Question for northern Taco owners

I’ve recently acquired Tacoma from Maryland a 2013 with 83,000 miles. Very nice truck, well kept, never missed an oil change at the same dealer. I feel like the frame is 9/10 condition. Now I say all of this to get to my point.

I’ve been having some AC issues and tried to get to the bottom of it. Step 1 was removing the skid plate, and in doing so I broke 3/4 bolts. So I got an extractor set and broke 2 of those. I have now quit. A shop can get it sorted out this week.

my main question is for you guys with northern trucks do you find actual bolts in the engine to be tough like that to remove? Or just exterior exposed bolts. I actually stopped on removing the AC compressor on my own because I was afraid those bolts may just snap also.

am I overthinking it?

 

CT guy here. Just my experience, but I’ve always found engine-related bolts easier to remove than chassis bolts or through-bolts that are exposed to the elements, especially on the backside.

Don’t overthink it. I always stick to hand tools when possible. A little trick I’ve had luck with is to slightly tighten the bolt before loosening. If it starts feeling tight or wants to bind on the way out, thread it back in a bit and hit it with a quality penetrating spray. I personally like PB Blaster. It’s never let me down.

 

This is all true. Chassis bolts are far more likely to snap than engine bolts unless it's subjected to constant and extreme thermal cycling. Think exhaust fasteners which go from ambient temp to a few hundred degrees then back to ambient.

Snapped bolts suck and it takes experience of breaking some to know whats gonna break and what wouldn't for a diy'er something like an inductive heater can be quite safe and effective for dealing with fasteners you think might break. As an example of one.

$150 Magnetic Induction Heater Kit,Induction Heater Bolt Removal,1200W 110V Hand Held Induction Bolt Removal Tool,Heat Induction Tool For Rusty Screw Removing with 4 Coils and Box

https://www.amazon.com/Magnetic-Induction-Heater-Removal-Removing/dp/B0DLWGB8M8?crid=4XL51DQKJND3&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5REBoQ3koEfTIAUgpt7YfOu2S5f4Pne1Nx7qjGoFzwE824X7xo9Uik6T5MAxnCx7bVWiUJ0YDe_-yotuigpI8OQpDbCTaAk0nhHKp3uBAYbVTgDz9nuxZXjDT2nyah2_7U3HHw4mxlrVA0N9W_zQw8IuNpruaqd9Qa6trh4hB-GM_R-t1ZkT1C80BX-sN4qQmC38DeHoUeJplndf42ARLQ.g6DLQ9ARnaZ0mjIr3D7FNreZiz_OiVN3K1KHlZOsJso&dib_tag=se&keywords=hot+rod+induction&qid=1754196550&sprefix=hot+rod+ind%2Caps%2C163&sr=8-2-spons&sp_csd=d2lkZ2V0TmFtZT1zcF9waG9uZV9zZWFyY2hfYXRm

Also when you replace your compressor, I highly recommend flushing the A/c system with a flush gun and solvent. Also your condenser (which contains the filter-dryer) and TXV should be replaced too. Those things can't really be flushed adequately to assure that some rogue debris doesn't get back to your new compressor and kill it too.

Edit: watch some car repair videos from guys in the rust belt to get an idea of both what to look for and how to deal with broken bolts... it wouldn't replace hands on experience but it's better than nothing. This guy is pretty decent. I think he's in NY state https://youtube.com/@southmainauto?si=sKHdg1UjXRQqsiIO

 

^That's a great channel with first-rate diagnostics. In his experience/region, vehicles are ready for the salvage yard after 10 years, which if true means there should be little or no surviving 2nd gens in upstate NY.