As the general media’s coverage of Toyota’s recent travails became more and more absurd (constant rehashing of quotes from so-called ‘Experts’ who only wanted the chance to rant, yet had no substantial science to back up their claims of electronic interference or the like), and our elected representatives grandstanded for the cameras and microphones, trying to deflect attention from their record-low approval ratings by castigating the Japanese giant’s execs, I realized that I really wanted to just drive some of Toyota’s cars and trucks.

This isn’t a manufacturer like Honda, whose entire lineup is comprised of only a few sedans and crossovers, and a unibody pickup. Toyota is a monster, whose portfolio has expanded to almost match the amazing breadth and depth of offerings from competitors like GM, with sixteen basic lines alone for the Toyota brand. Add to that the Scion ‘youth’ brand, and Lexus, who retained its crown as the number one mover of luxury metal Stateside last year, and you get a sense of the company’s size and the diversity of its product portfolio.

No doubt this is part of what led to engineering and quality lapses over the past several years. We’re talking a massive increase in engineering hours and R&D funds to support such niche growth; inevitably there will be mistakes made. It is very, very sad that lives have been lost, apparently as a result of some of those (though I want to reiterate that much of the hoopla has no factual basis, as I’ve discussed, here). But this week, let’s spend some time seeing how Toyota’s cars and trucks fit into the market. I’ll start with the Tundra fullsize pickup, designed, engineered, and built right here in the good ole’ U.S. of A., and targeted right at the heartland.

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