Hey guys,

Thinking about picking up a 2014 Tundra.  I haven't had a pickup since Silverado years ago.  I'd like to stick to the 2014 model year.  

Tell me about the Tundra's 4WD system.  Pros/cons?  Is the latest Ford or Chevy systems superior?  I have a 2012 Grand Cherokee and have been more than happy with its Qudra-Drive, etc.

I apologize for the broad questions.  I'm early in my car search.

Thanks!

Do a search and find the video on youtube that shows Ford, Chevy, Dodge and Tundra side by side towing/braking & rough roads. You will QUICKLY delete Tundra from your decision.


Better yet.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJZVUnOduH4

Lmao. Thank God there's no possibility that the 'test' in that vid was rigged in fords favor. Something about harmonics and frame resonance anyone???  Ford did a variant of this 2-3 decades ago using light bulbs breaking to introduce some drama.

...and then do a search about reliability and resale value.

By FORD MOTOR COMPANY! I'm almost positive they wouldn't be biased in any way. NO, I'm sure that they wouldn't play to the strong points of their trucks while ignoring the quality of others. Yes there you have it a completely non BIASED youtube video.

The Tundra has the standard two wheel drive 4x4. No lockers. Same as many other "4x4"s. My Nissan Titan Pro 4X at least has a locking rear differential. So, it's a 3x4.

2014 is different from a 2009. Look at what you link before posting.

In general I'm a fan of the tundra USED


but to me it's too old of a platform now to consider passing up more modern and advanced models from competitors. The tundra aside from some recent cosmetic changes is an 8 year old truck.

Thanks guys, I appreciate all the info.

I too am in the market for a new truck and am experiencing the same things you are asking about.

Here are my observations and opinions...

The Tundra is kinda homely looking.  Kinda boring too.
The F150 looks better to me.  I like the big chrome.
The rear seats in the Tundra crew are more comfy and more reclined than the F150 and include armrests with cupholders.
Tundra has that cool rear roll down window in their Crewmax.  
Crawling under the Ford and comparing it to the underside of the Tundra was interesting.  I noticed that the F150 rocker panels are going to collect debris and rust out.  There were lightning holes in the rocker channel area and they were covered with tape which was very loosely applied.. looked like it would eventually fall off and make the holes open and now a good place to catch road salt and muck.  I saw no similar issues on the Tundra.
The MPG numbers for a Ford EcoBoost looks attractive.  My research and suspicion is that those numbers are optimistic
Tundra MPG looks terrible but I trust their numbers are accurate.
Tundra Crew has no long box, F150 has the long box option.
The Tundra is a better value when comparing its MSRP to the of Ford.  The Tundra just had more features for a similarly priced F150.
I am guessing that the Tundra is less likely to have body rust issues versus the F150 based on my inspection of the undersides and wheel well areas.
I can't comment on the 4wd differences, other than that I believe the Tundra has some sort of traction control mode that controls braking and power application. I have no idea how it works, so I guess I'll have to read up on it.

That being said, I will be buying a Tundra in the near future.  While I am very proud of the strides Ford has made in the past few years I am just not ready to call the F150 a better value for my needs.  I am an engineer by trade and I really appreciated the engineering effort that went into the Tundra. I hope that the 2015 F150 knocks it out of the park with their decision to go with a large aluminum content body.   I think the next few years are going to be very interesting for the 1/2 ton truck market.  

Get one.

The Tundra has 4 wheel drive traction control.  I don't know much more because I haven't used four high or low but once and that was to make sure it all worked.  I got factory pizza cutter tires right now so I aint going too far off the beat and path.

Lots of room and power.  Comfortable ride. Fuel mileage isn't as good as the other 3 companies claim their trucks can get, but I got 19.6mpg(hand calculated) on a highway trip by keeping it between 65-70mph.  Pretty damn good for a truck that big and with a 381hp V8.  

I drove Fords for the past 5 years and Dodge and Chevy before that.  Toyota makes a better product.    

Mine that I bought in March.

I purchased a 2014 Tundra SR5 DoubleCab in February. I can't say enough good things about the truck and have to agree with the engineering mentioned in other posts. My previous ride was a Tacoma and the resale value on that 9 year old truck was amazing. I'd be more than happy to buy another Tundra. The test for the Detroit models seems to be after they have a few miles on them. In my experience they just don't hold up as well unfortunately. At this point the F150 is close and in another 8 or 10 years when it's time for a new truck, I will give the f150 a harder look.

The new pro models have the locker I believe, and look pretty decent.  Not sure how pricey they get though.



OP, I bought my first toyota about two years ago and now the wife and I both have them (4runner and FJ).  I cannot say enough good things about them.



I own 10,000 shares of Ford stock and still purchase Toyota over Ford.  If you are talking 3/4 to 1 ton then Ford is the obvious answer though.



 

Back when I was buying (2012), the choice was down to two machines. The Tundra and Titan. The Titan had the smaller engine, but had the 3 wheel drive I was looking for. Getting stuck really sucks and I've been stuck more than once in the snow from standard 4X4 (two wheel drive) systems. As I really don't trust the traction control (the Titan has this too), I thought it would be best if I had at least one more driving wheel. The Nissan had the locker, the Toyota didn't. I've since added a Bully Dog to the Titan to make up for the loss of power between the two. You might be surprised what a 2* timing mod will do.

I didn't even consider the American made trucks. GM and Dodge took bailout money and I'll be damned if I was going to pay twice for a truck. I've had a LOT of Ford products and was less than satisfied every time. From a cracked head to a leaking rear main seal, the quality just isn't there.

I also agree with you assessment on 3/4 and 1 ton trucks. We had a 7.3 powerstroke F350 at work that had roughly over 600,000 miles on it. While it had problems in the end, it just kept going. They finally got rid of it. Diesel was getting too expensive.  

To the OP, an update to my earlier post...

A few days ago I bought a 2014 4x4 CrewMax Tundra SR5 upgrade. I did this after looking further at Ford, Dodge, and Chevy. So far I am pleased with it's comfort and performance (381 HP 5.7 Liter).  I have never owned a truck that powerful before so I have nothing else to compare it to.

Passenger space is insanely generous and is better than any vehicle I have ever experienced.   You can fit four very tall adults in it very comfortably.  I am 6-2 and I still have plenty of room to move the seat back from a comfortable position.

In regards to the 4wd feature, the Tundra allows you to turn on/off the limited slip differential in the rear as well as turn on/off traction control system.  The tow mode will be handy if you do any towing and want to change your transmission shift scheduling.  Also, if you want to tow something there is no need to add a receiver hitch and trailer hook up since its standard equipment.

Another thing I learned driving it recently is that the transmission downshifts when I coast to a stop which is kinda cool IMO, its not annoying to me in that it seems to know when I want to coast towards a stop.  I am guessing it looks at pedal position and figures if you lay off the pedal for so many seconds it figures you want to decelerate towards a stop or slow down.  I haven't tried it in cruise on hills, but I would imagine it downshifts while going downhill when the cruise is on to maintain set speed, however I dont know that for sure just yet.

The headlight level adjuster wheel is pretty handy. If you have a heavy load and are a tad nose high you can scroll the wheel to adjust your headlight beams.

The Entune radio deck/hands free phone is easy to operate.  The voice recognition does a good job understanding me.  You can change the screen layouts so that your "home" screen shows what you want.

The cloth material is way better than the other manufacturers in my opinion and the different color seat panels is kinda neat.  The console storage is cavernous and proably could fit a small cooler, but I have yet to try that so I'll have to report back .  There are 4 power ports: 2 front, 1 in console storage, and 1 for rear passengers. I have no idea what kinda wattage I can draw on those yet.

Something I thought weird when I looked it over before taking delivery: it has no transmission dipstick!  I have no idea why that was deleted.

Nothing in the interior seems flimsy as far as I can tell.. the only thing I think might break would be the power port cover in the passenger area. Its a spring loaded plastic door but I dont think thats a big deal if it happens.   The door handle wells have a piece of felt in the bottom of them, I dont like that since my kids leave their sticky lolipop sticks and candy wrappers in there when I am not looking. However they look to be removable.

I think it will be like our family Camry... perfectly boring with no exciting breakdowns or "wtf" type of moments .

There are Tundra specific forums out there that I would recommend checking out.  I learned a lot about the good and bad of the Tundra.  I don't think you'll be disappointed with the Tundra unless you have a specific requirement that it wont meet.

Thank you for your feedback.  Congrats on the new truck.

I was able to check out a couple Tundras this weekend.  After doing alot of research, I really do like the resale value of the Toyota.  I seem to go through cars pretty quick and that is always a selling point.  I had a couple Infinitis in the past and it was pretty ridiculous how well they held their value.

The rolldown window is a must.  I was leaning towards a Crewmax and I'm glad that they don't have a long box option as I think that'd be overkill and too much of a pain to drive.  I may have to find a way to get that TRD supercharger.

I did read up on the new Tundra Pro.  It sounds pretty interesting and if it were available now, I'd probably aim for that.  It doesn't sound like the upgrades are not something one couldn't do yourself with all the aftermarket options available.  I spoke with a coworker who has spent close to 15K on his 2012 Tundra....and by the sounds of it, he's not done yet.

Wait to see the new TRD PRO Tundra.

That's tough considering the wait and the limited reviews.  I could probably just get a "regular" Tundra and customize it myself.