3rd Gen. Toasted

Reviving this thread 2 years later to bring round two of folded Tacos.

This truck was just dropped at the body shop.
He had just bought this truck to replace a Ford ranger. (He works at the same dealer as me.)
Don't think he'd be alive if he had been driving the ranger.
Him and his girlfriend walked away from this. Makes me feel a little safer in these trucks.

And as a bonus he can still resell the truck on craigslist for 35k in the current market.



























May 8th 2020 (Original Post below)

It always surprises how much it takes to total our trucks, even when the damage requires a frame replacement they almost always get the new frame and are put back on the road. At our shop I’ve only ever seen 2 Tacoma’s total, this is one of them. This truck wasn’t an easy total either, in the end, like the last Tacoma, it took deeming it a structural total loss just to finish it.

I’m curious what kind of hits y’all’s trucks have taken and made it back to the road/trail.


LCA Mount destroyed


Strut tower mount twisted back


Radiator support & upper rail buckled

 

I personally wouldn’t buy a new vehicle that was totaled.

New vehicle totaled means a lot of damage.

man older vehicle on the other hand, could’ve been relatively minor damage but the vehicle wasn’t worth fixing due to value, that would be a safer bet.

 

Shoot, give that thing an alignment and some bondo and it's back on the road!

 

My truck got rear ended about a year into owning it. Was about 4k in damages. The lady who hit me tried to run by hitting 80 in the fast lane until she realized I was right on her ass. My hitch put a hole in her radiator right into the engine block.

 

If it's 4WD, cheap enough, and I was looking for a wheelin truck I might consider it. Otherwise, no.

 

I'll ask you OP - would you buy it, repair it and keep it for yourself? Is it worth it?

 

Sad to say. But, you're right.
It will end up at an auction, then off to a rat hole shop.

 

I completely agree. If it was previously repaired and i can't confirm it was done properly and to OEM procedures I would steer clear!

 

Absolutely, IF I could actually get it for a cheap enough price to make it worth my time and money. These frame replacements really aren't that bad if you have lift access. The upper rails are a pretty cheap purchase under $100. This specific truck is also a limited. But it will probably end up going to a hack shop after auction.

 

I got rear ended just the other day by some fool in a 4-runner not even a scratch. People say the rear bumpers are junk but I can confirm they do work.


https://youtu.be/MQ85BDR8FxI

 

That's amazing didn't even make it out of the parking lot. I'm definitely investing in a dash cam soon, it's on the list. love how she didn't even look up until impact...

 

Looks like a Limited, leather and JBL. Probably worth more in parts.

 

Cheap enough with the intention of cutting the fenders and going 35s or 37s? Hell yeah. For a reliable daily driver, nope.

 

Gonna have to disagree. If you miss the hitch, there is nothing there but a little plastic.

 

What impresses me are the pics that I see where folks are saying that they were in accidents going highway speed, the Taco is crushed appropriately, and the folks say that they got a scratch or two.

In my past experience, it seemed that owning a pickup gave you about the same chances as riding a motorcycle. It does not seem to be that way with the Tacos.

 

Also, I am now thinking about gusseting my LCA mounts.

 

It's funny, often I hear people say, "They don't make em' like they used too" and I will answer with "thank God for that". In a similar accident with an old vehicle the passenger or driver may have not made it out alive or without serous injuries.. in this case the body took the force like a champ and absorbed all impact with zero intrusion into the passenger compartment.

 

Worked at Lambo McLaren dealership for almost 7 years and saw some DEEEESTROYEDDD cars where the clients walked away with not even a scratch, meanwhile the car is split in 3 pieces wit the front clip in another zip code and the rear subframe in a different state. Crash structures doing their job distributing the impact collision to the front and rear subframes whole the cabin is like a cacoone.

 

Same thing happened to me, the Mazda3 that rear ended me caught on fire and my truck looked untouched. It was a nice way for insurance to pay for a steel plate bumper though

 

Hard to believe that's totaled! There is a lot of good parts there! Worth a lot as a parts truck.