2018 Toyota Sequoia TRD, Price and Release date

The ongoing Sequoia was revealed back in 2007, so it is not exactly a new car. While a new model has been expected for a while, Toyota has kept on improving the crossover to prolong its life. Unfortunately, this is also the case with the 2018 Toyota Sequoia which is just another small facelift done to an ancient design. Both the exterior and interior have been slightly revised. However, most of the running gear, as well as the powertrain, remain the same as before. The good part is that the Sequoia remains a sturdy body-on-frame SUV which manages to offer acceptable off-road performance and plenty of towing capabilities. Its main drawback has to be the awful fuel consumption as well as the less than ideal on-road performance.

2018 Toyota Sequoia Price and Release Date

In order to improve the latter Toyota released a particular on-road version which is meant to handle better through corners without compromising its off-road performance. The new 2018 Sequoia TRD Sport offers quite a few improvements over the regular model. It comes with a high-performance Bilstein set of shocks, different springs, thicker anti-roll bars as well as new 20 inch rims. These have been wrapped in high-performance street tires, so the Sequoia should drive just as good as it looks. The price hasn’t been revealed so far. Despite that, we are quite sure the TRD Sport package will cost less than $3,000 which would make it a deal, especially with all the other upgrades. The regular version is still expected to cost right around $46,000 which is quite a bit more than some of its rivals.

The updated Sequoia already had its introduction at 2017 Chicago Auto Show where it was presented alongside fellow Toyota model Tundra. Both of these models got slightly updated and were showed in their TRD PRO forms. As long as we are talking about the dealership release date of 2018 Toyota Sequoia, it is scheduled for September of this year. The Japanese manufacturer is surely taking its time with this model. Why? Well, with Ford releasing a new generation of Expedition Sequoia is now officially oldest large SUV on the market. Despite this facelift, the time is about right for a complete redesign of this ancient SUV. When that happens, we will be waiting for you with the latest info on the subject.

Design

One of the largest changes done to the 2018 Toyota Sequoia is the way it looks. While the overall shape didn’t change a bit, they did update most of the details about it. For starters, it now gets a new grille, a different front bumper with more air intakes as well as a new set of headlights. These now include LED daytime running lights on the outer rim as well as LED primary and high beams. In the back, we can see a new set of LED tail lights, but here the bumper is the same as before. A couple of new paint schemes have been added to the mix while the rest of the SUV remains identical to its predecessor. The TRD Sport will add blacked out chrome inserts as well as black wheels.

2018 Sequoia Interior

Unfortunately, the Toyota Sequoia 2018 didn’t receive all that many changes. The instrument cluster is new, and it now offers a larger information screen. Also, the center stack has been replaced with something more modern-looking. This includes easier to use rotary knobs for the climate control as well as a better screen for the infotainment system. The materials are still average for its class, but the available space for passengers and luggage is quite impressive. Also, the Sequoia manages to provide a log of storage areas inside the cabin which makes it the perfect companion for long family trips.

Under the Hood

The 5.7 liter remains the ‘one and only’ offering which isn’t all that bad. In fact, this engine proved to be one of the most reliable in its class which is not an easy feat to achieve. In the 2018 Toyota Sequoia, the naturally aspirated V8 will provide 381 horsepower and 401 lb-ft of torque which is definitely impressive. Unfortunately, the aging six-speed automatic transmission is also carried over. While this is fine regarding smoothness, it isn’t the fastest gearbox on the market. With it, the Sequoia will hit 60 MPH in less than 7 seconds which is perfect for a car that weighs north of 5,000 pounds.

Unfortunately, despite the power of this unit, the engine will barely get 13 to 14 MPG on average. This is much worse than its newer rivals and remains the largest drawback of the Sequoia. It seems that in the future it may receive a twin-turbocharged powertrain. This would offer roughly the same amount of power but with considerably better fuel consumption. Also, the six-speed automatic is expected to be discontinued in the near future. The Sequoia like this can’t really keep up with the modern standards, which are to be expected, considering it is a more than a decade-old design.