Author Archive for Jason Lancaster
Jason Lancaster is the editor and founder of TundraHeadquarters.com. He has nearly a decade of experience on the retail side of the auto industry, and another decade of experience of the part and accessory side of the industry.
UAW Boss Claims F150 Built Faster Than Tundra – WRONG
UAW boss Ron Gettelfinger, in an op-ed piece for the Detroit News, recently made claims that union workers are faster than non-union workers. While we certainly can’t speak to that fact (nor would we make such a grand generalization about workers), it’s pretty clear to us that the following piece of information is completely, 100%, incorrect. Laughably so:
according to 2008 Harbour data, it takes UAW members in Kansas City just over 19 hours to assemble a Ford F-series pick-up. It takes more than 32 hours to assemble the Toyota Tundra, a similar vehicle, at a non-union plant in Princeton, Indiana
Gettelfinger used this little piece of fiction to help demonstrate a point that’s very important to the UAW – the union has given enough in terms of wage and benefit cuts. They don’t think they should have to give anymore.
Fair enough. Far be it for TundraHeadquarters.com to argue with Ron Gettelfinger about the sacrifices of the UAW.
However, when it comes to the “fact” that the F150 can be assembled in K.C. in about half the time a Tundra can be built in Princeton, Indiana, we have some facts of our own:
SnowSport Snow Plow Perfect For Part-Time Plowing
If you live in an area that sees harsh winter conditions, then you know what a hassle it can be to dig out your driveway after a heavy dump of snow. Even if you have a snow blower, it still takes a considerable amount of time to clear a good-sized parking lot or drive
Dumb Headline At TruckBlog.com – The End of The Tundra is NOT Near
Truckblog.com posted a little story about Toyota’s financial loss this year (about $1.7 billion) with the idiotic headline “Toyota Faces Layoffs, End of the Toyota Tundra Pickup?”
In a word, dumb. Truckblog.com should be ashamed of themselves – this is nothing more than screaming fire in a public venue to get attention. Here’s why the Tundra is here to stay.
- We can’t emphasize this first point enough – Toyota has a long-term vision. The fact of the matter is that pickup trucks, while currently suffering a steep sales decline, are the heart and soul of many businesses’ in the United States. Big pickups, like the Tundra, fill a vital work role for contractors, farmers, construction workers, and millions of outdoor hobbyists and adventurers. There will ALWAYS be a market for a good pickup, and Toyota understands that. Getting rid of the Tundra would mean exiting an important part of the US auto market. A company with a short-term vision might be tempted to stop making a pickup right now, but Toyota isn’t worried about saving profits for next quarter by dumping one product – they’re worried about making profits for the NEXT DECADE. That’s one of the reasons Toyota is the biggest and most successful car company in the world, and the Tundra is an integral part of Toyota’s long-term success in the US market.
- Toyota hasn’t laid off any permanent Tundra employees. The article on Truckblog talks about layoffs and insinuates that the Tundra plant might be closed. Har-dee-har-har. Toyota didn’t lay off any
Custom Made Wooden Shift Knob
Every once in a while we get a chance to talk about a cool product made by someone we know. Nick, one of the members of TundraNetwork, has been making his own wooden shift knobs for his Tundra, and when he posted some photos of the shift knobs on his TundraNetwork profile, we had to ask about them.
A custom Cherry wooden shift knob in a Tundra.
Here’s what Nick has to say:
Q: How did you become interested in woodworking and when did automotive accessories become part of your repertoire?
Toyota Continues to Tease Diesel Tundra Enthusiasts
Update: Read the complete story of the diesel Tundra
Here’s what our sources at Toyota have told us the last couple of years…
“Toyota’s going to build a couple of diesel Tundra’s, and one of them will be a real live heavy-duty monster. Count on it – 3 years after launch tops.”
“No – wait – we’re not going to build a HD diesel right now, only the light-duty diesel. The big diesel and the HD Tundra will be delayed until this whole truck market bounces back.”
“Uh, we decided to go ahead and back off the light-duty diesel too. We’re not sure that with fuel prices being the way they are that blah, blah, blah.”
In case you were wondering, this is an editorialized version of Toyota’s steady backslide on their commitment to build a diesel version of the Tundra. While Toyota is certainly entitled to change their mind about building a diesel Tundra (despite promises made to Toyota dealers to the contrary), what doesn’t make sense – what irritates the hell out of us, actually – is that Toyota continues to trot out the one-of-a-kind Tundra Diesel Dually that premiered at SEMA last year.
Visit Jalopnik.com to see their comments on this truck.
What’s the deal Toyota? You haven’t stomped on our hopes enough? Why keep showing us a truck you’re not going to build for at least another 5 years (if ever)?
