In 1961, geologist Robert Liscomb oil discovered a large fossil tundra from Alaska. A year later, Liscomb died in a rock collapse, and the fossil was sitting in a Shell warehouse until the early 1980s, when it was rediscovered and sent to the United States Geological Survey. There, scientists determined that it was indeed a dinosaur bone, prompting a new wave of exploration. In 2017, a large enough fossil can be found, without freezing in the basement of the northern slope, but with your local Toyota dealer in the shape of the Tundra van.
Paleontology 101
Tundra underwent a soft upgrade for 2014 but under its steel skin remains an old skeleton: the 2017 model is still the same second generation platform introduced in 2007. Another update is scheduled for 2018 but a totally new Tundra won \’ T appear as early as 2019. The one we tested – Quicksand painted in a frame, and then wrapped with paint protection of 395 films – was equipped with the optional 2030 TRD Off-Road package which includes 18-inch aluminum wheels And Michelin LTX rubber terrain, Bilstein dampers, sliding plates to protect the engine and night fuel tank and stickers. Optional cushions improve the course and manage the side of coast movements, but for interstate travel, persistent road imperfections destabilize the route. However, when we destroyed the secondary roads of Michigan and down the streets, we found that the shock absorbers set forward and control the movement of the wheels, absorb large impacts and keep the tires connected to the ground, by limiting the wheel jump. The quality of the tundra trailer was commendable a decade ago, but the full-size truck market nowadays, which is below the Ford F-150 and Ram 1500.
Although power-assisted steering became common throughout the industry, the tundra still relies on a hydraulic servomotor system, but without any benefit. The lack of central management and requires frequent inputs to maintain a straight path. Lightweight makes it easier for low speed maneuvers, but the exact placement of this great machine totally depends on what your eyes say and do not feel through the wheel.
Under the hood is another fossil. Slide the metal button into the ignition slot (push button is not available), give it a ride, and Toyota i-Force 32-valve V-8 to life. The 5.7-liter V-8 aluminum remained unchanged since its inception in 2007, the dedicated hydraulic cooling fan\’s yelp provides a reminder. This old mill is good for 381 horsepower and 401 pound-feet of torque, enough to carry sleds pulled by 5858 pounds from 0 to 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and cover the quarter mile in 15.1 seconds. This corresponds to the new Nissan Titan Pro-4X we have recently tested, recording at the same time at 60, and beat the Titans 0.1 seconds in the quarter mile. Toyota does not stack up as well compared to most of the trucks being sold, however. A Chevrolet Silverado with its 420-horsepower 6.2-liter V-8 that we tested again in 2015 found at 60 mph in 5.7 seconds and has flown through the quarter-mile at 14.3; A Ford F-150 with the previous V-6 of 365 horsepower and 3.5 liter double turbo performed tasks in 5.6 and 14.4 seconds.
While eight and up to 10-speed transmission is now expected in the full-size pickup market, the tundra still boasts the six-speed automatic, which it has had since day one. However, the transmission offers incremental changes, while speeds and new gearboxes multiple times can stumble when it comes to choosing among its many reports during stepping maneuvers, the tundra is quick to slow down at the correct speed.
For Toyota\’s credit, while others hawk the fuel-saving benefits of trucks that are supposed to come with their additional gears, the tundra has not much worse than another full-size V-8 pick-up we\’ve recently tried . To minimize the need for refueling stops, our test truck was equipped with an optional 38-gallon fuel tank. During our testing 800 miles an average of 14 miles per gallon we, only 1 mpg shy of the EPA combined rating and the same as what we measured in a Rebel 2016 Ram with an automatic eight reports. In our 200 mile loopback fuel economy, we saw 17 mpg, just on par with the EPA highway odds, suggesting a possible 640-mile range from one state to another uninterrupted cruiser. An annoyance, however, was an early warning of low fuel level. The LED lit with about nine gallons of fuel left, more than enough to grant that more than 50 miles of the remaining range indicated on the onboard computer.
time capsule
Climb into the tundra is to take a step back in the history of the truck. Although there have been some minor improvements coincide with the facelift in 2014, the interior is decidedly antiquated. The optional upgrade kit SR5 our truck ($ 1,220) recently to change that impression, but adds electric bucket seats adjustment only the driver\’s side, which also has an electrically adjustable lumbar support instead of the bench standard, With a ground-mounted shifter, a telescoping and tilt steering wheel, three front cupholders, an anti-theft system, the largest fuel tank and a rear-view mirror with automatic dimming and compass. We would have hosted heated seats to relieve the pain of our Michigan icy winters, but these are only available at the Limited Equipment level. All-time carpets do a good job of keeping the carpet mud, however, making them well worth the asking price of $ 219. The silver painted plastic surrounds the information and entertainment system Entune 7, 0 inches, is not very intuitive. Fortunately, there are still many buttons and controls; However, few drivers will be able to comfortably reach the tuning button on the radio is located to the right of the center. Almost every control or switch in the room looks and feels like only a decade.
The package of safety and comfort for the $ 970 in the test van adds Park Assist blind spots for front and rear monitoring and rear traffic alerts, but the Tundra does not offer the most modern safety features such as cruise control Adaptive They are likely to come from the 2018 models.