Full size crew (short bed) vs. Tacoma Double cab

sargeek

Adventurer
PS - 2500 silverado's don't suffer from this identity crisis as much as the half tons. Still suffer ground clearance issues, but at least the are trucks at their core.


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I am not sure things can get much worse for GM at this point. Their new truck that they just bet the farm on has been a complete bust. For the first time in decades GM is in last place in sales of the Big Three. Ram has passed GM and GM's sales continue to decline. This is not a case of GM just losing ground at this point. This is a case of, will GM ever be able to recover enough to continue to build trucks. Is this the end of the line for GM. It's getting pretty bad and I think it will only get worse. For those defending GM, you are in the minority. GM has fallen out of favor with american's for a reason or in this case, many reasons. On the other hand Toyota is the world leader in auto sales and is continuing to thrive. GM needs to take notes from Toyota and learn how to build a vehicle that the people want buy.
 

east_tn_81

Adventurer
I am not sure things can get much worse for GM at this point. Their new truck that they just bet the farm on has been a complete bust. For the first time in decades GM is in last place in sales of the Big Three. Ram has passed GM and GM's sales continue to decline. This is not a case of GM just losing ground at this point. This is a case of, will GM ever be able to recover enough to continue to build trucks. Is this the end of the line for GM. It's getting pretty bad and I think it will only get worse. For those defending GM, you are in the minority. GM has fallen out of favor with american's for a reason or in this case, many reasons. On the other hand Toyota is the world leader in auto sales and is continuing to thrive. GM needs to take notes from Toyota and learn how to build a vehicle that the people want buy.

I think there is still room to defend GM. Toyota may be the world wide leader in auto sales but that's not because of US truck sales. The Silverado does out sell the Tundra and the Tacoma. Now with that said GM does need to act quick to fix its slumping 1500 sales.
 

JHa6av8r

Adventurer
Are we talking about truck sales? Everyone realizes GMC & Chevy are essentially the same don't they? Combined, GMC/Chevy sells twice as many trucks as Ram and more than 85% of Ford truck sales volumes. The bottom line is whatever truck works for you is the best one. Arguing about what truck is the best is like arguing about what supermodel is the hottest.
 

87GMCJimmy

Adventurer
Having owned a 2007 Chevy Silverado and a 2013 Toyota Tacoma, I've got to say I preferred the Silverado over the Tacoma. Discounting the drivetrain (VERY different setups so, not fair to compare (2500 HD Silverado Classic Duramax/Allison vs V-6 Stick shift 4x4 Tacoma), the Silverado wins by virtue of higher quality interior materials and a better laid out interior, IMHO. I only had the Tacoma a month (3,000 miles) before I traded it in, in that month I could already see wear on the interior surfaces. (you could actually scratch some surfaces merely by trying to clean them with a cloth!) In the 4 years and 107,000 miles I put on my Silverado, the only interior wear was on three buttons of the stereo and a crease on the driver's seat cushion! (the crease was caused by the seat bottom cushion edge being squished a bit as I got in and out of the truck, I don't think I've ever seen a vehicle that didn't get the same crease)

The Tacoma was a VERY fun truck to drive, the V-6 was peppy and the six speed manually was quick shifting and smooth BUT, it felt more like a car to me than a truck. The interior was comfortable and nicely laid out but felt very car like and was not durable materials. Also, some of the finishes of the materials were not aesthetically pleasing IMO. The mixture of textures clashed a bit. Also, the fact that the radio was touch screen (a rather gimmicky one at that) but not Sirius XM compatible (and no Sirius XM compatibility even available) vs my Silverado had a simpler more intuitive button setup and included Sirius XM rather irked me in the Tacoma! The plastic bed, thin frame rails and spindly looking suspension components of the Tacoma were bothersome to me as was the correspondingly low payload rating (apples to oranges to compare a compact pickup to a 2500HD, I know). I am not saying that the Tacoma is a bad vehicle, just that it was not as much a truck as I had expected and it has materials choice issues on the inside.

I ended up trading the Tacoma after one month of ownership and replacing it with a brand new 2012 Ram 2500HD Power Wagon.

As for reliability, in the 107,000 miles I owned my Silverado, I drove it like an idiot (pretty much WOT all the time), towed 6,000-7,000lb loads a lot (and discovered that the Duramax can still spin the rear tires even with a 7,000lb load on the trailer behind it, LOL!), overloaded it a few times (pavers, dirt, sand, etc) and had only these issues in 107,000 miles:
PCM needed reflashed for having too tight of operational parameters (making it throw codes)
EGR solenoid needed to be replaced
One stereo speaker burned out (base model stereo)
What was amazing to me was that I never had to replace pads or rotors in 107,000 miles and they were still perfectly good!!!! (pad and rotor thickness were well within usable spec and were in perfect condition (by perfect condition, I mean no unusual wear, damage, warping, etc))

I cannot comment on offroad capability of the Silverado as I never wheeled it (it was DD/tow pig) nor did I ever wheel the Tacoma. I CAN comment on wheeling a full-size rig in general though, as I wheel my crew cab shortbed Power Wagon usually twice a month! It can be a challenge at times (tight tree lined trails here) but, I go everywhere the Jeep guys go!
 

JCMatthews

Tour Guide
I was watching the most recent episode of the web series Expedition Overland and thought to myself, "I wish I had a Tacoma like that". Then I realized, I have basically the same thing, just slightly larger and not outfitted with unlimited funds. I have an '08 Silverado, great truck so far at almost 70k on the clock. I have the same cap with the flip up side windows, etc, but I have a few things that truck doesn't have, room, HP, and more load capacity. They don't get much better MPG, although depending on driving habits and load.

My question is this, and I'm a Tacoma lover (just too small for my family), if I outfitted my Silverado with the RTT, winch, fridges, etc., is there any real differences that would make you choose one over the other?

Anyone have a Silverado/F-150/Ram outfitted similarity and what is your experience with it?

Thanks.

To respond to the original question. I wanted a first generation DC Tacoma to replace my '97 Jeep Cherokee. (We also had a 2001 expedition, but could not afford two trucks.). I knew that it would become our main camping travel vehicle. I thought about the decision for a long time and knew that I could never expect to enjoy trips forcing my kids to squeeze into the back of the Tacoma. I like the look of the new f150s, but did not like the interior. We drove both Ford and Dodge, never really cared for Chevys, finally settled on a DC '05 Tundra. I love having a full size. My kids are happy, and it offroads pretty well. Check out my sig to see my truck, it is nicely lifted and has nice tires and a shell. It meets our needs, and I am glad that I am not trying to make a little truck work for us.
 
Are we talking about truck sales? Everyone realizes GMC & Chevy are essentially the same don't they? Combined, GMC/Chevy sells twice as many trucks as Ram and more than 85% of Ford truck sales volumes. The bottom line is whatever truck works for you is the best one. Arguing about what truck is the best is like arguing about what supermodel is the hottest.


In case you missed it, Ram is on pace this year to outsell GM and Chevy combined. The 1500's sales are tanking and Ram is having there best year ever.
 

JHa6av8r

Adventurer
In case you missed it, Ram is on pace this year to outsell GM and Chevy combined. The 1500's sales are tanking and Ram is having there best year ever.
And maybe you're not reading the analysis of sales to date for this year. GM/Chevy sales are down but profitability is up. Compared to Ford and RAM, GMC/Chevy's incentives are below average. Right now RAM's early 2014 sales trend is noise. It will take more than 2 months to prove it's real.
 

east_tn_81

Adventurer
And maybe you're not reading the analysis of sales to date for this year. GM/Chevy sales are down but profitability is up. Compared to Ford and RAM, GMC/Chevy's incentives are below average. Right now RAM's early 2014 sales trend is noise. It will take more than 2 months to prove it's real.

Agree. We have a long way to go before Ram can claim the number 2 spot.
 

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