How screwed am I?

The dog is OK but dadgumit I loved that truck!

 

Fixable

 

Fwiw I'm going Tuesday to see a local well reviewed welder/frame fixer.

 

For anyone

I saw the welder/frame repair specialist today. He said the one section on the passenger side is shot and would need to be replaced, but the rest of the frame is in good shape and can do well with a cleaning and fluid film to prevent the spread of corrosion. 3500$ to fix. Something i. need to think about. He said the fact that is hasn't been a DD for the past 4+ years is why the frame isn't even worse off.

 

Sorry bro. Parts truck it will be.

 

It looks like I can get it fixed for 3500 with the rest of the frame in good shape

 

I am sorry OP, I do hope you can get her patched up.

 

Stick a fork in it... it's done.

 

I would have a hard time deciding to drop $3500 for a repair/patch on the frame. Who is to say you won’t be dealing with more of the same in a couple of years?

 

The conundrum I'm in is if I don't fix it and work to preserve the frame I need to get something else.. which would be a minimum of 10k for a halfway decent pickup with 100k+ miles that only gets driven 1500-2000 miles a year.

If the guy I saw is to be taken at his word, the rest of the frame isn't in bad shape and can be maintained, especially since it's not a DD.

A tough choice.

 

Dude just get it repaired and move on with life, you'll probably have other spots come up in the future but there's nothing but a lack of motivation to do the work (or money) stopping the service life of that frame. We all need to stop tripping and try to enjoy these damn things before they shut off the lights on us. I've been dogging the crap out of mine at 300k miles bc I know if it breaks we can fix it.

 

Tough choice for sure.
If it’s low mileage and decently maintained, $3500 may be your lowest cost option. What’s fair market value?

 

The first time I read this (ok, the first 3 times that I read this) I read it as "The condominium" and immediately started my typical "fuckin HOAs" rant ....

So now I see....conundrum.

Anyway, that sucks man.

Like others have said, if it was me it would depend on the value if fixed vs. the value of parts if I bought something similar enough to use the parts on vs. several other factors....what kinda scratch I had on hand, is one obvious one.

Hope you find a good solution for yourself, whether it's this truck or a different one.

 

Honestly, I'd have to be really in love with it to drop $3500 on a frame fix. Too bad you missed the window. Might be time to get what you can out of it and move on. The running gear and body parts/bed still have value, so there's that....

 

https://www.autorust.com/product-category/toyota/tacoma-2005-2015-2nd-gen/

 

I agree, but I put so few miles on the thing (maybe 2k a year) that trying to sell it for parts or at a discount and buying a halfway decent pickup would leave me with a payment and higher bill than 3500.

It's just a sucky situation.

 

I wouldn't be surprised if you could find a complete frame for $3500 just south of you where they don't salt the roads, and get the entire swap done for a couple grand more.

Might be one of those deals where an expensive replacement might be a better idea than a less expensive fix on an iffy frame.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zuo9uC42RVw

Here's a pretty cool video that makes a frame swap look smooth and easy. Your results may vary.

 

Lordy...

When I was an adolescent, my friends and I built cars from "scratch" (quarter mile), but those were the days of carbs and no emissions (not even catalytics), and more importantly, no computers. Somehow this seems like a much bigger PIA.

 

PARTOUT.....