Safety Recall E02, 2005 - 2011 leaf springs

I'm sitting in the customer lounge at my local dealership right now...

I had an appointment for 10 AM, as confirmed earlier this week directly with the Service Manager. When I showed up the service writer couldn't even find my name in the system! After she called the Service Manager over they sorted out my appointment and then asked me if the truck had been inspected. I had to explain to the Service Manager (the guy I had been emailing all week) that my neighbor (District Service and Parts Manager for Cincinnati area Toyota Dealerships) had already ordered the parts and that one of the other service writers had called me last week to setup the install. Talk about a huge face palm... Anyway, after they finally got everything figured out and were ready to take the truck back the Service Manager mentioned that the installs for this recall have been taking longer than expected (I was originally quoted 1.5 hours) because they had been advised to check alignment after the install. He confirmed they would not perform a full alignment (unless I wanted to pay for it) but they would check the steering angle and make any necessary corrections so that the truck drove straight after the install. I didn't bother to ask about the new leaf packs but I will crawl under the truck when I get it back to confirm what they installed. My OEM leaf packs were the 2+1 with 3 clips and were covered in rust. It won't be hard to confirm the change assuming they actually install the new springs. I'll post back with an update once I'm finished at the dealership.

So far this experience has been less than ideal and it confirms exactly why I don't let dealerships work on my truck unless its for recall or warranty work...

 

Still waiting in the last round of states lol.

 

And I still hate it even then.

 

Thanks! I'll check and see if my VIN is ready too. I'd happily help work through confusion though so long they aren't just trying to be lazy. I don't trust my local dealer... Flow of Winston... Bad things happen there.

 

Never thought about a alignment? Hmmm..

 

How does one do "half/part" of an alignment? Did he mean he wont check the alignment on your front tires? If so then who cares... Changing leafs wont and cant effect their alignment lol but if he meant making sure the rear is perfectly straight like it was then... It's either correct or not

Why are they so cheap when it's corporate paying for all the labor anyhow? You would never see a doctor turn down insurance payments....

 

Just an update. Got my truck back in less than three hours. Despite the uninformed tech, it was pretty painless. They would not do an alignment, but I do agree with most that it doesn't seem to be necessary.

Only got to drive it 5 miles to work, but it felt smoother and seems to sit slightly higher for the time being.

 

In my driveway mechanic opinion there should be an alignment done just to ensure garunteed success... You can do the job and not need to make any adjustments but I highly doubt the naked eye could see if it was one or more degrees off which may be even hard to feel driving. I honestly don't know what the "acceptable" amount of degrees off from perfect is or when you could even feel it while driving but wrong is wrong in my book. Even uneven tire wear will suck (Increased costs to you) because a technician was too lazy to double check his work.

 

You should be receiving a letter very soon. The E02 campaign is currently in the last of 12 phases, which includes: AR, LA, MS, OK, TX, HI, PR

 

I think he meant that after the new rear springs are installed they will put the truck on the alignment rack and check the steering angle but they will not make adjustments to correct toe/camber on the front suspension. Either way, I'd assume if you came in with a whacked out alignment it would still suck after the new rear springs are installed but in my case my alignment was fine going in and seems to be fine after the install. I'm also not concerned about the alignment on my truck because I'll be having my truck aligned after my lift is installed on June 3rd.

Anyway, the job took the dealership less than 2 hours to complete. The first thing I did when I got the truck back was stick my head under there and sure enough, I now have a 3+1 leaf pack with 4 clips (and no rust!) installed. Overall, the ride seems to be the same as the only real difference I noticed on my drive home (I took bumpy back roads on purpose) was how the rear of the truck acted over harsh bumps. With my old 2+1 spring packs the rear of the truck felt very sloppy over harsh bumps and sometimes (especially with extra weight in the bed) it almost felt like the rear of the truck lost traction for a moment. With the new springs this feeling is completely gone. It feels much more connected to the road and while being a touch stiffer, it feels much safer. And as mentioned above, despite the dealership's clear lack of knowledge about this recall and the incompetence of the service writer I'm glad I had the work done. Now I can finally get my lift kit and new tires installed!

 

*Nods*. Sounds all good to me! Glad your install went quickly and well. Got me all pumped up for mine.

 

One more thing to note, and it's somewhat surprising to me, but my truck sits at exactly the same height in the rear on the new 3+1 spring packs as it did on my old 2+1 spring packs. Considering my truck was never taken in for the TSB I was expecting to gain 1/4" to 1/2" of height in the rear with the new spring packs. Regardless, I'm feeling much better about my choice to go with the Icon 3 leaf progressive AAL in the rear now asthe last thing I want is my truck to sit nose high with the OME 885 springs I'm having installed up front in two weeks.

 

For all of you guys asking about alignments being performed after the campaign/recall, it is NOT necessary. Actually, solid rear axle cars [usually] only get front end alignments since the rear is not adjustable.

 

I have a 2010 4x4 access cab. I received a recall notice and they re placed both leaf springs with 4 leafs, I guess the old ones were to week

 

I think we're all aware of this. But some people have had issues after install. It should be part of the recall. Just to make sure the customer does not have to return with further issues. And waste their time. That's why I asked for mine.

 

If the recall springs change the height of the rear end, it will affect the front end. My height decreased because the dealer refused to reinstall my AAL, so my front was noticeably off. The steering wheel was about two degrees off and the truck pulled to the side.

 

I just don't see how it should be apart of the recall if it's not adjustable.

 

That makes sense.

 

But it can throw the front end out.

 

See post above, Lol.