2012 extended cab purchase.

I'm trying to get hold of a guy who has a 2012 Tacoma Pre-runner extended cab truck for sale.41K on the clock. I was thinking it's a quad cab but while it has 4 doors, it's not a quad cab. When I can finally get a chance to see the truck, what should I look for? I'm on the southern edge of the rust belt so I'll look for frame rust. Anything else?

 

Stay away from V6 2012's. It has air pump/valve problems.

 

I just bought a new truck last week. Heres everything i went through and looked at prior to purchase. Good luck, and welcome!

Take Ultragauge/scangauge and check for OBDII Codes
Check for hail damage
Check roof for dents/rust/peeling clearcoat
Check tail pipe for oil burning
Check engine block for leaks & cleanliness

Does it have the factory Tow package?- (this consists of oil cooler, 7pin connector, 27F battery, larger alternator- 130amp

Lug down clutch- check for slippage (manual trans only)

Crawl under and check entire frame with light
Check cross members
Check under spare tire for rust
Check Cab Mounts on front (have they been chopped)
Inspect rocker panels
Check all lighting connections in hood area (stock? Or did previous owner cut/splice in)
Check frame for rust/pin holes
Check motor mounts for rust or cracks
Check rear leaf packs for tsb springs(these are the 3+1 leaf packs)
Check ac& heater work
Check condition of tires

 

I've got 50+ years experience as a mechanic. I've also shipped cars overseas so I'm used to looking for issues. Stuff that is okay here in S. Indiana won't pass MOT in Oz. I've asked several times for a phone number so I can contact the fellow. I don't text so I check my computer for messages and call on the phone. I'm not so pompous to think I know everything so I'm always open to suggestions and ideas.

The biggest concern is what everybody says about the seating. The girlfriend is a bit sloppy when she eats on the road and wants leather seats for the ease of cleaning. I'm not fond of peeled cows but I can live with them. If I get the truck, I may swap in some other seats and either get leather ones or put some faux leather ones on some cloth ones.

 

Air pump can be a $1000 fix if it goes bad. But do a search. The failure stems from the foam filter falling apart and clogging the pump. You can replace the filter with a 1" breather filter for $10 and allegedly be rid of the problem.

 

My pump hasn't failed, and hardly anyone else's has either. It's the switching valves that are usually the culprit, they are $250 and take about an hour to replace. I haven't touched my pump yet but the valves failed around 66k miles.

 

I've requested a phone number 4 times. The ad is still up but I wonder if the guy really wants to sell the truck. I've looked at ads for other Toyota trucks but they are all wanting $18,000 to $26,000 for trucks with 170,000 miles. If I'm paying $26,000 for a truck, I can get a new one.