2021 Toyota Tundra

The cabin of the Tundra just like its exterior design is aging and lacks any wow factor. The features list is sparse and the material quality is not the best in the business. The cabin space is also not the best in the segment, and only 5.5 feet bed length available on the CrewMax makes the Tundra lose practicality points. That said, the Tundra CrewMax still tries to challenge the dominance of the likes of RAM 1500, Ford F-150, and Chevrolet Silverado 1500.

The Toyota Tundra CrewMax is available in a total of five trims and one-bed length. The trim lineup includes SR5, Limited, Platinum, 1794 Edition, and TRD Pro. The Tundra CrewMax TRD Pro will be covered separately by us, so don’t forget to check it out. As for the rest of the trims they come with a 381 hp, 5.7-liter V8 engine, 6-speed automatic, and RWD configuration as standard. Prices for the base SR5 trim starts at $38,320 and go up to $52,295 for the 1794 Edition with 4WD. The 4WD is also available on other trims for a premium. 

For the starting price of $38,320, the Tundra pick-up truck is bare-bones in terms of features. Still, let’s have a look at what you get for this price. Standard features include 18-inch steel wheels, halogen headlights with LED accent lights, halogen foglights, chrome front, and rear bumper end caps, rearview camera, 40/20/40-split folding bench rear seats, fabric upholstery, 8-inch touchscreen, etc. Safety-wise you get standard features such as automatic high beam, lane departure alert, pre-collision warning with pedestrian detection, and adaptive cruise control. These features are bundled in the Toyota Safety Sense-P and standard across the lineup. Optional safety features include front and rear parking sensors and blind-spot monitor with rear cross-traffic alert.

Other than these features there is a list of available packages for each trim, a few of which worth mentioning include Trail Special Edition Package, Nightshade Special Edition Package, SR5 Upgrade Package, SR5 Work Truck Package, TRD Off-Road Package/Sport Package, etc. The special edition packages are mostly limited to bigger wheels and cosmetic upgrades. 

The SR5 Upgrade package gets you a bigger fuel tank, bucket front seats, tilt and telescopic steering wheel, etc. SR5 work truck package adds vinyl seating and flooring and deletes the wireless door lock feature. TRD Off-Road Package/Sport Package adds TRD specific visual upgrades, bigger wheels, all-terrain tires, Bilstein shock absorber, front and rear skid plate, LED exterior lights, etc.

We Recommend:

We suggest picking the base SR5 trim and adding the TRD Off-Road Package to it. As the SR5 trim has the lowest MSRP and for approximately a four grand premium for the package, you can upgrade it with bigger wheels, better tires, Bilstein suspension setup, all-LED exterior lights, etc. These upgrades will completely transform your truck into a proper off-road workhorse without breaking the bank.

Toyota has been known to be lazy when it comes to making changes to the mechanicals of its vehicles and the Tundra isn’t spared either. The 2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax still features the age-old setup of a 5.7-liter V8 mated to a six-speed automatic gearbox. The V8 although old churns out a healthy 381 hp and 401 lb-ft of torque all this power is channeled to either the rear wheel or all four wheels depending on the drivetrain configuration. The SR5 among all the trims has the highest towing and payload capacity of 10,100 lbs and 1,660 lbs. The higher trims can only tow 9,400 lbs and have a payload capacity of 1,620 lbs and with 4WD configuration, these figures further go down to 8,800 lbs and 1,520 lbs for the towing and payload capacity.

The old V8 and the slow six-speed gearbox combo still manage to keep the competition at bay. For instance, the Tundra CrewMax can do 0-60 mph in 6.4 seconds and covers the quarter-mile in 15 seconds. Still, the Tundra is slow to pick a pace and easily loses steam in the top end and that is evident in the slower quarter-mile timing even when it is among the fastest in 0-60 mph runs. The modern truck rivaling the Tundra not only gets more gear ratios but also feels quicker off the pace giving the Tundra stiff competition even with their smaller engines.

As for the competitors, all of them are powered by a V6 engine and among them, the RAM 1500 with its 3.6-liter V6 puts out the best 305 hp and the Chevrolet Silverado 1500 with its 4.3-liter V6 puts out the best 305 lb-ft of torque. Still, none of them are able to beat the Toyota tundra in 0-60 mph run while in the quarter-mile run the Ford F-150 and RAM 1500 do manage to beat the Tundra by 0.3 seconds. As for the towing capacity and payload capacity again the Tundra remains unbeaten in the towing capacity. But the RAM 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado 1500 with 2,300 lbs. and 2,030 lbs. payload capacity beats the Tundra by a big margin.

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Ride and Handling:

The ride of the Toyota Tundra is harsh and unforgiving for most of the part. Riding this truck at high speeds is unnerving and there is a lot of body roll. Simply put this truck is best for off-beaten and off-road trails. If you want to drive it on smooth tarmac or use it as a daily driver then we strongly recommend you adding the TRD Off-Road package to make it more livable. 

As for the handling the same story continues here too the steering feel is numb and for the most part, it feels disconnected. There is an artificial feel to the steering and it is not at all light even at slow speeds and neither weighs up well at highway speeds. Thus at parking speed, the steering makes it very cumbersome to pilot this truck from tight spaces.

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Braking:

The brakes on the Tundra CrewMax are surprisingly just opposite to how the Tundra rides and handles. For most of the parts, the brakes do their job well and this 5,340 lbs truck can brake from 60-0 mph in 137 feet. The standard all four ABS, brake assist, and electronic brake pressure distribution ensure there is the minimum effort required to operate the brake pedal and the brakes kicks-in smoothly.

As for the rivals, the RAM 1500 comes with the biggest set of rotors measuring 14.9-inches and 14.8-inches in the front and rear respectively. The result is that the RAM 1500 took the shortest distance of 125 feet to brake from 60-0 mph. Compared to that the Tundra took a full 12 feet more to come to a halt from 60 mph.

The big V8 and lesser gear ratios ensure the fuel economy figures remain on the lower side of the spectrum. The RWD Tundra CrewMax has an EPA-rated gas mileage of 13 mpg in the city, 17 mpg on the highway, and 15 mpg combined. The 4WD Tundra CrewMax has a similar EPA-rated gas mileage in the city and highway while the combined gas mileage sees one mpg drop. As for the fuel tank capacity, the SR5 has only a 26.4-gallon fuel tank while the higher trims get a 38.0-gallon fuel tank. So the SR5 can be expected to return 340 miles plus range in the city and under 450 miles of range on the highway from a tankful of gas.

The competitors have smaller engines and owing to that have a far better gas mileage than the Tundra. Among the rivals, the RAM 1500 returns the best 20/25/22 mpg in the city/highway/combined respectively. The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 has the least gas mileage of 16/21/17 mpg among the rivals yet it manages to beat the Tundra. Although the Tundra has the bigger fuel tank compared to the rivals and with the optional 38-gallon fuel tank capacity the Tundra can outrun most of the trucks in terms of range.

If you happen to drive or saw a decade-old Toyota truck’s cabin then the Tundra’s cabin would feel familiar in terms of layout and overall appearance. The cabin of the Tundra is the worst we have seen in a truck in present times. The quality of the materials used is also budget-grade at best and there is no wow factor whatsoever in its cabin to ensure you would feel good every time you climb inside the cabin. Although the flat dash and boxy shape of the Tundra ensure good all-round visibility and a commanding view of the road. 

The seats of the Tundra are another sad story but the higher terms do replace the uncomfortable bench seats with power-adjustable bucket seats. The lower trims have fabric-trimmed seats while the higher trims feature simulated leather-trimmed seats. The bucket seats are livable and come with creature comfort features like heating and ventilation. The rear bench seats are similar in terms of comfort but offer a generous amount of legroom for the rear occupants. The rear bench can be folded into 40/20/40-split and with the seats completely folded you get a cavernous space for cargo.

The Tundra CrewMax is only available with 5.5 feet bed length so there is no compromise in the front and rear cabin space. Yet when you see what rivals have to offer against it, the spacious cabin of the Tundra falls short in front of the much more accommodating cabins of the Chevrolet Silverado 1500, Ford F-150, and RAM 1500, in the order of their cabin space. Key highlights of the interior features include:

• Rearview Camera
• Fabric upholstery
• Leather-trimmed seats (available)
• Heated and ventilated front bucket seats (available)
• Power-adjustable front seats (available)
• Power vertical-sliding rear window (available)
• Dual-zone automatic climate control (available)
• Keyless entry w/ push-button start (available)

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Infotainment System:

Being based on an old-school design thankfully the infotainment of the Tundra CrewMax isn’t as irksome or hard to decipher as the modern touchscreen infotainments. As for the 2021 Tundra CrewMax, a standard touchscreen is an 8-inch unit that is paired with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, and Amazon Alexa. Other standard features include HD Radio, Bluetooth, USB media ports. Higher trims offer a similar size infotainment display but upgrade it with a premium 12-speaker JBL sound system and dynamic navigation. Key highlights of the infotainment system include:

• 8-inch touchscreen infotainment
• 9-speaker stereo 
• Apple CarPlay and Android Auto
• Three USB ports
• Wi-Fi Hotspot
• Dynamic navigation (available)
• 12-speaker JBL sound system (available)

The 2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax retains its characteristic big front grille that can be had either finished in black color or chrome depending on the trim you chose. The smaller headlamps flanking the grille from the side are dwarfed by the humongous grille and a bigger setup could have looked better here. The SR5 trim offers halogen headlights with LED accent lights and halogen foglights while the higher trims come with LED headlights and LED accent lights with LED foglights. There is nothing special about the side profile except for the wheel size where you get a choice of either 18-inch steel wheels on the base trim or 20-inch alloy wheels on higher trims. The rear profile sees no changes and continues the same old looks with a damped tailgate and lower bumpers offered with chrome end caps.

Dimensionally the Tundra CrewMax is the smallest pickup truck among the rivals. Except for the highest 10.2-inches ground clearance, the Tundra remains smaller in all the other parameters. Dimension-wise the Tundra CrewMax measures 228.9-inches in length, 79.9-inches in width, 75.8-inches in height, and has 145.7-inches of wheelbase. As for the rivals, the Silverado 1500 has the longest wheelbase of 147.4-inches while the Ram 1500 is longest at 232.9-inches, widest at 82.1-inches, and tallest at 77.5-inches. That said, the Tundra CrewMax weighing 5,340 pounds is the heaviest truck among all. Key highlights of the exterior features include:

• 18-inch steel wheels
• Halogen headlights and foglights
• Damped tailgate
• LED headlights and foglights (available)
• Heated and powered outside mirrors (available)
• Moonroof (available)
• 18-inch and 20-inch alloy wheels (available)

On the safety aspect, the 2021 Tundra CrewMax comes with a host of safety and driver-assist features yet it scored poorly in both the crash-test agencies tests. Speaking of that, NHTSA gave the Tundra four out of five stars in overall ratings, overall front crash rating stood at four stars, side crash rating was five stars, and the rollover test got a three-star rating, all the ratings are out of five. 

The IIHS was even more stringent and gave the Toyota Tundra a rating of ‘Good’ in only three out of six parameters. Small overlap front crash test was rated as second-lowest ‘Marginal’ and lowest ‘Poor’ ratings for driver and passenger side respectively. The roof strength was rated as second-best ‘Acceptable’ and the headlights of the Tundra got a ‘Marginal’ rating. Key highlights of the safety ratings include:

• Automatic high beam
• Lane departure alert
• Pre-collision warning with pedestrian detection
• Adaptive cruise control
• Brake assist
• Rearview camera
• Rear cross-traffic alert (available)
• Front and rear parking sensors (available)
• Blind-spot monitoring (available)

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Vs 2021 Ford F-150 SuperCrew

There is a reason why the Ford F-150 is the best-selling pick-up truck in the states. The F-150 has its basis sorted, it has a powerful and quick engine, the fuel economy is among the segment-best, several engine choices to suit your needs, spacious and well-equipped cabin, to name a few. If we look at the Tundra except for its better reliability and abuse-friendly nature it has hardly anything that it can use to beat the F-150. Thus the aging Tundra stands no chance in front of the F-150 whatsoever.

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Vs 2021 RAM 1500 Crew Cab

If one is looking for a pickup truck in this segment then the RAM 1500 is the best choice at the moment. Although the Ford F-150 sells more due to the lower pricing, the RAM 1500 is much better and well-equipped in every sense among all the trucks. The RAM 1500 has a powerful engine that is fuel-efficient at the same time and the cabin of the RAM 1500 is the best in business. To sum it up as a daily driver and a capable workhorse the RAM 1500 is unbeatable and there is no reason why you will pick the Tundra over this one.

2021 Toyota Tundra CrewMax Vs 2021 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 Crew Cab

The Chevrolet Silverado 1500 is more spacious and fuel-efficient than the Toyota Tundra. Even though the Tundra puts out more power and torque and is faster in the 0-60 mph run, the Silverado 1500 is a much better truck in all sense. The Silverado 1500 rides well, has a better-equipped cabin, and feels more plush compared to the Tundra. The Silverado 1500, unlike the Tundra, comes with more engine choices to suit everyone’s needs. That said, the Silverado 1500 also has a higher payload capacity compared to the Tundra making it a more desirable workhorse compared to the Tundra in this comparison.

Old and aging are the two words that come to mind every time you talk about the Toyota Tundra. Except for the few cosmetic enhancements on the interior and exterior, there is hardly anything new about this truck. The truck is not comfortable to drive, has abysmal fuel economy, and has a smaller cabin space compared to the rivals. The standard big V8 and higher towing capacity are the only things in favor of the Tundra. The present trucks are not only lightweight and versatile but also offer a better value proposition. So until and unless Toyota goes back to the drawing board and whips a completely new Tundra we don’t see this truck finding the number of prospective buyers it deserves.