Maybe a former Tundra owner soon to be 6th gen owner

[Hypogeum]

Hi All, just curious if anyone here was a previous 3rd gen Tundra owner and what are your thoughts on ditching it. I have a 2023 Tundra TRDORP CrewMax 6.5 bed, sold my 2007 Tundra after 12 years of ownership and my 2018 to get this thing.... not impressed after 2 1/2 years.

I have owned Toyota trucks and 4Runners for over 27 years. Along the way I have had two 1st gen Tacos, two 1st gen Tundra's, one 2nd gen Tundra, a couple of the old old trucks as beaters, and three 4 runners, a 2nd, 3rd, and 5th gen. Although I use my truck bed on a semi-frequent basis I miss my 5th gen dearly.

I think for my lifestyle a utility trailer will cover what I need for cargo. Things I do enjoy with my current ride is the humungous back seat, the smooth ride, and the large bed (it's great when I need it). When I had my 5th gen I found that it was my go to vehicle for 95% of the time. I considered ditching the new Tundra for a 5th gen but honestly, for as reliable as they are, the used prices are ridiculous. One main mental hurdle is money. I owe $16K, spent $8700 on crap like lift and tires among other things, and the resale value sucks tremendously. Looks like $39k is the basic trade in I can get, and private sales are a pain in the ass with a lien.

The main driver behind my motivation to ditch is the quality and the questionable reliability. The day I drove it home my mirror whistled like crazy and still does. I just stuffed a piece of foam in a crevice to shut it up and said whatever. Within the first year my fuel gauge screwed up (notorious problem), there was a TSB but it did not apply for my VIN and after countless visits and finally getting Toyota Brand engagement and the regional field engineer involved, after 2 years I was able to get them to roll out the same TSB cluster flash to newer models. I have rust bubbles right near the top of the windshield, definitely not rock chips or the windshield would of been destroyed. Service manager agreed, months of fighting and not getting if covered, I gave up. I have a serious bucking issue when the truck is cold, and I have the huge delayed throttle response pulling from a rolling stop that so many others have. This happened right from the beginning and still, no fix. This is another issue that has a TSB but again, I am out of VIN range..... its like what the hell, just roll the same TCM flash out. Then the elephant in the room, the 3.4l timebomb, will it explode or won't it, who knows. I can sit and worry if a meteor will fall on my head everyday or I can go on with life. I was extremely worried, the recall is BS, we all know it isn't engine debris, its a design flaw. The recall goes from Nov 2022 to mid 2023 manufactures dates,.... once again my truck was built Feb 15 2023 and doesn't fall in range. If it explodes I can count on getting a rebuild, not the long block. As a former mastertech that bothers me be once that metal has run through the engine, its over. I don't care if you replace a short block, heads, turbos, you will not get all that crap out of there without complete disassembly of the reused parts.

So as I continue to ramble and look for validation from strangers to either keep or move on I am having the worst time getting off of the fence. Some days I love my truck for what it is, then I get a reminder when something annoys me, like the buzzing dashboard, or the bucking on my 8 mile ride to work, the poor fit and finish, etc. I am trying to be as objective as possible. Long term, I can spend the $17k paying it off with the low interest I have and be done with it, or start over and pay about $24k more than keeping it would of cost in order to have a 2025 4Runner TRDOR Premium.

I bought the platinum warranty this summer for $1599 thinking it was the piece of mind I needed. Then I realized that great, if something goes sideways out of warranty, yep the monetary setback is covered, but what isn't covered is my safety, the safety of my family if it shuts down going 75 mph, 150 miles from home with a bed full of camping gear on an interstate.

Save money and try to cope mentally, or burn the cash, and I mean burn cash because even though I say I won't do it again, I will most likely spend $7-10k on a ton of crap for the new rig. If you made it this far, thanks for listening.

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[4running]

I made it to the end!

Seriously though after reading your whole post, it seems that you're always going to be unsatisfied or worried in the Tundra. And the fact that you miss your old 4Runner so much and already started looking at the 6th gen will only add to that effect I think.

It's easy for me to spend someone else's money, but I'd just cut my losses and get back into a 4Runner considering your Tundra ownership experience and concerns and how you pine for a 4Runner.

 

[K2mia]

Hi All, just curious if anyone here was a previous 3rd gen Tundra owner and what are your thoughts on ditching it. I have a 2023 Tundra TRDORP CrewMax 6.5 bed, sold my 2007 Tundra after 12 years of ownership and my 2018 to get this thing.... not impressed after 2 1/2 years.

I have owned Toyota trucks and 4Runners for over 27 years. Along the way I have had two 1st gen Tacos, two 1st gen Tundra's, one 2nd gen Tundra, a couple of the old old trucks as beaters, and three 4 runners, a 2nd, 3rd, and 5th gen. Although I use my truck bed on a semi-frequent basis I miss my 5th gen dearly.

I think for my lifestyle a utility trailer will cover what I need for cargo. Things I do enjoy with my current ride is the humungous back seat, the smooth ride, and the large bed (it's great when I need it). When I had my 5th gen I found that it was my go to vehicle for 95% of the time. I considered ditching the new Tundra for a 5th gen but honestly, for as reliable as they are, the used prices are ridiculous. One main mental hurdle is money. I owe $16K, spent $8700 on crap like lift and tires among other things, and the resale value sucks tremendously. Looks like $39k is the basic trade in I can get, and private sales are a pain in the ass with a lien.

The main driver behind my motivation to ditch is the quality and the questionable reliability. The day I drove it home my mirror whistled like crazy and still does. I just stuffed a piece of foam in a crevice to shut it up and said whatever. Within the first year my fuel gauge screwed up (notorious problem), there was a TSB but it did not apply for my VIN and after countless visits and finally getting Toyota Brand engagement and the regional field engineer involved, after 2 years I was able to get them to roll out the same TSB cluster flash to newer models. I have rust bubbles right near the top of the windshield, definitely not rock chips or the windshield would of been destroyed. Service manager agreed, months of fighting and not getting if covered, I gave up. I have a serious bucking issue when the truck is cold, and I have the huge delayed throttle response pulling from a rolling stop that so many others have. This happened right from the beginning and still, no fix. This is another issue that has a TSB but again, I am out of VIN range..... its like what the hell, just roll the same TCM flash out. Then the elephant in the room, the 3.4l timebomb, will it explode or won't it, who knows. I can sit and worry if a meteor will fall on my head everyday or I can go on with life. I was extremely worried, the recall is BS, we all know it isn't engine debris, its a design flaw. The recall goes from Nov 2022 to mid 2023 manufactures dates,.... once again my truck was built Feb 15 2023 and doesn't fall in range. If it explodes I can count on getting a rebuild, not the long block. As a former mastertech that bothers me be once that metal has run through the engine, its over. I don't care if you replace a short block, heads, turbos, you will not get all that crap out of there without complete disassembly of the reused parts.

So as I continue to ramble and look for validation from strangers to either keep or move on I am having the worst time getting off of the fence. Some days I love my truck for what it is, then I get a reminder when something annoys me, like the buzzing dashboard, or the bucking on my 8 mile ride to work, the poor fit and finish, etc. I am trying to be as objective as possible. Long term, I can spend the $17k paying it off with the low interest I have and be done with it, or start over and pay about $24k more than keeping it would of cost in order to have a 2025 4Runner TRDOR Premium.

I bought the platinum warranty this summer for $1599 thinking it was the piece of mind I needed. Then I realized that great, if something goes sideways out of warranty, yep the monetary setback is covered, but what isn't covered is my safety, the safety of my family if it shuts down going 75 mph, 150 miles from home with a bed full of camping gear on an interstate.

Save money and try to cope mentally, or burn the cash, and I mean burn cash because even though I say I won't do it again, I will most likely spend $7-10k on a ton of crap for the new rig. If you made it this far, thanks for listening.

I love the new gen 4R but it was about an even trade for me going to it so not much concern financially. I would be concerned in the Tundra, but fiscally speaking I'd probably want to pay it off first, and then take some time to evaluate before jumping into a decision. By that point the 2nd year 6th gen will be out and you'll have more info to go by, but so far for me no issues with my 6th gen and it is a great ride.

 

[Nodak]

as someone that has a 23 platinum 4x4 5.5ft, its more of an apples to oranges comparison. the tundra has it pro's and con's vs a 4R.

the mpg on the 18 tundra, we avg after 5 yrs was 11 mpg, the 23 tundra we are getting 12-13 mpg after 2.5 yrs avg, the 14 4R i avg 16 mpg after 11 yrs.

the rear cargo area with the seats down on the 4R cant be beat, especially for our 2 GSP dogs and the rear window cracked for the dogs to poke the heads out.

the tundra you just cant beat the cabin seating space vs the 4R, the tundra wins hands down for comfort for seating space.

the 25 4R platinum will be spec'd exactly like the tundra, the only difference is that the 4R has FT4WD with locking center diff vs the tundra PT4WD.

on short trips we take the tundra for the comfort and space to layout (the spouse sleeps as the passenger princess) and i enjoy the comfort and ability to stretch and be comfortable while driving within the state.

on long distance trips i take my current 4R, its just better on long drives than the tundra when i am solo (someone has to stay home to watch the dogs). i drive mostly from ND to ATL and its roughly 1750-1800 miles 1-way to see my mom. we did it before with the whole family in our 2018 tundra and amount of room you have for 4 people in a tundra crew cab cant be beat.

the spouse was contemplating taking my 25 4R, but in the end, she couldnt give up her truck ways.

so we will continue having both the tundra and 4R for now. sorry to hear about your issues with yours but since owning our 23 tundra and going thru roughly 17,000 miles, outside the recalls performed, we havent too much issues with our tundra. we still have the gas gauge issue, but we resolved that by parking the nose down in the driveway, since then the gas gauge has never been an issue. i think that is the only major item we havent had resolved yet, the rest has been resovled via recalls or software updates outside our long block replacement (our tundra is in the recall).

right now we are waiting for a proper blue tundra to come out and we will be trading our 23 in for a better blue colored tundra (the blueprint is nice but it really doesnt fit the bill for the wife's version of a proper blue color, she dearly misses her old 2018 tundra blazing blue pearl)

 

[Hypogeum]

@K2mia @4running thanks for the two different insights. This is the problem, I am stuck right in between the both of your points. To 4running's point, I know I will always be worried about my Tundra, it sucks, its in my head deep. I have owned Toyotas with almost 300k miles and didn't worry about them, my 1996 4runner had 273k. As far as financials, its more about the long term investment. I stand to lose around $8600 of installed crap that you can never recover, especially when trading in. I can probably take a couple of things off of the truck to sell and offset new goodies. And if I purchase a new 4Runner, I will be borrowing $34k instead of paying off which would be $17k with interest and of course a new purchase adds more time paying on a vehicle. I have come at this from all angles. Regardless of what I do, I put a $500 refundable deposit on a Underground TRDOR premium. It is due to arrive in a couple weeks or more. I can go ahead of time and check one out if I want next weekend, granted the still have it. The one I am considering has a sticker of $60,458 and they offered it to me for $56,268. It has options I wanted, it did come with the black wheels which I don't particularly care to pay $1300 for but the discount makes it very attractive and puts it at below base MSRP. I am in NH so no sales tax which is always great and there are some dealers that sell in mass quantity and give deep discounts. I think the smartest thing to do is go visit the vehicle when it comes in, bring a clear mind, right down the pros and cons ahead of time, thoroughly go through the new one, drive it, feel it, touch it, let it sell itself to me. It's a lot to unwrap here. And yes I do miss my 5th gen badly, but I don't like the feeling of not having a truck to do truck things. An old used truck to go with this may be an option too.

 

[Nodak]

@K2mia @4running thanks for the two different insights. This is the problem, I am stuck right in between the both of your points. To 4running's point, I know I will always be worried about my Tundra, it sucks, its in my head deep. I have owned Toyotas with almost 300k miles and didn't worry about them, my 1996 4runner had 273k. As far as financials, its more about the long term investment. I stand to lose around $8600 of installed crap that you can never recover, especially when trading in. I can probably take a couple of things off of the truck to sell and offset new goodies. And if I purchase a new 4Runner, I will be borrowing $34k instead of paying off which would be $17k with interest and of course a new purchase adds more time paying on a vehicle. I have come at this from all angles. Regardless of what I do, I put a $500 refundable deposit on a Underground TRDOR premium. It is due to arrive in a couple weeks or more. I can go ahead of time and check one out if I want next weekend, granted the still have it. The one I am considering has a sticker of $60,458 and they offered it to me for $56,268. It has options I wanted, it did come with the black wheels which I don't particularly care to pay $1300 for but the discount makes it very attractive and puts it at below base MSRP. I am in NH so no sales tax which is always great and there are some dealers that sell in mass quantity and give deep discounts. I think the smartest thing to do is go visit the vehicle when it comes in, bring a clear mind, right down the pros and cons ahead of time, thoroughly go through the new one, drive it, feel it, touch it, let it sell itself to me. It's a lot to unwrap here. And yes I do miss my 5th gen badly, but I don't like the feeling of not having a truck to do truck things. An old used truck to go with this may be an option too.

go drive any 4runner they have on the lot or do a 1 day rental if they have any in the rental fleet.

or if you are in a big city do a few day rental for a car rental agency to get a feel

 

[Hypogeum]

@K2mia @4running I ended up doing it, took delivery yesterday. I was able to spend time with two different rigs, one for an extended amount of time and I felt it was a superior vehicle that with a trailer could do everything I needed to.

 

[brumey]

Congrats. I have the 4R and am generally happy with it. My next purchase was going to be the Tundra but after months of research, I do not want to take the risk. Maybe if they did a significant refresh but even then, reliability is questionable. I am not focused on the Ford F150 5.0 V8. No turbo's, no hybrid, proven power train.

From your detailed post, it was clear to me that dumping the Tundra was the way to go. Its sucks you put that much money into it but it sounds like you got a good deal on trade-in from your other post.

The 4R is not perfect my any means but, I don't think its has time bomb catastrophic failure risk.

Enjoy your new ride.

 

[4running]

@K2mia @4running I ended up doing it, took delivery yesterday. I was able to spend time with two different rigs, one for an extended amount of time and I felt it was a superior vehicle that with a trailer could do everything I needed to.

Oh congrats Stacey!! What's your 6th gen 4Runner's specs?

 

[K2mia]

@K2mia @4running I ended up doing it, took delivery yesterday. I was able to spend time with two different rigs, one for an extended amount of time and I felt it was a superior vehicle that with a trailer could do everything I needed to.

Congrats and enjoy it - I know you will!

 

[Hypogeum]

Oh congrats Stacey!! What's your 6th gen 4Runner's specs?

A TRD Offroad premium, tried for minimal options and it has moonroof, towtech, floor liners and the TRD wheels. Would rather not had the wheels so I could choose my own, but it is what it is.

 

[Hypogeum]

Congrats. I have the 4R and am generally happy with it. My next purchase was going to be the Tundra but after months of research, I do not want to take the risk. Maybe if they did a significant refresh but even then, reliability is questionable. I am not focused on the Ford F150 5.0 V8. No turbo's, no hybrid, proven power train.

From your detailed post, it was clear to me that dumping the Tundra was the way to go. Its sucks you put that much money into it but it sounds like you got a good deal on trade-in from your other post.

The 4R is not perfect my any means but, I don't think its has time bomb catastrophic failure risk.

Enjoy your new ride.

I think these will hold up, at the very least be way better. I have a brother who has been a tech with Toyota now for two decades, he is so mellow and go with the flow that when he said "I wouldn't want to deal with the BS if my bearings got munched" I was disturbed... you'd have to know the guy to know he was dead serious. They just had a 2024 Hybrid in the shop two weeks ago with 8,000 miles that failed, quite obviously a design flaw. Same ole issue, #1 main spun and worse yet, Toyota forced them to do a rebuild and the engine gaskets are on backorder causing rebuild delays. Warranty or not, I couldn't deal with the "will a meteor land on my head" feeling anymore. 33% depreciation in less than three years was rough, but the band aid had been ripped off. Speaking of F-150s, never thought I would go Ford, but I did contemplate a 5.0L F-150 Tremor, then got turned off when a coworker bought a Tremor Superduty gas V8 in August, has 800 miles, the Transmission failed at 400, then it started running like crap and it's been at the dealership for 30 days with the engine ripped apart. So its a pick your poison, I know F150 vs Superduty is not apples to apples, but hell no.

 

[DT784]

Just ditched a 2024 tundra for a 2025 limited 4Runner. The 4Runner is very nice. The space difference on the inside is very noticeable and my only complaint/regret. That Tundra was fast and spacious. 4Runner considerably slower and smaller inside. Overall hard to tell bc I’m a sucker for a new vehicle.

 

[Hypogeum]

Just ditched a 2024 tundra for a 2025 limited 4Runner. The 4Runner is very nice. The space difference on the inside is very noticeable and my only complaint/regret. That Tundra was fast and spacious. 4Runner considerably slower and smaller inside. Overall hard to tell bc I’m a sucker for a new vehicle.

The change in quality is very apparent to me and highlights the Tundra's shortcomings. For my lifestyle it isn't a hard adjustment, I am getting an new utility trailer soon and I only tow a small boat. I am just happy to be unburdened by the disaster that the 3rd gen is, and only 5 days after I got rid of it, the recall was expanded.... good riddance.

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