We just published the results of our 2009 Inside Line Readers Most Wanted Awards and the 2009 Nissan 370Z and 2009 Nissan GT-R cleaned up, winning two categories each. That means these two cars took four of the 15 awards.
The BMW 128i also grabbed a spot on the list, which essentially means three cars in our long-term fleet are favorites of our readers. Plus, several recent long-term blog alums took honors. Readers also voted big time for the Honda Accord, BMW X5, Toyota Tundra, Ford Mustang and BMW 3-Series.
You know, sometimes we take flack for this blog not having cars our readers are interested in. Um, hello.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief
Categories: 2006 BMW 330i,2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab,2008 BMW X5 4.8i,2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6,2009 Nissan 370Z Touring,2009 Nissan GT-R
I was thinking the other day (always a dangerous proposition, I know) and wondering how all the current (or really, really recently departed) Edmunds/Inside Line long-term vehicles stack up against each other in fuel economy, at least the fuel economy we've been recording during their time with us. So I made a list. For you and for me. In case we were both wondering.
The only current vehicles missing from my list are the Audi R8 and the Dodge Grand Caravan, and that's because no one has entered any fuel data into the tracking spreadsheet for those vehicles yet. The very top and the very bottom of the list aren't going to surprise anybody (I don't think), but the middle is kinda interesting. Seeing the Rondo and the WRX so close to each other made me raise my eyebrows. Ditto the Ford GT's spot above the Veracruz. Ready to check it all out? Follow the jump with me.
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Categories: 2002 BMW M3,2004 Toyota Prius,2005 Ford GT,2005 Volkswagen Jetta GLS TDI,2006 Lexus RX 400h,2007 Chevrolet Silverado LT,2007 Ford Edge SEL,2007 Honda Civic GX,2007 Honda Fit Sport,2007 Kia Rondo,2007 Saturn Aura XR,2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab,2008 BMW 135i,2008 BMW X5 4.8i,2008 Buick Enclave CX,2008 Cadillac CTS V6 DI,2008 Ford Focus SES Coupe,2008 Honda Accord EX-L V6,2008 Hyundai Veracruz SE AWD,2008 Mazda CX-9,2008 Mercedes-Benz C300 Sport,2008 Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X MR,2008 Pontiac G8 GT,2008 Scion xB,2008 Smart Fortwo Passion Coupe,2008 Subaru Impreza WRX STI,2009 Ford Flex Limited,2009 Nissan GT-R
So I took our long-term Tundra to Orange County's Little Saigon over the weekend. And I learned a few things.
(1) The most flavorful pho seems to be the kind that's packed with a bunch of random varieties of beef. I used to be a chicken pho man, but after slurping down some sublime broth containing filet mignon and like eight other parts of a cow, I was a convert.
(2) The Tundra's steering wheel doesn't telescope. What's the thinking here -- "Maybe people with long legs won't drive it"? The Tundra's chair-like driving position mitigates this annoyance to some extent: if you need to stretch your legs, you have the option of jacking the seat up a foot instead of sliding it back. But that tilts the cushion uncomfortably forward (another bad job), so it's an imperfect solution. The best I can say for Toyota in this regard is that our Silverado's wheel doesn't telescope either.
(3) Like many big V8s, the Tundra's does some of its most impressive work at extralegal speeds. Floor it at 60 mph, and this thing just keeps piling on the speed -- that is, until you remember it weighs a gajillion pounds and frantically hit the brakes. Nonetheless, I found myself thinking on a couple occasions that I wouldn't mind having a little more power on tap. Enter the optional dealer-installed supercharger, which bumps output to 504 hp and 550 lb-ft of torque (versus 381 hp and 401 lb-ft stock). I saw some unconfirmed reports that Tundras thus equipped are running quarter-miles in the mid-13s.
Josh Sadlier, Associate Editor, Edmunds.com @ 25,335 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
I haven't slimmed down for summer, I've chunked up. My scale didn't tell me. Nor was it the lack of attention from women on the beach. It wasn't even due to the fact my jeans are harder to put on or that I just powered down a foot-long Subway sandwich in under ten minutes. I know I became a little more festive in appearance because the Tundra told me so.
No, I'm not crazy. I know the Tundra can't actually talk, but you don't have to speak to say a lot.
In the past few days I've driven our Tundra to locations all around LA for photo shoots, errands and the like. While coming home late at night from two of those photo shoots I traveled the 405 south past Highway 101. It's there that the spacing in the freeways surface is the perfect distance to cause the Tundra to bounce in rapid succession.
The bouncing made me painfully aware of every lump of fat on my body. My gut, love handles, you name it. Actually, maybe it's best you don't mention anything. It was a little bit embarrassing, to be honest. The second time through the same section was salt in the wound.<
I'm taking heed of what nature and the Tundra are trying to tell me. Maybe I will start using that gym membership I've been paying for these last few months.
Scott Jacobs, Senior Photographer
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
Our long-term 2007 Toyota Tundra + a dirt parking lot + a disabled traction control system = fun.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 24,603 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
I had a little mountain bike adventure in the Tundra last Friday. Loaded it up with four bikes, four people and plenty of gear and headed for the Southern Sierras. In fact, we did the same ride as last fall's adventure in the Chevy Silverado.
The Tundra performed flawlessly and didn't give a rip about the bikes hanging on the hitch, the extra cargo, or the thousands of vertical feet we had to climb to reach our starting point. I was reminded how truly potent this truck's powertrain is when it's pointed uphill and how much latitude there is in its transmission. The six speed is brilliant whether you're asking it to pass a freeway creeper or needing to hold a constant speed on a grade. And there's never any shortage of power. It's just an impressive package.
Fuel consumption averaged 17.16 mpg over the last 393 miles of mostly freeway driving.
Josh Jacquot, Senior road test editor @ 24,341 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
The Tundra has been pressed into heavy road trip duty lately and I was about to continue the trend. It recently went out to Utah on special assignment, racking up 1,400 miles. Less than a week later, I was going to put an additional 1,300 miles on the odometer. I was returning to LA from a wee bit north of Lake Tahoe and I was happy to have the Tundra as my travel companion.
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
The Fourth weekend to my family is very important. Traditionally it's the opening weekend of our summer cabin located an hour and a half north of Lake Tahoe. It's one of the few chances we all get together. With the amount of work needed to be done, it was important for me to drive the Tundra.
Our cabin is on a 40-year lease from the Tahoe National Forrest. To renew our lease, we are mandated to clear the under-brush, cut down trees under four feet in height and branches going up five feet from the base in a radius of 30 feet from our cabin. This is a fairly dense forest so it was going to be a work holiday.
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
So far our new Escort 9500i Passport radar detector has been on three cross country runs. It has gone from Detroit to Los Angeles on the windshield of our long term Dodge Grand Caravan, Atlanta to Los Angeles suction cupped to out long term Audi R8 and now it has gone from Los Angeles to Wendover, Utah and back stuck to our long term Toyota Tundra.
That's about 6,500 miles of driving.
Number of tickets issued: Zero.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 22,567 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
Welcome to middle of freakin' nowhere.
Last week lived in our long term Toyota Tundra for three days, covering three states and 1,409.1 miles. At the end of the run I have a new found respect for the Tundra and the men that created it.
This is a comfortable truck. Very quiet on the highway. And the seat is as good as truck seats get. At 15.9 mpg, the truck's mileage might not impress, but believe me when I tell you I was on it. Drove the last 600 miles like a I stole it. And that big V8 is always ready to go. At over 100 mph, this big truck is steady as a rock. Hums along like a good sedan.
Occasionally our route also passed through some mountains, which only put the Tundra's excellent brakes and handling on display.
My complaints are limited to what our Tundra is without. Satellite radio would have been nice, and a range feature would have helped schedule some of our six gas stops. Both are options we were too cheap to order. Mistake.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 22,567 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
This is as fast as our 2007 Toyota Tundra will go. Hits some sort of fuel cut off, probably because of the speed rating of its tires. Sucks considering our long-term Dodge Grand Caravan will do 113 mph.
Scott Oldham, Inside Line Editor in Chief @ 22,001 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
We took our Tundra SR5 in for its 20,000-mile service the other day. Our normal service advisor at Toyota Santa Monica was on vacation, so we made an appointment with the next advisor in line. She told us to expect a call at 3, when our truck would be ready.
No news by half-past 3, so we called her. We sat on hold for 10-15 minutes while the operator tracked her down. "Come experience the Santa Monica difference," the recording warned us. Then it began to skip, "Please hold and someone will be right-right-right-right with you." That was good for a laugh.
When the other end finally picked up, we learned our Tundra was ready. It cost $116.24 to rotate tires, perform visual inspections and change out 8-quarts of oil. Over 80-bucks of the total was for labor.
Mike Schmidt, Vehicle Testing Coordinator @ 20,836 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
Pick-up trucks have always been a favorite among surfers. If you don't believe me all you need to do is drive down the Pacific Coast Highway on a Saturday and count the number of pick-ups on the side of the road. This past weekend when I was given the opportunity to drive our 2007 Toyota Tundra I called my buddy, threw the boards in the back, and added one more truck to the side of the PCH. The entire time we were commenting on how great it was to have a truck to throw surfboards in rather than messing around with a roof rack. By the end of two days of surfing I was starting to entertain crazy thoughts of buying a truck. That was until Monday morning. One weekend of surfing coast a little over $80 in gas, the same weekend would only coast about $25-30 in my car with a roof rack. How high will gas prices get before the scenery on your drive down the PCH changes, and pick-ups are no longer the favorite vehicle of surfers? For me we're there now. I'll stick to my car and a roof rack.
Seth Compton, Broadband Production Coordinator @ 20,834 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
I was up in Simi Valley yesterday. For those of you who aren't familiar with the Southland Region, it's basically north west of Los Angeles proper and just south of the Sun.
Yes, it gets hot up there. Really hot...
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
In a case of using a sludgehammer to crack an egg I just picked up a new wicker loveseat with our long-term 2007 Toyota Tundra.
The local Green Thumb had the couch on close-out, and I've been wanting some yard furnishings ever since we installed new paving stones in front of the house. I also picked up an $80 recliner for the backyard (in the box on the couch), and both items fit in the bed with room to spare.
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
This morning I needed to buy about 10 storage containers (the 12-gallon size). We'll be stuffing them into various crossover SUVs when we take photos of their cargo bays. None of those crossovers happened to be around, so I looked around the garage and spotted the 2007 Toyota Tundra.
When I wheeled my cart out of the Home Depot and loaded the stacked containers into the Tundra, it was comical. It was so much more truck than this task required. I'd suspected as much before I left, but frankly I wanted an excuse to drive the Tundra. There's not much more I can add about its drivetrain, which is simply excellent, but I will add that I like the steering, too. The weighting is good, and it feels accurate. That said, after a week of driving crossovers, I slightly misjudged the Toyota's width when pulling into this space.
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
The Tundra's gauge cluster completely overstyled and thoroughly ridiculous. The picture above is a true representation of what they look like in a partly cloudy sky at around 4:30 pm. Can you tell how much gas I have? No, well that's because you'd probably have to stick your eye up to the peephole gauge tunnel to see anything. I wasn't entirely sure what I'd see. Below is a visual multiple choice quiz.
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
Now that automakers are illuminating just about every control in sight when the headlights are on, I've got a question for Toyota: What happened with the Tundra's power mirrors? It's not like this particular control falls readily to hand -- you have to reach forward and down to get it. How are you supposed to do that when it's dark?
It's a minor point, I know, and one more likely to be noticed by people like us, since we're in different vehicles every night and thus have to adjust the mirrors, etc., on a daily basis. But surely there are some Tundra owners out there who share their vehicles from time to time...
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
Say what you want about the Tundra's styling, but I can assure you that the engine in nearly flawless. As smooth as a Camry's V6 and never at a loss for power, the Tundra's 5.7-liter engine is a refined beast that has no equal in the segment. Add in the nearly perfect six-speed automatic and the Tundra makes for an excellent truck whether you're towing a load or just tooling around town. This weekend it returned just over 15mpg on a 200-mile round trip and it was getting hammered most of the time by my right foot...
That mileage figure just so happens to match its lifetime average of 15.1mpg. Not great, but for an engine that delivers as much performance as the Tundra's 5.7, it's a respectable number.
Ed Hellwig, Senior Editor @ 19,657 miles
Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
After living on the water for a couple months with a random Craigslist roommate, I decided that it was time to strike out on my own, which in L.A. translates as "time to move into a 200 square-foot cube miles from the ocean with a hot plate and a mini-fridge." As luck would have it, we've got a couple full-size pickup trucks in our long-term fleet. When I saw that the keys to the Tundra were available, I didn't hesitate to grab them, since I've always preferred the Tundra's beastly yet refined powertrain and handy backup camera to the Silverado's neck-snapping upshifts and camera-less parking sensors. Although it took two trips (I'd hoped to do it in one, but my full-size mattress turned out to be only a bit smaller than the Tundra's bed), I definitely gained some appreciation for the versatility of these gas-swilling behemoths...
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Categories: 2007 Toyota Tundra SR5 Double Cab
