Motor Trends Spins Tundra Into Truck of the Year
Motor Trend (MT) has named the Tundra their Truck of the Year. Yes, "The new Toyota Tundra is now ready to take on any American-made pickup truck– on all levels." To get the gong, an aspiring pickup had to be new or redesigned in the 12 months before Jan. 1, 2008. So the only "American-made pickup trucks" that qualified were the heavy-duty versions of the Silverado, Sierra and F-series. Hang on; how come the new Tundra, introduced as an '07 model, qualifies? It's about as much as mystery as why MT considers "significance" one of their three judging criteria. Anyway, in their official reveal, MT spends a paragraph sloughing off the Tundra's well-publicized recalls and quality problems. "Our guess is many of these stories spread like wildfire, given the lightning-rod effect this new truck is having with enthusiasts and the speed with which an Internet item can travel." And of the latest recall for a soft joint in the rear driveshaft, they add, "(EDITOR'S NOTE: Testing, judging, and story for the February 2008 issue of Motor Trend were completed and printed before the latest safety recall involving 15,600 2007 Tundras to correct a potential driveshaft issue)" It's amazing how much spin a generous advertising budget can buy.
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Seeing the equality between the TOTY offerings, it's possible that MT was attempting to offset choosing the domestic CTS as COTY.
Phew, atlast someone who sees the worth of the big TUNDRA. Nice work MOTOR TREND.
Fine, they make a good small truck. But I thought we were talking about the Tundra. “If you think Toyota lacks understanding about what makes a real truck, I would with respect, invite you to check out the TOPGEAR videos on YouTube where the guys destroy a Toyota PU. I would say with all sincerity that there is not a Ford, GM or Dodge PU ‘heavy duty’ or not on this planet that could take the abuse that this Toyota HiLux took, Period.” I agree 100%
Good for Toyota, the Tundra is a huge step forward. The Tundra is a good truck. By the amount of Tundra hate on this and many other boards it is legit and have the domestics very worried. I have seen them as work trucks but some contractor's can't use them because of the unionized job sites won't allow them.