Opinions wanted on two door extended cab pickups

lonesomeduv

I'm in the market for a pickup. I'm considering Mazda B4000, Ranger, Tacoma, and possibly an F-150 since Ford seems to have some pretty decent incentives on them right now. I don't need the full four door "crew" cab option, but I do want an extended cab. I would rarely be hauling passengers other than maybe a couple of young nephews every once in a blue moon, but I would use it for daily errands such as shopping and commuting.

F-150's come standard with two "half-doors" to allow access to the extended area. Mazda and Ranger have it as an option. Our good friends at Toyota charge the most of all but don't give you the option on a Tacoma.

Unfortunately, despite Toyota's arrogance, the Tacoma is really the truck I want, and I'd be willing to pay for the privilege, if only they had those extra doors.

Does anybody have any opinions one way or the other about the optional back doors on extended cab pickups? Do you have them and never use them? Do you not have them and constantly wish you did? Do you not have them and never really cared either way? Should I just go all out and get the full four door cab?

Any thoughts and opinions would be most appreciative.

vwracer

I own a F250 supercab with the back 1/2 doors. Now that I got them I will not buy another truck without them.

kg11

I have a Sierra 2500 ex-cab.I agree with vwracer.I'll never get another truck without them.
kip

wheeldog

I've heard that the Tacoma is due for a re-design for the 2003 model year. They are supposed to have a little larger V6 (3.7L v. 3.4L). I'm also hoping that they'll offer the 3rd or 4th door configuration on the XtraCab as part of the re-design, so you may want to wait until later this year if that is an option for you.

ricsch

Just read in a magazine, Motor Trend or Truck Trend, that Toyota is going to finally go to an ext. cab with rear access doors. I had a Chevy full size ext. cab w/o a 3rd door, and now have a Silverado ext. cab with rear access doors and it's nice even though I don't haul many passengers, but to just have the ability to gain access to the rear cab area is definately a plus. As for the Ford Ranger, my sister's friend has one,and only a year old, it feels like an old, worn out truck. How about the Toyota Tacoma Double cab?

bamatundra

Why not a Tundra extended cab? They cost almost the same, and the V6 version gets almost the same mileage as a V6 Tacoma.

lonesomeduv

I really didn't want a full size truck. The only reason the F-150 made my list was because Ford is offering pretty good incentives right now, and for the money an F-150 is a much better value than a Tacoma.

I'm going to look into the Tundras. I guess I just like the looks and reputation of the Tacoma and, as I said, I'd be willing to overlook the fact that they're overpriced, don't come standard with ABS brakes (like Ford), and a security sytem (like Ford), and the dealers here tack on useless nonsense like pinstriping and VIN etching for $1500, IF they had a 4-door option on the extended cabs.

I just can't see myself buying a Tacoma extended cab and then cursing it every day for the next 7-10 years because it didn't have the 4th doors.

The Double Cab is more cab than I need and less bed. Plus, I don't really like the looks. For the money, I could get an extended cab F-150, which is more overall truck than I need, but with roughly the same price and gas mileage it makes little sense to buy a Tacoma vs. an F-150 right now.

bamatundra, how do you like your Tundra? I've heard a lot of mixed things about them. When they first came out you practicallly had to pay the dealer to let you look at one but now they seem to have a hard time selling. What's the deal?

obyone

Check out:

http://www.tundrasolutions.com

If you're interested in one of them. More owners there to give you some feedback.

bamatundra

I love my Tundra. I have owned it over two years and it has been flawless. It has exceeded my very high expectations.

As far as sales go - the 2001 sales are up 8% from the previous year. Many automakers would consider this to be amazing growth in sales.

I would suggest that you drive both the Ford and the Tundra before buying. I did and there was no comparison.

jcave1

IMO - never buy a standard cab, regardless of manufacture. Extended cabs are better by far.
Rear access doors are icing on the cake. You'll appreciate those more than you might imagine.

tbunder

buy a truck without the rear access doors. i just sold a ranger with the quad cab. i used them all the time. groceries, gear, little people, etc.. tacomas are nice, but not as safe as mazda and ford (same truck you know), and the S10 is in there too with a third door. the ZR2 is a tough truck. as someone mentioned earlier, the tacoma will be re-designed in '03, well, so will the ranger. totally. a crew cab will be offered, and a V8 and a larger mid-size truck will be the offering. id wait until august when the '03's come out. the tacoma is way overpriced and seems thin and weak in the door area, ive also heard of bending frames and weak transmissions in the tacoma. check out tacoma problems on the tranny thing. the frame thing was supposed to be taken care of in '99, with the addition of another crossmember. the ranger's SOHC 207 horse 4.0 runs fast and strong, it has 17 horses over any other compact, and is proven. they did have problems on the explorer SOHC 4.0, but the ranger is somewhat different and a lot smoother. the ranger also offers a 5-spd automatic tranny (mazda too). but to answer your question, the resale value on a quad cab truck will be alot better than a nissan or toyota ext. cab without them. its common sense to buy with them, and not without them. its easier access. they're not noisy and don't leak. mine didn't rattle either like some toyota guys will tell you they do. hope this helps.

weasle

I guess I'm one of the few that doesn't like the suicide doors. I'd rather have seats that slide up far enough for rear access. The loss in structural integrity isn't worth doors that are a huge pain when parked between two other vehichles IMO. My next truck will be a crew cab.

rfross

I had a '96 Tacoma standard cab 4WD. When I sold it at 60,000 miles it was still as solid and tight as when it was new. No sqeaks, no rattles.

I purchased a '99 GMC Sierra extended cab (3 door) 4WD. I kept this truck only year and sold it because of a zillion rattles. The passenger side third door was useless for me because I need a door on the left.

I now have a 2002 Ford Ranger 2WD 4 door extended cab with nearly 6,000 miles on it. The doors are solid and I find the handling is very good with a very rigid chassis. There doesn't appear to be any slop there. But I have this maddening rattle in the dash and I'm afraid to take it back to the dealer for fear that they will just add to the rattles. Other than that, the fit and finish in this truck is comparable to my old Toyota, in my opinion. I have the 4.0 V6 and 5 speed automatic with 3.55 limited slip rear. So far my best combined mileage has been about 19.6 and I'm a little disappointed in that. But the available power (and there is lots of it) helps me forget about the current mileage. I'm hoping that by the time I reach 10,000 miles and the engine is well broken in along with warmer weather that I can get near 21 mpg.

tbunder

kind of wondering. why did you buy the sierra in the first place if you knew the door wasn't on the side you wanted it?

otherwise, isn't that SOHC 4.0 butter smooth and turbo powerful when floored at around 65 mph? i love that engine. i also love that toyota guys hate not having as much power. heck, even the old 160 horse ford pushrod 4.0 had more torque than toyota's 3.4.

ps. i got (best)20.5 mpg when my truck was new. since i put on the larger tires it dropped to around 18-19. but it had 4.10 gears in it. so yours should do better.

txyank1

doors on the newer body (even with four) have a more solid sound when closing than the old 3-door body did. Not as many creaks and rattles as our Explorer had with the same mileage.

sc0rpi0

So you are spreading your lies in here too?
Heh.....tranny problems? Yeah....it happened once. You try to sound like an expert on this. Why dont you tell everyone in here about the great FX4 with blown rear axles that Ford PULLED OUT of sales shortly after it was released? Yeah, sure, 200 something people got stuck with blown axles and a truck in a shop for a week, probably.

mjbwrtr

i dont know about the rest of us "browse through" type readers, but i am completely sick of the hateful, annoying, childish attempts at one-upmanship which run rampant through these pages. i use this for information and entertainment, and neither pursuit is furthered by such behavior as the kind you've demonstrated in this last post. it's bad enough i cant read about my Ranger's history and info in the Tacoma vs Ranger board, but now you read every board until you find a tbunder post and then try to start a fight? get a hobby, go fishing, read a book, whatever. just get a life and spread the word to the rest of the annoying jerks who often post here. we all have opinions and are allowed to express them without being harassed. even if tbunder IS lying, who appointed YOU to be the one to expose it? go play in a sandbox with the rest of the children.

sc0rpi0

Sorry, I may have gone a little over the top here. I just don't like to see people tell lies about other things, especially when it's an answer to someones' question.

mjbwrtr

apology accepted and i understand. sorry to post twice...having technical problems

wtd

and I wish it had a fourth. I looked at ext-cabs with no rear doors but access to the back was bad even with the sliding seats. I also looked at the tacoma ext-cabs in 98 and the lack of back doors was one reason I did not buy it. I would not have an ext-cab truck without them now plus resale is better if you have them.

tbunder

you are the king of the word DENIAL. i guess the ferrari engineer was drunk when installing that transmission into that dude's tacoma, eh? oh, and everything ive said on here has been the god's honest truth.

prove me wrong my man. i challenge you.

everyone else- scorpio is a tacoma owner (obviously) and thinks that toyota vehicles are superior to everything else on the road and he only has 'maintenance' where everyone else has 'service'. don't believe his posts, as he loves to stir up trouble and call others names and degrade the discussion with his constant negativity. if he sees something he doesn't like about his product, he calls the person a liar. check out tacoma vs ranger to see what i mean.

sc0rpi0

"I've also heard of bending frames and weak transmissions in Tacoma".
How many weak transmissions have you heard of? 1.
How many bending frames have you heard of? I don't know, I occasionally hear about one or another on ttora boards when somebody gets in a bad jam and truck goes skyhigh. At that point all bets are off, and pretty much everywill will bend the frame. And ttora guys don't exactly use their trucks to get groceries.

Safety issue has been discussed already. Both Ranger and Taco are the same safety wise, at least according to IIHS.

Taco is not superiour to everything on the road. There are better things that I know of, mechanical wise, at least. As for stirring up troubles and calling names, heh...at least I don't have any deleted posts, now do I?

PF_Flyer

Is therre ANY way that we can get away from the "trying to PROVE something" mode in some of these topics?

The more we can stay away from getting personal, the better...

PF Flyer

Host

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tbunder

looks like you verified what i said earlier. thx
as far as safety, the nhtsa, the one that counts, puts ranger and mazda in a class above tacoma. seems that the ranger and tacoma may be close in the iihs's tests, but the government's tests put tacoma behind the ranger.

ps. here's another little challenge for you. get a tape measure, go out to a ford dealer with your tacoma and measure frame thickness on a ranger, any new 4x4. then, compare it to your awesome TRD's frame dimensions. post the results here.

sc0rpi0

That there's 1 blown tranny on a Taco? Sure. You said, transmission problem->s<-, as in plural. What are the message #s where people describe more blown transmissions?
Bent frame? There are people who have bent frames, yes, which is usually a result of bad jump or some other abuse like that (by jumping I mean what everyone else thinks jumping is, not "getting out of ditches"). Neither Tacoma nor Ranger are meant for that sort of abuse, and it is expected that jumps would mess up your truck.

Why is government rating more "true" that IIHS one? I actually prefer the IIHS rating, because, as we discussed before, IIHS actually performs offset crash test, which is more real-life.

brucec35

I'm a current 2000 Tundra owner with no serious problems in 30K miles. I did have a bad 02 sensor and it was fixed under warranty. Other than a front brake service and fluid changes, nothing else. I've owned recent Ram, F150, Tahoe, C1500 Chevy, and I can say that for my type of use the Tundra is the best overall. I don't need a rear seat, I use mine for the dog and storing gear. I'm even looking at Tacomas and tundras for my wife to drive since we're sick of the hassles she's had with her BMW and the affordable new cars are either too small, ugly, or just boring. They also drop like a rock in value. I like the confidence a quality built truck has, even though my Tundra isn't perfect. It brakes well, handles well, rides smooth,and hauls [non-permissible content removed]! I also like that the 2wd with the TRD package looks like a 4wd truck. The F150 and Ram 4x4's sit up higher, which to me means a tippy ride. I prefer control, coming from a sports sedan type driving experience. I can imagine having some annoyances with my toyota dealers, but never a nightmare situation like I've read here about Dodge dealers in particular, and some other domestics. I nixed a Dakota Quad cab we liked because I'm not prepared to go though the same BS we did with our previous Ram. "No sir, it's supposed to make that noise....no sir, that leak is normal...no sir....we can't find a problem, even though you run through intersections because the truck won't stop". My impression is that they basically don't do warranty work unless it's so obvious they have to. I wonder what that 100K powertrain warranty special they're running is really worth.

sc0rpi0

I usually laugh at that commercial when they announce that "GM, Ford and Toyota can't top that". We'll see what happens. If past is any indication, that 100K mile warranty will go away fast because of engine troubles (or when the economy is back on the track so that extra incentives like that arent needed to lure people into the dealerships).

white250

Keep all your toyota talk where it belongs.... I wish I could say where to take it , but I won't ...hehe..

sc0rpi0

Umm...I have a 2-door extended cab pickup. Namely Tacoma, made by Toyota.

losangelesemt

I was caught in a similar situation as you. After driving around a standard cab pickup for years it was very apparent that I'd never do it again. I carry around all my firefighting gear and an extended cab is a must. I realized from other guys at work, that even with an ext. cab, the fact of not having doors for it made getting gear and other things in and out a pain. I would definitely buy something with ext. cab doors.
I really wanted to get tacoma but wanted the rear doors. Their only rear door model was that half of a truck looking thing they call the double cab. I didnt like the look of the full cab / short bed, so I decided no other choice than to get Tundra. It's nice because it has the rear doors, but isn't a monster of a truck ... which seems like something you dont want. Good luck

brucec35

If you want a bigger truck but not a full size extended cab, consider the new 2002 Ram regular cab. It has a huge area behind the seats. It may not be as reliable as "another make" though. But it combines the maneuverablity of the short wheelbase, the spacious driver seating of a fullsize, and a new design.

maddog308

I too have the extended cab (suicide doors) and wish that I would have gotten the crew cab. When using on frequent trips to some store, if the spots are normal or tight parking it is a pain putting items in ext section if unloading say a grocery cart. Open front door, swing sidedoor, close front door and meander your cart over and unload. TO ME MUCH SIMPLIER just to open rearcrew cab door unload and off you go. IF you still don't get it THINK ABOUT IT... ext cab back door does not open without front door opening first.

COME ON GM! Lets see a crew cab quadrasteer! If any body from GM is reading I've got a fewmore suggstions... guess that would be a pipe
dream, aye!

Also, on the ride... (NOTE: I am not recommending just stating what I've done). I also noticed a very stiff ride in my '01 Z71. I lowered the tire pressure to 33 (from 50 from dealer) and it rides much better.