Toyota Tacoma Life Expectancy – How Many Miles Can You Drive a Tacoma?

Toyota Tacoma is one of the best pickup trucks on the market, according to customer reviews and sales stats. The Tacoma was first introduced in 1995 and it has always been popular with American buyers. But after the last facelift in 2020, the vehicle became one of the most popular foreign pickup trucks selling well over 200,000 units a year.

Today, we will speak about the longevity of the Toyota Tacoma. How many miles will this vehicle go? What are the best and the most durable engine to buy? We'll figure out the best mileage for selling your Tacoma and also the best mileage and age for buying a used vehicle. This pickup truck is not a bad vehicle at all and you should know how many miles it can go to compare it with some other trucks on the market.

We'll be speaking about the following:

1. Toyota Tacoma all generations' longevity - how many miles can they go?
2. The new Toyota Tacoma - engines, transmissions, and other parts.
3. The common problems with Toyota Tacoma according to owners' reviews.
4. Comparison to other trucks on the market and their longevity.

Let's get started!

All generations of Tacoma - what's their longevity?

If we are talking about the life expectancy of a pickup truck, we should make a small outline. The average mileage of these cars depends much on which conditions they are used at. Sometimes, they are used as heavy-duty vehicles in a commercial cycle or in government organizations. This will not add durability to these vehicles. But sometimes they are just family cars.

Toyota Tacoma has had three generations. Each one was produced for a long period of time and was a legendary step in the evolution of Toyota pickup trucks. So, it's hard to say the average mileage of these cars because thousands of reviews show a very big set of data for analysis.

Here are our estimated life expectancy figures:

1. The first-gen Tacoma (1995-2004). Legendary engines were very durable, all of them, even the starter 2.4-liter one. But the 3.4-liter V6 is said to be able to go 500,000 miles! Both transmissions are good. The body has problems, but now some of the first-gen Tacomas are already 28 years old. The average longevity is thought to be 350,000 miles. This is a wonderful result.
2. The second-gen Tacoma (2004-2015). It introduced basically the same base engine with slightly bigger displacement, but the top engine was even better - the 4-liter V6. The same simple transmissions and wonderful body protection allowed the Tacoma to actually be very durable. We think that the average life expectancy of the second-generation Tacoma is also around 350,000 miles.
3. The third-generation Tacoma (2015 - now). At the first glance, the vehicle has similar technical options. But if you keep learning more about it, you will see that Toyota offered much more power from the relatively small displacement of the engines. It shortened the longevity to about 280,000 miles, but it's still very good.

The older generations are much more durable and they can actually go for ages. If you keep maintaining your vehicle like it should be maintained, you will not have a lot of problems. Also, the Tacoma trucks don't bother you a lot with minor problems within their lifetime. These vehicles are very simple to repair and they don't get broken much.

Of course, if you buy a high-mileage Tacoma that is about to cross the line of its longevity, you should be extremely careful. These vehicles can be very expensive to run if they keep getting problems and breaking at every corner. But we should say that even the worst engine problems can be repaired with basically no big costs.

What is the new Toyota Tacoma life expectancy?

The new Tacoma is going to run about 280,000 miles with no major problems but with some minor issues. This is a good life expectancy compared to other trucks available on the market. And one more interesting fact - this estimated longevity is true for all versions of the Tacoma available for American buyers.

Americans can buy a new Toyota Tacoma with a base 2.7-liter 4-cylinder engine (2TR-FE) or with a 3.5-liter V6 engine (2GR-FKS). These engines are coupled with the 6-speed automatic transmission and some V6 versions come with a manual transmission. All engines and transmissions are very durable and have a solid margin of durability.

Here are some important things you should remember:

• this vehicle offers naturally aspirated engines that have a simple construction and are easy to repair;
• no special maintenance is needed - just change oil and filters and drive your truck for a lot of years;
• the body is greatly protected from rust, you can avoid rust for 7 years and then you should pay attention to the condition of the body;
• the all-wheel-drive system is optional, most trims come standard with a rear-wheel drive which is quite expected for a truck;
• the quality of the interior materials is very high, no problems have been detected yet, so you may be sure it's durable;
• all minor problems are not very expensive to repair and not hard to locate which is really good.

We have a lot of ideas about why this truck is very popular in America. It's one of the cars with simple construction and no cutting-edge technologies. It's bad for someone who wants a highly technological truck. But most of us just need a vehicle for work and we love that Tacoma will not get broken and cause problems very often.

This vehicle is marvelous in terms of driving fun. Especially if you need to drive on harsh terrain, not only on asphalt roads. It's important to choose an optimal trim for your purpose, but all equipment is actually durable. The choice of engine and transmission will not affect the life expectancy of the truck.

What are the problems with Toyota Tacoma?

Even though the vehicle is quite good, it still has some problems that can affect longevity or just accompany your rides whatever you do. Some of these problems are actually very annoying and hard to deal with. But in most cases, the car is not going to get on your nerves much.

We've found thousands of reviews and we've read a lot of them just to get to know if the Tacoma is actually a good vehicle.

Here are some problems that we've found:

1. A glitchy automatic transmission. No, it's not going to get broken soon, but it can glitch and shift to the wrong gears and slow down your movement sometimes. In the last two generations, the transmissions weren't the most reliable in terms of small problems.
2. Ball joint wear. Well, all cars have this problem, but you can find that your Tacoma needs a ball joint replacement too often. This problem doesn't affect longevity but it affects your budget.
3. Hot light bulbs in optics. Headlights in Toyota Tacoma include a kind of lens that gets too hot and may change the way your headlight looks because of the high temperature. Expect this problem at 100,000 miles or sooner.
4. Sensors and wiring. At 100,000 miles you will start getting problems with sensors. The first candidate for replacement is the mass airflow sensor, but then all sensors that work in your engine will need replacement. The problem is clear - they cost a lot.

We haven't found many other problems with a Toyota Tacoma. Also, we haven't found a lot of recalls that could make us write about the problems and weak links in a Toyota truck. So, we can say that this vehicle is very reliable and only shows minor problems that are relatively easy to cope with or even to put up with.

How is Toyota Tacoma's longevity compared to other trucks?

So, we see that on average, the new Tacoma will last 280,000 miles. What about other vehicles? Let's see:

• Ford F-150 - 250,000 miles.
• Toyota Tundra - 240,000 miles.
• Honda Ridgeline - 220,000 miles.
• Chevrolet Colorado - 300,000 miles.
• GMC Canyon - 250,000 miles.
• Ford Ranger - 250,000 miles.
• RAM 1500 - 260,000 miles.

You can see that a Toyota Tacoma can last longer than the majority of its opponents on the market.

Final words

We know that the Toyota Tacoma is actually one of the best pickup trucks you can find now in America. But let's also think about other options. This vehicle is not the best one in terms of longevity, comfort, design, and many other factors. In all categories, you can find a vehicle that will be more comfortable or cheaper, etc.

But the Tacoma is the truck that offers a wonderful driving experience, great longevity, good price, and also cool equipment mixing these advantages into one big reason to buy this vehicle. It's obviously one of the best trucks. If you want a durable vehicle that will work for you and will not get on your nerves, then a Toyota is not a bad choice at all.