mmarshall

It will be interesting to see if Honda has also blown it with the Ridgeline not being large enough or heavy-duty enough, but so far it seems that the customers buying Ridgelines are not the type of people who would be in the market for big American macho trucks anyway.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

And that was Honda's mission from the start. Who cares what traditional truck buyers are saying about the Ridgeline, it is selling and making money. Owners are happy with them as far as I know. I may not like it, but it dies not serve my needs as it does so many others. There are those that still do not care much for trucks but need the convenience of the capacity back there. I am not much a fan of trucks either but own one only to get to Lowes / HD and back reliably.
I have a friend that traded in his ultra reliable Tundra for a Silverado HD for towing purposes only but he still intends to go back to Toyota once a comparable Toyota comes out.
His Silverado hs been nothing but issues. Not the drivetrain which is Japanese built but the rest of the truck.

GSteg

iTrader: (15)

With the american truck market, the big three sets the standard for full size trucks. It's the japanese manufactor that has to play by the big three's standard. To a loyal truck owner, if the Tundra, Titan, and Ridgeline cannot stand up to the big three's ruggedness, payload, towing, etc, expect them to look elsewhere. The Tundra has always been in the shadow of the big 3 regardless of reliability and quality. The Tundra may sell well for an import truck, but most of its sales are NOT from previous american loyalists.

mmarshall

There, my friend, is the key to this whole discussion.....ONCE A COMPARABLE TOYOTA COMES OUT.

Finally, one IS out......some 12 years after it should have been.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

I should have rephrased that knowing that someone would read too far into it and miss the text. He purchased a diesel thus the "Japanses drivetrain" that I mentioned above. So one IS NOT OUT-yet.

mmarshall

What I meant is that a Tundra model ( finally ) is out that can truly compete with full-size domestics. I plan to review it if I get any requests either on or off CL...or maybe just for my own curiosity. The Titan has the size and power to compete with full-size domestics, but has an unimpressive interior, poor fit-and-finish, and notorious unreliability.

Interesting that you bring up the subject of truck diesels. That is something else, IMO, that Toyota should have offered by now in its big trucks here and has not. Neither, to my knowledge, has Nissan.

Pearlpower

iTrader: (2)

We agree on that point about diesels. To be very competitive, Toyota needs to have a powerful diesel alternative and one is rumored in the works. Dodge/Chevy have had great success with theirs and Toyota would be amiss to not offer this.
Tell the next Silverado HD diesel owner that he has an Isuzu motor and watch somebody go from to in 3 seconds flat after his denial phase. Tell him it's produced in Ohio and he may get a little better. The last one I spoke with did not. Either way the Duramax is a top motor for sure.

GStateOM

... I just can't see Toyota winning over domestic loyalist, at least anytime soon. Maybe down the road, but not soon.

I own a 2005 Tundra DC myself and I have to say it's a great truck. As far as power goes, I don't really think it's underpowered compared to an F150, Silverado 1500 or Ram 1500. It's underpowered when you start talking about the diesel and larger displacement domestic trucks. A friend of mine just bought a new Silverado 1500 crew cab and I think my Tundra is more powerful. The Titan and Ram HEMI's are a different story though.

Never say never, but I just can't see myself buying an American car again. It's not just reliability issues, but quality, creaks and cracks as well. Despite the good reviews on the F150, I am not convinced. Does the F150 share a lot of components with the Expedition? The reason I ask is because my co-worker's 2004 Expedition is always in the shop. My 2005 Tundra? 0 times. And I still like the interior of my Tundra a whole lot more than the "improved" Ford interiors.

Another thing I don't like about American cars is the oily mess they leave behind. My 1995 Camry started leaving the driveway mess at 250,000 miles. Funny how the neighbor's 2000 F150 is already leaving the same mess with nearly 200k miles less.

I can't see myself buying American anytime soon. I've had several Chevy's & Fords and I use to only buy American until their issues drove me away from them. Perhaps for good.

mavericck

to put it bluntly, no.

jimxo

I may pick up a Tundra next year but I'm ;eaning towards the new Silverado One nice looking truck with major improvements to boot.

jimxo

...................

jimxo

...................

mmarshall

Though generally unreliable and not particularly well-built, the present-generation Silverado has something that no other pickup, to my knowledge, has.....a 4WD system with a center differential that can function like an AWD torque-on-demand system...set it and forget it and use it on ANY surface, any time. You don't have to worry about what kind of surface you're on or whether the drivetrain will bind up like you do with part-time 4WD systems.

This is a feature that, IMO, SHOULD have been made available as an option for all pickups YEARS go. To date, only Chevy and GMC offer it.....Ford and Dodge have stubbornly resisted it in the F-series and Rams, and ( correct me if I'm wrong ) I don't think even the new Tundra offers it.

The Silverado, unlike any other pickup, offers a " Hybrid " model, but it is not a true gas-electric hybrid. It is primarily just a system that cuts the engine on and off at stops.

okcfunky

I say good luck Toyota, but youve got a hard road ahead of you.

I've got some horror stories that would make any service tech cringe about a Silverado VHO I had (it somehow lived through the abuse, loved that thing)

As for the Heavy Duty in Light Duty market, Toyota's *got* to have a diesel offering that will make Big 3 buyers think twice, and be predictable on part failures (and have an aftermarket on standby).