PennSilverTaco's "Perfect 5-Lug Regular Cab" Build, Aspergers, and General BS MegaThread!

I have not gotten a card. My undercoat is dry but still a bit sticky...

My truck passed not only the frame inspection but also the state-mandated annual safety inspection. My frame was described as "solid."

 

What would happen to a Tacoma after sitting unused for six months? Would it need to have the oil changed and the gas tank drained? Jump-start/new battery? Complete tuneup? Bad things happen when vehicles sit for extended periods of time...

Longest time my truck has sat without being driven has been just short of two weeks, and that was when I was on vacation!

 

Your frame is fine, so not a concern.

 

Yea, I am not sure how this thread went from "my frame is fine" to worrying about leaving it for 6 months for a hypothetical frame replacement

 

I was just curious. My friend Justin has a 2007 SR5 access cab 2WD (5-lug/non-Prerunner;2.7L/auto) with 130K miles on it. The frame was so rusted that when he brought it for inspection last February it passed emissions with flying colors but wouldn't pass the safety inspection. Toyota initially refused to replace the frame and I believe Justin either hired an attorney or joined a group lawsuit. Either way, Toyota reinstated the recall and Justin is due to get his frame replaced at the very same dealership where I got mine undercoated. It going to take months before he gets his truck back.

Could anything bad happen to the truck mechanically from sitting for so long?

 

I was just curious...

My truck IS fine. I'd just be afraid to start it using 6-month old gas...

 

Not sure but a lot of the 3rd Gen guys are facing similar issues having to leave their trucks months on end for the rear-diff recall. That would suck

 

A former coworker lost his license for about 2 years because of a forgotten and unpaid ticket (for an expired inspection sticker of all things; long story). The car is a 2000-2002 Acura TL 3.2L with about 200K miles that was largely mint when he left it sitting int a public parking lot. Amazingly enough, the car was not towed or stolen. Unfortunately, it was vandalized and 3 of the 4 tires just deteriorated and went flat, but when my friend got his license back, he had it flatbedded to a mechanic. The oil and all fluids were changed, gas tank was drained, and the brakes and tires were replaced. Aside from the A/C needing to be recharged and the tape deck not working anymore, the car ran and drove just fine. My friend had the A/C recharged and plans on driving the car until it dies or until he gets enough money for a new car, whichever comes first...

I'd honestly imagine any that Tacoma would be pretty easy to put back on the road long periods of just sitting, whether it's a 1995 with 250K miles that was ridden hard, put away wet, and left to rot for a year or two; or a brand new and lovingly maintained 2016-2017 that sat for several months following a rear-diff recall...

 

When I was in high school, I wanted a Chevy S-10 or a Toyota Tacoma. To this day, those are my two favorite "compact" pickups. I use parenthesis because while the first generation of the Tacoma was a true mini truck, production of the S-10 and Sonoma ended in 2004, which also happens to be the last year for the first generation of Tacoma. As everybody knows, I own a 2nd Gen.

In my opinion all Tacomas, even the 3rd gens, are good trucks.

My uncle, who has owned numerous Toyota trucks,
feels the same way. His resume includes, in order by year:

1986 Toyota regular cab short bed 2WD (Red, A/C, 22RE/5-speed, purchased from insurance auction with rear damage in 1989 or so
, sold to my grandpa, sold by Grandpa in 1996 when he bought a 1995 Jeep Cherokee from same uncle)

1987 Toyota regular cab short bed 2WD (Black, A/C, 22RE/5-speed, rusted to shit when sold but still going!)

1991 Toyota regular cab short bed (Recently sold)

2002 Tacoma S-Runner (Black; bought new and sold to a friend in 2007 or so)

2003-2004 Tacoma access cab SR5 PreRunner (Red, 2.7L/auto, almost sold my present 2010 back in 2012 to buy this).

 

My uncle thinks all Tacomas are great trucks, but says he would never buy a 2nd because he thinks they are too damn big.

I agree with him. I was parked next to a 1987 Chevy C10 Silverado (regular cab, short bed, 2WD) at the hotel in Carlisle past August, and it wasn't much larger than my Tacoma! It was just 23 years older and had 4 more cylinders!

Same goes for the 1988-2000 GMT400 trucks!

 

Im in the same boat .Passed inspection but mechanic said 2 years probably will need a frame ,WTF? 2008 with 102XXX miles . Parts of frame look bad but no holes .

 

Pictures?

 

I'm going to have to add a camera at some niw that the weather here has cooled some. Here is a pic of the Blaupunkt I have. It's been good so far.

 

You have an 06 so you're probably gonna have to tap into the reverse light...

Did you get your gear on Crutchfield? I can't help but notice you have the same problem with the dash bezel that I do. You double-DIN bracket looks out of alignment like mine...

 

I was on my iPhone, pictures not handy. Also didn't feel like linking threads on iPhone...

There are pictures of the orange 1991 Toyota truck on Tacoma World already.

My uncle may have pictures of the red 1986 and the 2002 S-Runner hanging on his garage wall. The S-Runner was largely stock, though my uncle debadged it and replaced the front Toyota emblem with an old Mack truck emblem that he bought on eBay. He also replaced the factory 5-speed shift knob with one from a Pontiac GTO Judge (it was off-white and said "THE JUDGE" on it if I remember correctly). My uncle owned a hubcap and wheel business back then, so he had a never-ending supply of wheels to try out on his vehicles. He probably put about half a dozen different wheel/tire combos on that truck in the 5 years he owned it...

Sadly, I don't have pictures of the black 1987 Hilux or the red 2002 PreRunner. The red 2002 PreRunner was just a bone stock access cab with extraordinarily low miles. As for the black 1987, just picture a 2WD version of Marty McFly's truck with AMC Hornet mag wheels just like you see on the orange 1991, and a hell of a lot more rust.

 

My frame had surface rust, but it also passed an unofficial inspection last April when I forced the Toyota dealer to do it...

Someone also told me that the frames on 4x4s tend to be more trouble-prone. My truck is NOT a 4x4 or even a PreRunner. It's just a 5-lug 2WD. I have driven in the snow a few times, but obviously I don't off-road it or constantly drive in bad winter weather. I've also scraped my frame while driving over curbs.

The guys at the Toyota dealer said my frame was "solid," and one of the nicest frames they'd seen...

My truck has never been garaged more than a few days combined in the 8 years I've owned it, but looking back on it I rarely drive it in the snow. Pennsylvania is one of the worst states for salting roads, so I run it through the car wash once a week (or every two weeks) during the winter. I also reach under the truck with a spray gun at the do-it-yourself wash bays and wash down the frame. I think this helped quite a bit.

My truck also seems to have been built after the first round of lawsuits and recalls, right when it seems they started to improve the frames. I'm pretty sure I've never seen or even heard of a Tacoma newer than 2010 having any issues with the frame...

 

Yeah, my truck isn't prewired for a camera. That's why I'm gonna get a universal type and not the ones made for the pop and lock.

And yes, I got it from Crutchfield. Been buying from them for a long time. Good company except I think this time he wanted me to spend more. Told me this stereo wasn't the best for distant fm. But it's fine and better than the JVC it replaced. Display on it was too dim.

Hadn't noticed the bezel was not aligned. I will have to check it tomorrow.

 

I got a universal camera too. Honestly I like the view better than what I would get from the "pop and lock." I drove my uncle's 2012 Tundra which has the factory tailgate camera with the screen in the rear-view mirror. The dinky little screen is bad enough (another aunt and uncle have a 2009 RAV4 Limited with this setup and they think it sucks), and I didn't like the way it pointed down either. Even though I have a universal camera mounted in a non-factory location, my neighbor was still able to hook it up to the factory "reverse wire," so it activates whenever the truck is put into reverse.

 

Great story, love my dogs. But they’re golden retrievers... they would have invited the police in for an ear scratch.

 

I think I will try installing into the pop and lock location first to see if I like it ok. If not, I will move it to the bumper/plate location probably. I can use the head unit display. I will have to see how the hookup works best. Blaupunkt has the wiring for it and I can get power from reverse I think...