Drove the new 2007 Tundra and all competition!!!

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JohnBrowning

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I will tell you what stands out about the experince in my mind. I will also answere any questions you might have, I made about 10 laps in the various Tundra configurations and about 5 laps in the various competition configurations. I did this with 1500lbs of liguid in a tank in the beds, then with 1000lbs of liquid in the bed and 3500lbs of trailer. We did this on a road course and a towing course. We also did an off road course with empty beds.

Whats stands out in my mind is how much better the tundra did in terms of acceleration,brakeing handleing,towing etc..... I was able to point the tundra where I wanted it to go then use trail brakeing and power to steer the truck. It felt very stable and easy to control even when drifting. The 5.7L V8 teamed with their 6 speed automatic is an acceleration machine loaded or unloaded. It was faster in 0-60,1/4 mile and 0-60-0 then any of their competition loaded or unloaded. The engine has lots of usable HP and torque. The power band is very wide. I did not notice any brake fade issues at all.

The trucks axles, frame and suspension are built like 3/4-1 ton even though it is a 1/2 ton truck. It has a very car like ride with out suffering dive or excessive sway. It has a lot of axle articulation and ground clearance. The aproach and departure angles are also impressive for a modrern truck with it's level of handleing prowess.

Even if you are not in the market just yet do yourself a favor and take on for a spin. A positive note is that most so called domestic brands will be starting an incentive war soon to try and compensate for the Tundra many standard features performance.

If anyone wants any specific insights in terms of comparisons between it and the competition just let me know!!
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I will test drive ne myself although I can't get one right now. Ford's superduty uses the open frame design.

The good news is Domestic trucks are about to get alot cheaper. The bad news is that this will cut into the potential profits. This will be interesting to watch as it develops.
 
How did it do towing a 10,000 lb trailer ? How long will that independent front end last with a 600 lb snow plow hanging off the front. I will stick with my solid axle DANA 60s front and rear thank you. I would love to see that tow my 12000 lb backhoe on a 3000 lb trailer like I did with my 10k rated superduty last weekend. How many months are the timing belts good for before the $800 dealer visit.
 
454,
this is a half ton truck and is rated for that. When Toyota has 3/4 and 1 tons on the market those will be valid questions.
The new 5.7 v-8 engine utilizes a timing Chain btw.
 
I thought the commercials in the superbowl for the Tundra were pretty impressive.
 
The front section is fully boxed the middle section is reinforced c channel and the rear section is open c channel. A fully boxed frame is not the best way to make a strong frame. The Tundra's frame is simalar to the F250 and F350. The boxed section is very strong torionaly and it is used for the engine and most of the transmission area. The reinforced c channel has better shear strength and also resists side impact better. The reinforced c channel has reinforceing welded and riveted into the c channel. The portion under the bed is open c channel for weight saveing and to allow some flex under load. It is hard to fault the Tundra's frame design unless you want to fault HD frames on trucks in class's much higher then Tundra's 1/2 ton class.

A fully boxed frame sounds impressive until you understand the chateristics of each type of construction. It is great though if torsional rigidity is the only concerns so on SUV's like a LandCruiser,FJCruiser,etc...... a fully boxed frame is a plus but not always on a work truck or tow vechile.
 
The 5.7 does not have a timeing belt it uses a timeing chain. Rember we are talking about 1/2 ton trucks. It towed better then the rest of the 1/2 ton double cab trucks in the line up. We did not have 10,000 lb trailers because we had 7 of each truck and the traveling team had some limitations as to what they could hual around. The Nissan Titan also could not even get close to that. We had to take 500lbs out of the bed when we added the 3500lbs trailer to keep the Nissan from breaking axles. The two Nissans had all gone through 2 or more axles in the course of the 12 city tour. The Chevy and Fords ahd to get waranty break work done more then once. THe ford also lost a skid plate and front lower fascia. The Chevy and Dodge also lost the lower front fascia or entire fascia in some cases. The Ford was so bad on the off raod course for loaseing parts and bottoming out we had to skip some portions of the course in the ford to keep from damgeing it.
 
Please I am not plugging the dealership I work for. I was not even going to mention that I work for one or anything like that. THis is the most significant upset to the full size truck market especialy in the 1/2 ton catagory. I happen to have unique insight in that I had the opertunity to drive these trucks back to back under identical conditions. I am trying to share my experinces both pro and con. The Tundra is a clean sheet redesign and I happen to have a lot of insider information. I really do not care if it bruises ego's or anything like that! I just want to share with my friends what I experinced. I am the first to admitt is not going to be the truck for every purpose or need! It does bring a lot of value,standard features and durability to the 1/2 ton market that is not their currently!!
 
I Drove the 5.7 Tundra yesterday. I was impressed. It flat out hauls #$%. The truck is quite solid feeling and does not seem to twist when driving up onto the curb. It is certainly a good swipe at the domestics.

My only gripe was the interior is cheezy IMHO. Thin plastic is used in the center console, and for the glove box. The interior is a far cry from my 06 VW jetta in the quality and feel department. I personally think that the Ford is slightly better in this regard.

I did not find the seats all that comfortable, but that is a personal thing.

Otherwise, I think it is the best large pickup to date.

Chris
 
Long time lurker, second time poster. I drove a Limited, 4x4, Double cab, standard bed, W/5.7 engine Tundra yesterday.

All I can say is that if I were in the market for a 1/2 ton truck, I would be buying an '07 Tundra.

Every aspect of that truck impressed me.
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I am very attracted towards the 4x4 regular cab shortbed 5.7 v8 model(it would be a hoot).. ..I don't need to start another payment book again..must resist.
 
Drove by the Toyota dealership on my lunch hour today, saw they had an '07 Tundra out front.

Problem is, I consider the sales practices of my local dealership as sleezy, therefore, I won't set foot on their lot. I think is unusual for a Toyota dealership. Part of the problem may ne that they are one of these mega multi-line franchise dealers that also sells American and Korean as well. It doesn't appear to me that they have control of things (or their sales staff).
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Maybe one day when I'm at the Toyota dealership that is south of here, I'll try one out.
 
I used to live in a town with just one Toyota dealer. Now I live in an area with half a dozen different dealers. It makes a big differnce in how you are treated.
 
my daughter had a 2005 tundra, 4 door v8 but had to trade it for a chevy 4 door truck with a v8 diesel . iy could not pull her 3 horse trailer which weighed 3100 lbs, it was ok with one horse but struggled with 3 horses . a typical hose weights 1000-1200 lbs, of course the saleman assured her it would be ok, by the way on the sticker what percentage of the truck is usa made, not just assembled in usa,
 
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