SPY PICS: Toyota Tundra takes on the Flinders

More locally-converted right-hand drive examples of the Toyota Tundra have been spotted testing in regional Australia, this time in the Flinders Ranges north of Adelaide.

A trio of reader-submitted images show a corresponding number of Tundra pick-ups being put through their paces both towing and carrying a load on the shaly and tacky clay surfaces the ranges are renowned for.

The first image is a long shot of a white Tundra carrying some sort of load in its tub along the foot of a ridge on a reasonably well-maintained gravel road, while the others show a black example towing a green Tundra on a dual-axle car trailer.

Eagle-eyed readers will notice the white Toyota LandCruiser 70 Series shadowing the convoy; presumably as a proven support vehicle.

As with previous Tundra spy shots shot in country Victoria, all badging on the test vehicles was covered over with black tape front and rear, however, it doesn’t take much to identify the easily recognisable full-size pick-up.

The spied vehicles are just three of what will eventually be a 300-unit fleet of right-hand drive development vehicles dispatched around the country as part of the model’s extensive re-engineering program being run by Walkinshaw Automotive.

The Clayton-based firm is already responsible for the local RAM 1500 and Chevrolet Silverado remanufacturing operations, not to mention the development and production of the expiring Volkswagen Amarok W Series.

Strong evidence of the Amarok enhancement project being continued with the second-generation German ute has also been circulating, along with rumours of Walkinshaw involvement in the development of a swansong Mitsubishi Triton tough truck.

While those latter two undertakings remain unofficial for now, Walkinshaw engineers are leveraging components out of the Toyota LandCruiser 300 Series for right-hook Tundra development, including the steering column, steering rack, pedals and shift lever – something made possible by the two models’ shared TNGA-F ladder-frame architecture.

All local Tundra development vehicles feature the twin-turbo 3.5-litre V6 petrol hybrid ‘i-FORCE MAX’ powertrain rated at a class-leading 325kW/790Nm and yielding a 4500kg braked towing capacity.

If the green light is given by Toyota HQ for an Aussie release of the Tundra (which is likely given the extensiveness of Walkinshaw’s program), then you could reasonably expect to see them in dealers sometime in 2024 – after the mid-2023 release of the similarly factory-backed RHD Ford F-150.

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