Bought My First Tacoma – Now I’m Stuck with a Bent Frame

Hey everyone,


I wanted to share my bad experience buying my first 2021 Tacoma, hoping it helps others avoid the same mistake. Please be gentle I’m already feeling terrible about this. Also, English is not my first language, and it took me a while to write this.
Five months ago, I bought a used Tacoma from a used car dealer. At the time, everything seemed fine. Recently, I replaced the leveling kit with a proper lift kit and took it in for an alignment. That’s when I got the bad news.
The mechanic took one look at it and said, “I wish I had better news, but your truck was hit hard on the front left. The frame is bent.” He didn’t even need to put it on the alignment rack—just by eyeing it, he could tell something was seriously wrong. Then he showed me the poor-quality, Mickey Mouse repairs that had been done to cover up the damage. Now I’m stuck with five years of payments on a truck that’s basically only good for parts. I know I made a lot of mistakes when buying it, and I’ve learned my lesson.

 

That can be fixed and fixed well with someone with some metal fab and welding skills.

 

If it aligns then dont worry about. It looks like someone tried to replace the cam tabs and welding isnt their best skill.

 

Welcome! Sorry to hear.

 

You need a second opinion from a shop capable of making any needed repair.

BTW, your 2nd language English is better than a lot of the 1st language English we see around here. Don't care if you might have had translator assistance, you did just fine.

 

Thank you all for your advice and positive comments. I just finished talking to the dealer who sold me the truck. Even though I bought it six months ago, they asked me to send pictures of the damages along with the mechanic’s repair estimate, which came out to $2,500 to straighten the frame.

 

Welcome to TW! Good luck!

 

English as a second language but a perfectly placed use of the Mickey Mouse idiom. Good stuff.