Tundra (finally) on-sale Down Under from November

TOYOTA Australia has finally hit ‘go’ with its answer to the 1500-class pick-up segment, as it opens the order books for the Tundra in November following a lengthy development process that included customer trials.

The top-selling automaker has missed a chunk of the growing pick-up market until now, beaten to the punch by Ram, Ford and Chevrolet, but it promises the end result is worth the wait and being hybrid it may outlive its competitors as the NVES outcome approaches.

“If there’s one message that I truly want to emphasise today above all others, it’s this: anyone who refers to the right-hand drive Tundra as a mere conversion is massively under calling what has been achieved here,” said Toyota Australia vice president of sales, marketing and franchise operations, Sean Hanley.

“It could actually be a misleading word, because this vehicle sets a new benchmark for re-engineering a full-size pick-up truck, or indeed any vehicle, from left-hand drive to right-hand drive.”

Toyota Australia partnered with Walkinshaw Automotive Group for the right-hand drive conversion of the US-built Tundra, out of the firm’s Melbourne facility, and while the company also converts Chevrolet and Ram pick-ups it says the Toyota program has been its most comprehensive yet.

“The amount of investment and the amount of time that has gone into this program has been by far the most in-depth program that we’ve ever done,” said Walkinshaw Group director and chief executive, Ryan Walkinshaw.

“Generally a program for us on some of our customers would be around two years to do the development for that, before you actually end up getting to sub production, but it took over three years for Toyota and the investment that’s gone into it, the attention to detail and the education process of how Toyota does things is very, very different.

“It’s been an incredible learning experience for our business and I think the quality of the product is what will show that.”

While right-hand drive conversions aren’t a new concept in Australia, this is the first time Toyota has worked with a third-party to re-engineer a vehicle, which took more than half a decade of development to gain the tick of approval from the manufacturer’s Japanese overlords.

“Our parent company has given Toyota Australia official approval to launch Tundra to retail customers,” said Mr Hanley.

“The announcement marks the first time, in fact anywhere in the world, that we at Toyota have taken a vehicle built in a country that’s not Japan, exported it to a third country, re-engineered it with a local partner, undertaken final assembly in a non-Toyota factory and sold it 100 per cent as a Toyota-branded vehicle.”

Back in April Toyota kicked off a real-world customer trial, with 300 Tundra models to be validated across 12 months, which is still underway. According to Toyota Australia,

customers participating in the trial will continue to do so until the program ends in 2025.

Mr Hanley explained that the re-engineered Tundra features components from popular models like the LandCruiser 300 Series, for both the Limited grade and a new Australia-only premium grade due in Q2 next year.

“The Tundra has been completely re-engineered by Toyota engineers working in close collaboration with Walkinshaw and uses many parts and components from other Toyota vehicles such as LandCruiser 300 Series to ensure the very highest quality standards,” he said.

“We couldn’t have done it without the great cooperation of Walkinshaw, Toyota North

America, and the hundreds of customers that have been evaluating and reporting on the vehicle’s performance in real-world conditions as part of the Tundra Insider Program that kicked off in September last year.”

The re-engineered Tundra model rides on the same TNGA-F platform as the LandCruiser 300, powered by a hybrid system consisting of a 3.5-litre twin-turbo petrol V6 and electric motor producing total outputs of 326kW/790Nm, running through a 10-speed automatic.

A selectable 4x4 system with dual-range transfer case and full 4.5-tonne towing capacity puts the Tundra on par with its 1500-class competitors, but its USP is the frugal hybrid powertrain. Toyota is yet to release claimed fuel use figures for the local model, though.

It has also been confirmed that the Australian-spec model is not impacted by the major recall that affected 102,000 US-made Tundra and Lexus GX600 models.

What we know so far is that the Australian model scores 20-inch alloy wheels, LED lights, leather-accented seats, a 14-inch infotainment screen and 12.3-inch digital dash.

Toyota revealed that the new premium grade will feature blacked-out exterior details and additional interior features like a power adjustable steering column and 10.9-inch head-up display.

GoAuto requested further details like lead-time and pricing, but Toyota told us it will release more information closer to the November launch.