5 yr ownership report

Picked up my 2005 5 yrs ago today. Almost 50,000 miles, still only been to dealer once (leaf springs TSB).

Updates/changes:
-Running Pennzoil Platinum in the motor, Full syn oil for 6-spd tranny, transfer and front diff.
-2 changes of 80w-90 Syn blend w/ no fiction modifier in LSD rear diff. Lays two tracks, no chatter.
-TRD exhaust, sounds good, 5 winters, and only slight rust on welds in/out of the muffler. Well worth it.
-6th winter on Blizzaks tires on 16x7 steelies for Dec- Apr. Prolly last season for this set.
-Stock H/T's were awful in winter, ok for summer. They lasted 30K, replaced w/ a better H/T, Kumho APT KPL51's
-Cut a heavy 5/8" thick horse stall mat for the bed
-Homemade bed extender, makes 5ft to 6.6ft
-Short clutch pedal travel mod
-Added front bed D-rings
-Undercoated the frame Oct 08, helped some. Just sanded and repainted the Tow bar/bumper.

4x4 system: Got about couple thousand mi in 4hi and use 4lo a few times a month. No issues. Despite other posts, minimal loss in MPG using.
Tranny & motor: No problems, 6spd only gets smoother over the years.
Body: Paint is doing fine, wax every 3-4 months. Have a few scratches from brush on the trail and dents around the bed/tailgate.
Interior: Zero electronic issues, seats holding up well.
Composite bed: Other than hundreds of scrathes, holding up great.

MPG: lost .5- 1 mpg this year now that we have 10% Ethanol like everyone else.
Mostly Rural driving,
Avg 19.5-20 summer
drops to 17 in winter
Best 23, long summer trip
Worst 14, Week of below zero and towing

Octane: At least 89. Did use 87 in last summer when was $4.50+, lost only.3-.4 mpg, but at low rpms 1500-2000 (where you get your best mpg), accelerating or hitting any grade is where I really noticed the motor lug and ping more. Heavy loads/ towing even more noticeble.

Concerns:
-The bottoming out with a load and leaf spring squeak, but fixed w/ TSB.
-Frame rust, I'll stay busy undercoating every couple years.
-Weak tailgate, we all know. I use a plywood plank for weight dist when hauling my enduro moto.
-The TRD sport 17 rims are bubbling on the edges. These wheels get to sit in a comfy 40 degree garage all winter.
-Very sensitive ABS, not setup well for winter.

Still want to run it another 10 years. As long as the frame is taken care of should be no problem.

 

Thanks for the report. What do you use on the frame?

 

Good report. Sounds like our trucks are on par as far as the environment they're driven in, and the mpg is about right.

I also agree on the ABS system. I absolutely hate it.

 

good post. Nice to know that it has been a good truck for you.

 

+1. The ABS is WAAAAYYYY too sensitive on these trucks. However, it has saved my ass a few times this winter. I need better tires. The Dunflop AT20s are not very good in slick conditions.

 

Washed down and brushed the rusted, or chipped off paint areas. Some areas sanded. Sprayed rubberized undercoating on the transfer case back. To the front used Hammer finish paint, about $12 a qt.

Both helped, but some areas have broken down after year and a half. 2 coats areas have done better. Should note I spray all the frame holes and inside C channels w/ WD40 too.

Por 15 or Eastman's Chassis black would do much better, but its also expensive and toxic shit... A lift would be nice w/ proper breathing mask and thick rubber gloves.

 

I bought my truck from a guy in Boston who put 14K miles on it. The truck is now in Maryland. When I got the truck I washed the undercarriage down with a high pressure sprayer. It had no frame rust but there were some steel brackets and stuff that had some rust. My routine is now to spray the entire undercarriage down with WD40 twice a year. Each spring, I wash the undercarriage with a pressure sprayer. None of the rust that was apparent has gotten worse. With casual observation, I would say there isn't a much rust as there was. Still no frame rust. Overall this approach seems to be working.

Demoncleaner, what do you think the result would be if you wire brushed the rust and then soaked it a few times a year with WD40 and did not use undercoating?