One thing I've noticed in my research here and elsewhere is the Tundra's seem to be a bit of an enigma. Those that use them as a TV seem pretty happy, those that don't just don't seem to know. I've been doing some research and think I see why they are a bit of a mystery. A couple of main points:
1. Toyota seems to be the only manufacturer that is already using the new tow-rating guidelines when rating their vehicles. It is not required until 2014 (I think) and no one else is on-board yet. This results in a significantly lower rating (about 15%) than the same vehicle a year ago.
2. Toyota does not seem to rate towing capacity any different based on 'normal' towing and fifth wheel towing. Ford, GM, and Dodge all give their vehicles a significantly higher rating when towing 5th wheels (up to 35% on the exact same model).
I came across an interesting tool on the GMC website that allows direct comparison of different models. Huge kudos to GMC for this tool as it certainly seems to fairly represent their and their competitors products. If only all companies were like this... What struck me as interesting was that I was looking at a 3500 series GMC truck and the default comparison showed that a Tundra compared very favorably. The comparison was for the gas-powered V-8's (Toyota offers no diesel and no dual-wheel options), but still, seeing similar horsepower and torque ratings when comparing a 3500 series got me playing with the tool a bit more. This somewhat solves, I think, the enigma that is the Tundra as a tow vehicle. Basically it's a 25x (250/2500) drivetrain but everyone considers it a 15x (150/1500) vehicle. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it's probably the best 25X gasoline drivetrain available.
Here is the comparison I made with the Tundra and three similar 25x series trucks from the major brands. These are all 4X4 Crew cabs with as similar a configuration as I could come up with. (Note link goes to .jpg of screen capture, the link was too long). What you see is that while the GMC lags a bit behind, the horsepower and torque ratings for Ford, Dodge, and Toyota are all similar. By similar I mean all within 1% of each other. Definitely not enough to worry about. What is striking however, is that last figure in the torque ratings. The Tundra's torque comes up to its peak fully 900 RPM sooner than the Ford and 400 sooner than the Dodge. That would definitely get your attention when towing a heavy load. Having more torque, sooner in the power band is the holy grail of towing. I think that's most likely why the Tundra owners seem quite satisfied, they get just as much power, sooner than 25x series trucks even though the Tundras are in the half-ton category.
What does this mean? Well in the scheme of things, not a whole lot. It explains why we see people say the Tundra can tow this or that load even when we all consider it 'just another half-ton'. Most people just don't put it into the 25x category of tow vehicle. That being said it really is still considered a half-ton truck. This comparison shows nothing about weights and if you start thinking you'll just run out and get a Tundra in place of a 25x domestic (OK, Tundras are actually built in Texas, but you know what I mean) TV you will most likely run into serious tongue/pin weight issues not to mention the liability issues of exceeding max GCVW on the roads. This is not meant to be an endorsement to go out and exceed Toyota's recommendations (though I wish they'd make a 5th wheel specific one). It's also not meant to be a knock on GMC, because all things considered, I really want a 3500 Denali
D.A. Hall
1. Toyota seems to be the only manufacturer that is already using the new tow-rating guidelines when rating their vehicles. It is not required until 2014 (I think) and no one else is on-board yet. This results in a significantly lower rating (about 15%) than the same vehicle a year ago.
2. Toyota does not seem to rate towing capacity any different based on 'normal' towing and fifth wheel towing. Ford, GM, and Dodge all give their vehicles a significantly higher rating when towing 5th wheels (up to 35% on the exact same model).
I came across an interesting tool on the GMC website that allows direct comparison of different models. Huge kudos to GMC for this tool as it certainly seems to fairly represent their and their competitors products. If only all companies were like this... What struck me as interesting was that I was looking at a 3500 series GMC truck and the default comparison showed that a Tundra compared very favorably. The comparison was for the gas-powered V-8's (Toyota offers no diesel and no dual-wheel options), but still, seeing similar horsepower and torque ratings when comparing a 3500 series got me playing with the tool a bit more. This somewhat solves, I think, the enigma that is the Tundra as a tow vehicle. Basically it's a 25x (250/2500) drivetrain but everyone considers it a 15x (150/1500) vehicle. In fact, I'd go so far as to say it's probably the best 25X gasoline drivetrain available.
Here is the comparison I made with the Tundra and three similar 25x series trucks from the major brands. These are all 4X4 Crew cabs with as similar a configuration as I could come up with. (Note link goes to .jpg of screen capture, the link was too long). What you see is that while the GMC lags a bit behind, the horsepower and torque ratings for Ford, Dodge, and Toyota are all similar. By similar I mean all within 1% of each other. Definitely not enough to worry about. What is striking however, is that last figure in the torque ratings. The Tundra's torque comes up to its peak fully 900 RPM sooner than the Ford and 400 sooner than the Dodge. That would definitely get your attention when towing a heavy load. Having more torque, sooner in the power band is the holy grail of towing. I think that's most likely why the Tundra owners seem quite satisfied, they get just as much power, sooner than 25x series trucks even though the Tundras are in the half-ton category.
What does this mean? Well in the scheme of things, not a whole lot. It explains why we see people say the Tundra can tow this or that load even when we all consider it 'just another half-ton'. Most people just don't put it into the 25x category of tow vehicle. That being said it really is still considered a half-ton truck. This comparison shows nothing about weights and if you start thinking you'll just run out and get a Tundra in place of a 25x domestic (OK, Tundras are actually built in Texas, but you know what I mean) TV you will most likely run into serious tongue/pin weight issues not to mention the liability issues of exceeding max GCVW on the roads. This is not meant to be an endorsement to go out and exceed Toyota's recommendations (though I wish they'd make a 5th wheel specific one). It's also not meant to be a knock on GMC, because all things considered, I really want a 3500 Denali
D.A. Hall
