Need Some help with my Tacoma 3rd gen.

About 10 months ago, my insurance overlapped, and I was driving after being awake for three days. I had been hustling with my lawn care business. After leaving a client's house, I was driving my 3rd-gen Tacoma TRD Off-Road. Everything seemed fine—no issues with the brakes or anything else. But I was so tired that I fell asleep behind the wheel while driving at around 30-40 miles per hour. I could still see a little bit, but when you're that exhausted, the chances of an accident are high.

I ended up driving into a ditch, popped a tire, and smashed the A-frame into the cab. The driver's side was crushed, the brake booster was damaged, and the ABS cord snapped. I called a friend for help, and he covered the tow truck costs. We took the truck to a friend of mine who’s a mechanic—he served in the military as one. He got the truck drivable, except for the A-frame on the driver’s side.

However, there was still a major issue with the brakes. The truck was drivable, but after a few miles, the brakes would lock up. The brake pedal would sink in, and the ABS and traction control lights would come on. To get it moving, I’d have to lift the brake pedal. My friend tried fixing the brakes, but the problem persisted. So, I took it to Toyota for a check-up. They inspected it but declined to offer service.

I then reached out to a trusted mechanic who added me to their calendar, but it took three weeks for them to start working on the truck. When I finally got back to my hometown, I drove the truck into town the next day, and the brakes failed completely. I had to use the emergency brake to stop. I went to Advance Auto, bought some brake fluid, and added it to the system. I noticed a small puddle of brake fluid in the front, but after pumping the brakes, the codes cleared. I managed to drive it to the mechanic's shop, but about three miles into the drive, the brakes failed again, and I had to add more fluid.

After three weeks of repairs, they replaced the brake pads, rotors, and everything else. They test drove it, but the brakes kept locking up. After running some tests, the scanner showed the issue was with the brake booster. They ordered a new one and installed it, but when they test drove it again the next morning, the same issue happened. They suspect they might know what’s causing the problem, but I’m not sure what the next step is.

I also took the truck to an auto body shop where they straightened the A-frame. I’ve learned a valuable lesson from all of this: always have insurance, and always get enough sleep. The whole experience ended up costing me out-of-pocket, but it’s been a learning process.

 

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I fix the grammar I was focusing typing it. I fix the whole post and put into chat GPT got they fix it now it’s easy to read I appreciate it.

 

just busting your balls… With the loss of brake fluid is there like a line missing or bad fitting somewhere or improper bleeding (would imagine it’s hard to bleed if it’s leaking fluid) if the parts are good again.. There’s a lot of things to check out it sounds like, more pics under the hood, brake lines. As many pics as possible might help here..

 

I don't have the Tacoma with me; it's still at the shop. I wish I had taken pictures yesterday. They first checked the brake lines and said they were good. They replaced all the brakes and rotors, then hooked up the scanner. The ABS code popped up, indicating that the brake booster needed to be replaced. They ordered the part, it came in, and they installed it, along with some computer adjustments to ensure the Tacoma was properly connected. When they test drove it yesterday, the truck drove normally, and there was no brake pedal issue. The problem seemed fixed. They told me to hold on while they did more tests this morning. However, when they drove it down the road and were coming back, the old issue reappeared but no codes popped up. That's where I'm at right now.