Going over bumps, potholes, etc....are trucks tougher than cars?

Although I try to avoid potholes, Are trucks like the tundra tough enough that I don't have to worry much about going over average potholes or bumps in the road. I've always had a habit, when driving any car or truck, of kind of cringing after driving over one of those, thinking "oops...thats not good for truck"...and I've always been maybe looking a little too carefully to avoid going over bumps and small potholes......I guess so...now that i think about it, since going off road would be one continous pothole almost, and people do that all the time....??

 

I guess that question would be relevant to the size of the potholes and the frequency. The "safe" answer is, potholes do create additional wear and tear on suspension and steering components as do driving down rough dirt or gravel roads. Reality for everyday driving is to dodge the ones you can and hope you don't bust a tire or wheel on the ones you didn't see.
The effects of hitting a pothole are usually lessened by having larger tires/wheels vs a car.
My Tundra with 285/65/20 tires is tougher in this aspect than my Miata with 205/45/17's.

 

I live in Maine. We have two seasons: construction/pothole and winter. Replaced the Bilsteins on my old Wrangler around 100k because it was starting to squeak and driving me insane, whether that was wear from the shitty roads or debris from the dirt roads I frequent is anyone's guess. My Tacoma was stiffer than hell so every time I nailed any decent ones the whole truck shook like hell and I'd cringe as well, no give to the suspension even in the TRD. The Tundra rides a million times nicer where it's a bit heavier.
Replacing suspension in the grand scheme of things is only as expensive as you want it to be and imo falls under the 'general maintenance items' category and is to be expected if you own the vehicle long enough. Husband's first-gen Tundra didn't need suspension until 260k miles, he bought it at 120k and it appeared stock still so at a minimum made it 140k, that includes annual towing of a 5k lb camper to FL and NH.

It's a truck, it'll take it.

 

Your tires take the hit and transfer the energy to your suspension, the more side wall your tire has the more cushion they provide. Ground clearance and suspension travel help smooth out the ride... slowing down and avoiding the potholes really helps.

Yes, most trucks are beefier than most cars - they are built to take more of what the road has to offer.

 

I think the big difference between off roading and hitting a pothole is that you generally off road at a lower speed, maybe? Unless you have a trophy truck suspension setup in your Tundra, of course.

 

Thanks for all the replies..... During the first year of owning the tundra and getting used to it, I was often going over curbs alot (maybe a few times a week)... usually when making turns...or parking etc.....maybe turning sometimes at 20 mph....so....I guess I wore some things out a little (probably the rear wheels go over curbs the most...)..

 

I dodge or slow down for bumps in my car that has 295/30/19 tires that in my Tundra I just fly over without even blinking