looking for opinions.......

[carolina-rig-01]

we are looking into getting my wife a new suv. i would like to see here in a expedition or possibly a navigator but she wants something smaller. so lastnight she was on the phone with a toyota dealership asking about the highlanders (which we decided against). anyways i told her while she was on the phone to ask about what kind of deals they are offering on the new tundras. it looks like i could probably get a 2008 tundra for less money or at least the same amount i am paying for my current truck. i am going to be really picky if i get a new truck. it will have to have the big v8, power everything, 4 wheel drive, leather, and it has to be black so depending on if they come up with a truck that fits my description or not, i may or may not even get a new truck. but i am wondering if anybody on here has any experience with tundras and what their opinions are. not looking to get into a discussion over the economy or why i should support an american company because if the tundra is as great as i have been hearing then that is where my money will go. any opinions on the tundras???

[lowrider]

my dad has exactly that rig, but no leather, he trades every 3 years and has had them all. (except dodge!) loves this one more than the chevs and the tacoma he got rid of to get the full sized tundra. same mpg as the smaller truck, by the way. and much more tow capacity

[cassidyta]

C-Rig,

I have leased A Silverado 2500, an F-250, a Titan, and a Tundra. From my personal opinion, the Tundra ranked 3rd in that list, with the 250 being 4th. My wife says I am crazy, but one of the reasons I like having a truck is that it drives and feels like I am in a truck. For me the Tundra was a little too sporty. I also did not like how it handled with added weight (in my case it was busted up concrete). It is not that it was unsafe, it just did not react as I wanted.
That being said, I know of people who love them and it fits their needs well. It just wasn't the truck for me.

I would suggest checking out www.edmunds.com and reading their write ups on any of them. they will include great information like annual maintenance costs in year 1, 2, 3 etc...

[Bender]

A couple guys I know have them (notice I didn't say friends ) and they seem to like them. They both tow aluminum boats so not too heavy of a load. The only bad thing I've heard is one of them said the rear end walks real bad on washboard roads. He told me that it was a known problem by Toyota and has something to do with the wheelbase or something. Other than they both of them are happy with them.

[BassMoJo]

The tundra is a great truck, I used to work at toyota and let me tell you something they got some power. Not to mention you have 34 different options to choose from! When I have the money thats the truck I will get.

[flfireman]

I swear by my CHEVY trucks. Back to the original???? My wife drives a 2003 Trailblazer, great gas mileage, very predictable and well behaved on the road. Ive seen these things in a few wrecks and they hold up very well. (Sorry, nature of the job) We have 100,000 miles on it and it still looks like new. For trucks, my father in law has the tundra w/ the smaller V8, peppy, pulls his trailer w/ 2- 4 wheelers easily. I didn't care for the back seats in it. thin, uncomfortable after long seat time.

[bamabassman]

just my opion here, BUT, i don't like ANY of the brand new trucks out there today. i have a 97 model Z-71, the wife has a 2002 trailblazer (i hate it, too small). she loves her suv. it does a great job of pulling the cajun or camper. straight 6 with a towing package. nice milage too. so i agree with hoseman on the trailblazer. just that i think it is too narrow a seat for a man. used to have a 97 tahoe... LOVED IT!! hope to find another one when i have the money.
whatever you decide on, make sure you look into the future, you may have to drive it for the next 10 years or so.

[zooker]

i am a ford guy i have pretty much owned them all and wrecked them all.except the tundra. one of the ycg guys hauls his 21 foot stratos with a tundra v-8 4 wheel drive. with no problems..

i have walked away from almost every crash. but when all is said and done i definatly felt safer in the ford ranger than any other truck i have owned..


the crash test dummy..
zooker

[Wishing2BFishing]

You should listen to your wife. I bought my wife a Highlander before my first child was born. I now have 2 kids, a new house, and the same Highlander. This SUV has over 110,000 miles on it and it just keeps going. Other than new tires, we haven't had to drop any money into it.

Now I admit that the Highlander is a little girly but that is why she drives it. I was so impressed with the quality that I recently bought my first Toyota, a 4-Runner.

[quenston]

I am currently looking for a new truck and have test drove many new vehicles and I have test drove the tundra and it is currently second on my list and the first is a Chevy Z-71 just because I am a Chevy fan, the Tundra seems to have alot more power and is pretty comfy in the front seats now as far as the backseats I havnt tried those out yet! There seemed to be enuff room for sitting comfortably and I am a pretty big guy. In the end it is going to be a hard decision for me.

[barkelypup]

I saw a guy at the ramp at Kentucky Dam village with a new Tundra and he said he loved it however he did add a caviat. He said for him it was fine but folks in the back were pretty uncomfortable and he said the gas milage sucked. He said he got no better than 13 on the interstate and averaged about 11 mpg's. For the money you won't go wrong with a chevy. I actually just sold my 04 crew cab when I made the mistake of pricing it to a guy when he said price it. I would suggest looking for a used vehicle though at this time. After I sold my truck I started looking and ended up finding a 99 Tahoe with 99,000 on it. The guy was asking 5400 for it and I got it for 3800. He took my first offer and now I wish I would have went lower. Reason I say this is People are looking to unload payments right now. You can actually get a pretty good deal on things if you can hold out long enough and shop around. Just my 2 cents but it did work out well for me. Good Luck.

bP

[The Doc]

If your wife wants a smaller SUV from the Navigator, Look at the Aviator. I test drove one before I got my Explorer and it was great, but a couple grand more than I wanted to pay. Just my 2 cents

[woody]

I don't know much about the Tundras, other than the hype that the commercials on tv are showing. Anyways, I'm well pleased with my Chevy Silverado ext.cab 4.8l V8 averages a not to shabby 20mpg, with plenty of room to boot.

[carolina-rig-01]

everybody i have talked to that has the tundra says the same thing. they say that they get 15 miles per gallon whether they are pulling a load or not. 15 mpg isn't great without a load but it isn't bad with a load. and my truck now is just gets 13 mpg without the boat and about 10 or 11 mpg with the boat. i have gotten 15 mpg out of my truck before without the boat behind it but i like listening to the flowmasters too much and usually end up around 13 mpg.