Should Toyota add Auto 4wd to the Tundra ?

Run the poll again, only to people who live in areas that can get ice/snow on roads 6 months of year or more. Oct to end of April here. You can drive for 100miles and roads dry as a bone and then the next corner it’s sheer ice. 4auto is a godsend (and the only thing I like about my Denali 6.2 other than the motor!). And great on the 2020 f150 I had before that, and and and…

 

How long until an LX600 transfer case ends up being installed in a Tundra? This is a worthy experiment.

 

When I was looking on the Lexus site the other day it almost seemed like not all LX’s even get the torsen case. Maybe i was reading it wrong.

 

Pretty sure all of them do. Either way there will be a part number for it. Probably dirty ass $$$$$$$$$ though.

 

Its fairly close again. 59% Yes - and 41% (No, and I don't care)

The nature of polls on a public chat forum. Even if we add the qualifier you mention, we will still get members in warm climates and even some that do not actually own Tundras (but want to) voting.

What I do wonder about is that Tundras are put together in Texas.
Were Toyota's customer focus groups local? This might explain why 4 Auto is not offered. Just saying.

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from the TFL interview last year with Jay Sackett engineer Executive Program Manager, involved with all the Tundra engineering details.

TFL - Andre - "we got some questions from our viewers about 4auto. Did you consider that for the Transfer case".

Jay - "from our vantage points with talks with our customers. they are really using the standard 4hi and 4 low systems"

Jay says the one difference is that the MTS is now available in 4 hi now.

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As I started the poll I did not vote.
I can say if given a choice I would like to have 4 Auto being in Ontario with winters.
This would be a system where the front diff 4wd mechanism just goes for the ride until engaged like the GM one.
Just for piece of mind like if my wife is driving. Which she does not ever drive my truck.
However just consider this.
If I had to choose for the heavy bulky terrible weight distribution pickup Tundra
between an AWD system like on my wife's Outback where its on ALL the time, or 4Hi 4 low.
locked differential capability for my truck. I pick the 4Hi 4Low capability

So why then can't the Tundra have the full time 4wd, 4Hi and 4 low options that my sons 4runner has?
At least on the highest trim levels.

$$$$$ ?

 

The case is 36100-60C80 and retails for $3253.53. It can likely be had for 1/2 that price from foreign sources.

 

The truely interesting part... the front diff 4wd electronics can now be utilized to operate the factory front locker.

 

Is the TRX the only truck with full-time 4wd? Or does the Raptor have it?

Not sure how the newer models are but my 80 and 100 series land cruisers both averaged 13 MPG. Regardless of 3 ft of snow or 60 and sunny. Loved them but far from efficient. Hit the Ih8mud boards. That forum of mad scientists will likely have some folks that can talk you through a conversion.

 

Being Toyota is never going to produce multiple Tundra platforms they do have to take this into consideration. If we want them to keep making a tundra at all they also have to figure out how to appeal to non-tundra owners. I know a lot of folks who don't use their 4A in winter and some who swear by it (personal observation not by any means the standard but folks are out there). It's only natural that people don't want to pay for a feature they don't personally use. Like auto start stop, lane assist, or blinkers.

 

I recall Mike Sweers at some point said they opted not to have 4Auto for durability reasons but cost probably was higher, but I don’t really know. And they probably didn’t add a center diff because of cost as well and no AWD to satisfy fuel economy requirements.

 

The Ram TRX is full time 4WD but has 4lo, just no 2hi. The Raptor(regular and new Raptor R) are 2hi, 4Auto, 4hi, 4lo.

As far as I know every GM 1500, Ram 1500 and any F150's Lariat trim or higher have 4Auto. All Expeditions and Tahoe/Suburbans have 4Auto and I am sure the Grandwagonner and whatever Ram/Jeep competes with has it as well.

Some of the GM's don't even come with 4Lo anymore. Its just 2hi, 4auto and 4hi. You have to get the offroad or z71 packages I believe to get 4Lo.

 

Really? I didn't know this. Seems odd but then GM has more configurations than a Kardashian closet.

I just remembered I agreed to help a friend do a rear disc brake conversation on his 2020 tacoma. We could all save a lot of time and copy and paste those arguments, just changing some words.

 

I believe all trucks with the 6.2 get the two speed transfer case, as well.

 

Yeah but they make like 2 trucks a year with the 6.2L

They are better now but they used to be so up tight about putting 6.2L's in anything.

 

I never did understand that. Even now my local dealer doesn’t stock or even order many 6.2’s. Both Chevy and GMC dealers, they just preference a bunch of mid grade trim level 5.3L’s. Getting a 6.2L, or 3.0L Duramax is an special order proposition.

All the HD’s though are diesel except the one or two stripped down bare bones gassers they have because GM probably forced them to.

 

Like some others have said, I like the Torsen center differential like the one in my wife's Sequoia, but I have not had any issues with the 4WD system on my Tundra. What I would really like is real LSD from the factory.

 

Maybe it depends on part of the country and how your dealer orders? We seem to have a lot of the 6.2 and 3.0 in MN especially in GMC.

and then a crazy number of the 4 bangers.

 

I dont either because the 6.2L gets very similar MPG's to the 5.3L. They almost should just drop the 5.3L at this point because the 2.7L gets better MPG and has better torque, and the 3.0 Duramax is way more torquey and efficient and only $1000 more, and the 6.2L is way more powerful and gets similar MPG's.

 

not sure but between bent rods and the fuel management they might have more problems with the 6.2 than the others. I see a ton of used 2019s with the 6.2 and like 3k miles because they’ve been lemoned down south and brought to rural dealers. The carfax reports all the same scenario. Purchased, returned. Sat for a year and auctioned.

 

The 6.2L requires premium 91 octane fuel. My guess is a lot of owners do not feed them the right fuel and therefore get detonation. On a hot day or in a very warm climate it will exacerbate the issue.

 

I’ve witnessed the combination of 87 octane cat piss, indifferent oil change intervals, lots of idling time, and the inherent flaws of variable displacement kill two 6.2L GM V8’s in a couple of Cadillac Escalades. Both with under 150,000 miles. Why a fleet operator bought those two rigs to run for RR crew transport is beyond me, but we have two of them hauling us around.

They’re great when they work though, very comfortable, I can definitely understand the allure of a big luxo-barge SUV. Pretty sure if I owned either of them they’d be mechanically sound, but I would: use quality oil more frequently than called for, disable the variable displacement and replace all the lifters, and of course use the correct grade of fuel.

Then all I would worry about would be the intake valves coking up because the motors don’t use any port fuel injection.

 

This was what I was thinking, although a lot of owners claim 87 is fine. The problem is the 6.2L def has a higher compression ratio than the 5.3L so its not just a tuning issue. The engine naturally wants higher octane.

 

We own a 6.2L LS3 in our 2015 Chevrolet SS, and the manual calls out very explicitly that 91 Octane is the minimum acceptable grade of fuel. We have never fed it anything but 91 or 93 Octane. No problems and it runs like a raped ape.

 

If you look at the new Tundra on the whole, to me it makes no sense that Toyota didn't include some form of AWD.

Disregarding the Toyota fanbois "oh it's way more capable this way" and my own personal desire to have AWD.....

Look at where Toyota took this truck.
Refined Lexus-derived TTV6.
Plastic bumpers. Which don't seem well suited to off-roading. Oh, and no tow hooks.
Based on a Lexus-shared platform.
Hybrid availability.
Swanky interior and loaded with competitive tech and a massive 14" screen.
Look at the newest trim levels. Heck even the most jaded "it doesn't need AWD" on this forum thought that it'd probably be on the Capstone.
These trucks are definitely aimed upmarket. Look at Toyota's advertising....a freaking swanky pimp getting a latte in one of the commercials.....in a barren metropolis no less.

With all of that considered, I am shocked Toyota didn't include AWD, even more shocked it was removed from the Sequoia.
And no, I don't buy any reliability, durability, cost or efficiency arguments. Toyota wasn't shy to jack the price way up. And GM trucks with AWD get class leading mpgs.

For me, personally, with new trucks being so expensive these days, AWD would've made it feel a little more "worth it" especially considering it's very difficult to get a truck under or at MSRP these days.

 

Yeah, I looked pretty hard at a 2020 Sierra or Silverado. I would have wanted the max trailering package, which meant no off road package, which meant no two speed transfer case unless I went to the next trim level up so I could get the 6.2, which then should have premium in addition to the $3k CAD higher purchase price.

 

I've heard a lot of guys say the 6.2 will knock unless you run 93 octane.

 

Heard the same. But it’s so good when working properly that I get why people buy them.

 

I personally would say no to this. It attracts the non truck people to the vehicle. You know, people that don't actually need a truck and would be just fine with a Ridgeline or a Maverick. Look at all the complaints about the utility of the truck being sacrificed for more bells and whistles. Why push for another, especially when it is such a purely luxury/convenience based addition? If me having to flip a knob to go 4x4 keeps the boss moms out of the customer satisfaction surveys for a vehicle that I need to be capable over comfortable, then I'll take manual 4WD every single time.

 

It's not about not wanting to shift into 4Hi. It's about having a system that's good for changing surface conditions and being able to turn without binding everything up while not breaking the rear end loose every time you try to get going from a stop.

 

Toyota already went off the deep end with bells and whistles.
Have you not seen their Tundra ads? They're not targeted to the "typical" Tundra buyer.
Having AWD wouldn't be attracting boss moms. They've already been reeled in....