Anyone Recognize This Bolt? Found under my skid plate.

Hey guys,

I found a bolt that had rattled loose from somewhere in the engine compartment and ended up on my skid plate.

I have posted a photo of the bolt, it looks like it's 2 Inches long and 10MM with a washer.


Does anyone have any ideas on where it could possibly go??

 

Look at the brackets on the front of the engine.

Work on anything lately or have work done??

If So look to those areas it might have been dropped and replaced with a new one .

Just how did you happen to find it??

Any of your friends like to play jokes like puddles of oil or gear lube under the truck add extra hardware when your working on things??

 

That looks exactly like one of the front recovery hook bolts on my 1st gen, except they're 17mm bolts. Same kind of bolt though, flanged and only threaded on the top half with a washer

 

Toyota says this is normal.

 

With the ring of dirt on the washer and the yellowish rust on the threads, this bolt was definitely used and fell out from somewhere. Unfortunately I can't help with a location. I will look under my truck when it's daylight but it will properly be easier for you to find an empty bolt hole.

 

I haven't had any work done lately, I just saw the bolt sticking out of the gap in my skid plate after I went snow wheeling. The truck still drives perfectly, just a little nervous screws are falling out lol.

Thanks for the ideas! I will check this out and see if I can find out where the sucker goes...

 

Sounds like you have some evil friends and I am adding those to my list of tragic shenanigans.

 

Check around the ignition coils? Don’t some of the bolts you remove to get things out of the way to get to the spark plugs look kinda like this? Granted I have a different motor.

 

Check alternator bracket, power steering bracket, or any other pulley bracket/tensioner). If you had a clutch replaced, check engine to transmission mounting surfaces for missing bolts. That’s what it looks like to me.

 

Will the washer come off? It looks like a lower shock bolt but I think you’d notice that. Plus it wouldn’t end up in the skid

 

My rule of thumb, or should I say pinkie. If the bolt is shorter than my pinkie, it's not important.

But seriously, a bolt that size just don't fall out on it's own. Is wasn't put back in tight. You can see tool marks on the head so someone did touch that bolt before if it did come off your truck. Do you do your own wrenching? If yes, try to remember. Edit: oh, looks like you said you haven't done anything recently.

 

There is a guy missing that exact bolt in another thread! Maybe you found his shock bolt.

 

Ha! I meant the front shock, but I like where your heads at.

 

recently is very relative on a '17. I haven't bought socks in longer than he's had the truck.

My bet is it's something he or the dealer has left loose.

 

The flex plate bolts and clutch diaphragm bolts are all smaller than my pinkie and are pretty important! How small are you hands!

 

When you say it’s a 10mm bolt, do you mean the head is 10mm or it’s an M10 thread? I’m assuming the latter from the pics, but just curious.

Jeff

 

You have 2 short pinky's.

 

And the other hand



J/K of course.