2022 Toyota Tundra

Pure speculation on my part - indulge me.

I like Mike Swears a little but after following his career and watching just about every interview available, I do think he lacks vision/the ability to see where the market is going. I think when he became chief engineer he thought:

1. Full-size pickups were on the way out because of emissions/mpg regulation and this is the main reason why Tundra has been treated like a hobby. He failed to see and/or realize at a later time they'd become even more popular in spite of regulations. He failed to see "glam trucks" would be popular - people like me who want luxury, don't really need a truck, but want a truck and will pay a decent $ for that truck.

2. I also think he thought most of the defectors out of the full-size market would go to the Tacoma which is why they've put more effort into it (yes, it has always sold more too). But, even with the Tacoma, he neutered its "truckiness" by using the 3.5 V-6.

3. I think he thought body-on-frame and longitudinal layouts were on the way out too. Toyota has invested much more into unibody vehicles with transverse mounts. This at least partially explains why 4-Runner/GX have been allowed to languish in spite of the fact mid-sized SUVs are wildly propular. I think they've been waiting for body-on-frame to die and sales to plunge and year after year they not only won't die, I think 4-Runner sales rebounded in the last few years. This left Toyota thinking ok, it has to die sometime soon but they're selling well so lets just keep selling it as is until sales drop off. We now have multiple manufactures going back to body-on-frame and longitudinal designs.

The net result of all of this is in a decade under Swears Toyota has been stagnant in some of the most popular segments.
 
Just a correction, it's Mike Sweers. I'm sure he's constrained by the overall company ethos.

Toyota is a pretty conservative company. It's sort of indicative of the general Japanese mindset. Don't do anything too brash, and above all make sure it's reliable, so as to not lose face.

I wish they had made the 1-ton Dually they were talking about back in the day. If they had, It might be a good alternative to the one I have now.
 
It might happen before that.

Probably best to allow some years between now and then, for the return of the 1986 Ford Taurus grilleless look to come back into vogue.
I had a 1996 Elantra stick. No grille above the bumper. Front end looked like a Ghia!

hyundai-elantra-1995_1.jpg
 
Just a correction, it's Mike Sweers. I'm sure he's constrained by the overall company ethos.

Toyota is a pretty conservative company. It's sort of indicative of the general Japanese mindset. Don't do anything too brash, and above all make sure it's reliable, so as to not lose face.

I wish they had made the 1-ton Dually they were talking about back in the day. If they had, It might be a good alternative to the one I have now.
I think the biggest tell is every other model gets updated 2-3x more frequently than any of the body-on-frame vehicles. I don't see why you can update a Highlander every 5-7 years and maintain reliability but you can't do the same with a 4-Runner unless you're just convinced that's a dying segment so why bother, which of course, it is not.
 
I think the biggest tell is every other model gets updated 2-3x more frequently than any of the body-on-frame vehicles. I don't see why you can update a Highlander every 5-7 years and maintain reliability but you can't do the same with a 4-Runner unless you're just convinced that's a dying segment so why bother, which of course, it is not.

As a long time 4Runner owner, I think lots of owners appreciate them for what they are. Relatively simple, and reliable.

Highlanders aren't expected to take a beating on some desolate 4wd trail, and still make it back home. So while the Highlander is reliable driving on paved roads, I don't think they're as durable as a 4Runner. The huge aftermarket support for the 4Runner also appreciates a design that isn't changing every few years.
 
As a long time 4Runner owner, I think lots of owners appreciate them for what they are. Relatively simple, and reliable.

Highlanders aren't expected to take a beating on some desolate 4wd trail, and still make it back home. So while the Highlander is reliable driving on paved roads, I don't think they're as durable as a 4Runner. The huge aftermarket support for the 4Runner also appreciates a design that isn't changing every few years.
Body on frame vehicles, except trucks and Full size SUVs (Suburbans,etc.) are a dying segment. The numbers prove it.
 
Body on frame vehicles, except trucks and Full size SUVs (Suburbans,etc.) are a dying segment. The numbers prove it.

I don't think that's news to anyone.

Most people want their SUV 'look', without the traditional BOF SUV 'feel'. Hence the popularity of those vehicles. We also have one of those paved road oriented unibody SUV's.

However, to a percentage of customers, they want a traditional BOF SUV. With all that entails.
 
Body on frame vehicles, except trucks and Full size SUVs (Suburbans,etc.) are a dying segment. The numbers prove it.
Well, it think it WAS a dying segment and it certainly contracted at one point but since every body-on-frame vehicle available today is a full-size SUV or truck and they are more popular than ever how is it currently a dying segment? We even have entirely new body-on-frame vehicles coming out.

That's my point...I think 10-20 years ago the assumption was body-on-frame would be gone except for maybe full-size pickups but here were are and they seem to be very popular within certain segments.
 
As a long time 4Runner owner, I think lots of owners appreciate them for what they are. Relatively simple, and reliable.

Highlanders aren't expected to take a beating on some desolate 4wd trail, and still make it back home. So while the Highlander is reliable driving on paved roads, I don't think they're as durable as a 4Runner. The huge aftermarket support for the 4Runner also appreciates a design that isn't changing every few years.
I get it...that's why I bought my Tundra. From 2010 until 2013 the current generation 4-Runner sold less than 50K units/year only to have that number skyrocket to 140k units by 2018 EIGHT years after it's introduction. I don't think anyone could see that coming and I really think Toyota thought 50K would be 10K by 2018 and so why update it because unibodies are going to rule the world. My only point was Toyota was wrong. I think Mike Sweers (yes, I have to go back 2x before autocorrect stops correcting it to swears) and Toyota failed to see that body-on-frame vehicles, especially ones in their portfolio would not only continue to be popular, but become more popular and maybe they've missed some opportunities to really capitalize on that.

Or maybe not...who knows...
 
I get it...that's why I bought my Tundra. From 2010 until 2013 the current generation 4-Runner sold less than 50K units/year only to have that number skyrocket to 140k units by 2018 EIGHT years after it's introduction. I don't think anyone could see that coming and I really think Toyota thought 50K would be 10K by 2018 and so why update it because unibodies are going to rule the world. My only point was Toyota was wrong. I think Mike Sweers (yes, I have to go back 2x before autocorrect stops correcting it to swears) and Toyota failed to see that body-on-frame vehicles, especially ones in their portfolio would not only continue to be popular, but become more popular and maybe they've missed some opportunities to really capitalize on that.

Or maybe not...who knows...

There's a new 6th gen 4Runner waiting to be released. I think the current 5th gen is so popular, in part because people fear what they might do to it to 'modernize' it. I know that's why I bought a 5th gen. Just in case they screw it up. If the new one proves to be appealing, and it holds up, I might replace the 5th gen.
 
Looks like they announced the engines… a 3.5L twin turbo V6 making 389 HP and 479lb ft of torque, and a hybrid version making 437 HP and a whopping 583lb ft of torque both mated to a 10 speed auto. I might have to trade my Ram in 🤔
But the real question is... did they bring back the transmission cooler?
 
As a long time 4Runner owner, I think lots of owners appreciate them for what they are. Relatively simple, and reliable.

Highlanders aren't expected to take a beating on some desolate 4wd trail, and still make it back home. So while the Highlander is reliable driving on paved roads, I don't think they're as durable as a 4Runner. The huge aftermarket support for the 4Runner also appreciates a design that isn't changing every few years.
And seeing one way down the beach this week … it was a good reminder there is an aftermarket world for these too
(he was seriously rigged up)
 
Nice. I like it. If I were in the market for a pickup for daily driving and lugging around things on a occasional basis, this would be it. I’d buy one in the gray color. Would look mean. Good job Toyota. These will sell easily.
 
I did see a Sweers interview and he did say due to the additional loads and capabilities of the new Tundra the transmission cooler is back.
 
Bolstering the case that there is a (growing) market for BoF vehicles - the Lexus GX was introduced in its current form in 2010 and it had its best year as far as sales last year selling 2.5x more GXs in 2020 compared to 2011.
 
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