Cars.com's Joe Wiesenfelder walks you through the 2008 Toyota Tundra. It competes with the Ford F-150 and GMC Sierra.
Transcript
[rock music] Hi, I'm Joe Wiesenfelder with cars.com. It's June 2008, last month two Toyota models outsold the mega selling, Ford F series pickup truck. Neither of those models was this one, the Toyota Tundra full sized pickup.
Toyota spent untold resources making the Tundra competitive with the other guys for 2007. Just in time for the bottom to drop out of the pickup truck market. Now, if you're still gonna buy a pickup truck, and you really need one, it's more important then ever to get a really good one. So I will give you a few highlights of this truck, help you figure out if this is the one that is right for you. My sense is it might not be. Now for years and years, Toyota kicked the domestic manufacturers butts in terms of interior quality. I don't see it anymore. It's not to say the quality isn't good in the Tundra, it is. But it's not better then what you get in the Fords and the GMs now. One thing I loved in the Tundra, when it first came out, first truck with a backup camera. Now in addition with helping you when you're backing up, which is important, this is the trailer hitch right here. You can actually attach a trailer by yourself. If you have this camera, it comes with a navigation system. It coasts a couple grand. You can also get a back up camera for a little bit less. Now even though this is a double cab, that's the middle of three cab sizes, the doors open forward, which means, you don't have to open the front door first. It's easy to get in, and once I'm in here I have plenty of leg room, even with the front seat all the way back, I'm 6 feet tall. If you get a crew max, that's the larger cab size, the crew cab, you get another 10 inches of leg room. The seats recline, they slide back and forth. Now that's nice if you're going on a road trip, and all, but the question is, with gas prices where they are, is someone gonna buy a pickup truck anymore for personal use. If not, this is probably the better way to go. 'Cause there's room for people, and you get more bed length. So as far as cargo, Toyota included a tailgate that doesn't flop down, it kinda comes down slowly. They don't have as many of the tricks as you'll see, say in the 2009 F150 that's coming, which has a drop down step to get it. A post to hold onto, a split bed extender in the back, and you can even get another step for the side. As for the bed itself, it's about 6 and a half feet long in this extended cab version. If you have the crew cab, it would be 5 and half feet long. Again you're losing utility for more inside space. At the end of the tailgate here, it's about 8 feet long in this one. So you could carry building supplies. In the crew max they would be hanging off the end. Now you can see the problem right here, at these Chicago gas prices, a full tank in this Toyota Tundra comes to $116.16. Obviously buying a full sized pick up truck is a bigger commitment then ever before, you gotta make it count. Now, it happens that this power train the four by four, with the 5.7 liter V8, is not recommended by consumer reports anymore, because of reliability problems. That is not true of the Ford and the GM pickups. So, you've gotta take a really hard look at what you want. Make sure you compare the latest from all the different manufacturers, before making your discission. [Unidentified Man]For additional information on this car, or any other, got to cars.com, and our blog KickingTires.
