RE: Tundra "weak" truck for work. Here is one actual example of Tundra work use. I only own one Tundra, so my expereince could be unique, but I doubt it.
Geologist in Western U.S. with 2001 Limited Ext.Cab 4x4 Tundra and just over
13 years of off-road work experience:Over 37,000 miles (most off-road, and I mean really off-road) "work" miles.
Have done oil-changes and brake pads only, no serious mechanical problems.
Have climbed/gone down steep off-road up to 25% grades, under load (hauling a lot of rock or HQ size rock core samples, up to 1200 lbs.), and have never even had to throw into 4-low, 4-hi has gotten me everywhere I need to go.
In fact, have climbed some slopes with Tundra that other trucks could not. And yes, on the same day under the same weather conditions.
Have towed full-size, three-phase, Ingersoll-Rand trailer-mounted generators to remote mountain sites up nothing more than dozer or jeep tracks. And the truck bed was very often over-full with drilling equipment including drill rod, tools, 6" diameter auger and hammer bits, that's a lot of heavy-duty steel, folks. I'm not hauling two ladders and a job box to some local, in-town, flat, construction pad build-site.
My Tundra has been far more reliable under regular maint. than other trucks I have owned/used for work over the last decade including:
Ford F-250 (brand-new truck, more time in shop than at work, some within warranty period, some even within 30 days of purchase) Silverado (about as much ground clearance as your standard Cadillac, required to use by employer) Dodge RAM 1500 4x4 (cheap construction, with trim parts and internal details falling off while less than one year old, computer module tanked twice, and the resale value sucked)
Just one Tundra owner's/work user opinion. Your experience may vary from mine. But I have been VERY happy with work performance of my Tundra. For my money, there are few work uses that put a truck through at least as much off-road hell than a geologist's. And the Tundra will still hold a lot of re-sale value, more so than any domestic...