Tim, I watched the podcast last night with you and Jill. I will do a video of my own on why I switched back to Ice and add some areas where I may disagree a bit with Jill on a few electric vehicle items, but that's another topic.
You said you were surprised by this thread, but I think that thread is a good example of where those who review cars all of the time, or any specific product category, sometimes lose the perspective of the consumer. This example of confusing information from Toyota makes it difficult for a buyer to know what the truth is and that's just not a great experience.
Beyond that, those buying the Off-Road trim, presumably have some interest in taking that vehicle off-road and maybe cannot afford the price tag of the Trailhunter that is coming. Having on-board air that you don't have to remember to pack with you or have take up additional space is a big deal for multi-day Overlanding trips or just going off-road in Colorado, Utah, or really anywhere. That feature is something I was personally very excited to see.
That's my case at least. When pricing was announced and the premium package was $8800, that seemed really steep. When many of those at the drive events and in reviews have stated that the Premium Off-Road did come with the High Output Air Compressor, that price tag seemed more reasonable. Then if Toyota decided not to include that, I guess that is fine, but there was no change in the Premium price either and that feature is probably $300-$1000.
As a consumer the lack of transparency with something like this causes some consternation with a brand and vehicle we want to be excited about. So I'm just left feeling confused as a consumer. I hope that makes sense.