The old V8 trucks (2016–2021) are as durable as their reputation — the 2022 redesign traded them for a twin-turbo V6 that Toyota is now replacing engines on, so the generation you pick is the whole decision.

The redesign — and the engine recall. 415 complaints, the loudest file in the range, and the reason is one campaign: recall 24V381, in which debris left over from manufacturing can contaminate the engine and cause the main bearings to fail, stalling the truck and killing drive power. Toyota's remedy is blunt and reassuring — dealers replace the engine assembly, free of charge — and a follow-up campaign (25V767) expands the scope and adds a bearing inspection. Owners have reported failures as early as 42,000–50,000 miles. Buy a 2022 only with the recall confirmed complete by VIN. The other 2022 items are launch-year teething and mostly free fixes: a rear-axle recall (22V445) where the flange nuts can loosen and the shafts separate, an electronic-parking-brake recall (22V661), a fuel-tube-chafing recall (23V566), plus a widely-reported throttle lag from a rolling stop that Toyota addressed with a transmission-computer reprogram.

Same engine, same recall, second year. 369 complaints. The engine-debris recall (24V381) covers 2022 and 2023 alike, and no running production fix predates it for early builds — so a 2023 needs exactly the same VIN check as a 2022, and the same confirmation that the engine was replaced if it was affected. The rest is the same XK70 punch list: the LCD instrument-panel blackout recall (23V111), the fuel-tube chafing recall (23V566), an unexpected-movement-in-neutral software recall (24V125), and the throttle-lag reprogram. None of that is expensive; the engine is the whole question. Worth knowing: Toyota's own master tech considers the turbo panic overblown, comparing it to the 2007 V8 launch that dropped valves and was covered by warranty — but he still advises maintaining the turbos with 5,000-mile oil changes and letting the truck idle down after hard, hot driving.

The last V8, and the quietest truck here. 23 complaints — the smallest file of any year in this range, on the final year of the 5.7-liter V8. There is no expensive failure pattern to check for: mechanics describe these engines and transmissions as the least of your worries, with 200,000–250,000-mile examples routine when maintained. The recall list is short and free (a power-steering-gear campaign, 21V920, is the substantive one). What you're actually buying against here is rust and towing history, not mechanical risk. Inspect the frame from underneath — these frames love to rust — and if the truck will tow heavily, know that Toyota deleted the transmission cooler from 2019 on, so an added thermostatic cooler is a sensible fit.

V8, nearly as quiet, one free recall that matters. 45 complaints. Same durable 5.7-liter V8, same near-empty file. The one substantive item is the low-pressure fuel pump (recalls 20V012 and 20V682), which can fail and stall the engine — free replacement, and a court-approved customer support program backstops owners whose pumps were repaired outside the recall. Beyond that, the checks are age items rather than defects: the cam-tower oil leak that weeps sealer onto the exhaust manifold (a mechanic-quoted $1,200–$1,500, mostly labor, and commonly missed on inspection), a water-pump weep between 60,000 and 120,000 miles, and the belt tensioner's chirp.

The cheap way into the durable engine. 78 complaints, one of the smallest early files, and the same 5.7-liter V8 as every truck through 2021 — so the durability argument is identical, at an older truck's price. The recall list is short and free. At this age, buy on condition rather than year: check the frame from underneath first and walk away from a rusty northern truck, look for the cam-tower oil leak, and expect the ordinary aging items (rack-and-pinion seepage, seized calipers and rotted rear backing plates in salt states). This is a truck where a clean, dry, southern example at 150,000 miles is a better buy than a rusty one at 80,000.