Thanks Mrknowitall, very helpful. So, if the Tacoma had better breaks (front and/or rear) and improved springs, it would conceptually have a higher GVWR?
Conceptually yes, but not from a legal stand-point. Unless you have an inspection entity in your state willing to enter a higher GVW for you, the OE GVW applies. That doesn't mean it is necessarily ILLEGAL to drive over GVW, it just exposes you to greater liability, should something bad happen.
I'm guessing the rear drums are also a cost-based decision? And what is the BW transfer case?
Yes, te drum are definitely a cost-saving feature. Good part is, that in the real world, parking brakes tend to have more holding power than hat-style brakes that are common with rear disks.
BW transfer case? The Tundra recently switched to a transfer case supplied by Borg Warner, rather than an in-house/Aisin unit. That doesn't make it inherently bad, but it just seems like watering down of the vehicle. Since the Tundra case is somewhat low volume within Toyota, they probably realized big savings by outsourcing a unit that is similar to the one in the F150.
