Automotive
News is reporting that Toyota has frozen development
of a heavy-duty version of its Tundra pickup, again.
In September
2006, Automotive News first reported that Toyota's
HD program had been unofficially shelved, likely due to
deteriorating market conditions for full-size trucks.
Just over
a year later, the
hopes of Toyota truck enthusiasts were raised at the 2007
SEMA Show, when the company teased with its diesel-powered
Tundra heavy-duty "project
vehicle." Toyota spokespersons said
the giant dual rear wheel show truck was not an indication that the company
wanted to enter the three-quarter-ton and one-ton segments.
Hopes grew
higher this past June, following a report from
Edmunds
that said a powerful 7.0-liter V-8 diesel engine was being readied
for all-new heavy-duty Toyota Tundra models, expected
by 2012.
The high
price of diesel fuel and a crash in resale values of diesel-powered
pickups appear to be the cause for Toyota's latest heavy-duty program
suspension.
Automotive
News is also reporting that a new 4.6-liter V-8 gas engine will replace
the current base 4.7-liter
V-8 in the light-duty Toyota Tundra by 2010. The 4.6-liter V-8 is said
to deliver an additional 30-horsepower and 2 mpg over the 4.7-liter
V-8, currently rated at 276-horsepower and 313 pounds-feet of torque
and 14/17 mpg city/highway in 4x2 regular cab configuration and
13/16 mpg city/highway in 4x4 regular cab configuration.
