TOYOTA TUNDRA

AAfter testing a Toyota Sequoia the week before, we expected to be disappointed in the ride of the Tundra. But we were not. The 2018 Tundra has a firm ride, and it’s not adjustable like the Sequoia, but the suspension is so well-tuned that it dampened the hum of brick roads and absorbed the bulk of the shock of potholes and other bumps in the highway.

Under tow, the Tundra suspension controlled the 7,500-pound tow load at highway speeds, when changing lanes, and exhibited excellent tow stability even moving across uneven lanes. On other trucks, we’ve had to upgrade from all-season passenger tires to light truck tires like Toyo Open Country ATs for the same authority. Yet with the Tundra, we had reassuring control on factory-supplied passenger tires.

The Tundra we tested had adaptive cruise control, a virtual miracle in engineering that uses forward-looking radar to gauge distance of vehicles or obstacles. You can set the radar to slow you down at approximately four, five or six relative car lengths for the margin of safety you prefer. The cruise remains engaged, adjusting speed and, when needed, engaging brakes at the preselected following distance. Pull out from behind slow traffic to an open lane and the vehicle accelerated to the selected speed. It remains engaged, warning of a rapid closure, but shuts off below 30 miles per hour.

Leather-upholstered bucket seats were sports-car firm. We had no trouble finding a comfortable position with the electrically adjusted seat bottom and back. The driver-side dash was sharp-looking, and after a few taps and toggles, we discovered displays for maintenance intervals, oil life, tire pressure and more. Turn-byturn controls are centered in the dash.

We were disappointed in both the size and location of the touch-panel control. And, perhaps in a misguided safety move, the screen was placed too far away from the driver for easy reach.