Both of these trucks made the same enemy.
Toyota killed the Tundra’s V8 first, back in the 2022 redesign, and replaced a 5.7-liter engine that had a million-mile reputation with a twin-turbo V6 that nobody asked for. RAM did the same thing to the 1500 for 2025, then blinked and brought the Hemi back for 2026 after the backlash got loud enough. Two full-size pickups, two brands that decided the naturally aspirated V8 was a fuel-economy liability, two different responses to the customers who disagreed.
That shared history makes the cross-shop more interesting than the usual spec-sheet standoff. The buyer looking at a 2026 RAM 1500 against a 2026 Toyota Tundra is choosing between two trucks that answered the same question in opposite ways, and the spec sheets reward a closer look than either brand’s marketing gives them.
The reference point for this comparison is the RAM 1500 in work trim: the Express Crew Cab 4×2 with the 3.0L Hurricane Standard Output inline-six, the fleet-and-contractor configuration that stickered at $51,030. The Toyota that lines up against it is the Tundra in its own work spec, and where the two diverge is where the decision gets made.
Key Takeaways
- The Tundra tows more on paper. The Tundra’s maximum rating reaches 12,000 pounds in the right configuration; the RAM Hurricane SO tops out at 11,610. Payload is nearly a dead heat, roughly 1,940 pounds for the Tundra and 1,930 for the RAM.
- The RAM wins fuel economy without a hybrid. The Hurricane SO returns 21 mpg combined on regular unleaded. The Tundra needs its i-FORCE MAX hybrid to reach 22, and the non-hybrid i-FORCE trails at roughly 19 to 20 combined.
- The RAM’s powertrain warranty is twice the Tundra’s. RAM covers the 2026 gas 1500 for 10 years or 100,000 miles for the original owner. Toyota covers the gas Tundra powertrain for 5 years or 60,000 miles.
- Toyota’s engine is the one under a recall. The Tundra’s twin-turbo V6 has been under an expanding recall for machining debris that can destroy the engine’s bearings, and the remedy has been slow to land. The RAM’s engine story is about which engine to order, not whether it will survive.
- Both walked away from the V8. Toyota went cold turkey in 2022 and never looked back. RAM brought the Hemi back for 2026. Which brand read its buyers better is a fair question.
The Engines
The 2026 Tundra runs a single engine family in two states of tune plus a hybrid. The base i-FORCE 3.4-liter twin-turbo V6 makes 348 horsepower in the SR work trim and 389 horsepower with 479 pound-feet of torque from the SR5 up. The i-FORCE MAX hybrid, which pairs the same V6 with an electric motor and a small battery, makes 437 horsepower and 583 pound-feet. Every Tundra uses a 10-speed automatic.
The RAM’s lineup is wider. The work-trim Express and Tradesman start with the 3.6-liter Pentastar V6 at 305 horsepower, step up to the 3.0-liter Hurricane SO twin-turbo six at 420 horsepower and 469 pound-feet, and top out with the Hurricane HO at 540 horsepower and the returned 5.7-liter Hemi V8 at 395. An eight-speed ZF automatic handles all four.
| Engine | HP | Torque (lb-ft) | Max Tow (lb) | Fuel |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| RAM 3.0L Hurricane SO (I6 TT) | 420 | 469 | 11,610 | Regular 87 |
| RAM 5.7L Hemi V8 | 395 | 410 | 11,320 | Midgrade 89 |
| Tundra 3.4L i-FORCE (SR5+) | 389 | 479 | 12,000 | Regular 87 |
| Tundra i-FORCE MAX (hybrid) | 437 | 583 | ~11,450 | Regular 87 |
The torque figures deserve a second read. The Tundra’s hybrid produces 583 pound-feet, the highest number in this comparison and higher than anything RAM offers in the 1500, including the 521 pound-feet Hurricane HO.
On raw grunt, the i-FORCE MAX is the strongest engine on the page.
That number carries two asterisks: what the hybrid costs to buy, and how the truck drives with the trailer off.
Capability: The Tundra’s Number Is Bigger
Toyota advertises up to 12,000 pounds of towing for the 2026 Tundra, and that figure is real. It belongs to the non-hybrid i-FORCE in a rear-drive work configuration, the same way the RAM’s headline numbers belong to specific builds rather than the whole lineup.
The RAM Hurricane SO tops out at 11,610 pounds. The Tundra’s 12,000 is a 390-pound advantage on the spec sheet.
Payload is closer to a tie. The Tundra’s maximum runs to roughly 1,940 pounds; the RAM Hurricane SO carries 1,930. Ten pounds between them is a rounding error, not a reason to choose. RAM’s overall payload ceiling is actually higher, at 2,360 pounds, but that belongs to the lighter Pentastar V6, not the Hurricane compared here.
Here is the part the tow number hides: the Tundra’s strongest engine tows less than its least expensive one. The 437-horsepower i-FORCE MAX hybrid carries enough extra weight in its battery and motor that its tow rating falls to roughly 11,450 pounds, below both the non-hybrid Tundra and the RAM Hurricane SO. A buyer who spends up for the most powerful Tundra ends up with the least capable one on a trailer. The RAM lineup has the same quirk in reverse, where the entry Hurricane SO out-tows the pricier Hurricane HO, and it’s worth knowing that neither truck’s power ranking matches its towing ranking.
Fuel Economy: The RAM Wins Without Trying
This is where the Tundra’s engine strategy shows its bill.
The RAM Hurricane SO is rated at 18 mpg city, 25 highway, and 21 combined on regular 87 unleaded, and it gets there with a conventional twin-turbo six and no hybrid hardware. The Tundra’s non-hybrid i-FORCE returns roughly 19 to 20 combined. To beat the RAM, a Tundra buyer has to order the i-FORCE MAX hybrid, which reaches 22 combined in rear-drive form.
Read that again. Toyota needs a hybrid system, with its motor, its battery, and its added cost, to edge past a RAM that does 21 combined with none of it. A non-hybrid Tundra loses to the RAM outright on fuel.
The gap isn’t enormous in raw mpg, but it compounds.
Over a working truck’s life of 15,000 miles a year, one or two combined mpg is real fuel money, and the RAM banks it without asking the buyer to pay for a hybrid to get there. For a fleet operator running several trucks, that difference multiplies across the whole yard.
Warranty: Ten Years Against Five
For 2026, RAM made a 10-year, 100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty standard across the gas 1500 lineup at no extra cost. It covers the engine, transmission, and driveline for the original owner.
It reverts to 5 years or 60,000 miles if the truck is sold, so the full benefit belongs to the first buyer.
Toyota covers the gas Tundra’s powertrain for 5 years or 60,000 miles. The i-FORCE MAX hybrid battery gets 10 years or 150,000 miles, but the gasoline engine and transmission on a standard Tundra carry half the years and 40,000 fewer miles than the RAM.
For a buyer who keeps a work truck a decade, that is a concrete difference in exposure, not a brochure line. It also lands at a pointed moment, because the Tundra’s engine is the one that has been giving Toyota trouble.
The Recall That Changes the Math
Toyota’s reputation is built on engines that outlast the trucks around them. The current Tundra V6 is testing that reputation.
The twin-turbo i-FORCE V6 has been under an expanding recall covering 2022 through 2024 gasoline Tundras, tied to machining debris left inside the engine during manufacturing. Under load, that debris can migrate to the main bearings and cause wear, knocking, power loss, and in the worst cases a stalled engine. The affected population runs well past 200,000 vehicles across the Tundra and related Toyota and Lexus models, and reporting has indicated that a durable fix was slow to arrive, with the remedy pushed back more than once. The Tundra’s full reliability record breaks the engine and cooling complaints down by year.
The hybrid i-FORCE MAX is not part of the engine-debris recall, which produces an odd result: the most reliable Tundra engine to buy right now is the more expensive hybrid, the opposite of the usual “simpler is safer” instinct.
The RAM’s engine story is a different kind of story. The controversy around the 1500 was about the Hemi’s deletion and return, a question of what buyers could order, not whether the engine they ordered would come apart. The Hurricane platform is new enough that its long-term record isn’t written yet, and a cautious buyer should weigh that. But there is a difference between an unproven engine and an engine under active recall, and in mid-2026 that difference favors the RAM. The 10-year powertrain warranty softens the RAM’s newness in a way Toyota’s 5-year coverage does not soften its recall.
For the full picture on the RAM’s engine history, The Weekly Driver’s reliability database covers the DT-generation 1500 by year, and the reliability-by-year breakdown puts the generation in context.
The V8 Question Both Trucks Answered
The shared history is worth sitting with, because it shaped both trucks.
Toyota dropped the 5.7-liter V8 for the 2022 Tundra and became the first full-size pickup sold in North America without an eight-cylinder option. It was a clean break. Toyota bet that the twin-turbo V6 would win on capability and efficiency and never offered the V8 again at any price. The problem is that the V8 it deleted had the reliability halo, and the engine that replaced it is the one now under recall.
RAM made the same move for 2025 and then reversed it. The Hemi came back for 2026 as a no-cost or low-cost option on most trims, sitting alongside the Hurricane six. RAM read the backlash and gave buyers the choice back. Toyota held its line.
Neither approach is obviously right. Toyota’s discipline means the Tundra’s lineup is simpler and every engine is a modern turbo design. RAM’s reversal means the 1500 buyer can still get a naturally aspirated V8 with a known service record. The buyer who wants a V8 has exactly one option here, and it wears a RAM badge.
Work-Truck Reality: Doors and Configurations
The RAM tested here is a Crew Cab, which means four full-size doors on a work truck that starts in the low forties. That combination is easy to get from RAM. The Express and Tradesman are offered as genuine four-door work trucks with rear-wheel drive and a cloth bench, no luxury tax attached.
Toyota makes the same buyer choose. The Tundra’s true fleet trim is the SR, and in work spec it comes as a Double Cab with smaller rear doors. Four full-size doors mean stepping up to the CrewMax body, which pushes the price and the equipment level up with it. A contractor who wants a cheap four-door full-size Toyota has a narrower path than the same contractor shopping RAM.
This matters more than it sounds.
Rear-seat access on a crew that carries a third person to the job site, or a child seat on the weekend, is a daily-use question, and the RAM answers it at a lower price in a plainer trim.
Pricing
The Tundra’s work-spec SR starts near $41,000 plus a $2,095 destination charge, and the SR5 opens around $46,500. The RAM Tradesman opens at $42,025 and the Express sits just above it, with the tested truck reaching $51,030 as a Crew Cab with the Hurricane SO engine option and the Bed Utility Group.
On a like-for-like work build, the two land within a few thousand dollars of each other, and the exact spread depends on which Tundra body a buyer accepts. Match the RAM’s four full doors with a Tundra CrewMax and the Toyota climbs; accept the Double Cab’s smaller rear doors and it undercuts. RAM has also been discounting the 2026 1500 heavily, which can widen the gap in the buyer’s favor at any given moment, though incentive money moves month to month and shouldn’t anchor a decision.
Who Should Buy Which
Buy the RAM 1500 if:
- You want the better fuel economy without paying for a hybrid to get it.
- You keep trucks a long time and value the 10-year powertrain warranty.
- You want a genuine four-door work truck at a work-truck price.
- The Tundra V6 recall gives you pause and you’d rather not roll the dice.
- You want the option of a naturally aspirated V8, which only the RAM offers here.
Buy the Toyota Tundra if:
- You tow near the maximum and want the extra 390 pounds of rating.
- You want the strongest engine on the page and will pay for the i-FORCE MAX hybrid to get 583 pound-feet.
- You value Toyota’s dealer network and long-run resale pattern, recall notwithstanding.
- You want the hybrid’s efficiency and the extra hybrid-component warranty coverage.
- You don’t need four full-size doors in the least expensive trim.
Verdict
The Tundra wins the headline. It tows more, and its hybrid makes more power and torque than anything in the RAM 1500 lineup. If the only question is which truck pulls the heaviest trailer or posts the biggest torque number, Toyota answers it.
The RAM wins the ownership case. It uses less fuel without a hybrid, it backs the powertrain for twice as long, it gives a work buyer four full doors at a lower price, and its engine is not the one under a recall that Toyota has struggled to close. For the contractor or fleet buyer who reads past the tow rating to the ten-year picture, the RAM is the safer money.
Both trucks made the same bet against the V8. The difference is that RAM hedged it, and in 2026 that hedge looks like the smarter play.
The RAM side of this comparison is covered in full in the 2026 RAM 1500 Express review and the Hurricane versus Hemi engine breakdown.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does the RAM 1500 or the Toyota Tundra tow more?
The Toyota Tundra tows more at the top of its range. The 2026 Tundra reaches a maximum of 12,000 pounds in a non-hybrid rear-drive configuration. The 2026 RAM 1500 with the Hurricane SO tops out at 11,610 pounds. The Tundra’s advantage is roughly 390 pounds. Payload is nearly identical between the two, at about 1,940 pounds for the Tundra and 1,930 for the RAM.
Which is more fuel efficient, the RAM 1500 or the Tundra?
The RAM 1500 Hurricane SO is rated at 21 mpg combined on regular unleaded without any hybrid system. The non-hybrid Toyota Tundra returns roughly 19 to 20 mpg combined. The Tundra only surpasses the RAM when a buyer orders the i-FORCE MAX hybrid, which reaches 22 mpg combined in rear-drive form. On a non-hybrid basis, the RAM is more efficient.
Is the Toyota Tundra engine reliable in 2026?
The Tundra’s twin-turbo i-FORCE V6 has been under an expanding recall covering 2022 through 2024 gasoline models, related to machining debris that can damage the engine’s bearings. The affected population exceeds 200,000 vehicles across Toyota and Lexus models, and the remedy has been slow to arrive. The i-FORCE MAX hybrid engine is not part of the recall. Buyers should confirm the recall status of any specific Tundra before buying.
Which truck has the better warranty?
The RAM 1500 has the stronger powertrain warranty for 2026. RAM covers the gas 1500 powertrain for 10 years or 100,000 miles for the original owner, reverting to 5 years or 60,000 miles on resale. Toyota covers the gas Tundra powertrain for 5 years or 60,000 miles, with 10-year, 150,000-mile coverage on the i-FORCE MAX hybrid battery.
Did both the RAM 1500 and Toyota Tundra drop the V8?
Yes, and this is part of the story. Toyota dropped the 5.7-liter V8 for the 2022 Tundra redesign and replaced it with the twin-turbo V6, becoming the first full-size pickup sold without a V8 option. RAM dropped the 5.7-liter Hemi V8 for 2025, then returned it for 2026 after buyer backlash. Only the RAM currently offers a naturally aspirated V8.
Can you get a four-door work truck cheaper from RAM or Toyota?
From RAM. The RAM 1500 Express and Tradesman are offered as four-door Crew Cab work trucks at work-truck prices. Toyota’s fleet-spec Tundra SR comes as a Double Cab with smaller rear doors; four full-size doors require stepping up to the pricier CrewMax body. A buyer who wants full rear-door access in the least expensive trim gets it more easily from RAM.
Which truck holds its value better?
Toyota trucks have historically held strong resale value, and the Tundra benefits from that pattern. The current V6 engine recall introduces some uncertainty into that reputation for the affected model years. The RAM’s resale has trailed Toyota’s historically, though the returned Hemi V8 and the extended warranty for 2026 are factors a buyer should weigh alongside the used-market data at the time of sale.
Manufacturer Disclosure
FCA US LLC provided the RAM 1500 for review with a full tank of gas. Toyota did not provide a Tundra for this comparison; the Tundra figures are drawn from manufacturer specifications and published data.
Michael Kahn
Michael Kahn is the writer, photographer, and publisher behind The Weekly Driver. He cares about how cars drive and what they're like to own. He covers automobile industry news, car shows and events, and new car reviews. The reviews come from behind the wheel: day trips that favor back routes, treating a good meal as half the reason to go. He directs and produces the visual media, matching each car to a setting and mood that fit it. When he's not reviewing new cars, Michael races paddleboards, camels, and ostriches, along with the occasional exotic car on the racetrack, and has driven in every state and country visited.
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