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| The 2022 Toyota Tundra: Ready to Rumble |
At the end of July CarBuzz published a story titled Toyota Ready To Reveal A Diesel Tundra? Sebastian Cenzo's story doesn't say outright that this is happening. The subhead reads, "We have a suspicion that a diesel Tundra is in the works."
How well founded is this suspicion? Though Toyota sells no diesel-powered vehicles in the U.S., it seemed suspicious to some when Toyota posted a video about how a diesel engine works. In fact, this video -- How Does A Diesel Engine Work? -- is one of the best I've ever seen with regard to the difference between a gasoline and diesel engine.
The CarBuzz reasoning goes like this. Toyota has been posting a lot of images and information about the Tundra, showing off all its new features, stoking demand for this beefy pickup. The only thing they had not revealed is what kind of engine options it will have. And then the video comes out regarding how diesel engines work. Is this just happenstance?
On August 16 Tom Quimby of Equipment World picked up the thread. His story goes even further. It's titled, Viral Toyota video has fans hoping for a diesel Tundra, Tacoma. Quimby goes even further than Cenzo, suggesting that we might see more than just a Tundra powered by diesel. He begins his piece with this:
A recent diesel engine video released by Toyota on its YouTube site has gone viral and has fans hoping that the automaker will bring an oil burner to the U.S. and make it available in the Tundra, Tacoma and 4Runner.
It apparent that these speculations are based on rumor since there has not, as yet, been any official announcement. Fans of Toyota quality are simply connecting a few dots, and hoping they're accurately reading the tea leaves.
The Equipment World piece notes that the Toyota has been slowly rolling out the Tundra "reveals" since May. Powertrain speculation has been simmering for some time. It will be a pretty special moment when Toyota lifts the hood.
In early July Tim Esterdahl recorded his hunches in a story for Pickup Truck Talk. His story makes note of the patent filed in July 2020 for a new iForce Max engine.
As early as June we saw the First Official Look at the 2022 Tundra. Lots of details were included in this story at TFL Truck (The Fast Lane). It's a muscular look for sure. Nothing timid here. Despite all the details, it remained unclear as to whether this truck ran on diesel power.
Which brings us to today's latest Toyota news. The Wall Street Journal announced that Toyota is cutting production in Japan by 40% in September and 40-60% in North America this month because of the global semiconductor shortage. For and GM have been indicated their plants will experience more downtime as well at several factories.
One thing is certain in these uncertain times: you can never tell for sure what will be next.
Here's the Toyota video that ignited our imaginations: Engines 101
Maybe diesel will help. It has been for many years ranked poorly partly because of its low fuel economy. It only gets 13 mpg in the city and 18 mpg on the highway. ... It's competitors get over 30 mpg in the city and close to, if not over 30 mpg in the city. The Toyota Tundra is a decade behind on fuel economy.
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