The Toyota Hilux has a reputation for impressive durability. However, the brand never used that moniker in the United States for its truck. It was simply the Toyota Pickup there until the Tacma arrived. This one from 1980 has racked up a million miles, despite lots of off-road abuse like competing in rallies.
Things didn’t start well for this Pickup. Just two weeks after taking delivery in 1980, the owner crashed into an MG Midget. He repaired the truck and also added a roll cage to the cab, which voided the warranty.
The body has a beautiful patina. There are bits of rust, and the paint is flaking off to expose the previous colors underneath. A piece of tubular metal replaces the rear bumper.
The interior looks far worse. Only the necessary items are left. There is no headliner or carpets. Holes in the floor pan let you see through the driver-side footwell. The door panels are gone, too. There’s also exposed wiring. The original Toyota CB radio on the center stack is a neat touch.
Under the hood, the original 20R 2.2-liter four-cylinder engine is gone, and the 22R 2.4-liter four-cylinder replaces it. The owner kept the stock powerplant for around 400,000 miles but upgraded to the larger one for more power. A five-speed manual replaced the four-speed at the same time.
The owner wasn’t afraid to abuse his Pickup. In addition to competing in rallies, he also did jumps with it. Over the years, the springs, shocks, hubs, and other suspension pieces have also required replacement.
According to the owner, this truck lasted so long because it was easy to fix. So when something inevitably breaks, he can repair the problem.
There are many stories about high-running Toyotas. For example, we previously wrote about the owner of a 2008 Tacoma with over 1.52 million miles. It had an engine swap at 880,000 miles and needed a torque converter at 1.3 million miles. The owner drove about 500 miles a day delivering the nuclear medicine necessary for PET scans.
Toyota even bought a 2007 Tundra with over a million miles from an owner. The company analyzed the truck when developing the 2022 Tundra. The evaluation was allegedly part of the reason for making the new model’s bed more durable.
Toyota recently launched the 2024 Tacoma as the latest in the long line going back to the Pickup in the United States. We look forward to seeing whether the new one turns out to be as durable as previous iterations. The standard powertrain is now a turbocharged 2.4-liter four-cylinder that produces 228 horsepower and 243 pound-feet of torque or 270 hp and 310 lb-ft in some trims. The I-Force Max variant is a hybrid-assisted version making 326 hp and 465 lb-ft.
Take a tour of the 2024 Tacoma:
