New Generation Toyota Tundra: Lessons from Remarkable Long-Term Testing
When developing a next-generation large tundra pickup, Toyota Motor took an unusual approach. The company studied the state of the older tundra models with exceptionally high mileage, according to Mike Swiers, chief engineer for Toyota North America. The team sought real-world wear data to guide design choices for a modern, more capable truck.
In 2016, as engineers worked on the new tundra, Toyota specialists received two copies of a 2007 pickup truck, each with mileage around 1.6 million kilometers. These vehicles had endured extreme use under private ownership. Swiers shared details about one of these trucks, which belonged to American owner Victor Sheppard. Toyota exchanged the old vehicle for a fresh generation Tundra and conducted thorough teardown and analysis at its technical center to capture insights for future models.
New generation Toyota Tundra
Surprisingly, the only component that showed noticeable wear on the older Tundra was the driver’s side sun visor holder. The seat frame and foam remained usable, while the cargo platform showed significant rust in multiple spots. As a result, the new generation adopted composite paneling for the cargo area to enhance durability and longevity.
From the lessons learned after studying more than a million pickups, Toyota strengthened the new Tundra with an reinforced cargo platform, expanded the frame’s contact area, and adopted a larger cross-section timing chain. Additional storage spaces were added to the cab to accommodate manual equipment. These changes aimed to improve robustness, serviceability, and daily practicality for owners across varied use cases.
The new Toyota Tundra was unveiled in September 2021. It rides on a redesigned frame made from welded tubular profiles and fabricated from high-grade steel. The suspension system uses a front independent setup and a rear dependent setup, with a chassis nicknamed Toyota F1. This same platform is shared with the Land Cruiser 300 family for its proven rigidity and durability.
Powertrain options for the new Tundra center on V6 turbo engines. The base configuration features a 3.5-liter engine with a twin-supercharger delivering 389 horsepower and 649 Nm of torque. An upper trim adds the i-Force hybrid system, combining internal combustion with electric motor assistance to produce 437 horsepower and 790 Nm of torque. Both powertrains pair with a 10-speed hydromechanical automatic transmission. Transmission and drive options include rear-drive and full-time four-wheel drive to suit different terrains and workloads.
Note: This article draws on historical program disclosures and manufacturer data gathered through a blend of public briefings and official teardown reports attributed to Toyota. Readers seeking more technical depth may refer to company documentation and industry testing summaries for corroboration.
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