Toyota Rolls In The Biggest Pickup Show In The World Being Towed By A Silverado?

That also looks like a Silverado 3500 dualie. That's a one-ton truck that can easily out haul most any half or 3/4-ton.

Toyota (and all foreign manufacturers) have an embargo placed on them preventing them from importing (or selling) 3/4 and 1-ton pickups. So to get around that, they have basically engineered their 1/2-tons to be capable of what most 3/4-tons can do. But a 1-ton and larger will still out haul them.

Good point!

Thanks for the info. I was surprised at first, but when I saw the size of the trailer, I realized that it is hardly embarrassing that Toyota had a GM 1-ton towing the trailer. I never knew about that embargo, so it makes sense.

Check out the big brain on Brad....

MidEngine,

Here's a link to some of the information on a study on why it should be removed:

http://www.freetrade.org/pubs/briefs/tbp-017es.html

So i stand corrected, it is a 25% import tariff. Which is effectively an embargo because it would make any large truck too costly to compete.

embargo? this is the US not cuba. there are no embargoes on japanese products.

the dollar is also INCREDIBLY cheap so toyota could probably find a way to make money on larger trucks.

they could also build a plant in the US much like they did for the camry. excuses, excuses...

Maybe they could have used some sort of Hino truck, but jeffy210 is right.

Thats one hell of a trailer alright, no wonder they needed that 1-tonne Silverado.

No no people, you don't get the point at all of this. You see for every king there has to be a servant. That simple. ;-)

Maybe they needed a turck that wouldn't have the frame bend under load...

"In a graphic demonstration of torsional load balancing and stiffness, Ford placed bare frames from the 2007 F-150 and Tundra side-by-side, to point out the differences in engineering and build. 250-pounds of weights were attached to the left rear portion of each chassis and the amount frame flex was measured. The C-channel, riveted cross member construction of the Tundra’s chassis flexed 3.2-inches under the load versus only .86-inches of bend in the fully boxed, welded cross member build of the F-150’s. In pictures the amount of visual flex in the Tundra’s frame is quite dramatic."

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zRfE_XAk2mE

009,

Is your ex-girlfriend (or ex-boyfriend) an employee for Toyota?

WTF?? You're an a**hole..

Yes , letting the frame flex/bend is better, I don't think so, Tim , as Al Borlan would say on Tool Time . Metal as many people know will work harden after while and break after repeated flex and bend cycles . I will go for the stiffer chassis so all this flexing will not be transmitted to the cab and stress all the spot welds and subsequent rust there after

excellent point huu!

i recall reading an article by a Kevin Cameron(?) in one of the bike magazines. he is one of the best automotive/motorcyclist columnists with a strong technical background.

the article said it was possible to make a bike chassis TOO STIFF! the fastest bikes on a race track had to have at least a little flex. too much rigidity led to bad handling at the limit, as some test riders reported.

i haven't seen the video you described, but it makes perfect sense in view of this.

further, toyota trucks (pre-Tundra) OWNED off-road racing. so they do know what WORKS as far as truck suspensions for rugged use.

a brilliantly funny PR blunder!

how is this a blunder? this scene was in no way a part of the actual show.

they simply got their trucks to the show (where the general PUBLIC will see the shiny toyotas) expeditiously. without getting them dirty.