Author Archive for Jason (Admin)
Jason Lancaster is the editor and founder of TundraHeadquarters.com. He has nearly a decade of dealership experience buying, selling, and maintaining vehicles, and much of that time was spent working at Ford and Toyota dealerships.
Toyota Drops 4.6L V8 on 2013 Sequoia – Is The End Near?
Rumors that Toyota will cancel the Sequoia have been flying around for a couple of years now, mostly because the Sequoia is a slow seller (Toyota might crack 12k Sequoia sales this year). Selling 12,000 large SUVs isn’t exactly essential to Toyota’s continued success, so the argument goes that canceling the Sequoia would save Toyota some money and allow them to focus on the rest of the line-up.
Toyota Cancels 4.6L V8 Option on 2013 Sequoia
Today, we’ve learned that Toyota will not be offering the 4.6L on the 2013 Sequoia, and this news might seem to add some credence to the rumor that Toyota will be canceling the Sequoia next year. However:
Which is Better – Electronic or Mechanical Throttle Controls? Ford Taurus Throttle Investigation Underway
When the L.A. Slimes inspired panic and distrust of Toyota’s electronic throttle control system back in 2009, many people said that Toyota should stop using all these electronics and just stick with a good old fashioned mechanical throttle. Toyota was being “too fancy” using electronics to control the throttle, and as a result the media (none of whom have ever turned a wrench or written a piece of software) found fault with Toyota’s “overly complicated” system.
NHTSA investigating 1.9 million Ford Taurus models for cruise control throttle cable problems
Of course, the problem with this particular bit of logic is that cables can break too. Just ask Ford about 1.9 million of their Taurus models being investigated by NHTSA.
The “F” in Ford Stands for “Fleet” – Ford Fleet Sales Lead Industry
When Ford and GM owners brag about sales figures to somehow “prove” their trucks are the best available, I say three things:
- Consumers aren’t always rational – They don’t necessarily buy the “best” car or truck on the market. There’s a lot of emotion in car purchases.
- Sales figures are influenced by a variety of factors – From incentives to geography to politics to a consumer’s previous experiences. You can’t study them in a vacuum.
- Fleet sales – Ford and GM roll massive numbers of fleet trucks into their sales figures.
I’m going to focus on #3 right now (you can read more about #1 and #2 here).
The news today is that almost one-third of Ford’s sales are to fleets, which are defined by convention as companies owning at least 15 trucks. Chrysler-Fiat? 30% GM? Just 26%.
Here are fleet sales numbers for the first quarter of 2012, courtesy of Automotive News (subs. req’d):
What to Do If Your Car (or Truck) Catches Fire
Auto fires are rare (unless you drive an F150, but that’s another story). However, despite their relative rarity, we’ve all probably seen at least one vehicle fire on the side of the road. Ford cruise control fires notwithstanding, car fires can occur. The questions is, do you know what do you do when the vehicle you’re driving catches fire?
This burned-out F150 is a reminder that car fires can and do happen - are you prepared?
Here are some helpful tips:
Ten Clever Ways To Customize Your Truck
Let’s get one thing straight – there’s no practical reason to customize a perfectly good pickup. The way the factory made it is good enough for almost every use. If you don’t see a reason to install flat-screen TVs and neon lights, then you won’t enjoy this article.
OK – now that that all the fuddy-duddys are gone, here are 10 clever customization tricks we’ve seen:
