Toyota Australia has announced details of its full-size Tundra pick-up truck which, subject to successful local evaluation — is likely to go on sale here in 2025.
If it does come here it will compete against vehicles such as Ford F-150, Chevrolet Silverado and RAM 1500.
Built at Toyota’s factory in San Antonio, Texas the Tundra has been around since 1999, but only in left-hand drive.
An initial batch of 300 vehicles will come here and be converted to right-hand drive by the Walkinshaw Automotive Group in Clayton South, Victoria.
They will then be leased to potential customers on a 12-month real-world evaluation and validation program, with customers reporting back regularly to Toyota on their experience.
In addition to the switch to right-hand drive, there will be a number of new or modified components including the steering rack, instrument panel, firewall, headlights, cabling, harnesses, front seats, carpet and trim.
Many of these new components will be sourced from the Land Cruiser 300 Series.
Tundra sits on a 3700mm wheelbase with a wide front and rear track of 1737mm.
Its rigid body measures 5955mm long and 2040mm wide and combines aluminium (bonnet and front doors) and ultra high strength steel to provide a vehicle that tips the scales at 2778kg.
Tundra Limited is powered by a 3.5-litre twin-turbo V6 petrol engine with a maximum power output of 290kW at 5200 rpm and peak torque of 650Nm between 2400 and 3600 rpm.
It’s paired with a 36kW/250Nm electric motor generator and 6.5Ahr nickel metal hydride battery (Ni-MH) to deliver total system maximum outputs of 326kW and 790Nm.
The engine drives through a 10-speed automatic transmission with Eco, Normal and Sport modes that is combined with a part-time all-wheel drive system with a two-speed transfer case and automatic limited slip differential.
With a maximum braked towing capacity of 4500kg, the Tundra also offers two selectable Tow modes that optimise transmission shift points, pedal response and power steering depending on the load.
Toyota’s Sean Hanley said this was an important step in what was a world-first local re-engineering program for Toyota to ensure the Tundra is perfectly suited to the demands of Australian customers.
“We know there is a demand for full-size pickups like the Tundra but we wanted to ensure that the local right-hand drive conversion and the vehicle as a whole met Toyota’s exacting standards for quality and the needs of our customers,” Mr Hanley said.
“That’s why we are putting this vehicle through such a rigorous and demanding evaluation program.
“Our engineers have been working on this project since 2019 and now, together with our partners at Walkinshaw Automotive Group, it’s great to see vehicles being delivered to our customers.
“Toyota has never undertaken a project like this before and we look forward to hearing what these first customers think and feel about the new Toyota Tundra,” he said.
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