Certified Benz & Beemer Compares 2014 Toyota TUNDRA VS 2014 Chevrolet Silverado Near Scottsdale, AZ

For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Toyota Tundra are height-adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of driver and passenger heights. A better fit can prevent injuries and the increased comfort also encourages passengers to buckle up. The Chevrolet Silverado has only front height-adjustable seat belts.

To help make backing safer, the Tundra CrewMax Limited/Platinum/1794’s optional cross-path warning system uses wide-angle radar in the rear bumper to alert the driver to vehicles approaching from the side, helping the driver avoid collisions. The Silverado doesn’t offer a cross-path warning system.

Both the Tundra and the Silverado have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height-adjustable front shoulder belts, plastic fuel tanks, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding and available four-wheel drive.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration does side impact tests on new vehicles. In this test, which crashes the vehicle into a flat barrier at 38.5 MPH and into a post at 20 MPH, results indicate that the Toyota Tundra is safer than the Chevrolet Silverado:

New test not comparable to pre-2011 test results. More stars = Better. Lower test results = Better.

The Tundra’s corrosion warranty is unlimited miles longer than the Silverado’s (unlimited vs. 100,000 miles).

For smoother operation, better efficiency and fewer moving parts, the engines in the Tundra have an overhead cam design, rather than the old pushrod design of the engines in the Silverado.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2013 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Toyota vehicles are more reliable than Chevrolet vehicles. J.D. Power ranks Toyota third in reliability, above the industry average. With 13 more problems per 100 vehicles, Chevrolet is ranked 12th.

As tested in Motor Trend the Toyota Tundra 4.6 V8 is faster than the Chevrolet Silverado 5.3 V8:

To lower fuel costs and make buying fuel easier, the Toyota Tundra uses regular unleaded gasoline. The Silverado with the 6.2 V8 engine requires premium for maximum efficiency, which can cost 20 to 55 cents more per gallon.

For better stopping power the Tundra’s brake rotors are larger than those on the Silverado:

The Tundra stops shorter than the Silverado:

For better load carrying, ride, handling and brake cooling the Tundra has standard 18-inch wheels. Smaller 17-inch wheels are standard on the Silverado.

For a smoother ride and more stable handling, the Tundra’s wheelbase is longer than on the Silverado:

For better maneuverability, the Tundra’s turning circle is tighter than the Silverado’s:

For greater off-road capability the Tundra has a 2 inches greater minimum ground clearance than the Silverado 1500 Short Box Regular Cab (10.6 vs. 8.6 inches), allowing the Tundra to travel over rougher terrain without being stopped or damaged. The Tundra’s minimum ground clearance is 1.7 inches higher than on the Silverado 1500 Standard Box Double Cab (10.6 vs. 8.9 inches).

The Tundra Regular Cab has 1.3 inches more front hip room and .7 inches more front shoulder room than the Silverado Regular Cab.

The Tundra Double Cab has 1.9 inches more front hip room, .9 inches more front shoulder room, .1 inches more rear legroom and 2.4 inches more rear hip room than the Silverado Double Cab.

The Tundra CrewMax has 1.9 inches more front hip room, .9 inches more front shoulder room, 1.4 inches more rear legroom and .1 inches more rear hip room than the Silverado Crew Cab.

For enhanced passenger comfort on long trips the Tundra CrewMax’s available rear seats recline. The Silverado’s optional rear seats don’t recline.

The Tundra long bed has a much larger cargo box than the Silverado long bed (82.5 vs. 76.3 cubic feet). The Tundra short bed has a much larger cargo box than the Silverado short bed (66.3 vs. 61 cubic feet).

The Tundra CrewMax has a much larger cargo box than the Silverado Crew Cab short bed (56.1 vs. 53.4 cubic feet).

The Toyota Tundra has a standard Easy Lower and Lift Tailgate, which prevents the heavy tailgate from falling with a crash and causing injury. It allows adults and children to easily open and close the tailgate with one hand to better facilitate loading and unloading. Tailgate assist is only available on the Chevrolet Silverado LT/LTZ.

The Tundra’s optional front power windows both open or close with one touch of the switches. The Silverado’s front passenger window doesn’t close automatically.

Consumer Reports rated the Tundra’s headlight performance “Very Good,” a higher rating than the Silverado’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

To better shield the driver and front passenger’s vision, the Tundra Limited has standard dual-element sun visors that can block glare from two directions simultaneously. The Silverado doesn’t offer secondary sun visors.

The Tundra has standard power remote mirrors. The Silverado only comes with remote mirrors at extra cost. Without them the driver will have to roll down the windows and reach across the car to adjust the mirrors.

The Tundra’s standard outside mirrors include heating elements to clear off the mirrors for better visibility. Chevrolet charges extra for heated mirrors on the Silverado.

Both the Tundra and the Silverado offer rear vents. For greater rear passenger comfort, the Tundra Double Cab/CrewMax has standard rear air conditioning vents to keep rear occupants cool in summer or warm in winter. The Silverado doesn’t offer rear air conditioning vents, only heat vents.

Bluetooth wireless connectivity is standard on the Tundra, connecting the driver and passenger’s cell phones to the vehicle systems. This allows them to use the vehicle’s stereo and hand controls to place calls safely and easily. Bluetooth costs extra on the Silverado.

The Tundra will cost the buyer less in the long run because of its superior resale value. The Intellichoice estimates that the Tundra will retain 56.5% to 65.7% of its original price after five years, while the Silverado only retains 41.29% to 57.96%.

Intellichoice estimates that five-year ownership costs (depreciation, financing, insurance, fuel, fees, repairs and maintenance) for the Toyota Tundra will be $2892 to $7189 less than for the Chevrolet Silverado.

Consumer Reports® chose the Toyota Tundra as its “Top Pick,” the highest scoring vehicle in its category, based on reliability, safety and performance.

Motor Trend selected the Tundra as their 2008 Truck of the Year. The Silverado was Truck of the Year in 2007.