Bordo78

I am in the market for a new truck. I am looking for slightly used to knock off the immediate depreciation. I've narrowed my search with the following requirements:

1) Short bed pickup
2) 4 wheel drive
3) 4 door
4) Light Duty

I am avoiding Chevy for personal reasons. I don't know much about Dodge.

I've been looking at the F-150 SuperCrew Cab v6 EcoBoost or the Toyota Tacoma Double Cab 4.0L V6. I really like the room that the F-150 has. It also feels like it has less blind spots than the Tacoma (probably has to do with my height vs the size of the cab). The Toyota has a slightly bigger engine with the same gas mileage. It's also a little bit cheaper than the F-150.

Toyota has a good name. Ford is domestic.

I've heard that the Toyota has a chain timing drive? Which means I don't have to worry about having timing problems. I don't know about Ford. I need some help here please.

Also, the build I've been looking at has a 3.31 Non-Limited Slip Axle Ratio. I have no idea what this means. I don't know if this is "recommended" or not. I will use it for an occasional dump run and occasional utility trailer haul. All light duty type stuff.

Looking for reasons not to go with Toyota besides the size of the cab!

Thanks for any advice.

violinguy77

You will get far more bang for your buck with the Ford and most likely a higher resale value. Both vehicles will do what you need them to do. The EcoBoost power wise is far greater than the 4.0l in the Toyota. The 3.31 limited slip rear end is referred to as a highway gear. You will lower cruising RPMS and limited slip allows one wheel to spin faster than the other while turning, this helps the vehicle to maintain traction while turning and accelerating. I would expect your mileage to be on par or better than the Toyota. The ford will far exceed the Toyota, not just on paper, but in real world conditions. Both are excellent vehicles. Both are driven by timing chain. The 3.5 liter motor is engineered to sustain high compression from boost. It has a forged bottom end and some pretty impressive tech.The toyota 4.0 liter is a proven engine in the toyota truck platform. Drive them both, however I feel the Ford will be a more enjoyable ride. This is a ford forum after all

Bordo78

And I expected a biased opinion! I was just needing that extra "boost" to tip me toward the Ford. I'm glad to know that both are chain driven timing. That sort of knowledge helps. I agree that both will be quality vehicles. And that's why the Cab size is really the only thing putting my eye on the Ford. If they had similar cab sizes, I would probably go simply off of price.

Thanks for the response!

jollyroger331

The reason not to buy the Toyota is obvious:
ITS A TOYOTA.

little nail

Consumer reports didn't have anything good to say about the Toyota Tacoma. It was one of 5 vehicles to avoid. The other 4 were tincans on wheels.

tpr676

I had a 2012 Tacoma crew cab had it 18 months time for it to go. Total POS go to Tacoma world search drive line vibration, after a few trips to Toyota I had enough. If you want my opinion get a 150, I did and I should of done it when I got the turd. Love my 13 buy a Toyota and you will regret it. I am a ford man.

Howler

Apples and oranges. Apples and oranges.

Largefarva

I traded in my 2008 Tacoma double cab 4x4 TRD for my 2011 crew cab F-150 4x4 with the ecoboost....and haven't looked back. The ONLY thing I preferred in the Taco was the stereo compared to the stock F-150 stereo, but that's been upgraded so it's a non-factor now.

As far as cab space goes....the F-150 wins hands-down. There is so much more room in the front seats compared to the Taco. But an even bigger difference is the rear part of the cab. Withe the front seats all the way back I can sit in the back seat and still have a good 6" between my knees and the front seat (I'm 6'2"), and when I put the rear seats up it makes a very large area for my two dogs to ride in. They can sprawl out as much as they want and not have to worry about laying on each other if they don't want.

For the money I would definitely go for the F-150, I know I'll never go back to a Tacoma after driving mine.

Joel C

I was in the same boat up until yesterday. I was going to buy a 2014 Tacoma TRD Off Roadbut when I compared it to the f 150 STX for the same money the Taco seemed likea joke. I bought a 2012 Mustang GT backin July of 2011 and it’s never been back to the dealer except for oilchanges. I highly recommend the f 150.

grouseridge

I had a Tacoma 4.0 4x4 crew sport for one month and it only got 17mpg on the highway and it killed my back. Traded it in on a f150. The seats in the f150 suit me well and so does the 17mpg' on rural roads and in town driving. Good luck with the search.