noob searching

[whip]

Hello all. I'm currently looking for a 2wd truck. I drive about 35,000 miles a year and the truck would be used for some commuting, small jobs for the house, and towing a small boat or other toys. I want a four cylinder prefer a 5 speed. I will be buying used about $6,000-$8,000. Are there any problems I need to look out for on the Tacoma? What are the big maintenace issuses that I should check? Do timing belts, bearings or other things like that wear out excessivly fast? Thanks in advance for the input.

[whip]

Any one?

[toto]

I've had a Tacoma for about 6 weeks now, and the impression I've gotten from this forum is that they're very solid vehicles with no major, chronic issues. The fact that there are many members here with good trucks that are more than 10 years old speaks volumes about how well it's designed and made.

You're going to need to go back several years in order to be in that price range, as the Tacoma holds its value really well. When I was looking, I was really surprised that a basic truck (regular cab, 2WD, manual trans) was $8K-$10K to get into the 1998-2000 model year range. That's assuming a normal mileage level proportional to its age. I feel I got really lucky finding the truck I did with a lot of options (SR5, TRD, XtraCab) for a little higher price. I spent more than I planned to, but I also got a lot more truck that I'm really happy with.

[Seagoddess]

I've had my '95, 2wd, 5 spd. Tacoma X-cab since it was 4 miles old (now 107,000 & counting). It outlasted my marriage (with a lot less trouble)!! Seriously, just keep up with the basic maint. items & keep all the filters clean. I changed the belts around 60K & keep the oil changes to every 5k. The only thing that's ever gone bad is a bushing in the shift mech. - it was a cheap fix. I love that truck more than any vehicle I've ever had; I've got a Lexus, too, if that tells you anything

[whip]

Thanks. I knew they were great trucks, and I will be searching for the right deal for a while. I guess the fact that you will pick your Tacoma over a Lexus speaks volumnes!