Poor quality?

[Gonefishin]

I have read a lot of posts lately that are giving me the idea that many of you guys are not happy with your trucks. I have read about dash rattles and dash seperation, drivetrain vibations, ticking engines, tires that can't be balanced,, weak sheet metal, doors that rattle, etc, etc. It sounds like most of the complaints are not being dealt with by Toyota. Does Toyota care about it customers? Toyota has had a long standing tradition for reliability and quality, but after reading about some of the problems here on TN I feel like that tradition is being lost. I joined TN because I was considering buying a Taco, but some of these complaints have made me re-think that decision. Is Toyota quality that bad, or are a lot of these complaints isolated prblems?

[novataco]

Sounds like you are going fishin...

Who you working for...the Ridgeline Project?

Well, jokes aside...I have not had one problem with my Tacoma in 11,000 miles. No tick, no paint chip, no suspension creak, nothing. I have hauled tons of boxes for my brother in his move recently (including heavy boxes with books, CDs and records, and I haven't even seen the bed sag.

I think so far the build quality is excellent for the most part. The only thing I think could be improved is the bed system. Sliding cleats, no way to mount racks, etc., a supposedly weak tailgate...a little more ruggedness and functionality in that department would be welcome.

[coolcatmars]

And loving it, havent had a problem with it. Traded in my 04' F150 Lariat leather all the bells and whistles for an 05' Tacoma and have never looked back. If you go to any forum of any kind of make Nissan, Honda, Toyota etc etc..they are all going to have issues thats why this forums are here for and for other usefull information as well. Somebody posts that the truck vibrates at 20mph. The next morning you are at 20mph tyring to see feel the vibration on your truck as well and bamm now its in your head that you have a vibration as well. I do my oil changes every 3,000 miles put gas in it and just drive it.

[toku58]

I would strongly recomend that you DON"T buy a Taco! There are too many out there as it is! How about a Dakota!!
Tacoma's are JUNK! Rattle, shudder, tick, tap, wheels can't possibly get balanced correctly etc.........
I think you would be better off with a well built Oldsmobile. LOL!!!!

[Mike5150]

Keep in mind that with some complaints a lot of people are really anal about quality.

[humanoid]

You tend to hear more about the bad than the good, just like with like a lot of things in general. Take your local news for example. What usually is the lead story? Some homicide in a city next to yours. You'll never hear a lead story about the guy who donated his kidney to some kid who was dying, it'll ALWAYS get buried towards the end of the show after sports and the weather. It's sad, but true, people tend to want to hear about the bad rather than the good and just take the good for granted.

[novataco]

^ Well you hear about the guy who gave his kidney, but point well taken. Bad news gets the ink. Bush Administration and Rumsfeld were constantly trying to get the press to point out that stuff was OK in most of the country. I remember a radio reporter in the press room bitching saying "What are we supposed to say, bomb attacks went off across Baghdad today but the rest of the country is at peace and nothing really happened?!?"

Bush even said recently in his speeches that something like 80% of the country is fine, its the 20% we have to work on. Well, for historical ancdote, 80% of Civil War battles were fought in Virginia. Does that mean that the Civil War was a minor incident?

Not devolving this into a political discussion, but it is true...that the bad stuff gets the most ink...

[01rk]

Coolcat, great comment. I was also looking to trade my 04 taco for 07 and did that 2 weeks ago. Wow, what a differance, like day and night, the ride, accelaration, power and the list goes on and on. Lots of people here will buy a new vehicle and seems like next day are wheeling it through the mud or rock climbing and expect they will never break . On the other board I read a guy was complaining that rear of the truck sags when he carries a heavy load, he also stated load was 3000 pounds, well, max load for taco is around 1350 I believe, so thats 2.5 times reccomended capacity, next week he'll be complaining about he's springs being broken and so on. I don't care what you buy, it is a machine and it will break. I love the TN site and after I bought my 07, I've spent some time reading the board, and yes, it does get to your head all those negative feedbacks, comments posted here , you tend to listen/check for the same on your new ride and keep on thinging if you made right desicion buying it. Bottom line is, new taco is great, rides sooooo much better than 04, like cool said, do your oil changes every 3k miles and fill it with gas and enjoy it, I know I am.

[Nafterclifen]

You can find more problems on the internet with any vehicle or product that you probably ever knew existed. Why shouldn't you believe them all? Because not all people are built equal, some are pickier are others and some are more dilusional than others. Bottom line - it is human nature to immediately complain when something isn't right. Don't believe everything you hear or see.

[Rodge]

11,000 miles and the only thing that really bothers me is the damn TPMS light that blinks at me. I guess I'm either going to disable the damn thing, or put a piece of electric tape over the light. I have aftermarket wheels where the sensors don't fit so that's why it's on. The only other thing is maybe the annoying tick from the engine, but I haven't really let it bother me. I'm constantly getting looks from everyone as I drive around, and have had quite a few ladies checking me out.

Can't complain here!

[Chipper57]

I also think alot of the problems are in the 05 tacos, seems most stuff was fixed in the 06 and later models.

[msibille]

My wife and I have owned 11 new vehicles since we've been married.
The 2005 Taco is one of the top 3 in terms of value (features/price) and quality/reliability thus far. I had a 2004 Taco with paint issues. She's had several Honda with major issues, each had a replacement tranny before we got rid of it, a couple within 12k miles. My 1980 Olds was mediocre at best, and my FXXX Ranger (I don't like typing 4 letter F words on forums) was the worst pc of fecal matter disguised as a motor vehicle that I've ever run across.

It does appear that Toyota slipped a little from their reputation -to the point that they've noticed it (you can find articles about steps being taken). However, the design features overall make for one of the best vehicles I've owned.

That having been said, I wouldn't discount all the problems that people have reported -most are likely well founded and not the result of someone being too particular, but the two big things are a) how widespread are the prblms? and b) what does Toyota do about them?

Don't forget that some of the problems have been identified as either created by, or made worse by, a few incompetent dealer svc depts. Not an excuse, since the mfr is responsible for policing that, but something to keep in mind.

It's a good idea to stroll thru all the forums you can on the models/brands you're looking at.
Get a list of the reported prblms -look for them when you test drive, and ask to spk to the svc dept about the ones that you're really concerned about. Regardless of what vehicle you buy.

[leftoverture]

I have 8500 on my Taco. No mechanical problems, still runs great. Quality issues:

1. The factory oil filter was (practically) welded on, never had a problem getting the factory filter off any other behicle I've owned. A minor annoyance, really, but still. . .

2. Steering wheel does not telescope far enough. Needs to come out at least 2 more inches. If you have short arms relative to your legs, you will never get just the right driving position. This is a major annoyance. . .and could cause me to get rid of the thing.

3. I have the bench seat, the driver's side seat belt receptacle was placed too far towards the driver, so I was literally sitting on top of it (and I'm a skinny guy). Solved the problem by paying an upholstery shop to move it over (cost about $150.00).

Other than the above, it's a good little truck. But the Chevy Colorado is way more comfortable inside. Guess it just depends on what's important to you.

[msibille]

^ Valid complaints, but I'd suggest that items 2 & 3 are design or design-quality issues, not manufacturing quality.
[Strictly speaking, quality is more a measure of whether the results are consistent and meet the acceptance standards.]

As for the design issues, you have the opportunity to determine if that's acceptable when you test drive. Much like if the color is not what you want, vs. the color changing from fading after a few weeks.

The oil filter thing -I've had that issue with all my wife's Hondas as well as the 2004 and 2005 Tacos. I think that's poor quality assurance, but is of limited effect if there is no damage done. (Still, it's not a good indication of a quality system that's alive and well.)

[LQQKatmy06]

Every new vehicle I have ever bought has had some minor problems or recalls. They just don't make things like they used to. My aunt has a 1960 something Comet she bought new and still drives everyday and looks like it's new.