2025 Toyota Tundra SR5 TRD Rally first impressions

Hey everyone, new to the forum and new to owning a Toyota. Grew up a GM guy. Had both a 2012 Sierra and a 2020 Sierra elevation. Both of which I liked but never loved, especially for the money. That said, just purchased my first Tundra and so far I’m loving it. Been holding off on even looking until the engine issues seemed to be addressed.

Now, as far as the TRD rally package is concerned, it to me is the perfect package for someone who wants some premium features and comforts while staying more basic in others. Interior is awesome, the power of the regular I-force engine is really good, the transmission is smooth, and overall it’s a very nice truck.

I would however like to note a few things for those who are considering a new Tundra. First, this is a very noisy engine between the 24 valve heads and the combined port and direct injection so just know to expect a lot of ticks and other relatively quiet but rhythmic noises. Only 500 miles so far and everything is running as it should from what I can tell. I did notice some odd sounding noises in the drive thru last night. 3-4 odd ticks every 5 seconds or so consistently while holding the break and it definitely amplifies the other engine noises I mentioned above. I have noticed some rough idling at stop lights. 500rpm running smooth and then quickly surges to 700rpm for a few seconds, shakes a bit and then levels out. I shut off the auto off every time I get in. I saw someone say it could be the change from the direct injection to port possibly but seems to be common and would make sense as my 2022 accord did the same with both port and direct injection. It does shift a little harder when cold and first leaving the driveway but only into 2nd. No rattles or anything crazy in the interior. However, wind noise is definitely an issue and I did note it at the dealership. I have found 2 fixes. The first being the panel on the underside of the mirrors, that generates a whistle. I’ve seen people take the panel off and seal it with foam or tape and that seems to solve the whistle. As for the wind noise, the lower packages don’t come with the seal between the door and fender that you get on the limited and up. They are $40 each through Toyota and can be installed pretty easily and seem to solve the issue. Otherwise, it’s been fantastic so far and I’m already loving this truck far more than any GM I’ve owned.

I will be swapping the exhaust for sure, cold air intakes likely to come as well, new tires as the Michelin LTX trails my truck came with are not meant for Maine. I’ll update you all with the changes and any new issues.

 

Another thing you'll like, My buddy has a '24 GMC Sierra Elevation, with the 5.3L V8. We lined up for a dead stop run, my '24 Tundra Limited Hybrid CM pulled away from him right off the line and he never had a chance. By 1/4 mile, I was easily 2 truck lengths ahead of him.
Part of the engine noise you hear could be the fake engine noise piped in through the audio system.

 

Yeah it’s a much quicker truck for sure. Really feel when that boost kicks in.

And I’m not certain I have the artificial engine noise in mine. Mine sounds like a v6 inside the truck. The noises I was referring to were outside the truck bouncing off the walls of the drive thru. Again, very noisy engine.

 

Welcome to the forum..
I don't think the SR5 would have the piped-in engine noise.
You would know it if you had it.
It is obviously annoying....

 

I don't think it normal to have a noisy engine. My 2024 SR5 is almost too quite. Sometime it feels like I'm driving an electric truck. When I'm coming up on people in the road/parking lot they typically don't notice the engine sound (which means they don't get out of the way).

 

When I say noisy, it’s still very quiet for a truck. I’m always super cautious about my engine noises so I listen to everything to make sure I know what it is. Walking up to the truck when it’s running, it’s really quiet. Only hear the noise near front fenders and it’s not like it’s obnoxious. Im overly cautious of any engine noises, normal or not so I know when somethings changed.

For reference, my wife currently has a 2013 suburban with the 5.3, I don’t drive it often and she’s not great about telling me when it needs an oil change. I hopped in it in December to use it for the day and almost immediately could tell it was over due just by throttle response and noise and that something else seemed off. Ended up spending 3 days in the shop replacing nearly every seal and gasket on the engine due to a failed PCV valve which forced most of the seals to fail including the rear main.