Been craving TACOs

Ever since I was a kid and watched the scene from "Back to the Future" where Marty finally got his Toyota pickup I've wanted one of my own. Mostly due to commuting needs, I was never really able to get one to fit our lifestyle. Well the wait is over and after a couple months of searching I swapped out my 2013 BMW X3 for a real truck - its amazing how a 2010 TRD with 160k miles is worth more than a 3 year newer Bimmer with 90k miles. Very excited to enter the world of Toyota reliability and versatility. Many camping trips and Home Depot trips in our future.

The new to me truck - Picked up a Silver 2010 LB DC TRD Sport with 165k miles on it yesterday from a friend that works the auctions. Runs very strong and smooth but needs some love.

The Name - we name our cars. I think this comes from being a MINI owner (my daily). The family decided on Sato. We are Indy Car fans and Takuma Sato is our favorite driver.

The frame has a bit more surface rust on it than I'm used to but thinking of having it blasted and sprayed soon - any advice on that would be appreciated. (I know I just missed out on the recall last week - fortunately there is the extended warranty for 12 years incase things get bad. Hoping to prevent that though). My guy gets all work done at a good rate and tells me he can have a bed off blast and spray done for $800. Good deal? Worth doing?

Drivability - Runs smooth and strong. Tires are brand new and had a wheel balancing and alignment done right away but still a bit of a vibration at highway speed. Pretty sure the shocks are original so going to start there. The question is do I get stock or upgrade? Not looking for a big lift but wouldn't mind something that doesn't look like crap with stock tires and wheels until I can upgrade those. Want to make sure its mechanically sound before I dump a ton of money into it but I'm also from the school of upgrade whenever replacing. Even if just a little. Advice please!

The Plan - other than the frame and shocks, everything else looks good so far - knock wood. Interior looks brand new and the body is fine for a 9 year old pickup. Today I plan on spraying the wheels black since the chrome is looking rough. While the paint dries I plan on installing a new Double Din Panasonic head unit so I can enjoy Waze via Applyplay. After that I plan to get out and enjoy it until some thread shows up with something that I just have to do. I'm sure that won't take long.

Thanks for all the great advice in the forums already - I've been stalking for a while.

 

Looking good and welcome to TW!

 

Welcome to TW!!

 

Welcome to TW

 

Welcome!

 

Welcome!

That taco found a found a great home!

 

What are you spraying the frame with?

 

Thank you everyone!

Not sure what type of undercoating it is yet. One of the questions I need to ask him.

I do know they will be pulling the bed off and sandblasting the entire frame. Then treating it with some sort of rust protection. Plan to take it to the dealer first to see what they recommend. Its not horrible but I'd like to keep this truck for a while and would like to make sure I don't run into an issue down the road.

 

The coatings are great at first, but if the crack or chip then water gets trapped underneath and that can cause issues you can’t see. Fluid Film or something similar is a better choice in my opinion. It does need to be done yearly (maybe twice the first couple). Worth researching before you spend money on a coating.

 

SKEEEWP crew getting bigger every day! Welcome!

 

Welcome to TW, & nice truck! I bought my 08 in Feb of this year with 160 on the clock. No regrets so far. You can go to Toyota's site & type in your VIN. It will tell you everything done to your truck since new (dealer serviced). Mine had a frame inspection & coating in '15. Also new rear springs (warranted). Just had the frame re-inspected last week (trusted local independent). Still good to go, but I'm going to re-treat it before winter, myself.

 

Welcome to TW!

 

Thanks. Ill be looking into all options this week after my visit to toyota.

 

This is great advice. Welcome !

 

Busy weekend with lots of progress!

Painted wheels, grill and bed cover. Then added floor mats, and installed a new head unit. Just need to wire in the BU camera from the rearview.

 

What head unit is this?

 

Pioneer AVH-1550NEX 6.2 Inch AV Receiver with Carplay & Bluetooth

Purchased it from Amazon along with the all the needed parts. Happy with it so far. The Apple carplay works perfectly.

 

So do you still like your Pioneer AVH-1550NEX? Any issues?
I'm about to order one for my 2008 Tacoma double cab 4x4
Which backup camera did you install?

 

Welcome!