Kristin Shaw
A couple of summers ago, I hauled a 33-foot Forest River camper with an SUV. Towing was a breeze and I drove it all the way from the top of Indiana to the top of Michigan and parked it at a campsite, no sweat. The only criticism I had was that the road noise permeated the cabin with a low rumble that necessitated speaking loudly to my parents and my son. When we stopped, I noticed the silence.
And that’s what struck me about towing with the 2022 Toyota Tundra with the new Capstone trim when I tested it out: the experience was much quieter. That’s due, in part, to the extension of acoustic glass that reflects and absorbs sound in the Tundra. On all of the other Tundra trims, only the windshield has the thicker, sound-deadening glass, and the Capstone takes that a step further; it contains noise with acoustic materials for the full half-circle of the windshield and front windows. Toyota representatives on site at the test drive told me that the layer cake of glass reduces road noise by two to three decibels, which is a noticeable difference.
Toyota
The Capstone version of Toyota’s full-size truck includes 22-inch chrome wheels, which are the biggest ever offered on a factory Tundra. Inside, black and white semi-aniline leather seats give the truck much different feel than its all-leather 1794 trim or flashier Platinum variant. Powered running boards, a bed step, color head-up display, and a panoramic sunroof are also standard.
Kevin Hunter, president of Toyota’s North American design studio Calty Design Research, told me he wanted to create something a bit more understated with the Capstone, going with more satin and matte materials.
Kristin Shaw
Kristin Shaw
Kristin Shaw
Kristin Shaw
“Some truck surfaces tend to sometimes get a little overdone with all the reflections coming in off of it with chrome and polished metal,” he says. “We didn’t want to go down this road of glitz and glamour, we wanted the Capstone to be a bit more elegant and restrained.”
In other words, it’s more classic Tom Ford than in-your-face Versace. And between the looks, standard features, and better acoustics, I can see why customers will pay more for this trim.
If you want to get granular about the science of sound with me, check out this explanation of the significance of three decibels:
Keyword: The Best-Kept Secret About the 2022 Toyota Tundra Capstone Is Acoustic Glass