Archive for October, 2009
Why Cold Weather Hurts Your Truck’s Gas Mileage
It’s that time of year again – colder temperatures are coming. During the winter time, most truck owners notice a 5-10% drop in fuel economy. Since truck fuel economy is already pretty low, going from 16 MPG to a little better than 14 MPG means an extra $25 to $50 in extra gas every month…and most truck owners notice that right away.
Why your truck gets bad mileage in the winter and what you can do about it.
It’s frustrating, but it’s something most truck owners have learned to live with. However – there are some things you can do about lower gas mileage in cold weather. First, though, we have to know why it happens.
10 Most Outrageous Truck Quality Problems Of The Last Decade
All of the recent and damning evidence uncovered in the first-gen Tundra frame rust investigation has been discouraging. How could Toyota and the frame supplier Dana underestimated the potential for rust so profoundly? Why has Toyota let this issue go so far? Clearly, a critical error in quality has been made. Toyota’s image will depend on how they take care of the problem.
However, no matter what you may think about the Toyota Tundra frame rust issue (we think it stinks), this problem is fairly comparable to problems that other truck manufacturers have had in the last decade.
Here’s are the 10 most outrageous truck quality issues of the last 10 years:
Luxury Truck Bed Camping Accessories
For some people, the ideal form of camping is “roughing it,” heading out into the wilderness with a knife, a sleeping bag, some matches to start a campfire, and a profound sense of confidence.
Extreme campers don't wear shoes.
Others consider camping an electric adventure – they prefer to roll around in giant motor homes, bring along portable generators, and watch satellite TV from the woods…sort of like a bungalow on wheels.
This isn't really camping...but it sure looks comfy. Think she's drinking a margarita?
The rest of us fall somewhere in the middle. Not Davy or Daisy Crockett rigging any small game snares to catch our dinner, but not exactly interested in watching TV from our portable hot-tub while we’re enjoying the best that nature has to offer.
The good news is that for those who own a truck, there’s an easy way to strike a balance between the two. Here are some “luxury” truck camping accessories that make for a fun time outdoors that’s warm, dry, and comfortable.
IFW BedSlide – No More Crawling In Bed
Pickup trucks are often hauling gear. Big pickup beds are great for cargo of all shapes and sizes, but they’re not always ergonomically friendly when it’s time to load or unload. Gear placed in a long, deep box is hard to reach for all but the tallest people, and many of us find ourselves jumping (or crawling if we have a topper) into the truck bed to retrieve it. At the end of the day, crawling around or jumping in and out of the bed is usually felt in the lower back and shoulders.
IFW's BedSlide is like a big heavy-duty dresser drawer for your truck bed.
Fortunately, ingenuity has come to the rescue. IFW has a slick truck bed accessory that really should be a factory option. Called the BedSlide, it’s a sliding floor panel that mounts in your truck bed and does exactly what it sounds like it does
10 Features and Improvements Needed On the Next Generation Tundra
Toyota typically redesigns their vehicles on a 5 year cycle, meaning that the next generation Tundra is due out in just a couple of years. We’ve been told that a diesel Tundra isn’t on the to-do list anytime before 2012 (not until the truck market “recovers” – whatever that means), and that hybrid and HD Tundras still seem to be a few years off (think 2015).
Toyota should copy the Ram Box feature on the next-generation Tundra.
However, there are going to be some enhancements in the next-gen truck. We don’t know what all of those enhancements will be, but here are some suggestions for features and changes that Toyota should include in the next-gen Tundra (feel free to comment to add to the list).
