The 2003 Toyota Tacoma Pre-Runner Our Newest Toy!

For as long as I have known my husband, and that's 15 years, he has been a loyal and faithful Toyota driver. He has had 3 cars in the time that I have known them, they were all Toyota Celica's. He has a definite love for the Celica, no matter what year it is.

His latest Celica, a 1990, began giving us problems about a year ago. With well over 100,000 miles on it, it was too be expected. It had been a very reliable car and we knew that when it was time to put it out to pasture it would be replaced with another Toyota. A few months ago my husband decided it would be replaced with a Toyota Tacoma.

We researched Toyota Tacoma's for several months before finally making our purchase. We also looked at Nissan's and Fords but we knew that we couldn't go wrong with a Toyota. My Dad had a Toyota pick-up with over 200,000 miles on it and it was a worthy investment.

Choosing the Right Truck
Toyota has made a lot of changes to the Tacoma over the years, we had quite a decision to make once we got to the car lot. There was the 4 Wheel Drive Tacoma, the 4 door with a double cab Tacoma (perfect for a family), the Tacoma with a regular cab and our choice the 2 Wheel Drive Tacoma PreRunner which does come with the Xtracab. We don't make a lot of trips to the snow or off road, so the PreRunner was the most logical and economical choice for us.

You have a good selection of color choices with the Toyota. Some of the color choices are Black Sand Pearl, Imperial Jade Mica, Impulse Red, Lunar Mist Metallic, Mystic Gold Metallic, Radiant Red, and Super White. All those fancy names, we chose the Imperial Jade Mica....or as I would call it Forest Green :) The interior color choices are charcoal or oak. We chose Oak.

The Specs
Or as I like to say---the part I really could care less about. Hey, what can I say, I'm a girl....I really have no use for the engine specifications and all that under the hood stuff. But the rest of you might, so here goes----
ה.7L 4-CUL DOHC EFI Engine
•Independent Front Suspension
•Rear Leaf Spring Suspension
•Front Stabilizer Bar
•Power Assist Rack and Pin Steering
•Power Assist Vented Front Disc Brakes with RR Drums
•P225/75R15 Radial Tires (5 of them)
㩃" Steel Wheels
•Heavy Duty Battery
ז Wheel Anti-Lock Brakes
•Driver and passenger side airbags with passenger side cut off switch
•Front Seat Belt PreTensioners & Force Limiters
•CRS Top Tether Anchor Bracket
•ISO Fix CRS Lower Anchor Bracket
•Side Door Impact Beams
•Double Wall Cargo Bed With Hooks
•Black FR & RR bumpers
•Front and rear mudguards
•Front tow hook
•Multi-reflec halogen headlamps
•Dual black remote O/S mirrors
•Jeweled tail lamps
㩰/40 Split Cloth Bench Seat
•Adjustable headrests
•Deluxe ETR Cassette/CD with 6 speakers
•Sculpted DR Trim w/cloth insert
•Dual armrests/door pockets
•Mist Cycle windshield wipers
•Dual Sunvisors/cupholder
•Day/Night rearview mirror
•Coolant Temperature Gauge
ה Auxiliary Power Outlets
•Full Tank of gas
and yes I copied this directly from the sticker off our truck :)

The extras that we got in our truck were:
50 State Emissions
Bucket Seats
Wheel and Tire Upgrade
Sliding Rear window with Privacy glass
SR5 Package: chrome bumper and grill surround, A/C, AM/FM Cassette/CD with 6 speakers, tilt wheel, fabric sunvisor with mirror and entension, tach. twin trip meter, digital clock and the SR5 badging.
Carpet Floor mats (4 pc set)
Tailgate lock

What's to Love?
Well, it is a Toyota so you know you the Toyota reputation of lasting quality behind you. Knowing that this is going to be a truck we can rely on is truly the selling point.

We love the look. Some 2WD trucks look like 2WD trucks. This has the 4WD look but is a more economical truck. It has a stylish body and a comfortable interior.

4 Cup Holders! I have to tell you, it doesn't seem all that great on paper, but everyone comments on how cool it is to have 4 cup holders up front. It's a little bulky up there, but it ensures that everyone's cup is up where mom and dad can control it.

Safety is important. My husband commutes almost an hour to work daily. He sees many accidents on the way to work and that was one of the reasons why he wanted a truck, something a little safer. It's also really nice being up a little higher, especially at night when other peoples lights aren't shining in your face.

Of course there are the usual benefits that you get with owning a truck that we love. We can now haul our own Christmas tree home, pick up sod, haul lumber, plants, and big items home without having to borrow someone else's vehicle. I love that we can put a tree or plants from the nursery in the pickup without worrying about the trunk of my car.

Our Toyota Tacoma PreRunner came with a BullHide spray in bed liner. We got this to go over the rails so we don't have to worry about things scratching the rails or the bed of the truck. I highly recommend this. This was a $600 dealer installed bedliner that we had them throw in as part of the deal.

Passenger airbag cut-off switch. As we all have learned over the last few years, children under the age of 12 should not ride in the front seat, especially if there is an airbag. This truck has a passenger airbag, but it has a cut off switch. The switch is on the dashboard and you just insert and turn the key and it turns the airbag off. We have used this feature, but both agree children should be in the back.

What's Not to Love?
I can't even believe I am going to admit there are a few flaws in this truck. I have owned a 2000 Toyota Camry for nearly 3 years and it is the most perfect car ever. But, I must admit, there are a couple minor inconveniences that I don't like in the truck.

The first is the location of the clock. When I first started driving the truck I figured I couldn't see the clock because I am short. However, my husband began complaining of the clock location also. The clock is located in the center of the dash, to the right side of the steering wheel. In order to read the clock you actually have to cock your head to the right side a little to get a view. Kind of a pain, I'd rather just avert my eyes for a second.

The Sound System could use a little work. It's odd because this is the same sound system that is in my Camry, but you sure wouldn't know it. It could just be speaker location but the sound quality is just not that great. The stereo is also not in a convenient location for the driver. Again, this was a complaint I had after driving my car, but then hubby complained about it also. I think that switching the AC/Heat and the Stereo would solve that problem.

Final Thoughts
I love this truck, my husband loves this truck, and our kids love this truck. I cannot stress enough the high, lasting quality that you get when you purchase a Toyota. We have had several, all with over 100,000 miles and problems that we have experienced have been minor. When the cars started having problems they were getting older and it was to be expected.

The sticker price on this truck was $20,032. It doesn't include any of the fancy power doors, windows or locks. Those were about $2000 extra, but it fits us just perfectly. We paid a little under $18,000 and got the bedliner and a free tank of gas in my car to boot---hey I needed to get something out of the deal, after all I was at that dealership a long time :)

The Tacoma gets 19 City MPG and 21 Highway MPG in gas and comes with a Toyota Warranty. The limited warranty provides 36 months/36,000 mile comprehensive coverage. 5 year/60,000 mile powertrain coverage, plus 5 year body panel corrosion perforation warranty.

We know that this is a truck that looks nice, drives well, drives comfortably and is going to last us for years. You can't go wrong with a Toyota. So, if you are in the market for a new 2 WD pick-up, look no further, Toyota is the name!