The 2012 edition of the Toyota Tacoma truck has been regarded as a front runner in the field category of mid-sized trucks these days. The first model of the Tacoma was made in 1995. It used to be a compact pick-up truck until it was redesigned in 2005 to a mid-sized truck. The newest version has been reviewed as the most stylish and high-tech of all the Toyota Tacoma trucks to date. It comes in four trim packages, all of which are competitively priced and perform well.
An online review of the Toyota Tacoma ranked it number two among the compact pick-up trucks in the market today. A close competition for the Tacoma is the leading 2012 Nissan Frontier and also the popular 2012 Honda Ridgeline. Performance wise, the Frontier was reviewed to be the best relatively responsive for the class of vehicle. The Ridgeline and Tacoma are almost at par with performance ratings of various review sites. The main selling point of the Toyota Tacoma is its very attractive pricing. While the Frontier and Ridgeline cost about $32,000 and $29,000 respectively, the Tacoma's bottom line price is only about $17,000. Another good selling point of the Tacoma is its very stylish looks both in the exterior and interior. By no means is it a luxury car, and while that is not what anyone should really expect from a pick-up truck the design of the Tacoma exudes a certain suave and macho feeling to it.
The X-Runner version of the Tacoma is deemed to be the sportiest compact truck right now. Reviews on the Tacoma X-Runner make it out to be a proficient car both off and on-road especially when the TRD off-road package is installed. A lot of review sites also named the Toyota Tacoma the Best Compact Pick-up Truck of 2012 in terms of value for money. Compared to the older versions of the Tacoma, the 2012 model has also been winning in terms of looks and performance. Safety standards for this truck are also impressive with high rankings from both the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety and the federal government reviews and crash tests. Five out of five stars was awarded by the federal government when they did a side-crash test. The all four-wheel drive model of the Tacoma also garnered a 4 star rating for overall safety.