After years of having its "not quite full-size" Tundra cowering in the shadows of the meat & potatoes Chevy Silverado, Ford F-150, and the newcomer Nissan Titan, Toyota has busted out of its mold big time with the '07 Tundra. There's no mistaking this truck for anything other than full-size.
5.7L iForce V-8:
400 lbs./ft.?
As big or bigger than its competitors in almost every quantifiable measurement, it also bigger in one key area that often seals the deal for power-hungry full-size truck enthusiasts: Under the hood. The top engine offering is now a 5.7 liter version of the iForce V-8, larger than the Chevy 5.3, Ford 5.4, and larger than the archrival Nissan Titan's 5.6 liter Endurance V-8. Though no power specifications were given at the show, it's shouldn't be much of a stretch to predict easily more than 300 horsepower and 350 lbs./ft. of torque. We're willing to go out on a limb to predict about 350 horsepower and a nice, round 400 lbs./ft. of torque. This would make the Toyota the undisputed half-ton torque king, easily besting the 375 lbs./ft. of Dodge's Hemi, 380 lbs./ft. of the Vortec Max 6000, and the 379 lbs./ft. of the Titan's Endurance.
Capability? Toyota is claiming a towing capacity of more than 10,000 pounds, again, making it class leader in the half-ton segment. Also keeping with the class-leading theme, the standard transmission with the 5.7 iForce is a new heavy-duty six-speed automatic. The 4.7 liter iForce V-8 and 4.0 liter V-6 carry over as the standard engine options for lower-line models.
About the only obstacle Toyota may have to overcome in winning over converts from the Big Three is its foreign nameplate. Think Toyota's full-force entry into NASCAR is a coincidence? Not a chance. So it was no surprise that the new Tundra's American heritage was played to the hilt at the introduction. Engineering development was directed by the Toyota Technical Center in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Styling, inside and out, was the work of Toyota's Calty Research and Design Centers in Newport Beach, California and Ann Arbor, Michigan. Finally, the new Tundra will be built at Toyota Motor Manufacturing in Princeton, Indiana and Toyota's new truck plant in San Antonio, Texas, the heart of full-size truck country.
2007 TUNDRA PRELIMINARY SPECIFICATIONS
DIMENSIONS (inches)
Overall length: 228.7
Overall width: 79.9
Overall height: 76.4
Wheelbase: 145.7
TRUCK BED DIMENSIONS (inches)
Bed length 78.7
Bed width (at wheel wells) 65.0
Bed width (between wheel wells): 50.0
Bed width (wall-to-wall): 65.0
Bed depth: 22.3