Long term Tundra Overlanding durability with maxed out GVW?

Just retired and am going overlanding in North America full time. I'm a Toyota fan and have been considering a Tundra for this adventure but have been told that the Tundra like any 1/2 ton, may not stand up for the long haul over rough back roads when constantly loaded to max GVWR. So, I've been told that if I want to overland with about 1200-1500 lbs of gear that the most reliable platform will be a 3/4 ton. I do know that the Tundra has about the same curb weight as other 1/2 tons which "implies" that the chassis/suspension is also about the same ruggedness? I also know that the Tundra has a much heavier duty rear end which is about 3/4 ton size but that doesn't mean the rest of the suspension and chassis is also as heavy duty. Thoughts? Any high mileage real world examples or experience would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

 

The Tundra does great overlanding BUT the rear springs won’t hold up to that weight over time. FWIW most stock 3/4’s won’t either; constant weight will cause sag. Won’t even take high miles to do it. Even those of us that have upgraded suspension have experienced flattening. In my case, I got a heavy duty (extra arc, extra leafs) pack from Deaver, (only did about 6 trips loaded, mostly unloaded in between) and the truck settled quite a bit. Best option may be upgrading suspension incorporating wider springs.

PapaSmurf and OsidePunker and a couple of their SGU and Bastrd cohorts have already upgraded their long-travel rigs, and a few guys with Mid travel are lined up for a MT option. You can look into that here:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/200...abrication-intro-pricing-in-first-post.53441/

 

I was more worried about the driveline and front end steering/chassis components (like ball joints, tie rods, control arms, etc.) not being up to the task as opposed to the springs.

 

I personally wouldn’t be worried about the drivetrain surviving. It’ll be fine.

Adding a bunch of weigh, you really need to get the suspension set up correctly to support it. A lot of forest service roads / back roads / etc can get pretty rough so unless you want to rattle out your brain, suspension is important.

 

115k on my 2013.. A lot of time on shitty dirt/gravel roads, and off road. It takes a beating just fine. No rattles, and no play in the front end. All Original front end parts other than recently installed coilovers. I still go anywhere I want to with confidence! Topper and gear is often near 1000lbs. Came from a 2006 3/4 ton Chevy that was not holding up at all to the abuse.

 

Brakes. Don't forget the brakes.

There was a recent Ex. Overland trail vid where their tundra (Icon suspension) was having brake fade pretty badly.

 

Have a look at the 7.3 L gas Ford F250/350 before making your decision.