Chevy Silverado vs. Toyota Tundra

If you’re shopping for a new truck, both the 2020 Chevy Silverado and 2020 Toyota Tundra might catch your eye. While the Silverado offers a more recent redesign, the Tundra is an undeniably classic pick that’s retained its look for years. Both are full-size trucks that offer powerful performance and some spacious cab options, but the similarities don’t go much further. Take your time exploring both of these choices.

Under the Hood

Image via Flickr by truckhardware

The 2020 Toyota Tundra comes with just one option for the engine. In the Tundra you get a 5.7-liter V-8 with 381 horsepower and 401 pound-feet of torque. With rear-wheel drive, this truck offers 13 mpg city, 18 mpg highway, and 15 mpg combined. With all-wheel drive, it delivers 13 mpg city, 17 mpg highway, and 14 mpg combined.

The Chevy Silverado offers far more customization under the hood. However, the standard engine is a 4.3 V-6 with 286 horsepower and 305 pound-feet of torque. With rear-wheel drive, it offers 16 mpg city, 21 mpg highway, and 17 mpg combined. The all-wheel-drive option delivers 15 mpg city, 20 mpg highway, and 17 mpg combined. Though you have less horsepower and torque using this standard option, you do enjoy better fuel efficiency.

If you’re interested in upgrading your engine, other options for the 2020 Chevy Silverado include:

• 2.7-liter Turbo 4-Cylinder with 310 horsepower and 348 pound-feet of torque (RWD: 20/23/21 mpg; AWD: 16/22/20 mpg city/highway/combined).
• 5.3-liter V-8 with 355 horsepower and 383 pound-feet of torque (RWD: 15/20/17 mpg; AWD: 15/19/16 mpg city/highway/combined).
• 6.2-liter V-8 with 420 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque (AWD: 16/20/17 mpg city/highway/combined)
• 3.0-liter Turbo Diesel with 277 horsepower and 460 pound-feet of torque (RWD: 23/33/27 mpg; AWD: 23/29/25 mpg city/highway/combined)

Seating

The 2020 Chevy Silverado 1500 seats three to six, depending on the trim level, while the 2020 Toyota Tundra seats five or six. Comparing the DoubleCab in both vehicles, you’ll find that the Silverado is slightly more spacious in:

• Front-seat shoulder, head, and legroom
• Second-row head and legroom

This will likely make the Silverado the truck of choice for taller drivers and passengers who need that extra legroom and head height.

Meanwhile, the Tundra is larger in the:

• Second-row hip and shoulder room
• Front-seat hip room

Those with a shorter, wider body type are more likely to find these dimensions a good fit.

Both vehicles offer a fairly standard interior without any major updates to note. The Tundra’s interior features the same classic look it’s had for 14 years since its last redesign. The Silverado was redesigned in 2019, but didn’t receive any notable interior updates.

Storage

Your storage options vary by trim level in both trucks. The Silverado offers:

• Regular cab with 8.1-foot bed
• Double Cab with 6.6-foot bed
• Crew Cab with 5.8 or 6.6-foot bed

In the Tundra, you can choose from:

• Double cab with 6.5 or 8.5-foot bed
• CrewMax with 5.5-foot bed.

The Tundra offers four adjustable tie-down cleats to help keep things secure, but this falls far short of the Chevy Silverado, which has 12.

For interior storage, both vehicles have a spacious storage box in the center console. The Chevy Silverado also offers clever additions like rear seat-back storage compartments and rear under-seat storage. 

Technology

The Chevy Silverado offers a 7-inch touch screen for the Chevrolet Infotainment 3 system with Bluetooth connectivity, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto. The standard trim level has two speakers, but the next trim up offers six. The LT model is the trim of choice for connectivity with a built-in 4G LTE Wi-Fi hotspot. Upgrade all the way to the LTZ for voice recognition technology and an 8-inch touch screen.

The Silverado also offers an optional trailering camera system. This addition provides up to eight cameras that will give the driver numerous views of the trailer for a more confident and relaxed driving experience.

In the Toyota Tundra, you’ll find a 7-inch infotainment system standard with Bluetooth, Apple CarPlay, and Android Auto, making it comparable to the Silverado. The base model begins with six speakers so you can start with superior sound. In the SR5, you’ll get an 8-inch infotainment screen, and the Limited model offers a navigation system. If you upgrade all the way to the Platinum Tundra, you can get a 12-speaker JBL stereo.

The Tundra doesn’t offer as much in the way of interior technology. Rather, it focuses on connectivity, pointing drivers to apps outside the vehicle itself, such as the available Service Connect, Remote Connect, and Safety Connect. The Tundra does have available Wi-Fi Connect, which you can activate to turn the truck into a hotspot for up to five devices.

Safety

Safety is an important consideration for any driver, and both the Chevy Silverado and Toyota Tundra strive to offer outstanding performance here. 

The 2020 Chevy Silverado received a good IIHS rating for all crashworthiness categories except for small overlap on the front passenger side, which was only marginal. The LATCH ease of use was also rated marginal, and the headlights rated poor. It got a four-star overall NHTSA safety rating.

Optional safety features for the Silverado include:

• Forward-collision warning with pedestrian detection and automatic emergency braking.
• Front and rear parking sensors.
• Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert.
• Lane-departure warning with lane-keeping assist.

The 2020 Toyota Tundra also got a four-star NHTSA safety rating. Its IIHS crashworthiness was only ranked good for the moderate overlap front, side, and head restraints and seats. It was rated acceptable for the roof strength, marginal in the small overlap front driver side and poor in the small overlap front passenger side. The LATCH ease of use is acceptable and the headlights were rated marginal.

The Tundra comes standard with automatic emergency braking with forward-collision warning and lane-departure warning. Blind-spot monitoring with rear cross-traffic alert is optional on all trims and standard with some.

If you want to find out whether the Chevy Silverado is right for you, come into Cochran Chevrolet for a test drive today. We can walk you through all your options and help you find the best fit for your needs.