Buying a winter truck

I found this truck on Autotrader and went to look at it with my dad. The body has a little rust, but it has a new frame. It's in good shape for having 270,000 miles. I've been looking for another truck to drive in winter so I can keep my Tacoma nice. My 03 Tacoma has 274,000 miles and also has a new frame. My dad checked the oil in the Tundra and it was really low. We think it's leaking oil because we saw rainbow colors in the puddles near the truck.The airbag light is on and was supposed to be fixed when it got the frame. I enjoyed driving it because it's a lot like my truck. When my dad drove it, he put it in 4wd. We felt it kick in, but the light on the switch kept flashing. My dad thinks there's something wrong. I wish it had a 4wd shifter like mine. The owners agreed to letting a mechanic check it out and lowering the price. They were wanting $6700.

 

Sounds like you’d be buy8ng a bunch of gremlins in a rusty, high-mileage cage. I’d pass.

 

too much for high mileage

 

My parents and I were thinking $4000. It's getting checked out at a Toyota dealer Friday. It will probably be a waste of money but I'm gonna pay for it. I'd like to see how it looks under the fender flares. If there's rust under there, maybe that could help lower the price. My dad and I were shocked at how bad the rust was under my Taco's rear flares. To our surprise, there was none under the front flares. My dad bought the Taco new and always took good care of it. He sold it to me when he bought a used 2011 Tundra. Luckily, my dad has a friend who does great body work for great prices, and now my truck looks great!

 

This is the kind of thing I'm seeing in the market up here (Northeast), it's such a joke. So many beaten up high mileage tundras listed for $6k+, as if they were from a non-rust belt state. Pretty annoying dealing with the owners too, 'I know what I've got.' These prices have to drop at some point.

 

My parents ended up paying for the Tundra inspection and calling it my Christmas present. I didn't buy the truck because it would be too expensive to repair. I just got this 05 Taco so my truck shopping is finally over. The frame ain't pretty, but solid for the most part. I'm gonna take it to the guy who repaired my other truck. He welds frames all the time and does a really good job.

 

Congrats! I’m glad I don’t have to deal with rust. How much did you pay for the taco?

 

It was $8900 but I got him down to $8500.

 

Miles on the ‘05?

 

218,000

 

Ok, time for an update. I took my 05 Taco to a Toyota dealer to get the leaf springs replaced. That's when I was told that the truck wasn't safe to drive because the frame was so bad. I took it back to the dealer I bought it from and they bought it back! Now it's for sale again and the frame has been welded. It was a bad experience, but now I know for sure I've found the right truck! I found this one on craigslist. It's a 98 Dodge Ram in mint condition with very low miles! No rust and the dash isn't falling apart ! It's super fun to drive and turns a lot of heads! I finally got the truck I've always wanted! I think my 03 Taco is jealous!

 

Wow! Only 39000 miles on a 22 year old truck. Nice shape.

 

Love the tweed seats haha.

From the pics I saw of the red 05 I definitely saw rust on the frame, was worried for you!

 

I cant believe the dealership just welded the frame and put the Tacoma back up for sale

Which engine is in the Ram? The 3.9 and 5.2 are both solid engines. They'll outlast the body and essentially everything else on the truck lol

 

Mine is a 5.9 gas which is a gas chugger that is a bit underpowered. I love the truck though and I'm already thinking of getting a 12-valve Cummins put in there!

 

Here's more recent pics. I'm planning on replacing the bed cap with a cover.

 

Even though it's a dodge on Toyota forums...lol Nice truck!

 

I appreciate the fact that you named your trucks, OP. Haha.

 

I named my Tacoma Derek after this cartoon truck! Check out Derek's new grille mod!

 

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