Old vs New – How Much Better Has Toyota Made the Tacoma in 20 Years?

In the automotive market, things simply have to evolve to stay relevant. That’s just the way that it is. Should an automobile model sit stagnant for too long, eventually, the buyer is going to go away. The Nissan GT-R seems to be one of the few exceptions as it hasn’t drastically changed in what seems like an eternity.

However, everywhere else, we find that most models have definitely changed over the years if they have stuck around. It’s kind of an interesting concept to grapple with if a nameplate has built its way into being an icon. How do you take something that’s already the best that it can be, in the eyes of the consumer, and have it continue to perform at the top of its game, transforming it into something new?

With the Toyota Tacoma, the nameplate has built its way to a reliable and capable vehicle. It might not be the most luxurious machine on the market but what it does it does incredibly well. The midsize pickup truck is designed to be functional and reliable all while being able to take a little bit of a beating. This is one of those nameplates that seems to hang around in a fashion that owners just can’t kill which people tend to love.

This time, we take a look inside how the Toyota Tacoma has been coming along over the years. In this one, the guys over at The Fast Lane take a glance at the past two decades of Tacoma offerings to see just how exactly the folks at Toyota have tried to bring the truck along with the times.

The challenge here is going to be maintaining that high bar that the model set for itself back in the glory days. Meeting such a challenge is definitely possible but Toyota has had to be calculated with its moves with this model over the years.