Employing feedback from the NASCAR technical staff, the Tundra was developed and refined in the wind tunnel with the goal of presenting a first-generation Tundra race truck for preliminary evaluation by NASCAR in the fall of 2002. Following additional re-styling changes and further wind-tunnel testing, the first NASCAR Craftsman Truck Tundra was revealed at the Chicago Auto Show on Feb. 12, 2003, and a second truck was unveiled the next day in Victory Circle at Daytona International Speedway by Bill France Jr. and members of Toyota and TRD.
After Daytona, NASCAR made changes to the 2004 truck templates. Along with the other manufacturers competing in the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, TRD's Tundra Race Truck Center reconfigured the Tundra to meet the new template requirements.
Following a comparative evaluation of all proposed 2004 trucks, each manufacturer began to create its truck of record for the scheduled July 15 submission to the NASCAR Technical Center in Concord, N.C.
"It's been a great learning experience and a very gratifying journey leading to today's submission of the Tundra," Aust reflected. "But we know a lot of the hard work is yet to come. We're working diligently to prepare our Toyota NASCAR V8 for submission in a few months."
The Tundra race truck submitted to NASCAR will undergo final aerodynamic evaluation along with the other manufacturer trucks by the sanctioning body. On-track testing for the Tundra race truck will begin this summer and continue into the fall. Toyota will soon become the first Japanese manufacturer represented in a the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series, and insiders suggest that success with that program will influence a decision to pursue entry into the Busch and Nextel Cup series.