Missing Jack

So I went to drop my spare tire the other day, and noticed that my jack is missing!

I used to have an '08, and I remember the setup quite well. My 2012 doesn't even have the "rubber bands" that would hold the jack in place.

What gives? New ones don't come with jacks anymore?

 

Jill prolly took it.....


wait- you just found out a year later?!

 

You read that right.

 

OP, did you look underneath the backseat?

 

Hopefully you just didn't look under the back seat. The dealer probably wouldn't replace it just on your say so a year later... That is why I spend a few days going over everything when I purchase a new car / truck.

 

I never thought to look for the jack, so yes, I realized it was gone a year later.

I searched everywhere. Except the engine bay...

Btw - Yes, purchased new.

 

My relationship with the local dealerships is shakey at best. I'll see about picking one up from a salvage yard.

The real issue that I ran into was dropping the spare tire, without the jack (handle tool) it was difficult to get it down.

I eventually ended up using vice grips and the prop for my hood to get it down... Not interested in doing that again.

 

You must have some long skinny arms and a buff buddy if you got that tire down and changed without the jack or handle!

 

When I purchased my previous 2006 new from the dealer, it was missing the jack and tools. I can't remember why I went looking for it, but I noticed it was missing within a few days. Dealer gave me a new set when I called and complained.

 

It definitely is not on my list to do again.

 

lucky you found out now rather than being on the side of the road somewhere finding out you didn't have it.

 

Bought used, my wheel nuts were completely rounded and the socket wouldn't even go on the wheelnuts to remove them, so don't feel bad.

 

My 94 Toy pickup was missing the jack handle brand new, dealer offered to steal one out of another truck on the yard, but I requested one through the parts system...

The dealer MIGHT be at fault here!

 

YOU GOT JACKED!

 

There's a one-piece crank rod used on 1st gen Tacos that may work better for working the spare tire winch than the flexy 4-piece rod. Only $28 at Village Toyota Parts (it's the 09113 part):

http://www.villagetoyotaparts.com/products/TOYOTA/2004/Tacoma3400CC-EFI--AUTOMATIC--4-SPEED/HANDLE--JACK/1997400/0911304020.html



Combine this with a bottle jack from Harborfreight and a breaker bar for the lug nuts, and you should have a kit that works far better than OEM.

 

Go back to the dealer who would lie about a jack kit? It's not like a missing hub cap or some thing you would never know unless you had a flat.

 

Random Comment:

A couple of weeks ago I took the spares off both my '99 4runner and my '09 taco at the same time. Everything about the old 4runner's jack and tools was better than the new Taco.

The crank for the 99's spare tire was one peice and I was able to operate it with one hand. I stuck it in the hole and engaged the lowering mechanism first try without having to even look.

Then I walked over to the taco, I had to stick two or three pieces together, and they had little screw in retainers sticking out that always got in the way. I could not engage it in the lowering mechanism and I got it stuck in there somehow and had a hard time getting it out. Then I cursed a little. I had to go get a flashlight and get down on the ground and look in the hole while I guided it in. Then I tried turning it with one hand, nope the rod beats against the bottom of the tailgate and slops around possibly chipping paint. The reason I find that annoying is because when I get the tire down I like to pull on the cable to reel out some slack and pull the tire toward me, and then to keep tension on it while reeling it back up till the tire lifts.

Now on the the jack. The factory jack in the 99 has a dimple built into it that fits into a dimple on the bottom of each front control arm, making it simple to secure it onto the control arm. The tacoma jack did not have this feature. Therefore it was treacherous using the tacoma's factory jack to lift the front tires.

All of this made me wonder. Why would the Toyota engineers take a system that was perfectly designed in 1999, ruin it, and employ it on the 2nd gen trucks? How many other "improvements" have they made to the 2nd gen trucks that turn out to be a failure?

Sorry about the 5 paragraph essay...

 

jack.. my dear jack... I hate you jack... meh.. I never liked the factory jacks that comes in the car or truck IMO. I got a bottle jack that cost me 20 bucks and it worth for the money. Why.. its hell lot easy to jack up the truck.. a few quick pump up and you got it up. it don't take up space in the toolbox.
I had to use it a few times for few nice lovely ladies had flats in the service area where I work.

 

Agree with you 100%. The factory stuff barely gets the job done on a good day anyway. But I was just surprised when comparing the two that the old setup was much better than the new setup.

Normally I'd just use a hydraulic floor jack but my recent relocation left me without a garage. Also the hi-lift jack is way faster than the factory jack. I rotate my spare tire during each tire rotation, that's why I've noticed all the little details...

 

I bought mine new and I checked it all out made sure it had everything had the salesman do a thorough walk around with me .