Dealership Wrecked [Slightly??] my Trailhunter

I am sorry you are dealing with that OP. Nobody should have this kind of experience at a dealership. If I were you, I would escalate this directly with Toyota and like Crispy said above, you may need to get a lawyer involved if they aren't willing to make it right. Do you have any pictures of your truck before you took it in to check the tailgate gap. That seems pretty significant to me in the picture. It's also hard to tell from the picture, but it looks like the drivers side of the bumper is pushing up into the rear fender. I would also try to take a look at where the ARB bumper connects to the frame to see if there is any damage to the frame.

 

It's a good idea - - U think they need to "back up" or "test drive" for an oil change? Ha Ha...

 

I figure going forward you are going to refuse to be further than 5 feet from your truck anytime it is on their property.

 

First and foremost, sorry this happened to you mnmpizza [OP], especially after a transmission failure. It appears the bumper is the only issue and dealer will have to check the mounting brackets just to be sure it's aligned. But what amazes me the most is the detail trip report you obtained. It's great (for what happened), but not so good when it comes to your privacy. Toyota sell data, on all vehicles, and you have to request them not to. I did and glad I followed up. Imaging your insurance company getting a hold of your driving habits... You'll need to drive with one hand on the steering wheel, the other on a bible... Wow!

 

Speaking of Bueller, maybe the dealer jacked up the back of your truck trying to reverse the 60 miles.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G-Nunm3Sbzo

 

That's always funny - - a classic! I guess if the truck ends up "falling off the rack" then I'd have something... "You killed the truck!!"

 

Normally I would say "no big deal" if it gets fixed correctly.

But if I had dropped that much money for a halo Tacoma, I'd be pretty mad too.

What I'm wondering is, don't these trucks have backup sensors? My truck will actually stop itself automatically, and it's nowhere near as fancy or expensive.
I know that you can still crash into something in reverse, but usually only if you're going faster than the system can respond to. If you reverse at a careful pace, the sensors should detect the pole.

 

Funny in the movie, but not funny what happened to your truck. I am hoping the dealer makes it right to your satisfaction.

 

Correct, and as far as I know - - all of that was working correctly for me... And, yeah, I paid 100% cash for the truck +TTL. And, I didn't buy the extended warranty

Now, I've been told that dealers don't like that because they didn't get to make maximum $$ off of me - - maybe that's why they're standing their ground?

 

Wait, isn’t it your property to have permissions to the dash cam? Sorry I know this isn’t the point of your post, but you paid for the dash cam I would think anything on it is yours right?

hope you get a good resolution!

 

I'd be careful opening that can of worms. I specifically turn that stuff off on my vehicles for reasons that would require a separate discussion. The OP may have done the same at which point the dealership could try to transfer blame. Since they are shaded enough to hide the bad driving, I could see this happening. Hopefully OP can get dash footage and report back.

 

If you had a photo of the trucks sales ad showing tailgate it would give you more ammo to work with. As it stands, I’d assume you’d be asking for a body shop to check the rear of the frame if that’s what your implying is what’s causing the tailgate to have a slightly larger gap.

Even though it was a “bumper” hit, the hitch welded to the frame is butted right up against it.

 

Yeah, but the truck is currently "locked up" at the service garage... Or, maybe it's parked out back [by that pole] ??? Either way, I'd need to drive over there [40-minutes] and ask for permission to access my truck...

 

All those 'harsh' cornering and braking events would piss me off way more! Its not like they did suspension or brake work to test.

Stick it to them! There is no way Toyota's trans replacement process includes that harsh driving road-test (in fact- does the manual say anything about break-in driving period? If so I would use that against the dealership as well)

 

No pre-purchase photos as the truck initially arrived at a Toyota Dealership about 70miles away; and was "pre-sold". So, it was never listed... I had located it [on my own] and had my dealership inquire on it. When the original buyer backed out; my dealership did a trade and I purchased it the next day.

 

It is NOT, you can't change my mind on that,
Open it & give it a firm slam....
It may look closed & latched, but its not...
Last thing you want is them to think the tailgate may have ben tweeked or distorted somehow & then you get a new repainted tailgate....
Repaint isn't a good thing...
Then, go to the gym...

There's zero alignment issues with that tailgate, it just wasn't closed firmly enough.
Trust me....
Ide take pics right now & show you, a good close & a bad close, it will look just like yours...
Its normal characteristic of the tailgate latch mechanism.

 

Ive had 2 24 Tacomas & they both did that, if you dont give the tailgate a good firm slam.

 

Don't the '24s have a power-close for the tailgate? (I had a loaner TRD Sport for a couple of days and it did- maybe not all trim levels have it)

 

OK, because it was/is 9' up in the air - - I couldn't give it the slam... But, the next time I'm over there, I'll take your advice - - Thank you...

 

I don’t understand why they need to stress the truck for a leaking transmission fix.