4 years on the road...

Picked up my 05' Dec 21,2004. Almost 40,000 miles now, still only been to dealer once to install the heavier leaf springs TSB.

Updates/changes:
-Running Pennzoil Platinum in the motor, Full syn oil for 6-spd tranny, transfer and front diff. NO full syn in LSD rear diff though.
-TRD exhaust, sounds good, only slight rust on welds in/out of the muffler
-Blizzaks tires on 16x7 steelies for winter months
-Cut a 5/8 thick horse stall mat for the bed (80+lbs)
-Homemade bed extender, makes 5ft to 6.6ft
-Homemade cabin filters (05's didn't have one)
-Short clutch pedal travel mod
-Added front bed D-rings
-Undercoated the frame couple months ago. After 4 harsh winters, lots of salt used up here, widespread rust.

4x4 system: Got about couple thousand mi in 4hi and use 4lo a few times a month. No issues.
Tranny & motor: No problems.
Body: Paint is doing fine, wax every 3-4 months. Have a few scratches from brush on the trail and dents around the bed/tailgate.
Interior: No electronic issues, seats holding up well.
Composite bed: Other than hundreds of scrathes and held up great.

MPG:
Avg 20-20.5 all summer
drops to 17-17.5 in winter
Best 23, long summer trip
Worst 14, Week of below zero and towing

Octane: At least 89. Did use 87 in summer when was $4.50+, only lost .3-.4 mpg, but at low rpms 1500-2000 (where you get your best mpg), when accelerating or hitting any grade is where I really noticed the motor lug and ping more. Heavy loads/ towing even more noticeble. Back on the good stuff as prices dropped.

Concerns:
-The bottoming out with a load and leaf spring squeak, but fixed w/ TSB.
-Frame rust, we'll see if the undercoating helps.
-Weak tailgate, we all know. I use a plywood plank for weight dist when hauling my enduro moto.
-The TRD sport 17 rims are bubbling on the edges. These wheels get to sit in a comfy 40 degree garage all winter.
-Very sensitive ABS, not setup well for winter.

Ok, so there isn't much bad. Looking forward to keeping her at least 10 years. Glad this truck is easy work on, reliable, and fun to drive. Still one of the best buying decisions I ever made.

 

Got my 05 on Dec 1st, 2004. Truck has been mostly good. A corroded connector on the alternator meant that it had to be replaced about 2 1/2 years in. Fixed under the powertrain warranty. When they were fixing that, they caused an oil leak on the front of the engine which they also fixed after I made a return trip and after I bitched about it to the service rep and stealership owner.

 

Damn... I got my 06 at the end of Feb 06, and it's already over 50k.

Demon, what did you use to undercoat? I need to clean some frame rust and do that myself...

 

Good to hear, glad we all have great trucks, sounds like you put as few miles as I do on mine, I bought mine Jan 07, so on the road almost exactly two years, have 10,400 miles, been an awesome truck.

 

There is a product called rust check, it kills rust. I would put something like that on before you undercoat, or else your gonna trap all the rust in there. Also there is a gizmo that you hook up to your battery, I don't know exactly how it works but it somehow disrupts the electrical charge rust needs to spread. Apparently they work great and don't cost a bunch.

 

I'll have to look into rust check.

As for the electronic device... eh... I don't know. I've seen some they were in the $300-$500 range IIRC (which is kinda expensive IMO), and heard mixed reviews about them. Some people say they work great, others say they're a waste of money.

 

Congrats on 4 enjoyable years....and here is to many more... I hope to have mine for 200,000 miles which will be about 10 years....

 

electronic rust protection for cars are a scam, don't bother. best way to keep your truck from rusting is to clean it, and to get it under coated.

 

+1....... :d