We like
Strong, smooth, and efficient driveline; reassuring road holding; quiet and comfortable cabin; generous payload and towing capacity; solid warranty and aftersales support

Room for improvement
Pricier than direct rivals; climate control zone conflict; some interior surfaces simply don’t befit the model’s price tag; no front centre seat option available as per some rivals; no digital radio

Overview

 

TOYOTA’S local conversion of the American-made Tundra is an important move for the importer, and one that gives it the opportunity to take on not only its nearest segment rivals, but also the potential to offer Aussie customers other left-hand drive vehicles down the track – assuming the business case stacks up.

 

The Toyota Tundra Limited tested here (priced from $155,990 plus on-road costs) is remanufactured in Dandenong South, Victoria, from a blend of newly fabricated OEM parts and LandCruiser 300 Series components that share the Tundra’s TNGA-F ladder-frame platform. GoAuto understands a high-grade Capstone variant will join the line-up from later this year.

 

As noted previously, the Tundra offers the strongest driveline output of its price-point competitors (326kW/790Nm) and is impressively efficient too. Toyota’s hybridised -Force Max 3.4-litre V6 giving some HiLux segment competitors a run for their money, while at the same time offering greater payload (758kg) and braked towing capacity (4500kg).

 

Dimensionally, the Tundra measures 5955mm in length (the longest in its class), 2040mm in width, 1985mm in height, and 3700mm between the front and rear axles. The model’s GVM is listed at 3536kg and GCM 7825kg, so bear in mind that payload capacity will decrease significantly when towing at ten-tenths.

 

The attention-grabbing front-end is dominated by an expansive chrome-finished grille and T-shaped LED headlights sporting automatic high beam technology. There’s even an active front spoiler below the grille that automatically deploys and retracts for ground clearance and aerodynamic gains based on driving conditions.

 

Flared wheel arches house 20-inch alloy wheels, the profile joined by standard crushed tube side steps help enable easy access to the wide opening front and rear doors, the latter with Limited badging on the window’s rearward frame.

 

Further back, the broad tailgate and classy vertical rear LED light clusters are complemented by a purposeful rear bumper whose integrated step provided easy access to the bed. The bed itself features four tie-down points, an adjustable racking system, and a plastic liner, while the tailgate is assisted in both its opening and closing motions.

 

The Tundra is available in nine exterior colours consisting of Glacier White, Frosted White, Graphite, Silver Storm, Eclipse Black, Feverish Red, Vintage Brown Pearl, Jungle Khaki and Saturn Blue.

 

As noted, the Tundra is powered by a 3.4-litre twin-turbocharged V6 petrol engine (290kW/694Nm) paired with a motor/generator (36kW/250Nm) and 10-speed automatic transmission. Power is apportioned via a part-time selectable four-wheel drive system (2WD and 4WD) with a dual-range transfer case.

 

The 2778kg (kerb) Tundra Limited is suspended by a double wishbone front and four-link rigid axle with dual-rate coil springs rear arrangement Toyota says is designed and tuned to provide a balance between ride comfort and dynamic handling – on- and off road.

 

Steering is electro-hydraulically assisted (as per the LandCruiser 300 Series) while braking is via four-wheel discs measuring 354mm at the front (and with four-piston callipers) and 335mm at the rear (with a single-pot clamp).

 

For the Aussie market, we find a full array of safety technologies including ABS, vehicle stability control, hill-start assist and trailer sway control, a trio of drive modes, an integrated tow hitch and trailer brake controller, two towing modes, a trailer reversing guide that can autonomously control steering to assist when reversing, a panoramic view monitor and rear-view camera with guidelines, and a switchable digital rear view mirror.

 

Inside, the Tundra is both spacious and well-equipped with a level of fit and finish that is clearly as good as its left-hand drive donor.

 

The cabin is fitted with useful storage throughout (including 14 beverage holders) and is upholstered in synthetic leather with a geometric perforation pattern, while the front seats are electrically adjustable with three-stage heating and ventilation and powered lumbar support.

 

Rear passengers score acres of leg- and headroom, ventilation, and abundant storage features, the rear bench folding 60:40 and with under-base storage for added practicality. There are two ISOFIX and three top-tether child-seat anchors available while the rear window retracts in full to accommodate longer loads, or to simply allow natural air flow through the cabin.

 

The driver looks at a large 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster that provides a broad range of customisable layouts that can include vehicle, audio, navigation, and phone call information, surrounding a central analogue-style tachometer and digital speedometer.

 

In the centre of the dash’ is a 14.0-inch touchscreen (the largest on any Toyota vehicle in Oz) that provides access to the latest generation multimedia system with Bluetooth compatibility, AM/FM radio (no DAB+), voice recognition, wireless Apple CarPlay and wired Android Auto functionality. Sound is via a 12-speaker JBL audio system we must say is very impressive.

 

There are USB and power outlets through the front and rear, the capacious cabin cooled and heated via a somewhat vocal dual-zone climate control system whose left and right dials are mismatched to local requirements – the left-hand dial controlling the SYNC (or single-zone) setting instead of the right.

 

Australian Tundra models were validated under Toyota’s strict quality standards, commensurate with the model being fully covered by the Toyota Warranty Advantage, a five-year/unlimited-kilometre warranty, and five years of capped price servicing at $450 per service over intervals of six months or 10,000km, whichever comes first.

 

Driving Impressions

 

While the Tundra is of a robust design and clearly designed to work, its hard cabin plastics and sticky vinyl seats may contrast against the expectations a $160K on-road price imbues. That’s not to say the vehicle isn’t well finished – it is. It’s just that the material choices aren’t as rich as those found in some large segment pick-up rivals.

 

Perhaps we’ll need to wait for the Capstone variant to enjoy more luxuries…

 

But there’s certainly no waiting to enjoy the performance – and efficiency – the Tundra has to offer. With a 0-100km/h time of close to 6.0 seconds, the Tundra is impressively quick. It offers plenty of overtaking punch (even with 600kg in the tray), and is delightfully gutsy to the ear, sounding more like a V8 when underload than it has any right to.

 

The 10-speed automatic is smooth and decisive for the most part, the combination of a petrol V6 and electric motor providing less engine braking than desired, the manual selection of gears almost compulsory when descending grades. Obviously, there is no exhaust braking to be had (as in some diesel-powered competitors), though we’d have expected more from the motor/generator’s regenerative efforts in providing the Tundra with additional retardation.

 

Thankfully, the brakes are endlessly strong, the pedal action sweetly assisted and proportioned to offer car-like smooth stops, even when the load bed is packed to the gunwales with farm supplies.

 

The Tundra’s electro-hydraulic steering is light yet feelsome offering just over three turns from lock to lock. The turning circle is expectedly large at 15.0m yet we had no issue parking the Tundra in a standard bay – excusing the fact the nose (or tail) overhangs by a quite a few centimetres.

 

The squared-off bonnet and clever camera system makes light work of close-quarter manoeuvring, though with the rear-view mirror’s lens positioned on the roof, there is little advantage to seeing what’s behind when the bed is fully loaded. Thankfully the wing mirrors offer adequate rearward vision.

 

On our pockmarked test loop north-west of Melbourne, the Tundra performed admirably in ironing flat all but the largest road craters, the long wheelbase and all-coil suspension remaining composed when challenged. It is a more comfortable ride than we have experienced from the F-150, Silverado, or 1500 and one that is far quieter. Lengthy stints behind the ‘wheel are an absolute breeze.

 

Given the vehicle’s GVM exceeds 3500kg, Toyota is not required to publish an ADR Combined cycle fuel consumption figure. Though we kind of think it should – for no other reason than to show up the competition.

 

American EPA estimates place the Tundra Limited 4x4 Hybrid at 19mpg city (12.4 litres per 100km), 22mpg highway (10.7l/100km), and 21mpg combined (11.2l/100km). On test we saw as high as 14.6l/100km loaded and an unloaded number of 10.5l/100km over a predominantly rural route – not bad for a vehicle that had just 31km on the odometer at the time of collection.

 

The Tundra boasts a 122-litre fuel tank and requires 95RON (or higher) premium unleaded petrol. Given our test average of 12.6 litres per 100km, that should see a driving range of 970km (or 1162km on the open road).

 

While the Tundra mightn’t yet have the following Chevrolet, Ford, and Ram truck do Down Under, it is a vehicle that in our opinion deserves a closer look. As a more refined, quieter, more powerful, and more efficient alternative to the “big three”, the Big T is a vehicle that in our view is held back only by its price tag.

 

If Toyota Australia could find a way to level the Tundra with its nearest rivals (see pricing table below), we think it would sell like those proverbial hot cakes.

 

2025 Pick-Up/Cab-Chassis over $100K pricing*:

 

Make/Model	Price
Chevrolet Silverado LTZ Premium (a)	$130,500
Ford F-150 XLT (a)	$106,950
Ram 1500 Big Horn (a)	$119,950
Toyota Tundra Limited (a)	$155,990

 

*Pricing excludes on-road costs.