Toyota Trademarks Name For Its Ford F-150 Raptor-Fighting Hardcore Tundra

Signs have swirled for a while that Toyota is planning a Tundra-based rival to the Ford F-150 Raptor. (Witness 2021’s TRD Desert Chase concept seen above.) But a new report suggests that truck is getting closer to reality with a new trademark filing and a prototype appearing at the legendary 2026 Mint 400 off-road race. While specifics about the truck’s equipment or powertrain aren’t known yet, we have a good idea of the direction Toyota is going to go.

According to The Drive, the Japanese automaker trademarked “TRD Hammer,” which apparently was the winning name among those in a survey sent in February by Toyota to Tundra owners. It was one of six that also included “TRD Baja,” “TRD Bizurk,” “TRD Iron,” “TRD Quake,” and the somewhat uninspiring “TRD Pro-S.” The trademark for TRD Hammer was then filed on March 10, but that didn’t offer any more hints as to what the TRD Hammer would be.

Fortunately, the survey provided some interesting indication as to what this potential Raptor-fighter Tundra will look like. “This high-performance truck package is designed for off-road enthusiasts, featuring a long-travel suspension and 37-inch all-terrain tires. With the truck’s unique wide fenders, high-clearance bumpers, and a powerful engine, it achieves exceptional off-road capability and performance,” the survey said. If it didn’t come from Toyota, you’d think it was a basic description of the F-150 Raptor 37.

The Desert Racer

Another potential clue came from the Mint 400 and the Toyota Desert Racing Team, or Toyota DRT (we see what they did there), which consisted of “engineers & technicians” that took a 2026 Tundra TRD Pro known as the “H111” on a “engineering exercise” on the course. While it wore aftermarket parts from off-road brands like Westcot Designs, Fox Racing Shocks, and Rigid Industries, it also wore a set of 37-inch BFGoodrich All-Terrain T/A KO3s. The powerplant in the H111 was the 3.4-liter I-Force Max V-6 and it ran in the Hybrid class. While it only needed to complete a single lap, it finished three consecutive laps of the roughly 100-mile course.

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Long Time Coming

The TRD Desert Chase concept built on the Tundra TRD Pro. It was designed for real off-road performance driving as well as to show off TRD’s billet control arms. But more important, it matches the description from the TRD Hammer survey and what we saw with Toyota DRT’s H111. The only substantive change between Mint 400 racer and this concept is that the SEMA truck had General Tire Grabber X3 all-terrain tires.

This was then followed by a Tundra mule captured running around Detroit last year. That truck also featured many of the same parts as described by the survey as well as the same BFGoodrich tires as H111. The mule lacked the Mint truck’s tubular bumpers and off-road lights and had a set of Method Racing 703 wheels in place of the racer’s TRD units.

That V-6 hybrid setup will almost surely be what powers the TRD Hummer, but Toyota is developing a new 4.0-liter twin-turbo hybrid V-8 that would likely fit. Okay, fine, it’s unlikely the same engine being used in the GR GT will end up in a pickup truck. But how badass would that be?

OPEN GALLERY

Will the TRD Hammer Nail It?

As to when we’ll see the Toyota Tundra TRD Hammer debut, we’re not sure. Trademarks are often made years in advance and are equally used as protection to future-proof potential names or products. But with H111 running the Mint 400 and that widebody mule caught last year, there is a high likelihood that we’ll see something sooner rather than later.