2004 taco still eligible for frame replacement?

IF HAVE 01-04' TACOMA READ: I see many questions/concerns on thread. Toyota offered extended warranty 01-04' Toyota due to underbody rust issues for an additional 15 years after first date of use. 95-2000 were bought back while 01-04 had no frame 'recall' ONLY inspection, and IF in cold weather state and passed inspection should have had RUST PROOF UNDERCOATING applied. my 04 Tocoma which just hit 200K and is in great condition but frame is trashed! (body shop reported not normal wear and tear even for living in MN) Toyota initially denied claim, however, Upon some digging found out my vehicle passed inspect in 2010 but NEVER got underbody coating; I now am awaiting corporate to call regarding this. DO DIGGING, if a dealership did NOT apply proper undercoating with inspection and your in a cold weather state I would pursue new frame. I will update with my progress.

 

Any updates toyotafan1986? Very interested if your successful and where you found your information.

 

No luck. I got my info from toyota directly, had claim # and had my case sent up chain but SOL. Supposedly when brought my truck in for inspect/ undercoating they never undecorated but in fine print said they recommended. I brought in my truck in to that dealership multiple times aftrr and never said a word. Since didnt get under body coated outta luck and even if had I missed the 15 yr deadline by a month... I fought dealer and toyota but had no luck. Needless to say bought a new vehicle, and not a toyota...

 

You realize that all other brands are going to rust just as badly as this one did, especially when you ignore it for many many years. Toyota is the only manufacturer I'm aware of that even offered a frame replacement warranty.

But yeah, let's blame Toyota for that rust just appearing out of nowhere.

 

My 13 year old Subaru’s frame is fine, and we have months of winter. Not every vehicle on the road has a frame that implodes after 10 or 15 years.

 

Is it a unibody Subaru or body-on-frame like the Tacoma?

 

No, but a lot do. Especially the ones with boxed body on frame construction.

 

do the Rangers S-10s Dakotas of the late 90s have the same or do you know
I may have to widen my base of local knowledge & inspection since the local salvage lot has nearly 100 of those 3 make and model combined and only 2 or 3 old Tacomas currently

 

Are these vehicles made with metal and shaped in such a way that salty water will tend to sit and collect?

Then yes.

Are you going for a PhD in frame rust or something? I think you're over thinking it.

 

normal VS accelerated 'abnormal' is what i am after i suppose


it would be nice to chop off some taco frame at the lot and apply the secret toyota coating to it with other products and do some salty testing


this could all be due to USER error and neglect but IDK
i have done some recent chopping of frames at the salvage lot and the hugest pile of dirt (probably mud at one time) came spilling out along with rusty chunks

 

It’s unibody.
It is good that Toyota has looked after thousands of owners, just sucks if you get passed over because of some fine print.

 

The "rust thing" has been known about for decades, and Toyota gave everyone 15 years from the original date of purchase to figure it out. To anyone who pays the least bit of attention to the condition of their vehicles, 15 years should be more than enough time to sort it out.

It sucks when someone ends up buying a rust bucket, but those folks also likely didn't do any research on the truck they were thinking of buying, and definitely didn't look under the truck and inspect it before buying it either.

 

True, new buyers though just know about Toyota’s legendary reliability

 

who is 'everyone' ??

i do not consider myself to be 'everyone' I had no clue about this issue before TW only what the dealer would tell me while in for routine services and their inspections, which was NOTHING other than looks good, have seen worse, good to go!
not everybody out there is connected to automotive forums, some 1st gen Tacoma owners may have been older people (perhaps even women that bot a hot little truck but don't know nuts from bolts!) that never did much of anything under their truck, they outsourced their normal routine maintenance, left it in the hands of a professional mechanic

the few trucks I have found recently at the local salvage lot probably had no idea about it either and did not go get their frame checked, i still need to run the carFax on them to see more about their history, but their frames were probably 'bad' 10 years years ago

 

I submit into evidence this post, as it relates to my earlier post about why dealerships suck ass. If anything, blindly trusting what a mechanic says should be a lesson in "trust, but verify". If you feel something is off, ask them to show you why, or better yet go to another shop and get a 2nd opinion.

Back in the 90's I was looking into buying my first car. The internet was barely a thing, but I still managed to educate myself on what the good and bad was for a car(s) I was considering buying. It's a huge purchase. 25 years later it's still one of the top 20 single most expensive things I've purchased. I read magazine articles, I even went to a local mechanic my dad knew and talked to him about it. Now we have these amazing things in our pockets. You don't need to be a long time member of an enthusiast forum, but merely be a semi proficient user of the Googles.

It's also a regional thing. People in CA generally don't have a need to worry about frame rust because it doesn't happen here. Other areas deal more with hot weather (AZ), so they need to worry more about cooling and a/c issues (generally speaking). It's our responsibility to know those things and how they affect our cars.

 

some older folks 'retired or whatever' or women that may not know nuts from bolts may have taken their Tacoma to mechanics other than Toyota certified mechanics, how would those shops know anything about what is going on while under there to spot any trouble?


its the literal PURE BS that i get when i call the customer service 800# with questions i have to verify and can get absolutely nowhere!
so back i goto TW and do more digging into the past here to find some good answers and i have found quite a few
thank you TW!

i know full well about body panel rot and perforations and strived to keep my truck clean as i could in that area, routinely washing out the wheel wells, tailgate and rocker panels, etc.

 

Whether folks like it or not, or whether folks 'morally' feel Toyota should've down more, etc... You notice it's a pattern of life and decision making. Many people have lived their whole lives not accepting all the responsibility for their decisions.
Like you, I believe it is on the owner/operator to get educated about your vehicle. Actually not even a belief. IT IS ON YOU TO TAKE CARE OF YOUR OWN STUFF. You spent a lot on it(or little)! Freaking protect it! No more whining and crying. We have the internet! No more excuses for poor choices and decisions. Own it and learn from it.
(Kinda weird we need to have the 'becoming an adult and becoming accountable for our decisions and purchases' talk here)

 

i should also mention there maybe people out there that do not know its not a good idea to park a sloppy vehicle in a heated garage in the middle of the winter that most likely compounds anything that is not cleaned off in the bowels

thank goodness my garage is not heated!

 

Adulting... it's a bitch sometimes!

 

You're freaking telling me! It sure is man! I've made too many bad decisions I've had to pay the price for! And some I haven't made, thanks to folks sharing their experiences and helping me avoid the same