If your buddy happens to be former military, or a member of USAA, I would recommend he utilize the USAA military purchase program. I went that route on my 08 Tacoma. Was great. I simply called the local dealer, told them what I wanted, and got a call back a day later to come down and look at what was available. They had a list of every truck in Colorado that met my criteria and I picked one off the list. The next day the truck was in Colorado Springs. I looked it over, gave it my blessing, and signed the paperwork. Best part is I knew EXACTLY what I was going to pay before the truck arrived here.