In the past, at work I've driven low end models of T100, F150, Ranger, and Tacoma, all are between 1996-2004. Have not touched trucks since. I just remember the Fords had multiple issues, and the v4 Tacoma felt like a 20 second 1-60.

I'm looking at midsize. It will be primarily a daily driver with some hauling, but not towing. Bigger than a midsize truck would be a damper on MPG and more difficult to park in my suburb-city area for not needing the extra beefiness of a full size truck.

I was told to stay away from ecoboost engines because there's tons of issues with them. So I haven't looked at Ford at all, plus I just remember the issues from a decade ago and all the memes about them breaking down.

I was looking at a newer model '24-'25 Tacoma, Canyon or Colorado. I really like the interior of the Tacoma, but I think the Canyon has the meanest/sexiest body and grill. I was always told to stay away from American vehicles though because they weren't very reliable. This was 10+ years ago, though, so have things changed? Would I be in for a lot more maintenance and headache with replacing parts in the future over sticking to a Japanese vehicle? Recently, I also just started hearing there were transmission issues on the Toyotas. It just seems like every truck has some kind of issue, and it's really confusing and overwhelming.

ALSO, the Tacoma shows 278hp vs Canyon & Colorado at 310. Does the difference not matter for a midsize truck? Will it not matter if I'm not towing?

At this point I'm leaning towards a Tacoma off-road or Canyon Denali but need some knowledgable truck dudes and dudettes experience and opinions.

 

Honestly, I think you should give Ford another look. The new Rangers are way different from the ones they had 10 or 15 years ago. Ford’s really stepped up their game.

The Ranger’s a great midsize truck — plenty of power for towing and everyday stuff. Plus, it’s small enough to fit in tight spots and gets good gas mileage. Since you’re not towing a lot, that 2.3L engine will do just fine.

I know the Ecoboost engines had some issues before, but Ford’s fixed a lot of that. Lots of folks drive them now with no problems.

Also, Ford parts are easy to find and usually cheaper than Toyota or GMC stuff. When something breaks, it’s easier and cheaper to fix.