Anyone see the comercial where a tundra pulls up with a bobcat in tow and four guys get out and go to work?
In what universe could you legally do this? [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]
lets do the math:
GVWR for tundra with the V8 is 6200 lbs (from their web page). GCWR is 11800 lbs with the tow package. Curb weight is right at 4700 lbs for the V8.
So lets ignore the four constructions workers first.
A typicall bocat is about 5000 lbs. Throw in a trailer capable of towing the bobcat and your looking at another ~2000lbs. So 4700 + 5000 + 2000=11700 lbs. So you better use short chains and light weight binders to stay under that 100 lbs buffer left over [img]/forums/images/icons/laugh.gif[/img] . What about the driver? Gas? Diesel in the bobcat? Better not have anything else in that truck.
Now add in the three passengers in the comercial.... big problem.
The web page says:
"It's the truck other full-size pickups want to be."
Hmmmm......
Well the F350 or the 3500 has a GVWR of ~11000 lbs and a GVCWR of ~20,000 lbs..........
Not trying to start a brand war but the math does not lie.
I know that all companies stretch their capabilities but this is extreme.
Toyota would be better off to just state the fact that the truck may be ideal for the home owner that hauls a few sheets of plywood or a lawn tractor, but a heavy duty work truck.... nope.
I havn't seen the commercial but I would be afraid lawyers. I have a 3/4 ton truck and may move up to a 1 ton just because if I tow my boat/fishing equipment full of gas I am over the 1/2 ton total vehicle/trailer weight. If I was to get in an accident with an overloaded vehicle I think the first thing that would happen is look at the vehicle and what it was towing.
Many marketing people don't seem to have a handle on actual limits of the products they market. These are the same types of commericals that have toyotas (since we're already on them) going full throttle/all out over ground that would destroy any truck in short order. They say they support the tread lightly program, but their commericals show the opposite of what the program stands for. I guess being responible with your vehicle in god's country isn't macho enough for TV. Getting down from the soap box now...
I have to admit that I haven't seen this particular Toyota Commercial. I have seen the Ford commercial with the pickup towing the ship. And the Jeep commercials with the truck on an impossible peak.
When I was a kid, the commercials marketed toys to me by making them appear to be bigger and better than they actually were. Hmmm, looks like they're still trying to do it. [img]/forums/images/icons/blush.gif[/img]
Subaru also had a commercial a while ago that irritated me. They were advertising the Baja's ability to change the back seat area from a seating area to a extension of the cargo area, just like the Chevy Avalanche. The problem is they claimed to be the first to come up with the idea! Avalanche had it long before they did.
Here's a link to information about the BRAT, Bi-drive Recreational All-terrain Transporter. I always considered the BRAT as more of a Japanese version of the Chevy El Camino or Ford Ranchero. It was also a way for Subaru to avoid the 25% tariff that was in affect at the time on imported trucks. The BRAT only had 2 seats (inside) so there wasn't anything to convert into a pickup bed.
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