the dealer into disclosing the history of the truck--annoying that they apparently think you don't have the right to ask. If it was a repo, I might be hesitant, wondering if someone abused it before losing it. Otherwise it sounds like a good deal.

[bluerunner]

Welcome aboard! :wavey:

[lionsbreath]

I am a Jeep salesman but, I drive a 03 tacoand prefer 00-03 tacos the I looked for my 03 for a while and compared it the new bodied 05 and I took the 03 hands down the only jeep I would say to look at is the wrangler unlimited. the taco has the better ground clearance hands down stock.

By the way after getting tired off the jeepers laughing at my stock taco at the head of the tai and crying at the end of the rail that I went every where they did with out all the mods the have I placed a TRAIL RATED 4x4 badge on my taco. :sport_box :clapsmile :shakin: :clapsmile