My 2nd gen frame replacement story.

Hey all, I took my 2010 Access Cab 4WD (112k miles) in to the dealership Jan 14th for frame inspection. I figured they would just end up spraying the frame as it was in pretty good condition with very little visible rust. The tech said they found a dime sized rust hole near the catalytic converter, and that the truck was covered for frame replacement under warranty. I had them order the frame and they said I could still drive my truck while I wait for the new one to come in (30-90 days). I got a call Monday saying that the new frame and parts were at the dealership, and to come in to start the swap. I also had them replace spark plugs and my 10 year old battery. The guy at the desk told me it could take up to a week to finish. Okay, no problem, whatever. They didn't have any Tacoma's I could borrow in the meantime so they sent me down to Enterprise to rent something. I don't know why Toyota wouldn't want to keep me brand loyal and maybe let me borrow a new model Tacoma in hopes I'd buy. Enterprise gave me a 2019 Dodge Ram 1500. The thing was a monster with a 5.7L Hemi.
Anywho, I get a call Tuesday afternoon saying that the tech broke one of my rear shocks and my drivers side tie rod end during removal due to "excessive rust" and that I would have to pay out of pocket to have them replaced, and that it's recommended to have both shocks done. I understand why you would want to do both shocks at the same time, Labor would be free. I unhappily agreed to have them order two new rear shocks and a new tie rod end. I felt swindled. You break it, you buy it.
I got a call on Wednesday evening telling me my truck was done. Two guys banged out a whole tear down and reassemble in day two days. Seemed fast, but I guess when you don't torque any bolts to spec, and use an air ratchet for everything the job goes quick. I picked the truck this morning and drove to work, only to find that I had to pump the brakes a lot and my brake pedal feels like mush. On my way home tonight I discovered that my fog lights no longer work. Other than that she drives great.
I understand it's a big job with lots of parts and things can go wrong, but I guess the questions I have now are; Do I have any recourse as far as reimbursement for the parts THEY broke, and who's balls am I gonna have to rub down at the dealership to get my fog lights fixed and brakes bled properly?

 

You okayed the shock repair. Too late to say anything about that. You can say they should have paid for it but they're just just going to show that you gave consent to pay for the oem shocks and installing. Thats something you handle before you say okay. For the price of oem shocks you could have gone 5100 or 5160s

For the rest? Just go back, plain and simple. Doesn't have to be anyone in particular, just choose a service advisor and tell them. Better yet just call.

Just call and tell them. Not sure what else can be done

Imo

 

OP, be nice when you go back to the dealer to have the repairs done, attitude will get you nowhere...good luck, you should be fine.

 

If original, your shocks were toast anyways, I’m not surprised they broke during removal. Toyota covered a HUGE job for you so that you could have peace of mind and reliability for years to come... I’d call it good! Congrats on the new frame!

Edit - definitely go see them about the fogs though.

 

Instead of getting upset, take the truck back to the dealer and ask that they fix the fog lights. There is a very good change they just forgot to plug them in.

If you have not changed the brake fluid in a few years, I wouldn't worry about that. Brake fluid takes on water over time and removing the brake lines can sometimes cause air in the lines that cause squishy brakes. I would just make it a point to go to an independent shop sometime soon and do a brake fluid flush. It's routine maint anyways I wouldn't make Toyota foot the bill, it's seperate from the frame replacement and not that expensive.

On the shocks. I personally would have changed the WHOLE suspension out while they were in there. Suspensions are a wear item. They need to be replaced anyways. You might as well have gotten free labor out of it.
No way I would let them take out the rusty shitty ass leaf packs and put them back in. No way.
I would have bought all new suspension parts and had them install. I think not doing that was your mistake, not having to pay for a broken coil.

It's pretty consistent that everyone has to pay for broken suspension components during a frame swap. They rust horribly over time. Another reason to replace everything. Would suck if a coil snapped driving down the road because you got to cheap to replace it. After 10 years your fronts needed redoing as well.

That's just how I see it.

I don't think you got swindled. Although, I'm like you. I like to know what I'm getting into up front. If I know I'm going to have to pay for something, I want to know it at the beginning. I don't like mystery invoices.

 

The brakes need to be bled with their TechStream tool so the ABS unit is done correctly.

The master should be full of clear fluid when done

After they square that up for you, fluid film your frame/undercarriage so you don't have a repeat issue.

 

Fortunately he probably got new leaf packs. Front coils would be original and it would have been advantageous to swap them free labor. Lots of options with people taking them off new all the time as a simple bolt in set. (I recently just swapped easily sourced on TW new third gen stuff in my 2015)

Back when i had my 2003 they did the swap in 2 days. Easier swap in my opinion compared to newer models. I had to pay to service the ebrakes. They worked but not great. It was optional work.

Have them repair the brakes. It sounds like a flush or bleed issue they will gladly fix fiven the ramifications of not doing it.

 

If the dealer used the words "excessive rust" as the reason for the shock and tierod end breaking, it should have been covered by the frame warranty. See attached, page 5 line 8 of the settlement agreement. Your shock and tierod incidentally broke during the repair process. Not much you can do about it now, they already took your money.

They should have bled the brakes with new fluid since as far as I can tell, the truck gets all new brake lines with the frame, and they can't separate the cab from the frame without disconnecting the brake lines. Your fog lights may be as simple as not being plugged back in. Techs got in a hurry at the end, and forgot to plug them in under the hood.

My truck is currently at the dealer awaiting a new frame. I was told it should be in around the 26th of this month.

 

Frame, lcas, hard lines brake,trans if auto.
If done the Toyota way all fluids should be fresh.
AC should also had been purged and recharged.

Thier work comes with a 1yr Toyota warranty according to Toyota’s customer care people.

Really happy with how mine turned out. I bought parts like shocks etc it was time and it cost very little at pick up.


They should be including the lower intermediate steering shaft also.
Not yet I guess.
I bought one from another online dealer with some other stuff I wanted oem.
Thought about seeing if I can be reembursed but I’m happy it’s like new again kinda.

 

Thanks for the reply. I did my brakes, rotors, and passenger side caliper back in July 2018. I replaced my brake fluid at that time, and toyota replaced it when they did the frame swap, along with new brake lines. My brake pedal was firm and responsive when I brought it to the dealership, and it should be that way when I get it back. I have no bad blood with the dealership or tech and I'm not really too upset about having to replace the rear suspension ( although I much rather would have done the front). Truth is, I would have just bought Bilsteins for the front and rear but money is really tight right now. I'll do the fronts myself once the weather gets a bit warmer. My leaf springs were actually in really good shape and I'm okay with them going back on the truck. Maybe swap them out a bit down the line. As for the fog lights, I'm sure it's probably a 5 min fix, but since it's there for brakes I'll have them check it out.

 

Best of luck on the frame swap. Let us know how it goes.

 

Unfortunately, leaf packs were not covered in this campaign. Mine were in decent shape so I was okay with them going back on the truck. I'll probably swap them out, as well as front suspension, later this year. Thanks for the reply.

 

I'm a very patient and level headed guy. I have no beef with the dealer. They did a good job aside from some pretty minor things. Yeah, I'm out of pocket a few hundred dollars that I wasn't really prepared for, but I also did a lot of reading up on frame swaps on this forum before taking mine in. I knew the potential, and common problems people had after having this big of a job done. Brakes and suspension were among some of those problems. I'm in no rush. I just need the work to be done to Toyota's standard. I'm a fairly young guy with little interaction with dealerships. This was a good learning experience for me. Thanks for the reply.

 

Shit happens. Go back, be polite, don’t act like a horses ass. Most likely the fog lights are just unplugged. I’ve done this before myself. And they probably just forgot to bleed the abs module, 5 min job. With big jobs like that snags happen. Bolts break, parts break, shit just happens.

I just did a motor swap on my tc, on that job I cracked the throttle body, bent the power steering pump pulley, accidentally dumped all the tranny fluid, broke a 10mm bolt holding down the upper core support, but everything got fixed. It’s a piece of machinery made out of metal, plastic and rubber. Be polite and I’m sure Toyota will take care of it

 

Not quite too late actually. One could easily argue that the agreement for the shocks was under duress (and therefore not a legally enforceable contract) since they were being dishonest in requesting reimbursement for them and had the truck in their possession.

 

itd be tough to prove IMO but you do have a point.

 

You don't have to prove it, its not criminal. Civil litigation is a lot more lenient than "beyond a reasonable doubt". It would come down to balance of probabilities and what was going on in the plaintiff's mind at the time.

Ever wonder why OJ got off on the criminal trial, but nailed in civil court? That's why.

And note that for the cost of a set of shocks, it wouldn't go very far before settlement. Probably all that would be needed is to call up Toyota corp and make a proper complaint about the dealership charging extra.