Toyota Stalking, er...um, SPOTTING with Charlie™ (Tacoma Edition)!

I did some far from home dealership exploration today and came across this truck at Bennett Toyota in Lebanon, Pennsylvania; I do not know what year it is at the moment, and I will post that info if I can find it on Bennett's website. This truck (a legit TRD Sport) seemed to be overall in good condition, and I really liked that grille guard...


April 3rd, 2022:

Lebanon, Pennsylvania

 

I have confirmed that this black DCLB is indeed just an SR5 with no TRD package, as the TRD Off-Road package was never available on the 2nd Gen DCLB; The DCLB was available with the TRD Sport package, but this truck doesn't have it (the most obvious clue is the hood that is not scooped)...

 

And that brings us to this 2010 DCLB SR5 that I found at a buy here pay here lot across from Bennett Toyota earlier today. It is not in bad condition at all, though I've seen plenty of similar trucks in much better condition; This particular example has almost 170K miles, and the interior smells like the previous owner may been a smoker. The lack of a scooped hood is a dead giveaway that this truck is not a TRD Sport; As stated above, the truck was not in particularly bad condition, but clues like tear in the driver's seat upholstery gave me the overall impression that it did not lead an easy life with the previous owner...


April 3rd, 2022:

Lebanon, Pennsylvania

 

Fake TRD Off-Road sticker on the left rear fender...

 

I scanned the QR code on the window sticker and was immediately directed to a credit application site...

 

Interior...

 

Tear in driver's seat...

 

No locking rear differential; A sure sign that a Tacoma does NOT have a locking rear differential, and thus is NOT a TRD Off-Road...

 

2017 DCSB SR5 4x4 with almost 116K miles; Yours for almost $32K! This not the most obscenely priced 3rd Gen I've ever seen, but the high miles and the fact that it's at a buy here pay here lot (rather than the Toyota dealer directly across the street, which you can actually see in the first picture ) are both incredibly off-putting...


April 3rd, 2022:

Lebanon, Pennsylvania

 

Brought my truck to my mechanic to get the other two ignition coils replaced; Found yet another fake DCLB Off-Road; No diff locker button on this one, either...


April 4th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

April 5th, 2022:

Ivyland, Pennsylvania

 

April 7th, 2022:

Warminster, Pennsylvania

 

2017 AC TRD Sport


April 9th, 2022:

Morrisville, Pennsylvania

 

Then this guy showed up...

2008 DCSB TRD Off-Road; 150K miles and it has a new frame, and yes it is a legit OR because it has a diff locker button!




April 9th, 2022:

Morrisville, Pennsylvania

 

2014 RC 5-lug; The end of an era!


April 9th, 2022:

Morrisville, Pennsylvania

 

Before the '08 DCSB showed up; That's my RC on the left...

 

And after the owner of the '08 let me take pictures of his truck...

 

My buddy Jim's 2014 AC TRD Sport, now totally paid off and with more mods!


April 9th, 2022:

Morrisville, Pennsylvania

 

2004 RC 4x4; Sadly, it's an automatic...


April 9th, 2022:

Easton, Pennsylvania

 

2012 AC TRD Sport


April 9th, 2022:

Easton, Pennsylvania

 

2012 AC 5-lug; Appears to have gotten a frame replacement!


April 10th, 2022:

Horsham, Pennsylvania

 

My supervisor's friend in Ohio traded her 2012 DCSB with almost 300K miles...

 

For a brand new 2022 DCSB!

 

April 10th, 2022:

Hatfield, Pennsylvania

 

I found two new Tacos on the lot at Thompson; I was shocked to actually find a new Access Cab (as opposed to a DCSB)!


April 12th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

Thompson Toyota has this obnoxious habit of putting thousands of dollars worth of marked up upgrades on SRs, but it looks like they finally picked a more worthwhile truck; It's an OR!


April 12th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

These two have been sitting in the same respective spots at Thompson Toyota for almost two months, and the inspection stickers on the white AC expired last month, so that leads me to believe the white one failed inspection due to frame perforation and is awaiting a new frame; The silver RC is a company truck for a local glass company, and I suspect that it might have frame issues as well...


April 12th, 2022:

Doylestown, Pennsylvania

 

A friend of mine's truck had severe enough frame perforation that the dealer wouldn't let him drive it while they waited for it, and put him in a rental car immediately; I brought my truck in for the annual safety inspection and emissions test in August 2022 and it passed, but my mechanic found a potential trouble spot and I immediately brought it to the dealer. My truck passed the Toyota-sanctioned inspection too, but I was told to bring it in a week before the warranty period expired. They found perforation on the right frame rail next to the catalytic converter, but there was a rental car shortage and the perforation was minor enough that it didn't yet interfere with the structural integrity of the truck; I was allowed to drive my truck during the nearly two months it took for my new frame to come in. I'm guessing that the white truck has significant enough perforation that it couldn't be safely driven.

 

April 10th, 2022:

Hatfield, Pennsylvania

 

April 16th, 2022:

New Hope, Pennsylvania