Where is the best place to purchase a new frame?

So I've been toying around with the idea of buying a first gen in my area that has some frame rust or other frame issues (I know of one right now that has a buckled frame) and trying to replace the frame with a new one, if I can find both the truck and the new frame for the right price.

Does anyone have experience tackling a project like this?

Where'd you source your frame (assuming it was NOT covered under warranty by Toyota)? Is the dealer the only or best option? Are there third party options? Should I consider buying a wrecked southern vehicle with a good frame and swapping them out with a third party frame shop? (I do not plan to swap the frame myself, but have a dealership or independent shop do it).

Thanks in advance for any suggestions!

 

All I can tell you is that I was doing a lap around my local dealer and they had a stack of frames sitting in the back .

 

$$$$$$$$

 

Haha yeah, I know it's probably stupid expensive from the dealer, which is why I'm trying to think outside of the box. Even if it were pricey, it still might come in cheaper than what people are asking for a clean rust free example in my neck of the woods (cincinnati).

 

some recent local checking I have done...
with new frame + mechanic labor @ $100 hour it would be $11k to $14k, not including some 'other' replaceable parts while its disassembled
a good collision body shop that can swap a new frame is probably $7k to $9k
get a used salvaged frame and the cost would go down a couple grand perhaps?

cost of 'similarly equipped' new 3rd gen is quite a bit more than that for comparisons... $30k to $50k+ +all those future bugs no one knows about yet!!!

the best option imo for us midWesterners and east coasters is to maybe have a 'survivors club' somewhere centrally located to migrate to for 'surgery' ... like a MAYO clinic?
with a good crew of knowledgeable and dedicated wrenchers that actually give a ratzass about saving the winter Taco!
tag team this chit!

 

Wow that expensive??!! I was thinking about 2-3k for new frame and maybe 3-4k for labor work, 10k sound like it could be in the ballpark but wouldn't be justifiable. Maybe those were dealer prices though? Based on that info the best option would simply be to find one in the south or out west and drive it home, skip all the headaches of frame replacement in the first place!

 

dealer mechanic prices way more expensive i think as they charge (around here) almost $140/hr now
that mechanic labor approximate quote was from an indie Toyota/Lexus only certified knows his Toyotas!


it depends on the situation I suppose, my situation is probably different than your situation or anybody else situation, still looking for somebody in the same boat as i