I've got a v6 4dr Taco currently and I think its great. Its good on gas with proper regular/maintenance. (oil changes/airfilters) etc. My previous vehicle was a 4cyl. Tacoma, I had fears of the v6 being a pig on gas but its really not bad at all. I do run my truck on beaches in the fall and have never had a problem or felt under powered for conditions or trails. I travel good distances to fish at times just quick over nights etc. so knowing that its a certified vehicle I've got a warranty to 100,000 miles at any toyota (U.S or Canada) dealership is comforting.
I really can't speak to the towing aspect of the vehicle because I've yet to tow anything with it.
One thing that I did find with my previous truck the 4 cyl. was that the aluminum pins in the brake system would become corroded and they would break at times when doing pad changes etc. I found that removing the pins/retainer clip each spring and lubing it with a white grease help to avoid the corrosion that came from running the beaches. Its nothing complex but just greasing up that pin/retainer clip saved a lot of headaches. If you check your pads and rotors each Spring just work in greasing up that pin or clip into your maint. list
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