2012 V6 250,000 miles; Keep it or move on?

I am deeply considering selling/trading my truck for a 2021 TRD OR DCSB.

I am considering relieving my truck because small repair items have started to pop up within the past year. I had to change out the LCAs, bearings, alternator, water pump, and a rotted transmission cooler line within 2021-2023. I may have to change out the idler pulleys or check the serp belt to address some squeaking I am starting to hear from the engine bay. It is simply beginning to feel like this truck is starting to show it's age, however, I just don't know if this is just normal wear and tear.

This truck has been through a lot in the past 10 years. It went from my work truck to an all out adventure rig. It's very difficult to think of letting this go but I am afraid it will one day crumble and leave me stranded in the desert or worse - emptying out my wallet.

Anyone on here can shed advice? Am I reading into these smoke signals too pessimistically? This is my dream truck and it's difficult for me to think a new 2021 would be any less of a money pit than just keeping up with these repairs.

 

Can you state exactly what you think will fail? Seems like it has done great...

 

im replacimg my frame at almost 300k

these can go 600k

 

What you are doing is normal maintenance from normal wear and tear. Coming from someone who puts at least 15k a years on vehicle that currently has 264k miles, i understand where your coming from but IMHO these are things that need to be done to keep an otherwise healthy vehicle on the road.

My advice is to do that Maint. and keep the truck. Parts are cheaper than a truck payment and at the end of the day you have records and history.

Dont give up on it.

 

Just a few wear items. If it were me, I'd keep it.

 

There in lies my main concern - I have no idea. Seems like these last repairs were essentially just pieces breaking down but I don't want one of these pieces being something catastrophic such as a head gasket or transmission that would send me into a $5000+ repair.

Thanks guys. Messages like these bring great solace. Lately, it feels like I am swimming upstream but i guess that's why I have a snorkel lol

 

3rd gen taco is a full on flop compared to the 2nd gen. Keep yours running and then if you want to trade up wait a few more years for them to figure the bugs out of the 4th gen.

 

I'd keep it, you have a nice truck with no payments. Yes it's got allot of miles but it sounds like you're hitting all the typical wear items.

 

I understand.

 

I’d keep it a couple more years then trade it on a 4th gen

 

Standard wearable parts. Bearing, rubber etc. id say keep and change these parts before they become a problem. They are all easy to replace. Just be sure to use OEM parts and you’ll get another 250k. These parts are cheaper than half a car payment

 

Keep it. The power train is better than a 2021. I'd wait a few more years and get a 4th gen once all its bugs are worked out.

 

Nice truck! I'm not mechanically inclined nor do I have the space to do repairs. Just light maintenance. I had a brand new 1992 extra-cab 4X4 v6 5spd I owned for 14 years. It was reliable despite 2 head gaskets (covered in and out of warranty) but I had to pay for that reliability in terms of a shop keeping it in top shape. If I was capable and had the space I'd keep your truck and do the repairs myself. If you are reliant on a shop for all those repairs it may be worth while to upgrade. However, be sure to thoroughly test drive a 3rd gen. 3 years into owning my 2020 I'm very happy so far. YMMV.

 

Hey, I understand your questions but a few thousand dollars for repairs (maybe) is much cheaper than spending over $30k for a 3rd gen. I think buying a newer truck is gonna empty out the wallet much more. I hope you understand my logic. But if you want a 3rd gen, that's all up to you. I'm just stating my opinion and how I would act in this situation. The only serious thing that goes bad on the 2nd gens is the frame. If it's good then just keep sending it. I have a 2014 and I'm planning to drive it into the ground.

 

$5,000 transmission repair is only 6 months of new truck payments. And then it is free for another 250,000 miles. I would keep the truck.
Or, at least, wait a year or two, for interest rates to come down before you replace it.

 

Yeah this one is a big issue for me now that I moved to a city. I can perform regular maintenance but when it came to the LCA replacement and transmission cooler line, I did not have the space to do so. It's what is sort of sparking a lot of my concerns especially with the serp belt making noise, carrier bearing is a little questionable, and the u-joint to the steering column is looking sketchy.

But as others have mentioned in this thread, the repair payments aren't nearly as bad as a monthly payment which is a really good perspective to maintain. I think another thing to consider is that I will ultimately have to make repairs anyways now that I am offroading waaaaayyy more. I don't want to imagine a monthly payment AND a repair bill in a single credit card bill statement. Shits been difficult to process. But I guess if I'm just gonna stay whining about all of this, might as well sell the truck, get an old Corrolla, and live an uneventful life.

Thanks guys. This was thread super helpful. I will run this thing another good batch of miles and keep an eye on the 4th gen (or the new Land Cruiser).

 

Good call! I'd vote to keep it too. I'd wait until the 4th gen is out for a year or so before switching too. So they can work out any kinks.

 

TO ME, if you can sell now and wait to buy, it's the way to go. If you have to sell and buy now, it's still a bad time to buy because of still inflated pricing in both new and used.

 

Have you been changing the oils under severe service schedule? Like ATF every 60K, assuming it’s an auto; synthetic gear oil in diffs; coolant replacement every 50K after 100K; syn motor oil every 4-5K; PS and brake fluid flushes, at least every 100K; replace u-joints by 150K; etc… ? If yes, keep it. If not, I would be concerned of excessive wear/tear vs a Taco better taken care of.

 

Sell it and get a Sprinter van. You'll appreciate the extra space and those have tons of overland/vanlife aftermarket so you won't miss the Tacoma.