Not Impressed.

At first I thought the thread title was about tonight's state of the union address.

Ironically, my review on a 2022 SR5 2 months ago mirrors your comments. Huge let down after a 9 year wait. I felt like interior was more GM like. The one I drove was an SR5 but felt smaller and cramped. Didn't feel very truck like. I'll probably be moving to Ford or keeping my 2nd gen.

I'm also not huge on tech but I will say the huge middle screen in the Ford is better placed in a recently rented F150 with huge screen. The back up over tow hitch was nice and convenient. This feature wouldn't get me to leave my Tundra but I recently ordered a raptor on 37s with pro power on board for 74k OTD. If it comes in and I love it I'll buy it. Not out anything if I don't. At that point I'll keep both and sell whichever nets me more $$

 

Really curious about that ventilated seat comment. Doesn’t happen on my truck and I can hear the fans really working on the max setting. It’s loud though so I don’t use it much.

The battery voltage thing is not new. Toyota will stop charging the battery to keep load off the engine (needle will move down to 3/8 position at 12.5 V). It will charge when you’re off the throttle or when voltage drops below some threshold (needle will move to middle at 14 V). I may be wrong but I though last few years of the 2nd gen did this too.

 

I’ll ask. I’m gonna guess welcome, mn. But thats just a guess.

 

In such case with a 4 runner, id get a 2000$ trailer that can haul 2000 lbs and use it only as needed. Im one of the guys that is in shock seeing people loading dirt and rocks in their truck beds. A van van haul a trailer occasionally too. Each can decide what they do with their money.

 

I have one question. What does "drives like a truck" actually mean? It handles like crap in some effort to give the sense that its more capable?

I own three body on frame vehicles at the moment and can't say I ever said I wished they were less compliant or smooth on the road. Two have leafs in the rear, one has coils. One has leafs and solid axle in the front, the other two are IFS. So a pretty broad range of combinations. None of them handle or feel great or untruck like to me. Of all of them, my Lexus GX handles and rides the best but would not classify it as good.

You know what "truck" did impress me. The Durango R/T I rented in LA. For its size and weight it handled extremely well. It actually made me want to drive it fast through corners.

 

I think many expect a truck to ride stiff. The new Tundra felt much more compliant or "car like" to me. The handling also felt much more confident. Again jmo.

 

Which you would expect being that its a 5 link coil sprung rear.

Having owned an F150 for 7 years, and renting numerous Ram 1500's for work trips, I always felt that the Ram rode and handled better than my F150. This was doubly true before I put Bilsteins on my F150. I would say my F150 feels more truck like for sure but not in a good way.

I would guess if I loaded both trucks up with the same payload or same trailer, the Ram might handle better. I know that my Lexus GX actually feel more confident on twisty roads with my 5500 lb travel trailer than my F150 does and I believe its the 5 link rear suspension with beefy sway bar that does it, same setup as the ram and same as the 3rd gen Tundra. I am sure my F150 would do better with an aftermarket sway bar but I have yet to pull the trigger on that.

For me the 3rd gen Tundra is the ideal combo. Its got the chassis of a Ram 1500 with the powertrain of a Ford F150. Thats really why I am interested in it. They cherry picked the best parts of the competitors trucks and crammed them into one. While it may not be the best at everything, its certainly a well rounded truck.

 

Except for the lack of tow hooks and rear bumper step...

 

GM's bumper steps becomes significantly less useful when you have a topper or tonneau cover. I run a topper on my truck to protect a variety of things I carry around so they are virtually useless for me.

And Ford's tailgate step sucks up something like 50 lbs of payload capacity. I have one on my current truck and would probably not order it on the next one. It does help getting in and out, especially with the topper, but 50 lbs is a lot of payload to sacrifice when our half tons already have so little as it is.

Honestly, the only configuration that interests me is Rams barn door tailgate. It functions like a regular gate but then opens to the side as well so that you can reach into the bed without that extra 1.5' of tailgate in the way. Thats useful whether you have a topper, tonneau or open bed. In many cases you never even would need to step up at all.

 

I like the Ridgeline style.

My brother likes the GM Multi Pro but he doesn't have a canopy or tonneau cover.

 

Steering was very numb. Felt like an accord.

 

Interesting. Both my 2019 Tundra and the 2022 feel like driving dump trucks compared to all the sedans I've owned.

 

I use a toolbox, so no tonneau cover for me. So as for now, it's either climb into the bed, then let the tailgate down, or tell my 13 y/o son, "Hey, go fetch that for me."

 

With no bias whatsoever, the 2.5 gen steers much nicer than the 3rd gen.. Maybe it's preference, but I like more steering feel and I like knowing where my tires are, and what they're doing. It doesn't have to feel like a monster truck to accomplish that... This is also something that can be changed/adjusted by toyota through software since they're using electric power steering. The ease of use (steering wheel) on the 3rd gen is a night and day difference. You can call the 3rd gen "easier" to drive, but that's not necessarily a good thing.

In the Porsche 911 world (for reference from my own personal experiences), there was a massive change in steering feel between generations when they switched to electric from hydraulic. Their hydraulic steering was legendary, and the next gen was a let down.. However they are evolving and advancing to the point where their electric steering has almost caught up. Hopefully this is just a new chapter for Toyota and they will also evolve down the line.

 

Curious. What P car do you have? From your own personal experience....

 

Respectfully, I feel like your opinion is completely subjective. Also, I don't recall saying the 3rd gen was "easier" to drive, but perhaps you meant "some" rather than "You".

But it is your review. So there is that.

I am always suspicious when folks keep insisting they are unbiased that they may be biased.

 

probably because its electric power steer? Virtually everyone has gone that direction at this point.

 

For sure. When I had a 4runner I'd use a trailer for big loads and then I'd use a hitch basket while hunting to put the deer/other animals in.

Here's the thing though... There's small game seasons where I'm not putting pheasants, squirrels, grouse etc in a hitch basket. And I'm a big fisherman too. I owned SUVs and the damn things ALWAYS smelled like game and fish. Either from the day's take or my gear.

Now... throw it in the truck bed and hose it out and never worry about the smells of my hobbies.

I always had Tacomas when I moved to a truck. The beds are plastic so they're not going to dent, or rust. If they get a little scratched up, well it's a truck. I only care about the paint, interior, and under carriage. The bed is going to get used and I'm so glad they went to the composite for this truck. Best bed on the market hands down

 

Okay, you noticed no difference in steering feel. Noted.

 

That's the culprit for sure. This can be changed through software, so perhaps a TRD PRO or different trim could feel different. There was a huge difference in steering feel between a Platinum and TRD PRO in the last gen.

However from limited to limited between the last gen and this one, there's still a change in steering feel due to the electric steering and as of now it's not for the better in terms of driver feedback. It is better in a sense that there's no pumps, hoses, and hydraulic power steering fluid. This must be addressed from Toyota IMO.

 

Between my 2019 and the 2022? Oh yeah, lots of difference.

 

You find that the 2022 offers more or better feedback? Sure, it's easier or "smoother" but that's at the cost of steering feel IMO.

 

Mouseballs, you said you had a 911 and then deleted it. What 911 do you drive? I'm curious.

 

I'm not trying to bag on you so please don't take it that way. But do you really feel that the steering is such a big issue that it needs addressed? I have no issues with the steering and like the responsiveness... it's a truck. I have a '22 and just drove a 2nd gen a few days ago to compare and there isn't a single thing I prefer on a 2nd gen except the noise of the V8. My '22 is smoother in every way.

And I know you've said about driving sports cars and this and that. I've had my fair share of time in them, mostly BMWs. Everything from Z3s and E36s to pretty much all the M Cars and even a Z8 (that one had me nervous). The only steering in any vehicle that I've absolutely HATED was somewhere in the 2007-11 range where BMW had extremely stiff steering. Every other car I've driven nothing really stands out as problematic. I'm not racing any cars or anything, but I do drive about 50k miles per year and that's just my opinion...

 

I did not say easier, I said more confident. Pretty much just the opposite of your experience. I think this may be the point where we just start circling one another. I'm not saying you are wrong, just that I am right, lol. Cheers man, it's all good.

 

So does that mean the new Tundra rides and feels more like the Ridgeline now ? (since you guys are referencing it in this thread)

I owned a 1st Gen Ridgeline a while back. Great vehicle. The Cab room of a full size GM, Ford, Ram inside not as big as the 2nd Gen Tundra Cab which was the class leader.
The steering was electric from what I remember like this new Tundra.

 

I can't say since I have never driven a Ridgeline.

 

No, Gen 3 Tundra does not have steering feedback like a 911. I know this first hand since I own a 991.2 GT3. As a matter of fact the steering does not have any feedback in the Tundra, lol. You do not need a P car to know that.

However, the truck does drive really nice, especially handling wise, and is much better than similar trucks. I owned a 16’ Ram 1500, and the Tundra is better in every single way.

I will never buy a Ford vehicle again, complete junk. Go see the forums on the Ford side or Ram side. Their cars have 2-3x more issue when new. I had a TRX on order and canceled it due to the issues with the new RAM people were having.

 

No Steering feel is the comments I have read. Its needed for the trailer assist and keeping "in the lane" feature.
I happen to own a 993. The feel is important. That aside.
the new Tundra needs two more turns of the wheel. this is not good for dynamics especially on tight trails or doing a three point turn on a street.
Just stating facts.

This is never good for dynamics either. Front overhang Gen 2 vs 3.

 

I drove a new 2022 Tundra yesterday at my local Toyota dealer at the request of my salesman who I have bought several Toyotas from (including my 2016 Tundra). It was a plain SR5 CM 4x4 with only the convenience package and no other factory options, which is exactly how I want one.

The dealer had added $4,000 of dealer add-ons to run the price up (mostly things that have little or no value to me and certainly not worth anywhere close to $4,000). I don't blame dealers for increasing the price given that there is a supply problem and they are no longer selling in volume and they have to make a profit and stay in business.

I only went on a very short drive, but I was not impressed with anything about the truck other than the motor. In fact, I much prefer most of the things on my 2016 Tundra (larger interior, better seats, metal bed, flat rear floor with the seat up, etc.). I did not even think the ride was that much, if any, better. It did feel a little tighter, probably from the more rigid frame, but it was only slightly noticeable.

Honestly, the truck borders on being ugly to me. The truck was silver (not my favorite color but not one I hate), which highlighted the ugly black wheel well molding, and, with the ugly standard SR5 wheels and all the perverted bumps and sharp edges on the truck, it looked borderline ugly to me. I am sure that if I put better wheels and tires on it that would help a lot, and a darker color would probably change things a lot. Those two things could even make the truck look a lot nicer (probably). I am trying very hard to like the looks of the truck because I know I may have to own one some day, but it is an uphill battle.

I hope Toyota does a refresh in about 3 or 4 years and it looks better, but I will never prefer the interior space, seats, plastic bed, etc.

I am the most Toyota guy you will ever meet (all I buy are Toyotas and I have been buying them for decades), and I have cash to buy whatever I want whenever I want, but relative to my 2016 I am not buying the new one. My 2016 is like new (I keep my vehicles like that and it has low miles) and I just prefer most things on it. In my opinion, Toyota screwed this design up (other than the motor).

Since a picture is worth a thousand words, I edited this post and attached a picture of the truck I drove.