One of the reasons Japanese carmakers have enjoyed such remarkable success in markets like the US, Australia and Europe is their ability to adapt to local preferences without compromising on values. and ideals underpinning the company.
While Toyota’s success in the U.S. market initially came from smaller, global models like the Corolla, the 1990s and 2000s saw the Japanese giant introduce more and more newly developed vehicles. developed with the US market with significantly different geographical locations and tastes.
That includes vehicles not only developed for the US market but also built there, such as TundraToyota’s Ford F-150 competitor.
The Tundra, now in its third generation, continues to rank ahead of the HiLux-sized Tacoma in Toyota’s North American pickup line-up, with its direct competitor to the Japanese marque being the Nissan Titan and other major competitors including Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and Ram 1500.
It also spawns full-sized cubs Sequoia SUVs, acting as the brand’s mainstay in the North American market following a shift to smaller but more exclusive models LandCruiser.
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2023 Sequoia -
2022 Tundra
While we don’t buy full-size pickups in the same volume as markets like the US and Canada, Toyota has responded to growing demand for models like the Silverado and Ram 1500 by announcing that it research Right-hand drive locally remanufactured Tundra.
It stopped short of confirming the local launch, but it looks like it’s almost a hit. That means Australians should finally get their hands on a Tundra after more than 20 years of waiting.
Origin: T100
Before the Tundra, there was the 1993 T100, Toyota’s first attempt at entering the US full-size pickup truck market.
Toyota at this time lacked significant experience in building pickup trucks in the style that Americans would expect, so while the vehicle was made in Japan and wore the Toyota badge, Toyota rented the majority of the vehicle. engineering and design for Hino, its commercial vehicle subsidiary.
The T100 can best be described as a commercial failure, but a learning experience for the Japanese brand.
The problems with the car start with its size. Although marketed as a full-size truck, the T100 is smaller than its direct rivals like the Ford F-150, and this has consequences in terms of practicality and cabin space.
Unlike the Ford, the T100 struggled to comfortably seat three adults in the front row, and this was compounded by the lack of a ‘sub-taxi’ option during the first two years of production, so the car Can’t sit in any of the back. passenger.
For some potential customers, the shortfall in practicality can be made up for in performance, but unfortunately, the T100 also fails in this area. At the time, American full-size trucks were often equipped with larger engines, especially V8s, but the original T100 only came with a 3.0-liter V6 that produced just 112kW of power and torque. 244Nm.
Toyota has attempted to address this issue with the MY1995 models, by introducing an optional 3.4-liter V6 that produces a more competitive 140kW. However, it also replaces the standard 3.0-liter V6 with a 2.7-liter inline-four.
Although four-cylinder engines are equally powerful, cheaper, and more efficient, for many people there is no substitute for an alternative engine.
Annual sales were around 37,000 units in 1995 and 1996, a fraction of the hundreds of thousands that direct competitors sold, but the T100 still receives praise for its handling, quality and its reliability, with analysis firm JD Power giving it an ‘Original’ award for quality.
The key lesson that remains, however, is that to excel in the full-size pickup space, Toyota will need to maintain this quality and reliability, but add more space, power, and towing capacity. bigger.
First generation Tundra
The first-generation Tundra replaced the T100, and Toyota now has enough confidence in the American workforce to build it with the same quality as a Japanese equivalent, the Tundra has already gone into in-house production. company machine in Indiana in May 1999.
Domestic production also benefits from the elimination of the 25% import tax that the T100 has already imposed. Indeed, Toyota was confident enough in its new product to name it the T150 before legal threats from Ford forced the brand to change its name to the Tundra.
Although the first-generation Tundra has also increased in size to position itself closer to rivals like the Chevrolet Silverado, perhaps most impressive is the engine. While the 3.4-litre V6 was carried over from the T100, the Tundra is also available with a competitive 4.7-litre V8 pumping out 183kW of power and 427Nm of torque.
Toyota hasn’t forgotten its efforts to maintain efficiency either, with the company claiming the larger engine is the first dual-cam 32-valve V8 to be offered in the full-size pickup segment, while also earning the ‘vehicle’ rating. low emissions’ from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
Offering a maximum towing capacity of 3266 kg, the V6 and V8 will both receive gradual improvements in performance (and increase displacement to 4.0 liters for the V6), while the AccessCab version ‘extra cabin’ has been available since the start of production. A Double Cabin was added in 2004.
By fixing most of the T100’s faults without offering any new compromises, Tundra’s sales increased accordingly, averaging over 100,000 units and peaking at 126,000 units in 2005. This is still significantly lower than competitors like the F-150, of which about 900,000 are built. The unit went on sale in 2005, but it is a significant step up from its predecessor.
The second generation
Toyota introduced the second-generation Tundra in late 2006 as a 2007 model, with production later moving exclusively to the company’s Texas truck plant in 2008.
In addition to the increased size and modernized design, perhaps the standout feature of the new Tundra is its maximum towing capacity of over 4.5 tonnes (breaking the £10,000 barrier) when equipped with the V8 5, 7 liters new.
Producing 284kW of power and 544Nm of torque and mated to a new six-speed automatic transmission, Toyota claims its larger V8 is one of the most powerful in its class. To complement the new 5.7-liter V8, the 4.0-liter V6 and 4.7-liter V8 engines from the previous generation are also continued with improvements.
The Tundra is available in over 30 configurations, with buyers able to choose between 4×2 and 4×4 drivetrains, and a multitude of cab, bed and wheelchair models,
Toyota also claims that the new Tundra uses more high-strength, thicker steel, more reinforced areas and stiffer mounts for improved handling and handling, and more durability.
On the safety front, Toyota claims the second-generation Tundra is also the first in its segment to feature an electronic limited-slip differential (A-LSD) and vehicle stability control (VSC) as standard worldwide. product line, as well as being the first in its segment with adjustable headrests and three-point seat belts for all passengers.
Despite these improvements, average annual sales have remained largely the same as the previous generation, peaking at 196,000 units in 2007, but also falling to 80,000 units in 2009 during the Depression. Global Finance.
Third generation
Launched in September 2021, the third generation Tundra is currently being considered for sale in Australia and marks a significant leap in design, technology and performance over its predecessors.
Instead of transferring engines from previous generations, Toyota chose to launch two completely new engines for the third generation Tundra.
The base engine is now a 3.5-liter twin-turbo V6 that produces up to 290kW of power and 649Nm of torque. More interesting, however, is the introduction of a hybrid version of the same engine, called the i-Force Max, which can deliver up to 325kW and 790Nm of torque, equivalent to the engine’s output. rival’s V8 engine but with more performance.
Tundra, as well as the new Sequoia, have migrated to the same TNGA-F architecture that underpins the LandCruiser 300 Series.
Other improvements include the replacement of the previous leaf spring suspension with independent multi-link coil springs, an available adaptive suspension, a much more sophisticated interior and suite of technology, including a monitor. 14-inch infotainment, 12-inch digital instrument cluster. , as well as Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and over-the-air updates for the integrated satellite navigation system.
All models are equipped with the Toyota Safety Sense 2.5 active safety suite, which includes adaptive cruise control, automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping assist and automatic high beams, among other features. other safety standards.
THAN: Toyota Tundra Hybrid: Launched in Australia, starting to develop
