Toyota opens new front in truck war (381hp 5.7L engine)
#1
Speaks French in Russian
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Toyota opens new front in truck war (381hp 5.7L engine)
Toyota opens new front in truck war
With new Texas factory, Japanese maker takes aim at Ford and Chevy
By Roland Jones
Business editor
MSNBC
Updated: 8:27 a.m. ET Oct. 25, 2006
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/15319160
With new Texas factory, Japanese maker takes aim at Ford and Chevy
By Roland Jones
Business editor
MSNBC
Updated: 8:27 a.m. ET Oct. 25, 2006
Indiana-born rock star John Mellencamp may not be the first person that springs to mind when it comes to pickup trucks, but with sales slipping, automakers are painting themselves red, white and blue to capture customers in America’s heartland.
General Motors has hired Mellencamp to record a patriotic tune called “Our Country” for its Chevy Silverado television commercials. “This is our country; this is our truck,” a narrator says in the commercial.
The strategy may seem tacky, but it’s part of a big battle brewing in the automotive business over pickup sales, which are down from 10 to 15 percent this year for the Big Three automakers. And ground zero for that battle is America’s heartland.
Ford and GM’s Chevy division dominate U.S. truck sales, but now Japan’s Toyota is aiming to muscle its way into the American market with its 2007 Tundra truck. The full-size pickup, which was introduced in 1999 and will be relaunched soon with an all-new version, goes up against Chevy’s Silverado, the Dodge Ram and Ford’s F-Series pickup, long the country’s best-selling vehicle and Ford’s bread-and-butter product.
Toyota wants to convince American truck drivers to trade in their U.S.-made vehicles for Japanese Tundras, but with an American twist. The company is preparing to move production of the Tundra to a new plant in Texas, the nation’s biggest pickup market, where one of every four vehicles sold is a pickup, compared with one in every eight elsewhere in the United States.
“Toyota has been expanding by building more plants in North America — they put them in areas where they want to increase their business,” said George Magliano, director of automotive industry research at Global Insight. “The idea is truck buyers become more loyal to a manufacturer that brings jobs and money into their state."
The truck segment is a missing piece in Toyota’s product line-up, which focuses on sedans and also includes smaller crossover vehicles. Toyota is looking to grow and break into new vehicle markets, said Magliano. The American pickup market, which has largely been the domain of the Big Three until now, is very lucrative and a tough one to crack, he added.
“One strength Toyota has is its ability to stick with a strategy,” said Magliano. “They got into the truck market about 10 years ago, and they didn’t have much success right away, but they just kept working at it. They keep on improving a product, and they eventually crack the market and that is how they are gaining market share in the United States.”
Indeed, the new 2007 Tundra is much larger and more powerful than its predecessor, with a 5.7-liter, 381-horsepower V-8 engine, compared with the old 271 horses. Trucks start rolling off the San Antonio assembly line next month and hit the showrooms early next year.
GM and Ford are not taking Toyota’s assault on their turf lying down. At last month’s State Fair of Texas, Ford showed off its latest F-Series pickups, while GM unveiled a redesigned Silverado and the GMC Sierra HD. The Silverado is the No. 2 seller, but sales are down 15 percent from last year, according to research by Autodata, which tracks the industry.
It is no mistake that all the players chose to focus heavy marketing efforts on the Texas fair.
“[Texas] is ground zero for truck leadership,” Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas told The Associated Press. “If you don’t show up in Texas, particularly at a venue like the state fair, you might as well not show up at all. This is where you duke it out. It’s where you make your bones as far as burnishing truck production.”
Toyota’s Tundra play is part of a broader strategy to win over middle America. Earlier this year Toyota announced it plans to become the first foreign manufacturer since the 1950s to supply cars for NASCAR’s top series, entering a Camry — the nation’s best-selling car — in the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Busch series in 2007.
General Motors has hired Mellencamp to record a patriotic tune called “Our Country” for its Chevy Silverado television commercials. “This is our country; this is our truck,” a narrator says in the commercial.
The strategy may seem tacky, but it’s part of a big battle brewing in the automotive business over pickup sales, which are down from 10 to 15 percent this year for the Big Three automakers. And ground zero for that battle is America’s heartland.
Ford and GM’s Chevy division dominate U.S. truck sales, but now Japan’s Toyota is aiming to muscle its way into the American market with its 2007 Tundra truck. The full-size pickup, which was introduced in 1999 and will be relaunched soon with an all-new version, goes up against Chevy’s Silverado, the Dodge Ram and Ford’s F-Series pickup, long the country’s best-selling vehicle and Ford’s bread-and-butter product.
Toyota wants to convince American truck drivers to trade in their U.S.-made vehicles for Japanese Tundras, but with an American twist. The company is preparing to move production of the Tundra to a new plant in Texas, the nation’s biggest pickup market, where one of every four vehicles sold is a pickup, compared with one in every eight elsewhere in the United States.
“Toyota has been expanding by building more plants in North America — they put them in areas where they want to increase their business,” said George Magliano, director of automotive industry research at Global Insight. “The idea is truck buyers become more loyal to a manufacturer that brings jobs and money into their state."
The truck segment is a missing piece in Toyota’s product line-up, which focuses on sedans and also includes smaller crossover vehicles. Toyota is looking to grow and break into new vehicle markets, said Magliano. The American pickup market, which has largely been the domain of the Big Three until now, is very lucrative and a tough one to crack, he added.
“One strength Toyota has is its ability to stick with a strategy,” said Magliano. “They got into the truck market about 10 years ago, and they didn’t have much success right away, but they just kept working at it. They keep on improving a product, and they eventually crack the market and that is how they are gaining market share in the United States.”
Indeed, the new 2007 Tundra is much larger and more powerful than its predecessor, with a 5.7-liter, 381-horsepower V-8 engine, compared with the old 271 horses. Trucks start rolling off the San Antonio assembly line next month and hit the showrooms early next year.
GM and Ford are not taking Toyota’s assault on their turf lying down. At last month’s State Fair of Texas, Ford showed off its latest F-Series pickups, while GM unveiled a redesigned Silverado and the GMC Sierra HD. The Silverado is the No. 2 seller, but sales are down 15 percent from last year, according to research by Autodata, which tracks the industry.
It is no mistake that all the players chose to focus heavy marketing efforts on the Texas fair.
“[Texas] is ground zero for truck leadership,” Mark Fields, Ford’s president of the Americas told The Associated Press. “If you don’t show up in Texas, particularly at a venue like the state fair, you might as well not show up at all. This is where you duke it out. It’s where you make your bones as far as burnishing truck production.”
Toyota’s Tundra play is part of a broader strategy to win over middle America. Earlier this year Toyota announced it plans to become the first foreign manufacturer since the 1950s to supply cars for NASCAR’s top series, entering a Camry — the nation’s best-selling car — in the NASCAR Nextel Cup and Busch series in 2007.
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#9
Cycle Savant
iTrader: (5)
In fact, most Toyota dealerships are afraid that the new Tundra (and future Sequoia) will not fit in their service department stalls. Most dealerships may have to become innovative to take care of such needs.
#10
Lexus Fanatic
Yes and no. With the exception of a few purpose-built models like the Ford Lightning, Chevy Silverado SS and Dodge Ram SRT10, trucks aren't supposed to be drag racers. Big engines are put into them to do WORK, not haul-a** in the quarter-mile.
#11
Honda would first have to develop a body on frame vehicle. Everything they make is a unibody vehicle. Unibody vehicles would never stand up to the constant rigors of heavy towing, heavy payloads, etc.
#13
Haha, im WELL aware they are used for work,
I have a 3/4 ton 8.1L avalanche that i tow cars with and for lighter country duty.
but having a good amount of power will potentially increase mileage by not requiring reeling out to 4K all the time, especially considering it'll have plentiful torque.
I have a 3/4 ton 8.1L avalanche that i tow cars with and for lighter country duty.
but having a good amount of power will potentially increase mileage by not requiring reeling out to 4K all the time, especially considering it'll have plentiful torque.
Last edited by okcfunky; 10-25-06 at 05:11 PM.
#14
Lexus Champion
It actually has a full truck frame underneath in addition to the unibody design.
Kinda interesting - though of course make no mistake, it is still not well-suited for off-roading or for towing anything more than you might expect out of any compact truck on the market today.
#15
LMAO... in one of my forums I guessed that the 5.7L would pump out 334 hp. I was off by 47 hp...
I hope too see this inthe next LX and GX. Hopefully the hybrid version going to crank out some serious power.
I hope too see this inthe next LX and GX. Hopefully the hybrid version going to crank out some serious power.