2023 Toyota Sequoia Capstone First Test: Outstanding Numbers, But the Rest?

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The new sequoia is among the most statistically impressive three rows on sale the oldest known specimen of sukhoi vandan gagante and lived for 3266 years in the converse basin grove of giant sequoia national monument that’s about how long the second generation toyota sequoia was on sale okay we’re exaggerating slightly but our first drive of the last sequoia

Was published way back in november 2007 and the suv stayed much the same during the following 15 model years that it was on sale that is longer than double the life cycle of most vehicles that suv’s age was apparent whether you looked at it drove it or touched it in its sluggish transmission ancient pre-great recession era design pitiful fuel economy and the

Generations old switch gear and materials that litter the interior the all-new sequoia addresses all of those shortcomings and then some and now that we’ve had a chance to stuff it full of testing equipment and spend more time behind the wheel following our first drive earlier this year we can answer the big question is the sequoia finally worth recommending

The more than just the toyota faithful so long v8 central to toyota’s reimagine sequoia is its new powertrain gone is the 381 horsepower 401 pound a foot v8 that had been under its hood for a decade and a half it is replaced by something thoroughly modern a 3.4 liter not 3.5 despite what toyota will tell you twin turbo v6 augmented by an electric motor the same

Iforce max hybrid setup offered in range-topping tundras system output sums to 437 horsepower and a stump pulling 583 pounds to foot of torque improvements of 56 horsepower and 182 pounds to foot over the outgoing beat toyota also swapped the old sequoias lazy dog of a six-speed for a new of this era 10-speed automatic the results all that extra torque means towing

Capacity increases by more than 2000 pounds the new sequoia can now drag up to 9520 pounds which is at least 1 000 more than most suvs in the full-size segment only the 2023 cheap wagoneer with its new inline-six beats the toyota as expected the 2023 sequoia is significantly quicker in a straight line than its predecessor too our testing shows zero to 60 miles per

Hour in 5.6 seconds more than half a second sooner than the quickest previous gen model the 2022 ford expedition stealth performance package may beat it in a drag race but so far this is the quickest full-size non-luxury three-row we’ve ever tested the most significant improvement to this big suv is its fuel economy the old truck with its thirsty old-school v8 an

Outdated six-speed was rated worst in its class at 13 miles per gallon city and 17 miles per gallon highway with its standard hybrid twin turbo v6 and 4wd the 2023 sequoia is rated at 1920 seconds of a mile per gallon on the same test cycles that’s significantly better than a comparable chevrolet tahoe ford expedition nissan armada or gmc yukon and fractionally

Ahead of the aforementioned i6 wagoneer efficiency nuts will point out gm’s diesel offerings fare better but those suvs can’t match the toyota’s acceleration of towing capabilities this efficiency relatively speaking is all the more surprising given how at nearly 6 200 pounds the toyota is among the heaviest we’ve tested in this space if it doesn’t impact fuel

Economy it does ding the dynamics toyota’s largest suv stops from 60 miles per hour and 134 feet among the 15 full-size suvs we’ve tested over the past five model years only two required a longer stopping distance not just the numbers of course the new sequoia capstone is more than its spec sheet and spending more time with toyota’s answer to the tahoe expedition

Exposes some unwelcome driving behaviors there’s a persistent jiggle emanating from the rear end even on flat roads the live rear axle sequoia never feels planted and yes this is one of the few areas in which the new sequoia lags behind its predecessor which came with independent rear suspension driving anything other than straight the toyota behemoth embodies

What senior editor aaron gold calls big car clumsy body roll is abundant in corners and the nose dives forward under braking multiple staffers also called out major shutters through the body structure when driving the sequoia over washboard sections of an off-road course as for the new power plant we have mixed feedback drivetrain lashes evidenced by the vehicle

Clunking into gear and associate online editor alex lenz points out that quick transitions from throttle to brake exposed hesitation and powertrain response the engine provides plenty of outright performance which gold describes as like a v8 but with an invisible hand pushing the vehicle along credit the electric motor’s torque fill some folks loved the hybrid

Twin turbo v6 but others noted inconsistent surges of power delivery toyota also makes this engine sound like a v8 not with some clever exhaust geometry but by piping fake induction noise through the audio system call it disingenuous but we’re not mad about a little oral character even if it’s artificial we have less kind words for the brake pedal lens notes a

Noticeable transition between regenerative and friction breaking and features editor christian seba describes the feel as mushy and prius like to the point that it would ruin the towing experience interior insights beyond the driving experience our test model came in capstone guys toyota’s new range topping truck and suv trim which is positioned above the platinum

And trd pro our test vehicle rings in at 80 095 which makes this the most expensive offering in toyota’s lineup in addition to landing with an 8 000 of a base lexus lx600 keep in mind the lx and sequoia suv share their underpinnings and some mechanicals though the lexus is slightly smaller what’s different outside the capstone gets cagantained 22-inch wheels

Which exaggerate its jiggly ride chrome accents power running boards and acoustically insulated front door glass over the sequoia platinum the interior adds trim specific semi-anil and leather upholstery fake looking open poor american walnut trim and ambient interior lighting to the panoramic glass roof and heated slash ventilated first and second row seats of the

Platinum digital director eric johnson feels the front row interior materials are decent for sixty thousand dollars not so much for eighty thousand dollars and notes uneven dashboard stitching and some chintzy looking plastics calling out the capstone as a clearly dressed up version of a more pedestrian family hauler there is more frequent use of scratchy plastic

The farther back you move in the vehicle and the third row area is spartan for its part toyota says the plastic panels in the cargo area for example were pre-production pieces that will be better finished on customer examples it also says overall interior fit will be improved in final spec versions although we didn’t see much to take issue with in that area the

Sequoias optional 14.0 inch touchscreen infotainment display standard and limited models and up is a bright responsive generational leap over the aging 7.0 inch display in the outgoing sequoia wireless smartphone mirroring and a plethora of camera feeds including one from a 360 degree camera system help bring the sequoia into the present that said the system has

No home screen or central hub outside of a thin apple box style strip of menu shortcuts flanking whatever menu is selected startup defaults to the navigation page which unless you’ve paid for a subscription box the driver with a blank screen speaking of rear seating the second row captain’s chairs are notably firm and mounted high but both traits are in service to

Third row access ingress requires only an easy pull of a lever mounted below the seat cushion near the door that results in the second row seat folding in half and tilting way forward it’s effortless to reach the way back even for a small child that’s key because cramped legroom and headroom mean you won’t want full-size adults back there for long closing thoughts

The 2023 toyota sequoia represents an obvious improvement over its predecessor this year’s redesign addresses all of our qualms about that jurassic era suv while also improving its towing numbers modernizing the infotainment including a full collection of driver assist features as standard and providing best-in-class accessibility to its third-row seating being

Dragged into the present isn’t the same as jumping ahead of competitors however the jeep wagoneer offers a better standard powertrain marginally higher towing capacity superior driving dynamics a nicer interior and improved infotainment if you want a three-row toyota that’ll tow almost anything the new sequoia is your best bet even then we’d recommend a sequoia

Sr5 or limited those models sacrifice little in interior quality or features but deliver the same capability at a much more palatable price here’s hoping it doesn’t take 3000 years for toyota to make further improvements

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2023 Toyota Sequoia Capstone First Test: Outstanding Numbers, But the Rest? By Follow Us