03 frame advice

Hello,
Im looking at 03 Tacoma thats 6 hrs away, the dealer said the frame is in great shape just alittle surface rust. I had him send a couple pics. Does this look bad to you guys? Worth checking out being 6hrs away?

 

Hard to say with this one. These frames rot from the inside out, so most of the time the worst is unseen. The only way to really know is to get under it and hit the frame in a few places with a hammer and listen to the sound. If it makes a clunk and you hear rust falling, I'd run, if it sounds solid and gives a nice metal sound, then you are in good shape. If you do make the drive make sure you check where the leaf springs connect to the frame in the front, as this is a known problem area. I would definitely be cautious with this one; the pictures don't look too promising, but as the dealer said, it could just be on the surface.

 

If it's what you are looking for options/price wise, it is definitely worth looking at. There is not enough rust shown in the pics to prevent going and doing as suggested by RVA_TRD above, confirming condition. Then decide on price point.

 

Thanks guys! Ill have to try the hammer method if I can make it over there.. its seems like a nice truck, its a 03 sr5 with 146k theyre asking 11k for it

 

I have a good rust free frame being in the south. It does have surface rust, the entire thing is a dull rust color but it rings like a bell with a hammer.

That frame seems to be black up to the mounting points, which in my opinion means it has been sprayed or coated with something, which is not good as the rust will get worse. It could also indicate that a previous owner or the dealer is trying to cover up a problem. With that much rust where the bolts are, the rest should have surface rust like mine, not be black.

The hammer test is the surefire way to know, but pictures don't look good.

 

It looks like the frame might have undercoating applied to it. It could very well be a total disaster under the under coating.

To me, the rust in the second pic looks pretty bad. Be very weary of this frame.

 

Where has the truck lived since it was born ?