Faults:

Driver’s side windshield wiper arm liked to snap the locking tab of the blade in the cold.

Fuel gauge quit working shortly after the warranty expired.

Accessory belt system squeal from leaking water pump - idler pulleys, fan drive hub and belt tensioner were in poor condition, and while in that awful area for the water pump replacement, I replaced the related worn rotating components - 360000 km.

Radiator was seeping at the time of the water pump replacement, so replaced at the same time.

General Comments:

Check out my review, followed by a couple neat tricks for making servicing and operating the Tundra less hassle.

I have basically been in this truck since it left the dealer lot; my father bought ol' blue brand new, used it as the primary workhorse in his home-building business for 7 years, then sold her to me.

I worked for my father and saw the overloaded trailers it had to haul, and then like a crazy person, I still ended up buying it.

I drove this second gen unit to the 400 thousand km milestone and then sold her. The entire time she got seasonal oil changes (or 10000 km oil changes, whichever rolled around first) and there has never been a CEL or MIL of any sort (aside from stupid tire pressure sensors).

I was able to sell her with no leaks, at all, and she is still drop dead gorgeous.

I had to replace a drive axle leaf spring pack because of the aforementioned overloading it suffered, but other than that it suffered under the first owner’s reign of terror. That doesn’t belong in the “gone wrong with the car” section.

I cannot complain about the fuel economy too much, and I had to pay attention to the trip meter vs fuel added during fillup to become confident in the range of the vehicle, and became confident that I could squeeze 600 km out of the 100 litre tank if I babied it.

The brakes are the biggest in the half-ton market, so don’t forget to use them well and make them work hard enough to grind down the surface rust. If the rotors get a hard rust glaze on them they will chew your brake pads.

Performance-wise the 3urfe is not as strong as what the competition’s turbocharged gasoline or diesel engines can offer, but I haven’t heard any real world stories of them not having issues when the 400000 km horizon rolls into view.

The drivetrain has been problem-free, which has been unfortunate because I would have loved to blow the differential up and actually have an excuse to put a proper LSD (or full locker) in there.

Toyota messed up big time by leaving it an open differential with a bandaid fix active traction control system.

No matter what Toyota marketing or salespeople tell you, there is no actual limited slip differential back there. Without the traction control activating braking on the wheel with excessive wheel speed, you are stuck with a differential that will feed horsepower to the axle shaft on the side that will spin the easiest.

On the plus side: you don’t need fancy oil or friction modifiers for the differential.

On the further downside: 4x4 turns into one front drive wheel and one rear drive wheel in the soft stuff... not the best off-reader.

The creature comforts are simple and moderate.

However because the rad fan is a viscous clutch actuation, the air conditioning cannot perform at the competition’s level while stopped, because the air conditioning system doesn’t have fan control to drop the pressure in the condenser.

For future or current Toyota Tundra owners: consider that the skid-plate doesn’t need to come down to change your oil filter - crank the steering wheel to the left, weasel your arm on top of the skid plate with a 3/8” ratchet in hand and spin the filter housing drain plug free. If you are lucky, the filter housing will spin free with the oil filter. If you are unlucky just the drain plug will come free (that is of minor consequence); clean the oil residue from the plug and housing threads, and add a dab of threadlocker to the male thread. Tighten the plug into the housing, let sit for an hour or so, try to remove the drain again and your filter housing will spin free, eliminating the need for the OEM service tool and the skid plate can stay on.

For those looking to turn the traction control off to drift and burnout: hold the traction control button until the traction control symbol and VSC indicator come on in the dash.

To help the Tundra, both engage into 4x4 once you see the 4hi lamp start flashing, and find some loose ground and hammer the brakes well enough that the ABS fights your braking efforts. Nearly immediately after that you will hear a relay in the dash click and your 4hi lamp will sit steady.

To eliminate the sharp driveline unwind clunk/snap when coming out of 4x4, switch back to 2wd, find some loose ground and kick the ABS in again. Having lost traction, and immediately releasing hydraulic brake pressure at one wheel (commanded by ABS ECU) provides a path for the torsion between front and rear drive axles to unravel through at the wheel. The ABS trap methods work exceptionally for facilitating rapid 4x4 engagements and disengagements.

The top of the rear wheel arches are prone to rusting because of a bracket that likes to pinch the water between the box skin and bracket. Remove the inner drive wheel fender and lay the rust-guard in there vigorously before the gritty water from the road can eat its way through to the outside.

I am blown away at how good this unit looks and performs after all these years, and the equivalent of circumnavigating earth 10 times.

Good job Toyota. Next time build one with a manual transmission, get better engine tech for efficiency, and include an LSD rear differential.

Faults:

Fuel pump ECU failed. Towed to dealer and was repaired the next day. Reasonable cost for a major component.

General Comments:

This is one of the most comfortable vehicles I have owned.

I have the 5.7 engine and more than enough power for any driving situation.

Fuel economy is reasonable if driven with a light foot. The best I've achieved is 22 MPG highway.