Worth putting another $2000 into this truck?

I have 360,000 on my original rack. This truck is well worth the money. Do yourself a favor though, don't go to the dealer to have the work done.

Even before doing the work, take it to an independent garage for a second opinion, and quote for what they recommend.

Do the maintenance and replace parts as they wear out and you'll get many more miles out of it.

 

If it was me and there is no obvious leak I'd check the fluid level under the hood. If that is OK, just drive it until it is warmer and you can get under and have a look at it. Don't let them scare you into a repair you may not need. This sounds a lot like the old scam where they show you a little stuff at the top of a shock absorber and say it is "leaking" to sell you a set of shocks you don't need. Just saying I'd be suspicious until I could see it for myself.

Good luck and enjoy your Tacoma.

 

My local guy charges more than the dealer and he quoted me $1400 for the rack replacement. I did it myself anyway because I'm cheap and apparently a glutton for punishment lol. Shop around or read the very good how to threads on here and do it yourself. Mine was a pita because of old age and rust but with your mileage it probably won't be as bad. Replace the lines and add an inline filter while you're at it or you'll risk the new one failing prematurely. Lines and filter are cheap compared to the cost of the rack and labour.

.. Or clean up the boots, take it somewhere else for inspection and hope they don't notice..

 

Oh, did he go there for a so-called safety inspection? That is what I was asking earlier what he meant by "inspected". That is giving an unscrupulous mechanic an open invite to look for work. Not saying that is the case here without seeing it, but it does raise suspicion.

 

The repairs you listed are not rocket science "dealer only" stuff. Lots of private owned shops are ex dealer employees that didnt like the small cut of the pie/pay. Dealers have the highest overhead with all those hands in the cookie jar. Repairing your truck is a good investment. I know people on the famous waiting list over a year now for new. Used trucks around me 4 yrs old are selling for msrp of when they were new if you can find 1. The future doesnt look to be any different. Fix your truck and roll on

 

Lol, I think the portion of my post you quoted shows why regular inspections are a good idea but could also be done better You might take good care of your vehicles but plenty of folks either don't care or just don't know enough to maintain a safe vehicle.

 

One thing I really like about where I live... NO periodic safety inspections. Only need one when a vehicle changes hands. Still have the emissions every 2 years but now we have self service kiosks so that is much less painful than it used to be. Put your credit card in and they are plug and play.

 

What exactly is wrong with the R&P steering? They will all weep some fluid after a while, but I'm not replacing mine as it's not a safety issue. Tie rods are another issue though- safety. Take it to an independent shop and have another assessment done.

 

Fairly low miles for a Tacoma, a bit overpriced as well, but the way things are going it might be worth $50K next year.
The front end going out at 80K seems premature, but not impossible. Examine your truck, better yet, get a friend who knows about vehicle repair to do it. Try and determine if the vehicle has had a rough life. Regular maintenance is crucial. If the truck is in good shape, a few grand in maintenance and repair over the usually long life of a Tacoma is well worth it.