Sand in the tank, headlights, or electrical issues, the saga continues for the 4th time? (10/9/18)

It's in the invoice.

They haven't come out and said what the fix would be. What they hinted at is replacing all the injectors, dropping tank, flushing all lines and tank.

 

What's going on is they don't have the ability to prove to Toyota it should fall under warranty, so in order for them to get paid for the job they recommend he file through his insurance from what I see...but I don't know aaaaanything about service depts

 

^ Sounds pretty legit to me...

 

This is my belief based on the information presented.

Toyota pays a certain amount for a certain repair. They are not going to pay the dealer to endlessly fool around and guess. The dealership is now in the hole and doesn't want to go deeper.

We've got some problems here:
1. The truck doesn't run and it's in pieces. Not so good from a "trade-in and get something else" angle.
2. I don't think they really know what is wrong. Whatever they do may not fix it. Their troubleshooting sounds bad. I think you could find an expert (local college chemistry department?) that can refute their "heat and pressure make sand dissolve in gas" theory. Maybe some forum. They've set themselves up here; I would call that bluff.
3. The truck could have had issues completely unrelated to sand and water (though water seems to be a culprit) and everything is just a coincidence.
4. I completely agree that a little sand and water should not disable the truck. The fact it did (well MAY have) cause problems indicates to me there is something wrong with the truck. Sand in the fuel lines isn't going to completely heal itself.

So, yeah, OP, you are getting hosed and have a right to be pissed. I think it's incompetence, not malice, but it appears the dealer can't fix it because they don't have the skill or knowledge and they are expecting you to pay the price.

Push corporate hard. Use facts, not emotion. Ask if you can have it towed to a different dealer.

If that fails, as much as I hate to say it, it would be time to lawyer-up.

Let's hope corporate comes through.

 

I am holding tight for Corp. I plan on making a bullet list of everything I can use to help/refute the dealers findings. The largest of the few is them saying that sand dissolves and that's why it's not showing in the fuel tests, the fact that the truck fixed itself, drove around, and then drove home, and then died at a carwash refutes the sand theory. Any sand would of been sucked up, especially during the stop and go traffic I hit (Love California) that went on for MILES. I also have an issue with the service dept admitting they don't know anything about this truck, mines the first one they've had. I also have an issue with them assuming that I used a jerry can because I was at Pismo. When I shot that theory out, they instantly jumped to "someone poured sand in my gas tank and it's an insurance claim"

They tech also mentioned that there is "Sand Everywhere" and took a picture on his phone of my filler neck. The area around it had sand, and he is claiming that the few particles of sand that are clung to the inside of the filler neck are the culprit... and that the rest "was already washed away into the tank." I also stated that the truck should possess adequate filtration, after all it is marketed towards the desert,dunes, and one marketing article even has it being "perfect for the beach or the national forest."

The codes that popped were injector circuit codes. They already said they tested the injectors and they were fine. Hence that they are not clogged...which leads me back to the initial issue of the wiring/circuits.

He also claims that the fuel pressure was too high, causing them to stick closed. The codes I pulled were mainly low fuel pressure. I only had high fuel pressure a few times, hence the initial thought that water had fried the wiring....


I hope I get to actually talk to someone at corporate. The guy I spoke to didn't really let me state my side of the story and said he would start a case and I'd hear back withing 3 days. I did let him know that I pulled someone out, and he perked up and said "So you where doing a good deed then... hmm. " MAYBE that'll check a box that'll get me some help... Who knows.

I've never done this type of claim before, so if Corp does come back and say "Nope" can I elevate even further and actually talk to someone who will listen to me and my concerns?

 

The 3rd gen Tacoma. An off-road vehicle that can't off-road.

Sorry the dealer is giving your problems OP and hope there is an easy and less stressful resolution to all this.

 

You are doing the right thing. Just keep all correspondence and paperwork. Their arguments so far don't hold water (or sand). It would be no issue to have university experts clear up the dissolving sand lie. It may turn into a fight, but in the end, I think you will prevail and recoup.

 

This ^^^^

 

So they can get paid

 

They called me today but I was at work. The dealer said corporate stepped in and is reviewing things. No official word, but corporate asked for the official invoice.

 

Sounds like progress.

 

Not holding my breath for anything fantastic to happen. Corp said they "rely heavily on dealership diagnosis" and my tech is dead set on sand being magically dumped into my fuel tank, yet cannot show me an adequate fuel sample with any real amount of sand in it

 

then stick to that. Its time to get ready to play hardball with them

 

I plan on it, and I'll gladly give them a chemistry lesson (I've had my fair share of chemistry classes.. ) on why sand doesn't dissolve in gas lol

 

Well something got in there. Sand, sea water, a jellyfish, a candy wrapper, etc. It's still a shitty situation to have a truck go down just for that. But only you know for sure. You were the one who got hit by a "rogue wave". From your description, it appeared from our perspective that you got more seawater exposure than you're now describing. Either way... your fault.

 

You're only wrong for having told them the scenario. If you had said you were driving down the highway when it happened they'd be all over fixing it.

 

Unless he drove out into the ocean to see how far the truck could swim, I sure hope a tacoma could take getting hit by one wave no higher than the wheel wells. A truck sees more water than that on a rainy day.

 

Nobody is arguing that intrusion of something got somewhere it shouldn't have, but that being "his fault" is far from clear. The truck is designed to be run in sand, through substantial puddles and in all kinds of outdoor all-weather situations. If a foreign substance got into a sensor, wiring connection, or even the fuel, it needs to be proven that it is by some recklessness or that all trucks would suffer under the same conditions, rather than a bad seal, poor connection, etc. The OP has been pretty forthcoming about everything, so I wouldn't jump to the conclusion that it is "his fault" from the description of his activities. Not to mention the tech's BS story of sand dissolving in gas...an easily provable fallacy.

I suspect they really just can't figure out what happened and are just doing a CYA unless given the go-ahead by corp to do more.

 

I indeed get hit by a wave coming in, but it was on the very edge of it, already foaming. The depth of the water was no deeper than the depth of the tire to the wheel. It did splash a bit, as it ramped off the tire, however I have done creek crossings with far more water and splashage.

The tech completely ruled out water intrusion and I have told them everything down to pressure washing under the hood, but not directly at components. I work in the medical field, and as RN, when people lie it only causes diagnosis and treatment delays, nightmares, or worse, a mistake diagnosis or bad interaction. I carry the same belief to a vehicle. My "over the counter treatments) I.e looking for water intrusion, inspecting what I can ,etc as a mechanic (not technition) failed. So it's off to the docs office it goes for further evaluation.

I have been watching expedition overlands' Alaska series and it is very infuriating seeing a Tacoma cross Alaska's very harsh and silt filled rivers. I lived there for 14 years, and was born there ... that Alaska river silt will disable or clog anything, but their truck has no issues.

Mine shouldn't either. Yes salt water is tougher on parts, but, this truck also has instructions in the manual on how to cross water and drive in sand. It states it was built for the desert and dunes, and was even features in an article for being the "ultimate beach truck"

My truck has 5206 miles on it. I spent more than I make in a year (thanks US military) to buy it. I would not do ANYTHING that I thought would even remotely damage this vehicle. I own nothing else and live alone as well. I cannot afford to lose this truck . Especially because my rental car Just just took 500 out of my bank... which is more than my monthly payments for the Taco.


I do appreciate the support, advice, and help/reassurance from you guys. I am new to the Toyota and Tacoma world. As a former Bronco driver I used to compete against them... but you don't see bronco's in Australia doing overlanding. You see Toyotas.

I am 100% certain that my activities should not of disabled the truck. IF sand was the answer, I'd be stuck in Pismo or along the road. I would of never of made it 4-5 hours home. The truck ran perfect up to the carwash.

The very instant I started the truck it spazzed out and died. I refuse to believe that sand was the cause, after all, sand shouldn't be able to get into the tank, and if it did, it should posess proper filtration.

I am also now considering aftermarket high pressure fuel filter systems and have already come up with a plan to make the cap more 'sand tight' without actually modifying the cap, neck or threads

 

Think about your fill-ups. Were you low on gas each time it happened? If you filled your tank and gave something in your tank more "room to move around in" your symptoms could go away, but as you suck more gas out, those particles/sand/whatever seem to collect at the inlet? Just a suggestion, it seems all other options have been explored.