Bought a new Tundra last week, and so far just love it. Double Cab, 5.7 Liter, Standard Bed, SR5.... in Blue Streak.
Quick history... First new truck ever, 1985 F-150... got totaled with 7,652 miles on it (no fault of mine!), Next, 1986 F-150, 4.9L inline 6, 4 speed manual, great truck, lasted 10 years, Next, 1996 F-150, 4.9L inline 6, 5 speed manual, another great truck, also lasted 10 years, Next, 2005 Silverado, 4.8L v-8, 5 speed manual ( Ford quit making F150s with manual trannys). At 6,700 miles sounded like something in the steering was falling off. Mechanic at dealership said, no problem, just need to disassemble steering shafts and grease! I say, "Can't be! Somethings loose". He says, ever Chevy truck since '97 has had this problem. Sure enough, they disassemble, grease, and reassemble, problem disappears. As I was leaving the dealership, he says, "See you in
5,000 miles!" Sure enough at about 11,500 sounds like something is loose again. So I trade in an 11-month old truck with 11,900 miles on it. MSRP on it in July '05 was $26,600, eleven months later, Kelly Blue Book says for a truck like this in EXCELLENT condition (only 5% of vehicles meet this standard), it is now worth $14,700 on trade in. Since, Ford doesn't have a manual tranny in the F-150, and apparently Chevy can't build a front end, I decided to try a Tundra.Observations so far.... The Tundra... Much better ride than the Chevy, Roomier (shoulder and leg room) than the Ford or Chevy, The engineers must have spent hours coming up with all the different storage nooks and crannys. They're all handy . Feels as solid or more so than the F150s. The Chevy... won't go there. Power - Almost SCARY! This thing will jump to Interstate speed in a heart beat. The Chevy.... Had fine seats. They had about the best support I've had in a vehicle. The Fords.... Tough and Reliable. Other than gas, tires, oil, and oil filters, the '96 F150 cost $871 in 117,000 miles.
Gas mileage, for the way I drive the F150s averaged overall about 17.5, the Chevy 18.2. So far (500 miles) the Tundra is getting 17.7. Hopefully, it will do a little better, as it breaks in.
Now a couple of questions... Why does the Tundra have a "low beam indicator"?
On the Tundra, to maintain emissions system warranty, spark plugs must be changed every 30,000 miles. Do other new trucks have this requirement?
I know... enough already!
Steve
If you see a Blue Streak go streakin' by, it might just be me.