V-6 First Gen Tundra, gutless??? (1 Viewer)

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MoCoNative

MoCoNative

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Curious if anyone had, has or drove the early Tundras with the V-6 in them. I'm looking around at vehicles, and nothing is really jumping out at me. Would love an 80, but mileage is pretty bad in them. So got to thinking a pickup may be better for me anyways. I always liked the T-100's, and I really prefer a manual, another strike against an 80. But T-100's are pretty hard to find, in fair shape, etc... and in a manual. But then I got to thinking about the v-6 tundras with manual. I know even rarer, but how do they do.

Is the added weight on the Tundra chassis noticeable. Are they totally gutless??? I really don't know, and have never driven even the T-100 so I don't know if I would even like it, but from what I understand the v-8 was a gas hog, and only comes in a auto anyways. One big benefit over the T-100 though is the third doors, much easier access to the rear seat.

All I need it for is a DD, some mild work, towing a small trailer and a pop-up camper. I'm hoping mileage would be better too than an 80, and my 60 that I'm driving now, 14.5 MPG usually.

Thanks in advance for any insight.
 
have you looked at tacomas in a v6 thay are a good hauling truck and a lot easier to find in what you are looking for. i esed to have a 02 toca hauled a boat and camper just fine.and mpg was better than both the trucks you mentioned.
 
I may have to go that route. I was really looking at the T-100 and Tundra for the fullsize bed and larger back seat. Just had a baby and will need a rig that can haul kids with the camper for camping. Also looking at a house building project in the next few years. Just got done with a building project and the 60 didn't exactly cut it for hauling alot of material easily.
 
Find a double cab Tacoma. I have one and it fits our 2 kids fine (5 & 7 with seats) - the '05 & newer are a little larger too! Plus, they have a bigger engine.

If you're not a contractor, get a trailer for materials since the bed is short at about 5'-1", tailgate up.

I use my Taco for DD and sometimes hauling the trailer if i need a lot of supplies (it will pull a ton of wood pellets pretty easily - the trailer doesn't like it though!)
 
What is your budget? Are the newer Tacoma's (with the 4.0 and 6-speed) out of the question for you?

I've seen T-100's pop up every now and then. Since you've already got a couple of vehicles to drive around in, I would suggest waiting for a T-100 5-sp to pop up. Double Cab Taco's are nice, but the 5 ft bed kills it for a work truck. Plus, the T-100's bed is wider, which will help.
 
bowyer2002 said:
Find a double cab Tacoma. I have one and it fits our 2 kids fine (5 & 7 with seats) - the '05 & newer are a little larger too! Plus, they have a bigger engine.

If you're not a contractor, get a trailer for materials since the bed is short at about 5'-1", tailgate up.

I use my Taco for DD and sometimes hauling the trailer if i need a lot of supplies (it will pull a ton of wood pellets pretty easily - the trailer doesn't like it though!)
Click to expand...
x2, MoCo...
Get a 2005+ DC Tacoma. They are almost the same size as both the T-100 and early model Tundras. Any Tacoma will get way better fuel mileage. I've owned the T-100 and the XCAB Tundra, both V8 4WD's. They were great trucks each in their own rights. The Tundra was a much better tow rig. Don't know about the V-6 models, but both of the V8's "were" gas hogs (around 12-14 mpg each). The lack of (4) "real" doors on each makes the Tacoma DC a better choice now that you have a kid (ask me how i know...) The rear half-doors on my 2000 Tundra became quite a hassle when my daughter came into the picture.
I do all the same stuff with my '08 Tacoma DC 4WD. It's my DD, tow rig, camp rig, has several mods incl a RTT,awning etc.. It has plenty of power and gets 19-21 mpg on a regular basis. I have the SB model w/rear locker. You might consider the LB model for your hauling needs if you decide to go with a Taco. Good luck!
 
thats what i had was a 02 dc taco pulled a camper and hauled kids just fine with it. gas milage was pretty good also.
 
I have a 2003 Tundra Access Cab, V6, 5 speed, 4x4. 22mpg mixed driving, mostly highway. Tons of cab room compared to a Tacoma. Nice wide bed, can lay 4 foot material flat, not propped up on the well wells as in a Tacoma. I haven't noticed any lack of power when hauling trailers or a full load in the bed. I have only seen one other like mine, so i would say that they are pretty hard to find. (mine was a special order from the factory) Happy hunting.
 
Are you calling me whiney or pointing out my good sense in looking for a V-6 in that thread Hilux ;) I've been driving Cruisers for 10 years now, but if I'm going to move up, I want a good functional truck.

I started this thread to get feedback on what others felt about the V-6 in the heavier Tundra platform. Seems they are pretty hard to find for sale, at least in my region.

However, a nice looking T100 has come up, that I hopefully can look at this weekend, if it doesn't sell before I can get there. We'll see what happens with it, looks pretty good. There are also some v8 Tundras on the car lots that I may look at, maybe I will like the auto, but I doubt it.
 
I have a 2002 regular cab v6 with an auto... It will not do a burn out, but tows my 22' boat with no problem. I think the v6 does a good job pushing around the tundra as a DD.

how much did you want to pay for one?
 
I'm pretty cheap, looking to spend less than 10,000 maybe 12-15,000 if it is a really nice one. Can't really afford much more, and if the vehicle is really high, I would be better off doing 0% on a new one, rather than standard used car loan interest.

Personal preference is a Gen 1 Tundra with the older grill design, the newer design is just flat out ugly I think.
 
I've seen them (2002) around here from $7000 to $10000 for a newer one. I attempted to trade mine in over Christmas... Toyota offered me $4500 for my 2002.:rolleyes:
 
NxNWLAHAR said:
I've owned the T-100 and the XCAB Tundra, both V8 4WD's. They were great trucks each in their own rights. The Tundra was a much better tow rig. Don't know about the V-6 models, but both of the V8's "were" gas hogs (around 12-14 mpg each).
Click to expand...
The T100 was never offered with a V8. The only engine options in the T100 was the 2.7ltr 4banger, the 3.sl0 and the 3.4ltr V6. Perhaps someone had done an engine swap on yours?

The V6 in the first Tundras was the same 3.4ltr as in the T100, 4Runners and Tacomas from the late 90's. It's a decent towing motor but not exceptional. So the 4.7 V8 in the Tundra probably was better for towing than the 3.4ltr. ;)

Manual T100's were very common. Finding low mileage units (under 100K) is getting tougher and they are bringing a premium price. Recently on Ebay, a 60K mile '96 T100 went for $14K. First gen Tundras are falling within that price range now but with higher miles. I see T100's listed fairly often on Denver's Craigslist.

The lack of access doors on the T100 is a huge drawback, especially with kids & car seats. However a sheet of plywood will fit flush in the 6.5 foot bed. It was actually designed for it as there are built in indentations for leveling a stack of sheet rock and plywood. The first gen Tundras bed is similar if not identical in measurements as the T100's. It will carry supplies just fine as well.

FWIW, when towing a 2 place snowmobile trailer (maybe 1500lbs) with the 3.4ltr over high mountian passes, I still get 18+mpg. That's with an auto tranny and a supercharger. I would think a manual Tundra with the 3.4ltr V6 would get similar miles per gallon. Good luck finding one though they are an odd duck. I searched for over a year before going with the T100.

:beer:
 
We owned a 2wd tundra with the 3.4L I think it was like 2002. We added a trd supercharger, headers, exhaust, intake, computer chip, and locked up the rear end. It was eventually going to be score truck of some kind. Anyway it would eat up fast sedans and almost all v-8 trucks. It could usually get 18 mpg on the highway but you had to run premium all the time because of the supercharger. If you could find a decent t-100 you could spend the $1500 to put in the supercharger it adds almost 40 percent hp from stock.
 
where did you get a s/c for $1500?.. i looked into it but it was up around $3000 with all the extra stuff needed.
 
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