Driving Impressions

Pick-up buyers can be like beer drinkers. No one will convince them that another brand is better than their own, and their loyalty can rest as much in image as taste (or performance). We won't even try to convince anyone that the Toyota Tundra is better than any other half-ton pickup on the market. We'll simply observe that it's as good as any. Pickup manufacturers, on the other hand, like to tout their different tacks on frame design, materials and construction. There's hydro-formed this, C-channel that, fully boxed the other, welded versus one-piece, high-tensile steel versus low-vibration, etc. For the record, the Tundra is a hybrid unibody-on-frame, which is fully boxed in the front half, rolled C-channel in back. Truth, though, is that what a driver really cares about is how it all comes together under the right foot, at the seat of the pants and at the hitch. And with all six full-size, light-duty trucks in play (counting the GMC Sierra), the Toyota Tundra sits near the front of the bench. In some ways it's tops, and in others it falls a bit short. It lacks some features such as optional rear-end ratios that allow owners to tailor a truck more specifically to their needs. In basic technology and overall refinement, it might be the best. Examples from the powertrain department make the point. The V6 and the 4.7-liter V8 are what have been state of the art for a number of years, as are some of the competition's engines, with features such as variable intake valve timing, sequential fuel injection, knock sensors (allowing in most cases use of 87 octane gas), electronically managed throttle-by-wire and dual-length intake manifolds. But the big Tundra news, and in the truest sense of that word, is the 5.7-liter V8. This V8 advances light-duty truck engine technology with the addition of variable exhaust valve timing. And not just timing, but phasing as well, also changing the speed of the valves' movement, the duration (how long the valves stay open) and the overlap between exhaust and intake. Careful manipulation of these dynamics achieves two, complementary goals, optimizing power and fuel economy and lessening stress on valve springs. Downstream, the two-into-one, dual exhaust system achieves balance between the two pipes by looping one back on itself inside the muffler, thus making them in fact the same length and, for the most part, equalizing back pressure so one bank of cylinders doesn't have to work any harder than the other in pumping combusted gases out of the engine. It all works toward what many pickup buyers seek and expect: long-mileage engine durability. There's more, but these examples make clear that Toyota's engineers didn't just cobble together some bits and pieces from the engine department's parts bins in building what is one of the most powerful V8s in the class. The benefits of this level of attention to detail are evident driving in and working with the Tundra. On the road, power delivery in the two V8 engines is linear, and surprisingly strong at low engine speed. This is especially so in the 5.7-liter, where 90 percent of the torque is on tap from 2400 revolutions per minute to 5500 rpm. Very impressive is the absence of any discernible surge sometimes associated with overhead-cam, multi-valve engines. Fuel economy is competitive, though not best in class. Tundra's maximum towing capacity of 10,800 pounds was best in class when it was launched in 2007, and it remains near the top compared to Chevy, Dodge, Ford and Nissan. Based on towing enclosed and open car trailers from L.A. to Monterey and from L.A. to Phoenix and back, we're here to tell you the 5.7-liter has more than enough pulling power. Overall, both the five-speed and six-speed automatic transmissions work well. Gear changes are smooth, though more apparent when trailering. Downshifts during braking on downhill grades are well managed, properly timed and he

Final Word

The Toyota Tundra is a full-size pickup in every sense of the term, and it gives up nothing to the full-size trucks from Chevy, Ford, Dodge, Nissan, and GMC. The Toyota delivers power, payload and tow ratings that meet or beat the best, it's exceptionally comfortable, and it's easy to drive. For 2008, the Tundra is priced more aggressively, with lower-trim, work-grade models in more configurations, and more standard equipment on the up-line models. NewCarTestDrive.com correspondent Tom Lankard filed this report from Louisville, Kentucky; with J.P. Vettraino in Detroit.