05 Taco "restoring"

Bought my first Tacoma a few weeks ago. Bought it from a guy in Colorado. He bought it from a dealer in Vermont where the original owner lived. I flew down to Colorado to get it. Looked at the truck overnight and noticed some damage to the body here and there. My main concern was if the truck was mechanically sound and it was. So i bought it and stayed at my dads in Colorado Springs for a few days. Well we looked at the truck some more in close details and noticed that cosmetically there was a lot more wrong with it than i thought when i looked at it the night before. There is lots of rust/corrosion, rear end has been hit at some point in life and the front as well. I do regret buying this truck just because i felt like i paid a bit to much, but i just have to take it like a man and move forward.

When i got home i really looked at the truck in great detail and even went as far as get the service history for the truck. Well after looking at it, i felt better but still regret it. Its a no wonder why the truck runs and drives great is because of all the service that was done on it. A few things to list: 6 speed manual transmission replaced, exhaust manifolds and exhaust tubing replaced with o2 sensors, leaf springs replaced, and other minor servicing. So really all im dealing here with is just rust/corrosion and bodywork.

I decided to get to work and bring this truck back to good shape starting with the frame with out spending an arm and a leg on it. Really just the rear and front of the frame needs treated, the middle where the cab sits is fine. I stared in the bed area. Took the bed completely apart. Breaking it down all the way will also help my painter not having to do so much work and ease up on the bill.

I thought about taking out that x frame and fabricating me a tubular x frame but i think i may just leave it. After all this is going to be my daily driver and i hardly tow anything heavy or big, at most just a trailer with a car on it.

The rust looks bad but it really isnt that bad, no holes that ive found. The flaking is this coating i would assume the original owner put on cause it doesnt look factory. Its pretty much the coating mixed with surface rust. My goal is to strip the frame down to bare metal and coat it with real man coating, POR15. stuff works great, used in the past.

Pictures:








The body damage on the rear was on the bedside fenders (most of it on the driver side), rear cross sill, and lower corner of the tailgate. The rear tail lights didnt line up at all since the rear cross sill was damage which made the area on the side panels where the tail lights attach too no line up. The tailgate hinges were bent so the tailgate didnt line up or open and close smoothly. I only have pics of the panels and cross sill for now.






Thats all i have for now, waiting for parts to arrive this week (new rear cross sill, led new taillights, new rubber for the flares, new rear lower side garnish, new tailgate hinges, sport smoked headlights, new front driver side fender, and front bumper reinforcement).

 

Once the rust gets cleaned up, this will be your friend http://www.por15.com/POR-15-Rust-Preventive-Paint/products/1/

 

Yeah that stuff is awesome and it actually works., ive used it in the past.

 

Got some parts in today. I havent worked on the truck any, got home to late from work.

Rear cross sill




Got damaged a bit on a corner but should bend back easily. Not sure what this cross sill is coated with but it sure is cheap, it just flaked right off in that corner.


Passenger side trd sport smoked headlight. It does show a small spot of burnt lense, but its not that noticeable. If i really care that much right now i could just replace it with my other head light lense. Still waiting for the driver side to arrive. I am going to replace the bulb with an led to reduce heat and energy usage.



Tail lights




In case any of you reading this is wondering, the tail lights from toyota comes with bulbs.


led portion of the tail light


Other miscellaneous parts: Tailgate hinges, rear bumper seals (my truck didnt have any covering up the bolts), rear lower side garnishes that cover up the hinge of the tailgate, and quarter panel flare rubber.







Thats it for now.

 

Good luck fixing it dude and while you are at put some bilstein 5100 shocks on it

 

Thanks. I may later on but for now i need to focus on the things that need replacing first.

I got my fender and driver side head light in.



Even though the box looks damaged and beat up, the fender was actually fine. I didnt see anything wrong with it.










Thats it for now, i did a little work on the truck but nothing major, just prepping the frame for por15. Still waiting for my front bumper reinforcement and brackets to come in. I also will be ordering new oem bed side panels and tailgate.

 

Does anyone else here think that might have been a flood vehicle?

 

Alright got more pics.

Both R and L side bed panels arrived at my local toyota dealer along with the tailgate. I did not see any damage to the panels and tailgate so im happy.



Tailgate








Passenger side bed panel












Driver side bed panel









Box size comparison (both panels, rear cross sill, and tailgate)


My new used front bumper reinforcement


New front upper retainer


Thats it for now.

Here is a list of parts i need to order. I have a bit more to go with the list, but not much. These are mostly just nuts, bolts, and clips.

 

Dang! What'd you pay if you dont mind me askin..

 

I dont mind at all.

Each bed side panels was 462.96
Tailgate was 340.63

Got this from my local dealer where my brothers friend works.

On http://toyotapartsbydonwood.com/ the panels are being sold at 443.67 and the tailgate for 372.60. But you have to factor in the shipping which is going to run around 200 or more.

That is the best online oem parts dealer i found for the best prices, ENJOY!! Literally cant be beaten unless you can get better prices from local dealer.

 

Bump... Give us an update OP!

 

Damn good job so far...

 

Glad it could go to a good home...

Matt