What makes Toyotas so reliable?

[peekay]

The only reason the Tundra doesnt have more composite parts like the oil pan is because the design is so old it predates the fitment of them. Every new car uses composites to save weight. The intake manifold and oil filter housing on the Tacoma is plastic. And if a Tundra is what you think luxury is... you need to check out some real luxury cars... and actually, a King Ranch F150 blows the Tundra out of the water.

easy there. I don't think the F150 is a bad truck -- I spent my hard earned money on it and have kept my money in it. But I've had some time to compare the two and facts are facts - the build quality of the Tundra is higher. You can justify things by claiming weight savings, etc., and perhaps that is true -- along with saving costs, i.e., cutting corners. Whether those design and build choices result in material differences, I don't know. Nevertheless, it makes me wonder what similar types of choices were made inside the engine. And empirically (not based on anecedote), the Tundra is substantially more reliable than the F150. So to answer the OP's question, my suspicion is because of the Ford's design and build choices.

As for the luxury comment, I was not referring to the leather and whatever creature comforts. Instead, I meant the difference in build quality, kind of like the difference between a highly refined tool, such as a Snap On wrench, versus a cheaper Craftsman or whatever. They may or may not both do the job, but it's clear to any objective observer that the Snap On is built nicer.

 

[Smileyshaun]

I guess I should take into account that the Tacoma and tundra are a North American vehicle and not built to the same standards as the hilux is , unfortunately I think a lot of people take the worldwide reliability of the hilux and group the Tacoma in with it when in fact they are different rigs ..... man I wish we could get all the cool rigs the rest of the world gets .

 

[Over The Silent Planet]

I guess I should take into account that the Tacoma and tundra are a North American vehicle and not built to the same standards as the hilux is , unfortunately I think a lot of people take the worldwide reliability of the hilux and group the Tacoma in with it when in fact they are different rigs ..... man I wish we could get all the cool rigs the rest of the world gets .

I wish we could get the Hilux here as well, but the Tacoma is very reliable all on its own, even if it isn’t as capable as the Hilux.

 

[calicamper]

The only reason the Tundra doesnt have more composite parts like the oil pan is because the design is so old it predates the fitment of them. Every new car uses composites to save weight. The intake manifold and oil filter housing on the Tacoma is plastic. And if a Tundra is what you think luxury is... you need to check out some real luxury cars... and actually, a King Ranch F150 blows the Tundra out of the water.

FYI the 3.5 has a cast aluminum pan as of mid/late 2019. I happen to have one.

 

[plh]

Marketing!

 

[Trikebubble]

I guess everyone's opinions are just that, so here's my anecdotal one. I currently own a 2014 Tundra which carries a Four Wheel Camper full time and has been taken over thousands of miles of rough roads (Dempster Hwy, etc) and in the past 4 years the truck has not let me down once. Power from the 5.7 V8 is absolutely fantastic, brakes are amazing, and it just works, and continues to work. I never once have been concerned that the Tundra is not going to get us home (and that is really what it is all about for me, long-term reliability). In the past 35 years I have owned and driven every major brand of vehicle, and over that time only one brand has let me down, only one. I own a 2015 Dodge Caravan which I use for work, I bought it with 100K km on it, and at 110K km it ******** the motor, to the tune of $5K for me to repair. I'm now at about 150K km and the transmission sounds like a bag of marbles. In researching the motor failure I found it was seemingly a common head issue for which Chrysler would not even consider helping with any sort of warranty (even though I was just out of warranty). That has left a sour taste in my mouth, and I will never spend another of my hard earned dollars on a Chrysler product. I am now starting the process of looking at another new larger truck. I had considered the new Ram, but even with a non-Dodge Cummins , and a non-Dodge Toyota owned Aisin tranny, I just can't bring myself to consider what it wrapped around it.

Regardless of my babbling above, whatever you may consider, you really need to get out and drive a few models first. You may find one brand or model that is just far more comfortable than the others. My previous rig was an Xterra, it was also bullet-proof and saw many a rough mile. However the seats were deadly, my back still hates me for driving that thing thousands of miles. Compared to the Xterra seats, the Tundra seats are like heaven for me. When we returned from our 8500Km trek to the Arctic in the Tundra, I stepped out of the truck, and my back felt like it had been to the corner store.

 

[billiebob]

Thanks for the links. I found this chart very telling.

View attachment 635497

this is like reading a magazine before seeing all the Lexus and Toyota ads but believing the articles. The fact they rate Cadillac and Hummer better than Subaru or Kia kind of makes me want to research who funded the chart.

Not to fault Toyota or Lexus which are excellent cars but I have little faith in the chart being accurate.

 

[Porkchopexpress]

Toyota’s keep their reliability because they are underpowered and they keep doing the same thing over and over again , now unfortunately they are suffering from stringent epa regulations on mileage and emissions just like all the other manufacturers.

I agree with this statement. There is a reason that other manufacturers can boast higher performance for the same displacement and more range from the same batteries in hybrids, they don't maintain as high a margin/factor of safety. That's why the 90's supra can be modified to make so much HP.
I think the lists of high mileage vehicles by percentage is a good measure of reliability and ease to maintain. Those lists are dominated by body on frame SUVs. Basically they are robust like a pickup truck but used to haul groceries and kids. I'm not sure if the new turbo charged SUVs will hold up as well.

 

[ITTOG]

this is like reading a magazine before seeing all the Lexus and Toyota ads but believing the articles. The fact they rate Cadillac and Hummer better than Subaru or Kia kind of makes me want to research who funded the chart.

Not to fault Toyota or Lexus which are excellent cars but I have little faith in the chart being accurate.

I can appreciate that but if you look at multiple different sites and testing methodologies you will always see Toyota at the top. So back to relativity.

Sent from my Pixel 5 using Tapatalk

 

[Over The Silent Planet]

this is like reading a magazine before seeing all the Lexus and Toyota ads but believing the articles. The fact they rate Cadillac and Hummer better than Subaru or Kia kind of makes me want to research who funded the chart.

Not to fault Toyota or Lexus which are excellent cars but I have little faith in the chart being accurate.

As far as I’m aware, that site is the first study to aggregate high numbers of vehicles for all manufacturers. It has been running for four years and counting. If we’re surprised at any of the results, it’s maybe because of our preconceived biases or anecdotal experiences, which are based on far fewer vehicles then they are inspecting.

What’s interesting is if you look at each model’s page, there are some vehicles that have wildly different ratings for different generations.

Didn’t Subaru used to be plagued by head gasket issues? And I wouldn’t call Kia reliable over the long term. They make their stuff as cheaply as possible...they’re good cars, but not designed to last.

 

[Mickey Bitsko]

what makes toyota reliable is constant competition.

 

[Regcabguy]

I'm hoping the upcoming Tundra has a higher payload then it does now. Might be worth a look. Have to see when it's revealed.

How about squeezing some mpg's out of them while there at it.? The most reliable vehicle I ever drove was a medium duty tiltcab Hino with a non-electronic Allison. 240K of superb reliability. Door locks,ignition switch,water pump and normal wear items. Huge drum brakes and suspension parts. Toyota product. Now the story changes. Myself and two friends bought '85 Toyota 22r 4wd trucks. From day one they ate oil to the tune of 2.5qt's every 3K. Toyota's help line wouldn't do ********. The dealer did an oil consumption test on all three and confirmed the consumption deeming it "within corporate standards." My one friend walked on the sidewalk in front of the dealership with a sign reading "my truck eats oil,how about yours?". Something to that effect. After about a week of part time picketing he got a new shortblock. No more oil issues. The tech took him aside and confided Toyota had a bad batch of engines with a machining defect in the cylinders. I and another friend traded ours in on a Chevy 2500 and a Ford F-250 in respectably. Toyota should have owned up to the situation. Stuff happens and it's rare but why not handle the situation?
After all this if I bought a new fullsized truck it would be a Tundra even though I find them butt ugly.

 

[windtraveler]

I have a 99 LC bone stock, 130k miles. Have been considering getting a newer vehicle so went and drove a couple of Jeeps today, grand Cherokee & wrangler. Our land cruiser felt tighter and more solid than either of the 2. Way too many “computers” for us. One of the other notable differences was that the newer vehicles had significantly reduced visibility and I have to say all of the new “safety features” seem to be more of a distraction and therefore make driving more dangerous. Whatever happened to just paying attention? All we did today is reinforce the value of our beloved older vehicle. Bottom line for us is we trust the LC more than the new vehicles. It doesn’t matter how good the warranty is when you are broke down in the middle of nowhere.
We will keep the 99, thank you.

 

[Lovetheworld]

I don't agree with the "underpowered" statement. But I can understand it, as you US guys didn't get all the nice stuff.
Even if you get the same car we get in Europe, it is less powerful, at least the old ones.

They were always (together with Honda) high on the amount of horsepower per engine size.
I still have a 130hp mk1 MR2, high rpm, using it on the track. It just keeps on going. (but it is from the 80ties, it is rusting)
And the Celica's. You also got them in the US, but here, in the nineties, we got 175 horsepower from a 2 liter engine without turbo. (US only got the weak 2.2 Camry engine in it)
I drove it (pretty hard) up to 180.000 miles, no issues. Even the turbo GT4 model was reliable.

Yes, the 4x4 stuff is usually not in the top range of power. But their regular or sporty cars (when they used to make them!) were very reliable while outputting more power than competitors.

And yes, some of them have had issues. Toyota also made some cars with inevitable problems.
However, overall, they are the most reliable. Or at least in the top end of some reliability report.

From what I read about the Tacoma, it is not the same thing, and they cut some corners. It is okay, but as stated, you shouldn't expect the same kind of overengineering as nineties Hilux got you.

And of course, Toyota's are not always the most fancy or modern ones, when it comes to gadgets or looks.

I am looking at other brands to when looking at a new vehicle, and sometimes buy different, but I hate to read about other cars and their possible points of failures.
Man, they are making the Toyota Yaris compact car for over two decades now, and there is only one series with one a/c pump that can break, that's it. You will always get a reliable car if you buy one.
That is typical Toyota.

I do agree with the statement that it can feel like pointless to buy a new one.

 

[vintageracer]

Great conversation however at the end of this discussion a vehicle to 99.8% of the people out there in the USA is TRANSPORTION! Nothing More! Just transportation to git from point A to point B.

The only difference is how much YOU the vehicle owner thinks your crap stinks which leads to what level of comfort, fuel mileage, off-road capability, luxury, style, Glitz/Glamor, snootyness, importance, horsepower, Big ******** Snydrome or any other aspects that makes YOU THINK YOU NEED or DESERVE whatever it is YOU drive. Whatever YOU drive must be the BEST because that's what YOU drive!

We can all talk about what you wish the OEM's could have done with a particular model vehicle, imported this vehicle or that vehicle to the US or anything else however the OEM's try to build vehicles they believe meet the wants, stu;e and desires of customers so they can SELL the damn things.

Pretty bad in the US when when of the most desired options on any new vehicle sold to day is "Heated Seats". I guess that's what gives buyer's that "Warm and Fuzzy" feeling that they made the right choice for their "Transportation" vehicle.