The 2022 Toyota Tundra TRD Pro Is [Basically] A Ford Raptor Clone Under The Skin

Are you more excited about the 2022 Tundra or the 2021 Ford Raptor?

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Now quick disclaimer - no one has driven this truck yet so e don’t know exactly how it’ll shake out, but We’ll be in San Antonio, TX for the first media drive in the first week of OCtober so once the embargo is lifted we’ll have first impressions behind the wheels ASAP

What I want to do with this video is dive into the mechanics of whats going on under the skin of the TRD Pro and how it’s able to dethrone the Ford Raptor (OHP!)

We’re going to get to suspension in a second, but first it’s important we talk power. That’s the whole personality of the offroad truck segment it seems.

The third gen Ford Raptor that you can buy now uses the same 3.5 TT ecoboost V6 that it has in the last generation

It still makes 450 hp and 510 lbft

And up until now that’s been pretty much fine! People generally didnt complain about a power deficit until the TRX came in, but that’s a different video

Here’s the kicker though. While everyone was watching the Raptor TRX fight and waiting for Chevy to get involved no one expected Toyota to come in.

The new Tundra, as we’ve covered in previous videos, ditches the V8 for a ttV6.

The base engine in the Tundra is also a 3.5TTv6 just like the raptor, but the TRD Pro gets the upgraded iForce max engine.

I just did a whole video on these two engines so i’ll hit the highlights here

It takes the base 3.5TTv6 adds a hybrid system to the bell housing and amps power up to 437 hp (13 less than Raptor) but 583 lbft (73 more than raptor)

That big torque jump is made possible by the electric motor and hybrid system. The torque is also served immediately to the crank so there’s no waiting for turbos to spool like in the Ford

The Tundra also sends power through a 10-speed trans through a 2 speed transfer case to the rear wheels only unless 4hi or 4lo is selected.

All that is the same as the Raptor

Here’s the big thing I wanted to focus on. Suspension

The old Tundra had several deficiencies, chief among them was a leaf spring rear suspension.

That’s gone now. Now we have coil springs and a multi-link rear suspension setup same as the Raptor

Then the Tundra takes it even further than that. All TRD Pros have gotten Fox shocks for the past few years, but the new Tundra uses a 2.5 inch Fox racing shock with piggyback reservoir and the TRD team had specially tuned the rebound rates and compression for “high speed offroading”

Aka...raptor stuff

So in the rear we have solid axle, multi link suspension, coil springs and Fox shocks, and electronic locking rear differential. All of that should sound very familiar to the Raptor.

Up front it’s very similar as well. Independent front axle, fox shocks, boom.

Toyota has not, however, released figures for ground clearance, approach, departure, breakover or articulation. We will try to get to the bottom of that when we do some offroading in San Antonio.

So everything so far sounds pretty good for the Tundra, right? Basically identical suspension setup, same number of gears, marginally less HP, but a lot more torque

Here’s where it falls off a little bit

Whereas the Raptor comes with 35 in BFG KO2s AND you have the option to spec 37 inch tires from the factory the TRD Tundra comes with a 33 inch set of Falken Wildpeak A/T tires wrapping around the new 18 inch TRD Pro wheels which are not beadlock capable

Most toyota TRD enthusiasts are pretty familiar with th aftermarket anyway so I don’t necessarily see adding a lift and 35s to be a huge deal, but it is a little bit of a bummer.

Last thing i’ll say in realtion to the wheels is you’ll see the tundra has teh amber marker lights in the grille and tailgate and that’s because the wheel offset and the fancy camo wheel cladding puts it wider than 79inches, but it’s not a true widebody look like you would get in the Raptor or TRX

So what do you think? TRD Pro or Raptor?

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