2007 TRD rust bucket!

I bought this truck in 2019 and it seemed very clean at the time. I have since moved to the northeast and the salt here is the worst.

I was replacing my shocks (since it was still running the originals) - the rears were annoying but pretty simple...

I went to do the fronts and I literally can't undo any bolts (I have impact tools, etc). everything is rusted solid from just 1 year of winter salty roads. on top of this, the rubber coating Toyota applied to my frame seems to have been applied over dirt and rust and is just flaking off... so I'm fixing that while I'm under the truck.

what started as a shock replacement has turned into replacing the entire front end (including tie rods and axles). even the shock mounts have failed (the studs pulled out).

marginally annoyed in both myself for lacking on the maintenance (I did the brakes in 2020 and they were like new - still shiny silver) and also annoyed at the dealership - they allegedly did an alignment when I bought it but there's no way as every ball joint is bad.

sorry for bad lighting. been working on this all day (just the passenger side!) I'll take better photos tomorrow when I start again.

 

here are some more photos of the carnage... I dragged the hub/knuckle/etc into my shed with bright lights. turns out the CV is probably fine and I can just rebuild it. I'm soaking everything in PB blaster overnight to see if that'll help. I will likely cut off the bolts/balls (since the only parts I'm saving are the knuckle and caliper).

another crazy thing I noticed is there's a big circular gouge in my tire. hoping it's just cosmetic! these are BFG AT TA K02 which have thick sidewalls.

parts arriving soon:

-

$216 power stop K137-36 front Z36 truck & tow brake kit, carbon fiber ceramic brake pads and drilled and slotted brake rotors for toyota 4runner FJ cruiser tacoma 6 lug

power stop K137-36 front brake kit ("tow brake kit" drilled slotted etc)
- power stop SS brake lines
- OE lower control arms
- tubular upper control arms (with greaseable ball joints)
- moog poly sway bar bushings and new "heavy duty" endlinks
-

$34 moog K100128 alignment caster/camber kit for toyota tacoma

moog K100128 greaseable caster/camber bolts
- inner/outer tie rods
-

$39 KYB SM5640 - Mount Kit

KYB SM5640 shock mounts

going to tackle other things while I'm doing a rebuild, like an oil change and cleanup of rust.

I also noticed the rear right hub is squirting fluid everywhere, so that's either a brake cylinder or a hub seal... adventure time.

 

Thats a shitty discovery. Hopefully there is enough good metal left to salvage the frame as is. When i see any post that states the dealer applied undercoat is flaking off, I know whats coming next.....
I was lucky. I had a tech that loved doing frames ($$$$$) and knew where to peel off the undercoat. One tap with a small hammer (his....not mine) and my new frame was on the way.

 

What really sucks is I went to the dealership before the deadline on frame replacements and they said everything is good as it already had the undercoat applied in 2016. Sneaky!!

 

Crawl under there and have a look at the INSIDE frame rail under the drivers side door.
Next to the converter, that’s the spot that normal rust through first. A little tippy, tap, tap with a small ball peen hammer will let you hear about all you need to know.

 

and Fluid Film or Woolwax should become your next best friend living in the Salt Belt...

 

I've been using a wire wheel to take off the rust and peeling rubberized Toyota coating and replacing it with Rust-Oleum truck bed liner, which I've used for years as a hard protective coating on undercarriages. Not everyone's favorite idea but it works for me and looks original.

 

I hate to say it, but as a lifelong resident of the rust belt, that truck is actually in very good condition - especially for a 2007! I've seen three- and four-year-old trucks up here that are not taken care of and they're in worse condition.

As for you frame, unless you have a dime size hole completely through it, you would have passed you frame inspection. From what I could see in your pics, it would have passed. More pics would help though.

 

I'll take better photos today... still trying to get things dis-assembled! and I still need to check the "bad spot" by the catalytic converter.

about mid-frame (just in front of the rear wheels) the bottom lip of the frame is de-laminating with rust. I'm not sure if this counts for Toyota's standards, but if it were 100% up to me, I would have replaced this frame. I'm confident that it's structurally sound and I can weld if needed.

 

holes are the only reason they would replace the frame. Dime size or bigger...crappy they know its an issue, especially in rust belt states..10 years is not that long for a frame...good luck in your endeavors!

 

I studied metallurgical engineering in college. the major reason (in my opinion) behind these frames rusting out is Toyota cheaping out on the steel combined with the nature of having boxed-in segments with holes throughout to trap dirt and water. having a section with an edge completely exposed is a recipe for this to happen (photo taken from another thread)

 

I would recommend against the truck bed liner on your frame. It to has enough backbone to it to trap water between the coating and the frame. My suggestion would be good ole Rus Oleum and follow up with Fluid Film or Woolwax. Ultimately, it's your decision.

 

fluidfilm is great but I'm just doing this as a temporary fix until I can do a more in-depth repair and protection

 

funny thing: my truck is Canadian so the rust recall for the US trucks doesn't apply; there's a different version for Canada (even though all of the trucks are manufactured in the USA and they don't have special frames for the Canadian trucks). I had my frame inspected at a US dealership in 2021 and they didn't say anything. Now the deadline has passed for Canadian trucks - which was 15 years.

 

another full day of wrenching and I have both sides of the front end fully disassembled and most of the parts on hand... clearing rust and applying the truck bed liner. I noticed that whenever the dealership painted the rubber coating, they didn't even remove any parts - removing things like the rubber engine bay covers reveals a big thick outline of rubberized coating. lazy work.

status as of today on the rustbucket:

- right knuckle was a giant pain in the butt but the left side was less so - weird?? even the ABS sensor was seized inside the right knuckle (broke off when I tried to remove it)
- so far I plan on only re-using the knuckles and brake calipers (cleaning and rebuilding)
- sway bar nuts welded inside the frame snapped off when removing the sway bar, so I'm buying a relocation kit since I have a 2" lift anyway, and will secure it from the front of the frame w/ a breaker bar and hopefully never worry about it again
- found a very corroded area by the catalytic converter on the inside face of the frame

questions:

- what are these things I'm pointing at? (photo below) this is the passenger side. I assume one is the AC water drip line - is the port in the engine block important?

- how are you supposed to remove the left/driver side upper control arm bolt? it bumps into the frame and lines! do I have to remove the lines? my bolt does not face forward like the one in this video... my bolt faces the interior of the truck (the nut was facing forward) - I was going to cut it off and install a new one facing the other direction (installed from the front of the truck)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9m19ZvRy8xw

 

I mean I see seized bolts but not much rust going on here. Hell, your backing plates look immaculate.

 

lower down and back on the frame it's pretty gross, but also I've had much older cars with less rust... for example, my 1986 Yugo built during the cold war!

 

More fun: top mount bolts popped their spot welds so I had to cut them off to get the shock out. Can't reach the back one without bigger cutting discs. Cut the top of the shock instead (it was shot anyway).

 

rebuilt the shocks.

the seals in the knuckles look like dookie! I ordered replacements (National #710573) but is there any weird trick to installing these?

my wheel bearings are quiet/no play

 

That’s a heap of work! Good stuff powering through it. It’s a bummer to go in for something straightforward and find a can of worms. Good luck with the rest of the project.