[LanceInOregon]

Toyota showed off the upcoming 2008 Tundra truck in Detroit this week. Here is the truck itself:

One of the big selling points is supposed to be that it has exceptional room in the rear seats. Here is a photo of the rear seat interior:

I've got to think that the size of the truck bed will suffer with such a huge cab.

Lance in Orygun

 

[Bear]

Nice looking I guess

Looks like they did the usual: Copy what the USA builders do. Looks like a cross between a Ford and Dodge. I`ve been shopping for a new truck for 2 years and still cannot find the right one. After completely gutting the area forward of the seats in my Dodge truck just to get the heater box out (to get to the dead mousevarmint stinking up the truck), I don`t plan on a Dodge. Still looking and hoping I can still afford one by the time I decide.

If it ain`t got an 8 ft bed, it ain`t a daggone truck. I need an 8 foot bed so I can close the tailgate on the coyotes I shoot

 

[Jim in Idaho]

Bear, you're supposed to stack them side-by-side, not end-to-end....LOL

 

[22Dasher]

I agree once again an American copy. I just can't bring myself to purchasing a Japaneese based vehicles even though they are made here in the US.

One of these days Americans will wake up when we no longer have any jobs but then it'll be too late

 

[Clint M]

I agree once again an American copy. I just can't bring myself to purchasing a Japaneese based vehicles even though they are made here in the US.

One of these days Americans will wake up when we no longer have any jobs but then it'll be too late

James I used to day the very same thing... Then I was working on a Ford Ranger I had when I noticed something with a stamp on it. Made in Mexico.. I had rather buy something made somewhere else and know it, than think I'm buying USA and it be made somewhere else

I used to work for a Dodge dealership while in school, we had to remove a coating they sprayed on for shipping from Mexico to the US..... It's heartbreaking, our best paying jobs being sold off to other countries

Clint

 

[Oleman]

Toyota

I'm with Bear and I need a truck that has some real pulling power. Can you say Duramax?

 

[22Dasher]

I'm with Bear and I need a truck that has some real pulling power. Can you say Duramax?

Nope but sure can say Cummins

 

[GoWyo!]

Yep Cummins, but duramax is turning into a caterpillar

Out with the Isuzu in with the Cat.

What the heck is it with Chevy? They want their rigs to look like the Ford F-150? Tall fenderwalls, boxy, slab sided.

Except this Toyota, I think it looks more like a dodge needing some benadryl....

 

[Steve Timm]

Hmmmm, think I'll stick with my Duramax/Allison.

Steve

 

[birdog]

Cummins Baby!!!!!!

i'VE been hearing for years that chevy was getting a cat but it never happens. If they had did it they might have kept the heavy truck market that they eventually lost trying to build their own diesel. i guess the cat was too expensive for them.
i bought my cummins new in '97 it has 245,000 miles and does not use any oil yet. I took it to Nebraska twice last summer and ck'ed one tank and got 21.5 mpg.

 

[Bear]

Another good point you made

Cummins is why I wanted to get the new Dodge, that and the fact that my hunting bud with the 400 yd range bought a 05 crewcab dually 4wd Dodge with the cummins. I`ve used it to pull a 5500 lb trailer with a 13,200 lb forklift on it from Oregon (350 miles) and all I can say is "WOW!!!!" 20.4 mpg pulling the empty trailer south, and 16+ pulling the trailer and forklift north (heck yes it was illegal as all getout). On level ground, it would accelerate from 50 to 60 in ten seconds pulling that load. WOOF!.

I just got an email from a board member that said Dodge made the new trucks easier to work on the dash`s and heaters. (heater core change on mine, a 1997, is over $1000 at the dealership. 8+ hours). He said the new Dodge is way easier to maintain. Will check tomorrow and see if that is the deal.

My cummins has 336,000 and other than an annoyingly slow idle, it runs perfect and still gets 19 on the hwy. When rolling down the road, you cannot hear the diesel engine (at least these ol ears don`t)

I won`t buy a Chev if they are going to cat motors. The isuzu engine is a great motor (other than being jap built) some of my heavy equip has isuzu power and is always trouble free.

I wouldn`t buy the cat powered anything. A friend has bought 21 new semi`s for his fleet in the last three years (big chip trailer haulers) and they all have cat engines. They throw rods through the block left and right. He can`t keep them on the road and he`s losing his butt due to downtime.

Cat warranties the engines but he has no truck on the road when he`s changing out engines and being towed. Cat is a hyped up name. Their heavy equip is made in Japan and is overpriced.

 

[22Dasher]

I know a guy here locally that just had his 3rd Duramax installed. They just ain't built for heavy pulling and if you seen the rods and cranks in them and compare that to the Cummins I can see why they aren't staying together.

The Cummins can produce well over 1200 hp and 1900+ ft lbs of torque w/o any block or component modifications just itself with a different turbo injectors and fuel pump is all needed to make the changes and some computer programming. My last Cummins dynoed 625 hp and 855 ft lbs torque with only a fuel pump change and turbo change and still got 17 mpg

 

[Paul Workman]

I agree once again an American copy. I just can't bring myself to purchasing a Japaneese based vehicles even though they are made here in the US.

Actually....Toyota trucks are 100% made in USA using labor from USA. A Dodge truck is assembled in Mexico, (no UAW workers at all!) w/ many parts (electronics) made in the orient and Mexico... Take a look at the sticker on the inside of the driver's door on a Toyota for a 'reality check'!

But, I (like you) am NOT in favor of this "New World Order" crap - one world economy...There's just toooo many wild-eyed ******** with AK-47s out there to make me warm and fuzzy 'bout so much of our industry going over seas. I'm no economist, but it worries me too.

P.

 

[Jake in NC]

I'll stick with my F-250, thankyaverymuch..

.. While it almost invariably starts a pissing contest somehow, I'm just pleased as can be with my Ford Diesel.. I really liked the Dodge look and the the Cummins but after talking with numerous local Dodge owners I was swayed away by repetitive reports of electrical and transmission problems..
.. Plus, I like the cab design of the Ford better.. Which is the part of the truck I have to deal with the most.. It hauls my 5th wheel camper just fine thru the mountains and to the beach (Yayyy.!!) so it does the job I have for it..
..Stll tho', if I had my d'ruthers, I'd like to see the Cummins in the Ford body with the Allison tranny.. That'd make the decision on the next truck real easy..

.. I wonder why Toyota parts are so high if everything's made here (or is that my answer).? They seem to be well made but upfront price and repair costs are the most common complaints I hear with them.. I about fell over when my WWII Vet Grandpa bought one after wrecking his Marquis .. d:^) Jake

 

[Monkeyman]

I'd say cross between a Dodge and a Ford. I thought they were successful because they were small(ish), nimble, cheap to run? Sometimes I think automotive marketers don't get out of their office enough.

 

[Doug Roberts]

Tundra

Obviously, I don't get hung up by perceptions of where a vehicle is made because I have a 2006 Tundra. I'm glad I got the 2006 rather than waiting for the Dodge clone restyled 2007 (looks just like the 2008 pix). The restyle is probably why they had such good deals on the 2006. OK with me. We shopped and drove everything but Dodge (no thanks) and the Toyota clearly stood out not to mention their deals were dramatically better than Ford. After driving Chevys and GMCs, I never asked a dealer for a price. My only dilemna was Tundra or Tacoma. I'll pay it back on fuel but the crewcab Tundra lease was actually cheaper than a Tacoma lease and I really wanted a bigger truck than the Ranger I traded in. I know leasing is not a viable option for some but it was for me. We put over 3500 miles on it last June on it's maiden voyage. It averaged 17MPG and could have easily handled two more shooters and their stuff. Lest those miles set off somebody's lease/mileage alarm, the truck hasn't reached 7K yet.

 

[Larry L]

On the plus side:
The 5.7 makes 381 HP and 400 lbs torque- should be a towing machine
The 5.7 has an EPA of 20 mpg hiway
The 5.7 has an available 6 speed auto
The 5.7 has an available towing package with 4.30 gears and a tow capacity of 10,400 lbs- far more than you should be pulling with a pickup.
The new Tundra comes with a 10.5" rear gear set, std- 4.10 gears, optional 4.30 gears

The down side:
Hopefully, much larger and stronger ball joints- these have been an issue
City EPA is 16 mpg for the 5.7- I don't see it happening, more like 13
Hopefully, the 5.7 is not an interference engine like the 4.7- lose a timing BELT and you lose the engine as the valves crash into the pistons.
The 6 speed has a very low first gear and two overdrives, not much in the middle.
Turn radius for the double cab(not the big one) is 44', not for the newer malls
This thing weighs in right at 5000 lbs- it's big, maybe too big.

I agree that it looks like the American offerings. Hopefully the new Tundra has few debute issues. They should be fairly reliable as they have been doing a slug of testing around here. I don't see the new 6 speed as being as useful as it might be. The first gear is too low for normal driving and the final overdrive is right at .5. You certainly won't pull anything with that final gear and it may create issues with lugging the engine- we'll see. They did finally up grade the brakes to the proper size for the heft of the truck. I am not a fan of the wishbone type front suspension but it does offer a cushy ride. Too much maintenance and too many parts. I don't like the interior as represented in the news releases. It come with a console like the Ford Lariat. More plastic junk in the way as I see it. One thing about it though, it's huge. I can only guess that the maintenance is going to be typical Toyota- expensive and often. I plan on a test drive sometime this summer. My Ford has beat me for all its going to- time to change horses. Here's a look at the specs:
http://www.toyota.com/tundra/specs.html

 

[bcp]

WHITE carpet in a TRUCK?

I need mud colored or camo carpet, if any carpet at all!

 

[MI VHNTR]

Actually....Toyota trucks are 100% made in USA using labor from USA. A Dodge truck is assembled in Mexico, (no UAW workers at all!) w/ many parts (electronics) made in the orient and Mexico... Take a look at the sticker on the inside of the driver's door on a Toyota for a 'reality check'!

But, I (like you) am NOT in favor of this "New World Order" crap - one world economy...There's just toooo many wild-eyed ******** with AK-47s out there to make me warm and fuzzy 'bout so much of our industry going over seas. I'm no economist, but it worries me too.

P.

The reality is that the Toyota trucks may be built here, but the bulk of the parts come from the land of the rising sun. Furthermore, where do you think that the bulk of the profit goes? It's sure not to the USA.

 

[keithcandler]

My brother owns a tire store......

the girl that works the counter out front had to go in for surgery. I helped out for a month while she recovered. I asked the folks that came in how they liked their Tundra's. I never had even one person say a bad thing about their Tundra's. Several people said that they were on their second truck, mostly the comments were about how dependable they are with no service problems. Several people were up in the 200,000-275,000 range on their Tundra's and still going strong.

It looks like Toyota has made a pretty good truck, but they will not compete with the heavy duty pickups in pulling power, etc.