Toyota turned to a historic hotbed of grand design to show off their 2014 Toyota Tundra pickup, giving a nod to Frank Lloyd Wright along the way.
Rural Pennsylvania, about an hour outside Pittsburgh, offers a gorgeous natural portrait — rolling hills wrapping around the winding Allegheny river. Wright – the great American architect — was commissioned by successful locals to build two homes in these cool, green hillsides. Toyota chose the area’s mix of beauty and rugged terrain to test out its latest truck.
The Tundra is the biggest utility vehicle Toyota makes – a genuine competitor to the Ram 1500, the Nissan Titan, the Chevy Silverado and the Ford F150. The latter is still the best selling truck in the world and the second best selling vehicle in the world behind Toyota’s own Camry (both selling at better than a vehicle per minute).
But, the Tundra’s quality and comfort make it a prime rival to Ford’s top spot. The specs reveal a Tundra arriving in four power levels. There’s the 270 horsepower 4.0 liter V6, the 310 hp, 4.6-liter V8 and the 381 hp aluminum 5.7-liter V8. Finally, there’s the most luxurious limited issue 1794 Edition. That special version offers a maximum luxury package and specially trimmed interior.
During the Pennsylvania event, Toyota made certain the gathered automotive press had plenty of opportunities to test the Tundra in all of its uses. There was a comfortable drive through the woodland roads. There were two off-road tracks of different severity, and a hauling zone to sample the towing capacity.
In all areas, the Tundra excels and simply tackles its responsibilities like the man who’ll no doubt drive it. No nonsense. Nothing fancy. Just the concepts of “not done,” and – then – “done.” There’s ample power for all of those various functions, and the onboard AI setup confidently adjusts and sends torque to the right wheels in towing and off-road situations. The Tundra is a marriage of Technology and design merged together to create something that works – feeling entirely natural.
Enter the homes of Frank Lloyd Wright. The great architect made works of art that people could just happen to live in for the rest of their days.
As a destination for the Tundra media test drive, Toyota selected The Hagan House or Kentuck Knob in the Pennsylvania Hills. A private home now serving as a museum for much of the year, it’s a National Historical Landmark.
The house is a symphony of sophisticated, refined design techniques forging what feels like a very warm, simple and beautiful residence. A lot of intellect and passion went into building a house that would serve its duty effortlessly. And, that’s the feel the Tundra provides.
When driving it, off-roading in it or hauling with it, you know the truck will complete the task. The engineering and computing power involved in the process (though present) doesn’t matter in the face of performance.
After a tour of Kentuck Knob – and with a day of off-roading ahead – I was scheduled to take my Tundra back to the hotel HQ. Still, I knew there was another Wright home – his masterpiece – in close proximity. I knew the Toyota powers that be wouldn’t strike me from their media lists if I took a 30 minute detour over to Fallingwater.
Commonly known as one of Wright’s greatest achievements (alongside the Johnson Wax Building and Taliesin, both in Wisconsin), Fallingwater is a National Historical Landmark, A Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Treasure and on the Smithsonian Institution’s list of Places to See Before You die.
Built in stage up a mountainside and layered into a waterfall from the Bear Run river, Fallingwater is the perfect meeting point of the natural world and human dwelling. First, you hear the river and know your close. Then there comes a clear vision of the house – a sight that pulls the breath from your body. Wright fought to build it his way, and it’s stood the test of time as visitors come from around the world to see it.
I don’t know if people would come around the world to see the Tundra I was driving that day, but – while it maintains its happy union of advanced build with carefree function – it should be global truck buyers’ lists of candidates.
