2014 too much rust for front end alignment

Another problem nobody mentioned is that given the amount of visible corrosion, I'm willing to bet the alignment cam bolts in the lower control arms are rusted / seized up too. That means in order to align it, you'll need both LCAs plus all new alignment cam bolts.

 

If the rest of the frame is good, I would consider new LCAs, tie rod ends, sway bar ends, etc. It will cost you some $ but would refresh the front end.

 

I’m betting the shop had an idea they would be seized and they didn’t want to fool with it.
In a way, I can’t blame them for not wanting to do it. At least they were honest?

I think if the frame is ok. It’s worth spending money on it.
But it’s hard to believe the frame is “ok” with the pics I’m seeing so far?

 

The bits & pieces of the frame that I can see in those pics do not look ok. Maybe OP can provide some pics of the frame and hopefully prove me wrong.

 

To answer one of your questions, yes it is highly unusual to have that amount of rust. Especially for the year and it being a CA truck. There are 1996 Tacomas out there with minimal rust. Something isn't right here. Maybe where you go for car washes has been the culprit. Something is to blame for all that rust.

 

My first truck was a 2001 Ford Ranger that was sitting in Carlsbad next to the coast. I bought it when it was 10 years old and the rust in the undercarriage was pretty bad but still not to this extent. Weird how the frame is unscathed and just the front end components are majorly effected. There has to be something more to the story here

 

Hopefully not the black tar from Death Stranding? I kid.

 

I can contribute as I have a 2014 w/107k on it and has spent all of its time in southern New England. My front end components are pretty good for a seven year old vehicle. The sway bar, tie-rods and control arms all look good except for the welds. Just minor surface rust here and there which I have painted and fluid-filmed. I'm amazed at how bad yours is.

 

The tire monkeys couldn’t align mine but the red wrench beats all. Also I found liquid wrench to do fuck all.

 

That's pretty bad but it's not uncommon for vehicles in CA to get rusty when they spend their lives near the ocean. That salty air gets to them over the years.

 

I’m shocked that your truck wasn’t previously owned in a road salt state or used frequently on the beach. That’s an unusual amount of rust for street use in Cali, unless you live basically on the beach and there’s salt spray exposure daily. It’s amazing how much salt gets in the air within a block or two of the beach.

 

Thanks for posting those contrasting pictures.
In another life I sometimes played a corrosion inspector for industrial customers (for equipment using products which was supposed to reduce corrosion).
I looked at @geoff w 's pictures and immediately thought that is a LOT of rust for 8 years of service, regardless of the environment.
Your own pictures indicate what I would consider normal (no significant corrosion).

I would defer to a Toyota service agent with an elevation to a national Toyota agent for evaluation.

 

Just to get the ball rolling in case others have similar issues on newer Tacomas not in the designated states for frame recalls, I filed a report with NHTSA regarding a potential safety concern. Based on some of the other posts I've seen here on Tacoma World for earlier models and Toyota dealers tagging the cars as unsafe to drive, I figure this has the potential to fail at some point, given the amount of corrosion present. More to follow...

 

You need to rinse your undercarriage. The humidity and latent salt in the air in the area (Malibu) will rust the hell out of anything. Hit up a boat shop and get the miracle grow like sprayer of salt neutralizer spray for PWC's - learned this trick from the state lifeguards.

 

Also the fitting on your power steering line looks ready to fail.

You need a few new components but it's salvageable.

 

Y'all need to understand he's in a spot where the wind always blows over the ocean onto the land, and there's latent salt everywhere. The sand and "dust" and "road grime" he incurs on a run to Safeway is going to be like driving on the beach. The beach blows onto the highway and residential streets.

This is the result of fog/moisture and the salt on the roads from living in Malibu.... so everyone should move to Temecula and life would be good. For the tacos.