Frame Rot !?!?

I bought my '03 from my brother (original owner) a few years ago. They did not replace his frame but said that it did not need replacing and gave him an undercoating treatment.

I just failed inspection for frame rot. The truck has 163k, but I know that this batch of trucks had defective frames and some (many?) owners got new frames or trucks.

I have owned an '85 Hilux and '94 pickup in the past, nether showed any frame rot over the decades I owned them.

Do I have any recourse with Toyota for what is clearly a prematurely rusted frame?

 

Get the paperwork your brother was given when they coated the frame and read it.

I was told the frame coating extended the warranty for 15 years, but that's second hand info.

But yes this is typical. For at least the past 20 years Toyota has been producing light truck frames that turn into swiss cheese and later get recalled.

 

Good news. The undercoating that my brother had done was in the Toyota database and makes the 15-yr warranty valid. I get it inspected tomorrow at Toyota. If it fails, I get a new frame.

 

Good news!

 

The frame started to crumble as they jacked it, so they didn't even get it off the ground before they declared it unsafe to drive. An hour later I had a rental loaner and a warranty repair order to replace the frame. Hopefully, I'll have my truck back before Christmas.

Thanks Toyota for standing behind your vehicles, even in the wake of a severe and expensive quality incident.

 

...and this is why you should check your frame before putting it on the lift.

 

Is there a way that I could check my VIN# to see if my frame was recalled? My frame looks great and I did check it with a hammer. I just am curious.

 

Yes Google search toyota owners website you can then make a free account link your vin and it will give you full service history at any dealer it's been at and all factory options and original dealer it was sold from.

 

You can call any dealer with your vin as well and they will run it and tell ya anything you wanna know.

 

To be clear, this is not a recall. A recall has very specific legal ramifications. This is a warranty extension voluntarily offered by Toyota. That said, Toyota appears to be standing behind the warranty extension - as long as you meet the terms of the warranty. Most significantly, you had to have the dealer-performed rust-proofing applied within the time frame specified. No rust-proofing, no warranty coverage.

 

I Have a 1998 Tacoma and when I went into the dealer I asked about the frame issue and he looked it up and said there is no current "recalls" and he left it at that.
I looked up my trucks service history on the above mentioned toyota owners website and no history could be found (besides the work that I got done). I bought the truck a month ago, and I'm just wondering if I should get it inspected? Would a carfax show anything?

 

call corporate and raise a stink

 

they toyed with my locally then i called corp, they gave me a run around until i sent them my thread link and as of october 21st i have an appointment

 

I went to my local dealership and just asked the guy at the parts table to run my vin to see if my frame was being recalled. Couple minutes later I learned my frame was good. I have a 2004 xtra cab

 

He has a great breakover angle for offroading, what's the issue?

 

There is a recall and there is an extended special warranty. One covered in the warranty won't show on the recall. You have to talk to toyota, not the dealership.

My personal experience

http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/1st-gen-tacomas/333303-new-toy-great-shape-hope-they-crush.html

 

I am not aware of the recall, just the extended (to 15 years) warranty that is clearly called out in my paperwork from Toyota. Do you have any references (docs, links) for the recall?

 

Maybe no recall involved. Ask if your truck has the 15-year exended frame warranty. To keep it active, the truck had to undergo dealer rustproofing by a certain date. The record of the undercoating, if it was done, will be in the Toyota database for your VIN. Ask specifically about the extended warranty and the rustproofing.

 

If the extended 15-year warranty did apply, and assuming your truck was still covered (rustproofing applied), then it would have expired in 2013 (1998 + 15). Hopefully your frame is good; if not, you are likely not covered by that warranty. If it were me, I would have the frame inspected just to know whether or not it's safe.

 

Yeah from what I understand I would have to go to Toyota and have them look at it. I made that account and didnt have any recalls, but since this a warranty it may not show up. If I have problems Ill go to Toyota! From my understanding as well it is not all of the Tacoma's but certain batches correct?