Back before the explosion in popularity of the overlanding and adventure lifestyle industries, special edition trucks meant lowered ride heights, low-profile tires and stiffer springs, not lift kits, roof racks and light bars. Trucks like the Dodge Ram SRT-10 and the Ford SVT Lightning stole headlines. And although it had nowhere near the power as other muscle trucks, the Toyota Tacoma X-Runner made for one hell of a pickup — and still does today.
Toyota unveiled the X-Runner in 2004 as a replacement to the S-Runner edition Tacoma, in order to maintain the brand’s presence in the muscle truck segment. However, where the Ford and Dodge went full-throttle into the low-slung muscle truck style, the X-Runner played it a little more conservatively. That ended up helping it age well, as it still looks good more than a decade later.
This particular 2007 Toyota X-Runner up for auction on Bring a Trailer isn’t the more powerful supercharged version offered at the time; still, its 4.0-liter V-6 — originally rated at 240 horsepower and 270 pound-feet of torque — is no slug. Combine the powerplant with the upgraded suspension at all four corners and the stiffer “X-Brace Frame,” and the X-Runner can still keep most modern trucks honest on a dry road.
With only 39,000 miles on the clock, this Tacoma is basically brand-new. And, if you compare it to a $25,850 base-level 2019 Tacoma, the current bid of $16,250 for this X-Runner is a steal. And even if bidding continues to climb, it likely won’t crest $30,000, which is the number you’d have to spend to get similar performance from Toyota’s current Tacoma lineup.
Granted, the X-Runner isn’t honed for off-road driving the way the current Tacoma TRD family is, but if you’re looking for a reliable everyday truck with modern on-road performance and a second-hand price tag, this ’07 Tacoma is worth a look.
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