What is this rusted out out piece under my Tacoma?

There is a completely rusted out piece of metal on the exhaust of my 04 TRD. I assume it is a heat shield? I haven’t had any luck searching for a replacement. Any pointers?

 

the crappy metal of the muffler falling apart

 

Gotcha, so not a separate piece? I guess nothing to worry about unless there is a hole in the muffler? Planning on wire brushing and fluid filming this summer.

 

nope its not a separate piece. might be past the point of return for cleaning it up but if theres no holes ide say shes fine

 

FYI, You can’t really fluid film your exhaust. It’ll burn right off.

 

Right--I guess I meant more in general because of the general rustiness. But that is good to know!

 

There's no fixing that muffler. Replace it with a stainless steel one.

 

Best product for rust prep for paint
Corroseal Water-Based Rust Converter Metal Primer, Rust Converter - 1 Gal,82331

$62 Water-Based Rust Converter Metal Primer, Rust Converter - 1 Gallon

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B001CRETZW/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_C69J64AZACQGNFZ3SK58
Must haves

 

And smell

 

Thanks! I was planning on wire brushing the rear dif (some scaling, got a good amount of it off already), then degreasing and painting with POR15. Then for most of the rest of the undercarriage just wire wheeling and cleaning before a fluid film coat. Is corroseal a better option then a different paint? Since I read POR15 likes a someone rough/rusty surface to cling to.

 

I had a 2005 Nissan Altima that had a muffler that looked like that. It was a little worse each year but it passed inspection each year since it did not have a hole all the way through. And it was the original muffler from the car. Now if the engine cradle rusting hadn't made the car worth keeping I would have replaced it with another OEM muffler since the first one lasted 15 years. But I would plan soon to replace it with a stainless steel replacement. Is it original to the truck?

 

Gotcha, yeah that sounds like a good idea. I might wait it out a bit more then replace. It definitely is the original muffler. It is actually my girlfriends truck, she just got it. But I've been obsessing over it and doing deep dives into this forum. So far I've done spark plugs and wires, PCV valve, air filter, cleaned out throttle body and MAF, swapped rear dif fluid and replaced the plugs, and replaced a rusted mud flap bracket.

We are bringing it to the body shop to get a wheel arch welded in, some rust holes there.

Other issues I've identified include steering rack leaking fluid somewhat slowly. Stock LBJ at 141k giving me some worry. Trying to get it to be safe and reliable and also stop the rust as much as possible. (Without bankrupting ourselves). Here in Maine the roads are pretty nasty...

Not to mention the leaky ARE camper shell, and stock bedliner that might be hiding a rusty bed... plenty of work to do. Not having a garage and doing this all in the snow in 20 degree weather has been fun.

 

I won't ever use POR again.
Corriseal works best for rust conversion and primes for paint.
Plus it sprays easily inside box frame sections with undercoating gun using 360° wand extension which can be Fluid Filmed over after drying.
These frames rust from inside out.

 

Welcome to TW! Pop over to the Maine thread if you have not already been there.

 

This site says that this fits an 04 with my specs. Can you simply swap this out and bolt a new one in?
https://www.theautopartsshop.com/sk...rticleID=7faf4fe5-7b0f-4e32-9e66-828455bb6d46

I haven't seen the Maine thread, will check it out. Thanks!

 

And....save your time and money trying to repair that muffler. Nothing you do will extend it's life to make it worthwhile. And if you try to get all the extra rust off from it you will probably only succeed in thinning out what is left of the good metal on it and accelerating the end of it's life rather than prolonging it. Any type of rust treatment will burn off anyways.

 

Give that frame the hammer test all over before anything else.

 

The description does not say stainless so that muffler in Maine's weather, and with what they put on the roads, will look like your current muffler in 2-5 years. Better to pay a little more now and get one that is stainless than have to have the exhaust done every 3 years or so. Exhaust is not a fun repair and it always seems to fight you when you try to replace it and more times than not the repair ends up being more extensive than you anticipate. Check out a good exhaust shop and compare their price. They might surprise you with what they charge, and hopefully in a good way. Estimates are free!!!!

 

I'll look for a shop locally for the muffler situation. Also, I should've mentioned it has a new frame from 2014. Tiny bit of surface rust but very solid and hammer tested.

 

So, say I Corroseal the rear dif and axle. Would I need to paint over that after converting the rust? Or just FF after. If I needed to paint, do you have a recommendation for what paint to use?