Car Review: 2024 Toyota Tundra i-FORCE MAX

So, this review will be more from the point of view of living with this truck daily because I drive it daily. This review will not cover how fast this truck goes to sixty (sorry) or does the quarter mile because it is a truck, not a sports car (bummer). Even with all that, I hope this review will be informative and helpful.

In February 2024, my wife and I decided to become a one-car family. Initially, from my research, I chose a Toyota Tundra because it is a Toyota, and even with all the new technology, it is still probably the most reliable car on the road today. I did not want a Tacoma because my wife and I both felt that the Tacoma was too small and wanted to step up into a slightly larger pickup. On that front, the Tundra has more than enough space for my wife and me, plus our Labrador Retriever has the whole backseat to herself. As for trucks from the big three, I previously owned a RAM 1500 EcoDiesel, which caught on re because of a recall, so we were not getting another one. Chevrolet/GMC had just announced their recall for cracking roofs on their Silverado/Sierra 1500 pickups, and we did not want to deal with that. As for Ford, neither my wife nor I are fans of Ford products, and I am especially not a fan of how much the vehicles are marked up in price. However, I will admit that the F-150 does have some unique party tricks, like the fold-out center console that becomes a workstation.

Our Tundra specially is a Limited trim with the TRD off-road package and a six-foot bed. Professional automotive journalists have complained about the material quality in the Tundra, especially regarding how much the truck costs. I have not driven a Capstone or 1794, the two highest trims, so I hope the materials are better. However, I think the materials are acceptable for the lowest trim level in the hybrid Tundra lineup. Especially considering that it is still a pickup truck and is used as such, a sixty five pound dog regularly occupies the back seat. My wife and I will get in the truck sweaty from hiking or working out, and I do not worry about ruining a leather interior. I admit that the TRD off-road package for this truck is pointless. The truck is huge; it is a full four-door cab with a six-foot bed. I will never be taking it off-road through Moab, and honestly, the only reason I went for this package was that it included the black wheels, which I like more than the stock limited wheels, along with black trim pieces. One thing I think is pointless on a truck this big is that the TRD off-road package comes with a rear locker. That is something that I do not think will ever be used the entire time we own this truck.

Some of my favorite features of this truck include the 360 camera, the automatic cruise control, and the roll-down rear window. To start with, the 360 camera makes it easier to park this truck anywhere. This is the biggest truck I have ever owned, and when I first started driving it around the city we live in, the camera was a life save for parking it everywhere we took it. The 360 camera is super clear, and the created image looks good. It looks like it is one big camera looking over the truck instead of looking pieced together. As for the automatic cruise control, it is phenomenal; it uses a combination of radar and cameras to deliver the most accurate image to the truck.

We live in Colorado, so going anywhere outside the city requires us to get on the I-25, and the cruise control is a life saver. It is easily set and forget; just make sure nobody cuts us off. The distance options for the cruise control are all spot on, and it does not feel like there needs to be another distance option. Although I will say that I wish it remembered the setting it was last on when you shut o the cruise control, instead, it resets to the same point every time. I have yet to use it in heavy stop-and-go traffic to see how well it works with that, so I will have to test it at some point. The last aspect of the truck that is my favorite is the roll-down rear window. I know that the earlier generation Tundra had this feature, but this is my first Tundra, and it is a game changer. Our dog loves it when it is open, and when combined with venting the sunroof, there is just enough breeze in the truck to be comfortable, especially on a super windy day when the windows open all the way is too much.

I have only one major complaint about this truck: the switch from hybrid to gas power when stopped. When the truck is moving slowly enough, the gas engine will shut o and run on the hybrid system, which saves a noticeable amount of gas driving the truck around town. However, when I stop at an intersection to turn or a stop sign, and I step on the gas, there is a noticeable lack of acceleration from the hybrid system alone, and there is a noticeable amount of time until the gas engine turns back on. This became a problem when, shortly after getting the truck, we were driving to our gym, and on the route, we had to make a left turn across two lanes of traffic without a stop sign or traffic light. So we pulled up and waited for a safe opening in traffic, and then I stepped on the throttle to pull out. The hybrid system moved the truck out into the intersection at single-digit speeds, causing me to have to push the throttle all the way down, at which point the gas engine came to life and ripped the truck out of the intersection at twice the speed of sound.

After owning it for four months, I know what moments I have to wait for before pulling out and have yet to find a way to trick the gas engine into coming back on so that I have it at my disposal for pulling out. I do not know if the problem is that the hybrid system by itself does not generate enough power to move this big of a truck at a reasonable speed or what, but it is a safety concern, especially if someone is switching from a gas-only powered truck and is expecting the same kind of pull out speed.

For the final segment, I will mention my modifications to the truck in the four months we have owned it. It is a concise list, which includes a screen protector for the massive fourteen-inch touchscreen in the truck and a truck bed cover to keep stuff in the bed safe and out of the weather. The specific truck bed cover we have is a DiamondBack SE cover, which I will review later. Overall, though, I think this truck is excellent, and I would confidently recommend it to anyone who is in the market for a new full-size pickup and does not have undying brand loyalty, so they are willing to look at other vehicles than one specific brand.