Consumers often rely on the reviews and evaluations of the experts when buying a new or new-to-them vehicle. There are crash test reviews, performance reviews, and consumer complaint reviews. But, what about evaluating a vehicle based on the cost of ownership?

Kelley Blue Book offers a five-year cost to own award and performs an overall evaluation of a vehicle’s ownership history costs. The clear winner is the Toyota Tundra in the full-size pickup segment. We wanted to take a deeper dive and learn what catapulted this truck to the head of the class.

What goes into the cost of ownership?

Buying a pickup and owning a pickup are two different rosters of costs. Consumers usually pay attention to purchase price, monthly payments and interest, insurance premiums, and maybe fuel efficiency costs. But, when KBB evaluates a five-year cost of ownership, in addition to these, they consider a variety of other aspects that affect the investment.

For example, they consider resale value and a vehicle’s depreciation. They also consider average maintenance and reported repair issues for various models. So, when they say the 2019 Toyota Tundra wins this award, it means this pickup is cost-efficient to buy as well as own, fix, operate, and trade in over five years.

What the Toyota Tundra does right

Many pickups in the full-size segment offer redesigns and improvements year over year. The Toyota Tundra offers enhancements as well but is more about being a steady performer and reliable truck. In addition to this KBB accolade, Tundra also enjoys the ‘best of’ status in other categories.

The 2019 Tundra is the Edmunds’ Best Retained Value winner in the large pickup segment. It also earns Best Resale Value in another KBB top 10 list. Other model years have earned titles like Best Overall Value (IntelliChoice), Lowest Repair Costs (IntelliChoice), and Largest Fuel Tank. Over 90 percent of Tundra models from the last 10+ years are still on the road today.

Why KBB chose the Toyota Tundra for the award

The Toyota Tundra is a well-rounded truck that does precisely what truck owners need it to do. It’s capable of towing 10,000 pounds, making it a popular pick for most trailers and RVs. It’s plushy enough inside to be comfortable, beefy enough to work, and tech-savvy enough to compete in infotainment.

The Tundra manages to scratch every itch without hesitation or issues for owners. Selling this truck outright or trading it in later brings the highest market values, varying upon trim level and condition, of course. This kind of reliability makes it a consumer favorite as well as a KBB award winner.

What an award like this means to consumers

When it comes time to buy your truck, an award and review like this can be invaluable. You’ll want to be mindful of your purchase budget and monthly costs associated with that purchase. But also consider long-term ownership, cost of repairs, and potential trade-in values down the road.

The soundest investment is one that offers the least amount of expenses over the ownership cycle of your pickup. The official cost to own the 2019 Toyota Tundra is $45,920 as of January 1st, 2019. When you think about how much some of the other trucks in this category cost to buy, this is an ideal value, considering the long-term reliability.

The 2020 Toyota Tundra is a beautiful truck too. We anticipate it will perform well in the upcoming cost of ownership reviews from KBB. For now, buying a 2019 Tundra might be a great investment for you. At the very least, relying on this KBB award and evaluation can inspire you to think beyond the price tag.