2010 Toyota Tundra Review and Prices

By Chuck Giametta


Table of Contents
2010 Toyota Tundra Review and Pricing
2011 Toyota Tundra
2010 Toyota Buying Guide
2010 Truck Buying Guide
2009 Toyota Tundra Quote

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA BUYING ADVICE

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra is the best truck for you if you want a full-size pickup for personal use – and can’t quite picture yourself in a Ford, Dodge, or Chevy.  

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra is heir to best intentions thwarted by over-reaching and under-delivering. That doesn’t make it an undesirable truck, just a rare stumble for Toyota. For 2010, the Tundra adds an important new engine and a bare-bones Work Truck package. Otherwise, this is the same pickup Toyota introduced for model-year 2007. That’s when Tundra was redesigned as the first import brand with the size, power, and body configurations to compete with the domestics. Tundra launched to strong reviews, but Toyota was slow to meet demand for the crew cab body style. Then it got egg on its face when Tundra didn’t get the government’s highest safety ratings. And it was chagrined by some quality snafus that were probably overplayed in the media but were nonetheless unusual for a Toyota product. Tundra sales never reached the 200,000-per-year target, and when gas prices skyrocketed and the economy tanked, they fell faster and further than they did at Ford, Dodge, and General Motors. Unlike those brands, Tundra -- always most at home among the leisure class -- didn’t have a deep base of commercial buyers to fall back on.

• Should you buy a 2010 Toyota Tundra or wait for the 2011 Toyota Tundra? No reason to wait for the 2011. In addition to the new V-8 and Work Truck, the 2010 Tundra gets this generation’s first appearance alterations. These changes will see it through to its next redesign, which won’t be until model-year 2013 or 2014. So take advantage of Toyota’s fire-sale deals on 2010 models.        

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA CHANGES

• Styling: The 2010 Toyota Tundra’s styling changes are minor: a new grille and slightly revised taillamps. On Work Truck and base Tundra models, the “two-bar” new grille has larger horizontal openings than before. On the top-line Limited model, the grille has a blingy, billet-style insert. For 2010, the popular SR5 has been demoted from model status to an option package; it wears the same grill as the base model. The 2010 Toyota Tundra returns as the two-door regular-cab and as the extended Double Cab with two small rear doors. These cabs are available with a standard cargo bed of 6.5 feet and with an 8.1-foot long-bed. The crew cab CrewMax has four conventional side doors and a 5.5-foot box. Double Cab and CrewMax models have a three-passenger rear bench seat. The 2010 Toyota Tundra is every inch a full-size pickup. In fact, for all three cab and cargo-bed combinations, Tundra’s wheelbase – a vital measurement of the distance between front and rear axles – is the longest of any big pickup. 

• Mechanical: New for the 2010 Toyota Tundra is a 4.6-liter V-8 with 310 horsepower and 327 pound-feet of torque. It replaces a 4.7-liter that had 271 horsepower and 313 pound-feet. As Tundra’s base V-8, the 4.6 boasts the best combination of power and fuel economy among “standard” V-8s in the class. Returning for the 2010 Toyota Tundra are the entry-level 4.0-liter V-6 (236 horsepower, 266 pound-feet) and the line-topping 5.7-liter V-8 (381 horsepower, 401 pound-feet). All Tundra engines have double overhead camshafts and variable valve timing. The V-6 links to a five-speed automatic transmission, the V-8s to a six-speed automatic. The 5.7 is also available in E85 ethanol flex-fuel form. Maximum towing capacity is a very competitive 10,800 pounds and is delivered with the 5.7 V-8. Tundras with the new 4.6 V-8 are rated to tow a maximum 9,000 pounds, 500 pounds more than the discontinued 4.7. V-8. Tundras are available with rear-wheel drive (2WD) or four-wheel drive (4WD). The 4WD system includes low-range gearing for off-roading, but isn’t designed to be left engaged on dry pavement. That capability is a real convenience on damp surfaces, especially with an empty cargo bed, and only the Chevy Silverado/GMC Sierra and the Dodge Ram offer it.

• Features: Newly standard on every 2010 Toyota Tundra are driver and front-passenger knee airbags; these supplement the standard head-protecting curtain side airbags, which feature rollover-deployment sensors. Also newly standard is a dashboard dial to re-aim the headlamps if a load alters the truck’s pitch. A shelf to help organize storage space has been added to the lower dashboard glovebox. A newly optional Tech Audio system features an integrated satellite radio receiver with Bluetooth and auxiliary connectivity for iPods and other MP3 devices – and includes Tundra’s first USB link for those players. Among returning features are Bluetooth cell phone compatibility, power operation for the standard tilt and telescoping steering wheel, and a navigation system with a rear backup camera that projects an image onto the navigation screen when reverse gear is engaged; it’s helpful when backing up to a trailer. Exclusive to CrewMax Tundras are an optional tilt/sliding power moonroof and a rear-seat DVD entertainment system with a nine-inch LCD monitor. Double Cab and CrewMax models in top-line Limited trim come with leather upholstery and front and rear parking sonar.

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA PRICES

• Base prices for the 2010 Toyota Tundra range from $23,705 for a 2WD regular cab standard bed with a V6 engine and the Work Truck Package, to $42,900 for the CrewMax Limited 4x4 with a 5.7-liter V8 engine. These 2010 suggested retail prices reflect an average overall increase of $557 from 2009 models.

• All prices listed here include the factory mandated $745 delivery fee. Toyotas sold in Southeastern and Gulf states are delivered by an independent distributor and may carry different destination fees. Prices listed here are for 2WD models and do not include options. Add $3,050 to each price for the 4WD version. 

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra with the V-6 engine comes only with 2WD and starts at $23,900 for the regular cab. With the 4.6-liter V-8, regular-cab base-level Tundras are priced from $25,100; those with the 5.7 V-8 start at $26,100.

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra Double Cab is the most popular body style. They’re priced from $26,240 with the V-6, from $26,385 with the 4.6 V-8, and from $27,685 with the 5.7 V-8.

• CrewMax Tundras come only with a V-8 and are priced from $29,210 with the 4.6-liter and from $30,510 with the 5.7. The top-line Limited-model 2010 Tundras also come only with a V-8. They’re available as the Double Cab, priced from $36,015 with 4.6 V-8, and as the CrewMax, starting at $38,550. Add $1,290 to the Limited models for the 5.7-liter V-8. Limited models have as standard leather upholstery with heated front bucket seats, and a 10-way power driver’s seat and four-way power passenger seat, both with memory. An upgraded JBL sound system with steering-wheel control, Bluetooth wireless cell-phone link, and heated power mirrors with turn-signal lamps are also included.

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra SR5 package is available on Double Cab and CrewMax models and is priced around $1,400-$2,100 depending on engine and drivetrain. The SR5 package adds to the base model a tachometer, a tilt/telescope steering wheel, front bucket seats with a center console in place of a front bench, and an eight-way power driver’s seat. The SR5 package also includes heated power mirrors, an audio system with a CD changer, variable intermittent windshield wipers.

• The Work Truck package is aimed at commercial users, farmers, ranchers, and the like. It triggers a price cut of $195 to $1,030 from suggested retail, depending on the Tundra model on which its ordered. The Work package is available on regular-cab and Double Cab models and with both bed lengths. It can be paired with 4WD and any engine. This no-frills package peels off the chrome in favor of black bumpers and a black grille surround. Mirror adjustment is manual instead of electric, washable vinyl bench seats replace cloth or leather, and warning lights displace gauges for voltage, oil pressure and other engine functions. Gone also are courtesy lamps in the doors and glovebox.

• At the other end of the spectrum, the new-for-2010 Platinum Package is a $4,662 option available on Tundra CrewMax Limited models with the 5.7 V-8. It includes virtually every available option and adds unique perforated leather upholstery and headrests with embroidered Platinum logos.   

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA TEST DRIVE

From behind the wheel:

• Torque, not horsepower, is king when it comes to full-size pickups trucks. Torque is felt as an engine’s ability to move a mass away from a stop, its ability to respond once underway, and its ability to sustain momentum up long grades. Torque is measured as pound-feet, and more is better. Every full-size pickup except the Nissan Titan offers a V-6 engine, but none really fulfills its workhorse potential without a V-8. If, however, you’re strictly a light-duty user or on a squeezed-tight budget, you’ll find the Toyota Tundra’s V-6, with 266 pound-feet, has the most torque in the class. (That’s at least until Ford slips its twin-turbo EcoBoost V-6 into the 2010 F-150. This EcoBoost will boast around 350 pound-feet of torque, but unlike rival V-6s, won’t be a budget-priced powerplant.)

• Even if Tundra’s V-6 acquits itself well in the pickup equivalent of a pillow fight, you’ll be more satisfied with a V-8. This is where the new 4.6-liter comes in. It’s an improvement over the outgoing 4.7 in performance and fuel economy. And it finally gives Tundra an entry V-8 to compete with the best of the competition.

• Never any doubts about Tundra’s payload, towing, or acceleration credentials when equipped with the 5.7-liter V-8. With 401 pound-feet of torque, it’s in the heart of the half-ton V-8 hunt, though its fuel economy is a step behind rivals of similar power.

• No matter the engine, Tundra can feel ponderous when you ask it to change direction. No big pickup is family-sedan agile, of course, but Tundra feels slightly sleepier than its Ford, GM, Dodge, and Nissan rivals, tending toward more noseplow and body lean in fast turns. Part of the blame lies with Toyota’s steering. It maintains a nice set on-center, but feels numb and divorced when you begin to turn.

• Tundra’s stopping ability is good, though firmer brake-pedal feel would be appreciated. So would a 4WD system that could be left engaged on dry pavement to cope with times when the road surface is damp or rain-covered. These conditions promote copious rear-wheel slip in a pickup with an empty or lightly loaded bed. Full-time 4WD quells that unruly behavior by allowing the front tires to share the traction burden in these situations.               

Dashboard and controls:

• Tundra’s unapologetic size becomes more than a marketing maneuver when you’re seated before its massive dashboard. The instrument panel’s wide, wide center section anticipated a design cue evident in today’s newer Dodge Ram 1500 and Ford F-150. But that doesn’t make it any more ergonomically friendly. In fairness, the dashboard’s width is more visually daunting than functionally unsound, though it does force the driver to stretch to reach the audio controls.

• As if to acknowledge that Tundra’s cabin is so wide that driver and front passenger may experience different weather patterns, Toyota makes this the only pickup with dual-zone climate control standard on every model.

• Main gauges are clearly marked but separated enough to compromise quick scanning between them. And portions of the dial faces are blocked by the steering-wheel rim. Most main controls are knobs as large as espresso cups. They move smoothly, but suffer a thin, plasticky feel. It’s a hollowed-out impression mirrored by many of Tundra’s interior body panels. Luxury touches are undeniable on the Limited grade – it’s the only full-size pickup with a power-operated tilt-and-telescope steering wheel, for example. And Tundra’s navigation system is easy to program and has a large screen. But this Toyota is not generally distinguished by the quality of its cabin materials.     

Room, comfort, and utility:

• Linebackers in full uniform wouldn’t brush shoulder pads as driver and right-front passenger. A skinny equipment manager could squeeze between them on bench-seat models. Tundra’s seat cushions are thick and fulsome, though the chair-height stance that’s part of the comfort story also means tall occupants may find head room curiously tight for such a large cabin.

• Climbing aboard means negotiating a high step in that’s the same for 2WD and 4WD models. Rear doors open wide, though naturally, the CrewMax’s conventionally sized portals offer easier access than the DoubleCab’s abbreviated entryways. Same holds for back-seat spaciousness. The DoubleCab’s makes do with just-good-enough leg room while the CrewMax seems a palace. Both have a supportive rear bench, but the CrewMax’s slides fore and aft a full 10 inches and its backrest reclines to fine-tune comfort. Sweet.

• Comfort is the byword for ride quality, too, at least with the standard 18-inch wheels and tires. They combine with Tundra’s rangy wheelbase, stiff structure, and bump-flattening weight to make most faults in the road seem like rumors. No so with the 20-inch wheels and tires that are a popular dress-up option for Tundra Limited models. They trigger an unbecoming patter and jitter on washboards and ruts. Engines roar appropriately when you throttle up, but are otherwise quiet servants. Wind rush and tire rumble are well managed, too.

• Cargo-bed size and selection is competitive, though Tundra joins GM, Ford, and Nissan without an answer to the Dodge Ram 1500 Crew Cab’s innovative RamBox system of watertight storage bins. Tundra battles back with tailgates counterweighted to open and close with little effort, plus pace-setting in-cabin storage. The front center console is a mini file cabinet large enough to swallow a laptop or, well, to hang files. Bins abound, and folding forward the rear seatbacks creates sturdy-backed cargo platforms.         

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA FUEL ECONOMY

• The Tundra doesn’t offer a model to counter special fuel-sipper versions of the 2010 Ford F-150 and the 2010 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, which have mileage-friendly rear axle ratios and other economy tricks. Neither does it offer anything to equal the 20-mpg city figures of hybrid versions of the Silverado, GMC Sierra, and 2010 Dodge Ram 1500.

• Still, the 15 mpg city/20 mpg highway rating for the new 310-horsepower 4.6-liter V-8 and 2WD is matched by only one rival gas V-8 -- the F-150’s 292-horsepower 4.6. With 4WD, the 4.6 Tundra is rated at 14/19. That’s what many rivals rate with 2WD. (Tundra’s dismissed 4.7-liter V-8 was rated at 14/17 with 2WD, 13/16 with 4WD.)

• The new 4.6 is in fact Tundra’s most-efficient engine. The Tundra V-6 is offered only with 2WD and has EPA ratings of 15/19. Tundras with the 5.7 V-8 are rated at 14/18 with two-wheel drive, 13/17 with four-wheel drive. All these engines use 87-octane gas. Burning E85, the 5.7 is rated at 10/13; it’s available only with 4WD.

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA SAFETY AND RELIABILITY

• Government crash-test ratings award a maximum five stars for occupant protection in frontal and side collisions (www.safecar.gov). With its four-star rating, the Toyota Tundra is the only full-size pickup that does not score the full five stars for driver and passenger protection in both frontal and side impacts.

• Tundra generally runs with the pack in government tests of rollover resistance. Abetted by a high center of gravity, rollovers are a leading cause of fatalities in accidents that involve SUVs and pickups. The Toyota Tundra 2WD model rates three of five stars in rollover tests; most rivals rate four stars. The Tundra 4WD model tested was awarded four stars, on par with most 4WD full-size pickups.

• Toyota is ranked among the top five brands in overall quality by J.D. Power and Associates, the leading automotive consumer-survey firm. Among rival brands that include Honda, Nissan, Ford, Dodge, and General Motors, only Toyota rates above average in initial vehicle quality in the J.D. Power surveys. For dependability, the Toyota brand also is among the industry leaders, being one of only five brands to earn the highest-possible marks in the most-recent J.D. Power polls. (Buick, Jaguar, Lexus, and Mercury were the others.)

• Toyota Tundra owners rate their truck among the best in overall initial quality in J.D. Power surveys. They give it highest-possible marks for overall quality and overall mechanical quality. They rank powertrain and body/interior quality above average, and features and accessories quality about average.

• The current-generation Toyota Tundra has not been on the market long enough to be including in the latest J.D. Power studies that measure problems experienced by original owners of three-year-old vehicles. The model-year 2006 Tundra, however, rated tops among all full-size pickups for overall dependability. 

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA RELEASE DATE

• The 2010 Toyota Tundra went on sale April 23, 2009. In response to falling sales, production of the Tundra and the Toyota Sequoia SUV, which shares its mechanical underpinnings, has been consolidated from Toyota’s assembly plants in Indiana and Texas to just the one in Texas.

WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE TOYOTA TUNDRA

• Consider the huge investment Toyota made to deliver the all-new Tundra for 2007. Take into account how the troubled economy has stressed even this Japanese juggernaut. Conclusion: the current-generation Tundra is likely to stick around past the five-year or six-year lifespan it might have enjoyed under better circumstances. A complete redesign that could have been planned for 2011 or 2012 might now be on the agenda for 2013, or beyond. For a customer, that means a Tundra purchased today will have a long shelf life. For Toyota, it means continued investment to keep the truck from getting stale compared to the competition, two of which – the Dodge Ram and Ford-F-150 -- were redesigned for 2009.

• Toyota could address the challenge by reviving plans to offer a diesel engine. That would boost range and towing capacity, and give Tundra bragging rights among half-ton pickups. The question is whether buyers will be put off by the higher purchase price of a diesel engine and the 15-20-percent premium on diesel fuel. Plans for a hybrid Tundra also are in flux. Toyota, the world’s leader in hybrid cars, has pledged to make available by 2020 a gas-electric version of every vehicle in its lineup. Full-size pickups from Dodge and GM already offer hybrid models, though they’re expected to account for only a fraction of sales.

• Toyota’s next pickup development likely involves introduction of a truly small compact based on its eyebrow-raising A-BAT concept of 2008. A production version of that “Advanced Breakthrough Aero Truck” might come as early as model-year 2011 and include a gas-electric hybrid. 

2010 TOYOTA TUNDRA COMPETITION

• 2010 Chevrolet Silverado 1500: Like the Tundra, Chevy’s big pickup was last all-new for the 2007 model year, making both seem aged compared to the freshly minted Ford F-150 and Dodge Ram 1500. Some might argue Chevy’s done a better job than Toyota keeping its truck current, citing Chevy’s recent addition of a 332-horsepower gas-electric hybrid V-8 (21/22 mpg) and a hydraulic body mount to improve ride and control. However, Tundra’s new 4.6-liter V-8 is likely to have a greater impact than Silverado’s hybrid. And Tundra already has a pretty refined ride. Silverado’s styling is getting almost too familiar, but for value and basic design, the 2010 Silverado is in the thick of the fight. Maximum towing capacity is 10,700 pounds. Base price range is around $18,600 to about $46,000.

• 2010 Dodge Ram 1500: Fully redesigned for the 2009 model year, Dodge’s half-ton pickup gains a hybrid option for 2010. Ram’s styling is bold, and it’s the only vehicle in this class with a rear coil-spring suspension instead of leaf springs. That helps soften the ride. Other attractions include an improved Hemi V-8 with 390 horsepower (14/20 mpg), and a gas-hybrid version of that Hemi (around 20/21). Dodge also says it’s on track to introduce a diesel-engine option, but probably not until after the 2010 model year. Storage versatility is a Ram selling point, with watertight bins in the Crew Cab’s passenger floor and big “RamBox” compartments built into the sides of its cargo bed. Maximum trailer capacity, 9,100 pounds, trails that of the competition,  but few half-ton owners tow more than 7,000 pounds. Ram 1500 base prices are in the $23,000-$46,000 range.         

• 2010 Ford F-150: America’s top-selling truck was redesigned for 2009. It has updated styling, larger cabs, and a lighter, stronger frame. Power, fuel economy, towing, and payload capacity are improved. The F-150 has lots of passenger room and in-cab storage space, and its cargo boxes are available with compartments, dividers, and access steps. The new F-150 debuted with an all-V-8 lineup; horsepower ranges from 248-320 and fuel economy ratings span 14/18-15/20. Like GM and Toyota, Ford shelved plans for a diesel, and it isn’t considering a hybrid. Instead, the F-150 is due to get Ford’s EcoBoost V-6, a twin-turbo designed to furnish the fuel economy of a V-6 and the power of a V-8. It’s due during calendar 2010, but could be part of a model-year 2011 F-150 launch. F-150 base prices begin around $22,000 and top out around $45,000. Maximum towing capacity is 11,300 pounds.