Limited Service Campaign for Corrosive Resistant Compound

left open.
I immediately applied a coating of Fluid Film.

 

Hi everyone, first time posting to this site. Looks like lots of great information. I was wondering if anyone had experience working with the Toyota dealer that is in Concord, NH? I'm concerned about their (or any dealer's) willingness to do a frame replacement, vs just applying the compound. Anyone have experience with them? Thanks!

 

First you should find out if they are approved by Toyota to do the frame replacements. not all dealerships are qualified to even do it.

Its not a matter of what the dealer wants to do, there is a specific set of inspection criteria they follow from Toyota and if there is perforation or holes in the frame they have to replace it.

All of the info is posted earlier in this thread. I would look it up and inspect your frame before you bring it in so you know what to expect. if you do find perforation or holes take pictures and have them in case you need them.

 

My Tacoma was initially inspected on October 2, 2014 and approved for a new frame. The dealer said it would take 4-5 weeks to receive the parts. Despite some holes, my frame was deemed serviceable for use until the parts came in. As most folks receiving new frames have experienced, it took longer than expected for the parts to arrive. All of the parts finally came in on Jan 6.

I dropped my truck off last Wednesday (Jan 7), and it came home today (Jan 13) sporting a new frame, new lower control arms, quite a few new brake lines, a new wiring harness of some sort, and so forth - the standard fare for this service campaign. There were no plugs in the frame holes, and I will be dousing with Fluid Film this weekend.

Along with the frame work, I had the clutch replaced. While the truck was apart, they found that the steering rack was in bad shape, so I had them replace that as well.

I originally wanted them to do the shocks & struts while it was in, but I decided not to proceed with those when they called and told me they were going to charge me $450 just for the struts. I asked how they could be so expensive when I can buy new OEM Bilsteins for around $100 each, and they said "labor." That was a different story than I was told when I dropped it off. At drop off, they told me there would be no labor charge for the struts. I ended up telling them not to touch the struts or shocks.

The shop also tried to get me for a front brake job, but I said no. I know it needs brakes up front, but I am not going to pay $435 for Toyota OEM parts & labor when I can buy EBC slotted & dimpled rotors and Hawk pads for around $300, do the work myself on a Saturday morning, and have far more performant brakes when I'm finished.

Final thoughts...

- The dealer gave me a new AWD RAV4 XLE to drive while the truck was in the shop, and they had the truck all cleaned up and ready to go when I arrived to pick it up.

- Seven days and $2,000 in additional maintenance later, my OCT '04 2005 Tacoma TRD O/R with 143,721 miles drives and feels like a brand new truck.

- Despite my annoyance with regard to the struts and shocks, my overall experience was very good. I suppose I could stew about the struts, but I think it all comes down to perspective. Toyota just accomplished $13,000 worth of work on my 10 year old, 143,721-mile old truck, at no charge, to correct some manufacturing defects. Sure, perhaps one might argue the trucks should not have had the issue in the first place. I can understand that argument; however, I also understand that machines need maintenance and not every machine is built perfectly the first time. The fact that Toyota decided to fix the defect without a knock-down, drag-out fight - even if it took more time than expected - has re-affirmed my decision to drive their products.

1/18/2015: after much additional brake research, I realized there will be no measurable benefit from using slotted & dimpled rotors or upgraded pads on my daily driver, so I opted for EBC smooth rotors (they were the least expensive option @ $28/each on sale) and Centric premium OEM-style pads ($50) to save myself some additional $ on the brake job.

 

I was told those plugs were accidentally left in & they shouldn't be there.

 

Been checking online off and on now for a few months to see if my vin# is included in this service campaign.. And I'm happy to report that it's going into the dealership today at 2:30 to be inspected..

 

Prepare for a very very long wait to get your truck back if you need the frame replaced. My local dealer has had my truck since 10/2/14 and still can't give me an estimated return date. Not that I mind too much since I'm in a 2014 TRD sport as my loaner. Good luck.

 

It has been a week since I received my truck back with its new frame. I did not have a chance to give the truck a thorough inspection when I picked it up, but I went over it in depth this past weekend and found a few things worth mentioning in case it saves others time and/or hassle.

For reference, I have a bone stock 2005 Access Cab 4x4 with TRD O/R package.

1. My truck received a new power steering rack and hoses, and I think the rack installation required removal of part of the air intake ducting. The mechanics set the air duct back into place after the work, but they did not re-install the 12mm bolts that hold it in. Instead, the bolts were merely set into place and about to fall out! No big deal though - I took out the toolbox and installed them.

2. My fog lamp connectors were left disconnected and dangling. This was another easy fix - I just reached up underneath and attached the connectors to sockets on the bulb assembly.

3. My right side marker light was left unplugged. Easy fix - reach in, connect, done. I can only guess the lamp assembly was removed to facilitate the steering rack or power steering hose work.

4. My power steering reservoir was not properly seated into its cradle. Instead, it was being held loosely in position by the hoses attached to it. This was another easy fix - I just had to set the reservoir into the cradle and gently press it in until its retaining clip engaged.

5. There was a missing fastener on the right underside of the front bumper wrap. The fastener in question holds 2 or 3 plastic components to a frame mount for stability, and I know the fastener was there when I took the truck in because I had installed stainless steel bolts & washers (with safety wire through the bolt!*) in that space on both the left and right because the original plastic clips had long since broken away.

The rest of the truck's nuts and bolts all checked out good.


* The bolts were extras from some form of airplane maintenance long ago.

 

I'm still waiting to get mine back. But I certainly can't complain about a lack of coverage. They got that shit EVERYWHERE
I didn't take many more pics, but lots of overspray on the exhaust, carrier bearing, etc.
Ugh...anyway
They apparently sprayed it on Tuesday and told me it was dry and could pick it up last night. It was still soaking wet. They're allegedly parking it in a heated garage over the weekend to try and encourage it to dry faster. We'll see what happens next week.


















I didn't have an ounce of rust under there, but wanted the extra protection. Personally, if I had the chance to un-do this, I would. I liked having a cleaner truck underneath than this mess. But whats done is done.

 

Does anyone know a good alternative for those of us who aren't eligible but still need rust protection?

 

I've used Fluid Film. There are lots of info in threads here. For FF and other coatings...

 

Looks like they left the spare in when they sprayed??

 

Yea, it appears that way.

 

Hey Chris I notice you got you framed sprayed. I too got it done on Monday, pick it up on Tuesday evening. It looks just like yours,they sprayed everywhere. It looks like shit to me and its still wet. WTF! Is this stuff every going to dry?

 

If you get a flat it'll be a mess! That shit will ruin your interior, and you know who'll pay for that.

 

The reason I mentioned it was because of a recall (TSB?) that was issued for older trucks to replace the bracket that the tire / winch is against. I think the recall changed the frame support on top of the tire (rusting out and tires dropping on the road) ... so I would have assumed They would spray this too.

 

How in the hell can they claim that they applied the product correctly if they did not remove the spare before applying? If mine ends up like that they will be replacing my tire and rim and will then have to complete the undercoating. Those were some lazy bastards.

 

[FONT=Verdana, sans-serif]For rust prevention/treatment discussion and alternatives see:
http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/2nd...on-thread.html [/FONT]

 

From what I'm reading...no Everything I've read so far indicates that this stuff will not dry entirely and will still transfer onto your skin/clothing when you touch it. Gonna be fun when working on the truck from now on. I'll probably try and clean up some key areas with brake cleaner and a rag. Although not sure how it'll work.

 

Here's my invoice when my frame was replaced