mobile-menu-icon
Ford Authority

Does This Toyota Tundra Prototype Preview A New Ford F-150 Raptor Rival?

The Toyota Tundra was treated to a much-needed and rather comprehensive redesign for the 2022 model year, breathing new life into the Ford F-150 rival. That debut included the addition of the all-new Tundra TRD Pro, a more off-road capable version of the pickup, albeit one that isn’t quite as hardcore as the Ford F-150 Raptor. Thus far, the new Toyota Tundra has carved out some market share in the hotly-contested full-size U.S. pickup market, and now, the Japanese automaker may be working on a proper Raptor rival as well.

This rather aggressively-styled Toyota Tundra prototype was recently spotted testing by Ford Authority near the automaker’s tech center in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and it’s clearly quite a lot different than any model in the existing lineup. For starters, it’s wearing wide bodywork covered in black and white patterned camo, a signature F-150 Raptor styling cue, along with some mismatched badging and other bits that signal we’re looking at more of a mule at this point than a polished product.

Other than those wider fenders, this Toyota Tundra prototype is equipped with a completely revamped front bumper, which looks to be designed to improve the truck’s approach angle for off-roading purposes. There are vents integrated into the front fenders as well, along with rather large BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A tires. It’s unclear how big those tires are, but they’re wrapped around Method 703 dead grip machined-finish wheels.

In the rear, we can see a panhard rod attached to the rear axle, but it’s unclear what other sorts of suspension mods might be present underneath. There’s also a brand new steel rear bumper, likely intended to improve the truck’s departure angle off-road.

If nothing else, this Toyota Tundra prototype certainly seems like a signal that the company is working on a more hardcore, off-road-focused version of its full-size pickup, perhaps one that will give the Ford F-150 Raptor a proper competitor. Whether or not it’s a one-off show truck, a simple engineering exercise, or something destined for production, well, that remains to be seen.

Brett's lost track of all the Fords he's owned over the years and how much he's spent modifying them, but his current money pits include an S550 Mustang and 13th gen F-150.

Subscribe to Ford Authority

For around-the-clock Ford news coverage

We'll send you one email per day with the latest Ford updates. It's totally free.

Comment

  1. that has to be what it is

    Reply

Leave a comment

Cancel