We spot Aussie Toyota Tundra

Our buddies at carsales.com.au recently broke the story that Toyota was intending to convert several Toyota Tundras through Walkinshaw Automotive Group in Melbourne.

Well, they were right. We were out driving the new MAN TGX 26.640 up the Pentland Hills west of Melbourne today and we spotted this camouflaged 'full-size' ute.

It's our first look at the first factory-backed right-hand drive Toyota Tundra conducting tow testing.

One of several RHD prototypes now being converted for Toyota by the Walkinshaw Automotive Group at its Clayton facility, this one was towing a huge trailer load of concrete blocks imitating a large caravan or similar.

It was parked at the Mobil truck stop at Ballan, which is a good climb up from Victoria’s capital and Walkinshaw’s home base, with black duct tape covering all of its badges.

First revealed in September 2021, the third-generation Toyota Tundra has been on Toyota Australia’s radar since long before that, but like two previous generations dating back to 1999 and its full-size American pick-up rivals, it won’t be produced in RHD ex-factory despite lobbying by Toyota Australia.

That’s why Toyota has now contracted Walkinshaw, which already does big business ‘remanufacturing’ RAMs for RAM Trucks Australia and Chevrolet Silverados for GM Specialty Vehicles, to engineer and produce 300 RHD Tundra vehicles for testing, market evaluation and potential sale, as part of a multi-million-dollar development program that could finally see the Tundra join the top-selling HiLux in local Toyota showrooms.

Toyota says the RHD Tundra’s officially-backed re-engineering program, which will leverage Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series components including the steering column, steering rack, pedals and shift lever, “faces further checkpoints in Toyota’s global approval process before its retail introduction can be confirmed”.