Rust

How bad is this? Driver side has rust and passenger side is started to rust why is this happening I didn't notice it when I bought that truck smh should have double checked the truck

 

Check your frame

 

That's nothing, just needs a touch up in that spot. The real trouble areas is the frame, that needs to be inspected carefully on these trucks.

Hows your frame look?

 

Like new it's a Florida truck lol

 

do the frames rot through MUCH faster than body panels or do you know?
i would think the frame is much thicker metal than body panels, maybe one is more sensitive than the other?


OP, I had one of those pop up in my doorsil recently, have no clue where it came from , i try to habitually hose and wipe it down doors regularly during the winters but it still seep through the paint

does it rain salt in Florida?

 

That looks like a couple of spots that were nicked or chipped and then the bear metal surface rusted. If it was really cancerous you'd see bubbling. Frame looks good.

 

It's is bubbling

 

Sand the rusty spot and surrounding area, if there is a hole spray fluid film inside in all directions. Clean the area then spray etching primer then paint and clear coat. After it dries hit that seam with real automotive seam sealer. A bit extreme but If you want this truck to last another 10 years, 2 days of effort is an easy trade off. I've seen some cherry tacomas on the islands that have rust there then it grows to the bottoms of the cab.

 

That looks a lot cleaner than my 17

 

mine was too in the doorsil, was putting in some fresh scuff plate screws and said OFS, I cleaned that
looks like a 'weak' spot in the paint over some sort of spot where the body panels connect

 

Just sand it until you reach bare metal and then fill it with a putty or compound, sand flush, and then touch up with paint. Thankfully it's in the jamb and not on the body.

 

I was think about repainting my truck and since I'm going to do that might as well how the shop do those rust spots wouldn't wielding a small pieces of metal be better?

 

Yes, you could weld some metal in there and then sand it flush as well.

Also, re-painting your entire truck for two small rust spots in an area that is not visible when the door is closed seems a bit extreme. Lots of companies can color match and inject the paint into an aerosol can for you, or just have the jamb sanded down and re-sprayed. But it is your truck so it is up to you.

 

The paint on the hood and roof id fading and the clear coat is coming off so my as well get it repainted but idk do y'all think 2500 is enough

 

You typically see frame rot before you see a lot of body rot, at least on the Tacomas. The frames get the brunt of the impact from the road salt. Rain does a pretty good job of rinsing off the body, but not the frame.

 

my body shop guy today told me MUCH different
frames are THICK, body panels are THIN
rot through much much much quicker on the panels, frame much longer since thicker, unless something else fishy going on (still under investigation here)
should I beg to differ with him

rain does not wash the rocker panels OR inside the fenders OR the tailgate area, most common areas on trucks (at least in midwest area)

i smell something very fishy going on!

 

While that's technically true, there are a few caveats. 1) Tacoma frames really aren't that thick, and 2) similar to 9/11 conspiracy nuts and how you don't have to liquefy the metal before the building would collapse, you don't have to rust ALL the way through a frame for the structure to be compromised.

And finally, 3) the whole reason for the Tacoma frame warranty thing is because Toyota didn't properly coat/seal the frames from the beginning.


There are plenty of anecdotes of people with swiss cheese frames but the bodies are more or less perfectly intact - the vast majority of them are perfect candidates for frame swaps. They likely have lots of rusty bolts etc... but the frames seem to take the brunt of the impact.

There are of course trucks out there were rusty bodies and intact frames, but from what I've seen here that's not the norm. I've seen more than one thread where it goes basically like this:

Guy1: Hey, is this rust on my fender okay?

Guy2: Check your frame first.

Guy1: oh shit.

 

I'm surprised you haven't come across posts about our 1st Gen frame rot issue...!? Yeah, frames are supposed to be tougher than the body panels, but Toyota decided to use some cheap steel and bad coatings... They rust from the inside out.

 

Now that's the truth if I've ever heard it!

 

i am still investigating this whole matter,
basically it seems to have been a much worse situation for trucks younger than mine (when frame was redesigned)
still not totally sure with regards to ALL factors involved

there is a totaled '95.5 in a salvage yard near me (50 miles) I am going to check its condition when i get there
the '98 they had has been gutted out already they said and sent to the crusher, I really wanted to inspect that one dammit i was too late