My $2,500 First Gen (2002)

Also, pulled the clutch pedal to clean and lube. It’s got a squeak but I can’t difinitively say where. I’ll lube the bolt and the cross pin for the master cylinder and see if it goes away. Also painted the pedal arm since it was rusty.

 

I spent some time with a hot cup of coffee reading your thread. Amazing. One thing nobody can call you is "lazy"! Even with little kids you still remain steadfast in your work Love for the Tacoma personified.

 

For a while now I’ve just been beating the truck up and driving it around. It’s loud and obnoxious because of some bearings that need to be replaced and the mud terrains in it. But mostly I think it’s the wheel bearings.

Surfing Facebook Marketplace a few months ago and I found an amazing deal on some 5th gen 4Runner wheels. So I went off and bought them. They sat for a month while I tried to find some time to sneak into my buddy’s shop on the weekend and use his tire machine. I’m no pro, but I’m proud to say I did it all myself this time. I think it looks way better.




Almost as soon as I got home from putting tires on, I ordered up a small box of bearings and seals for the front wheels. I got excited and ripped the front end apart before I even had everything. It’s on stands, the jack was just there to take pressure off the strut.


I broke (bent) my little 12 ton harbor freight press trying to get bearings out. I don’t have any good pictures. But this is another job I’m happy to say I did myself. I blew the knuckles apart and got some paint on everything.




Today I went over to the “Auto skills center” on base and pressed the new bearings in and pressed the spindles back on. Interestingly I’m not the first person to put wheel bearings in this truck unless Toyota was using Timken bearings at some point.

Being the way I am, and looking at the suspension mostly ripped apart, I decided it would be a good time to order struts. So I have some Bilsteins coming from Wheelers Off-road. Those show up on Tuesday so I’m going to attempt to get everything cleaned up and taken apart so I’m ready to slap the struts back together and reassemble everything.

Last bit for today, I decided to paint the brake calipers while it was apart. I’m killing time till the struts come anyway. So might as well. I already had the paint.

 

I sold my clean 2002 4x4 OR SR5 DCSB in 2017 with 275k miles and no rust (CA truck) for $6500, where was everyone when I posted it here?

 

No kidding!

 

That's a steal! Nice to see someone doing their own repairs the right way from ground up.

 

I never did take pictures but I also slapped a roll pin in the column to take up the play in the shaft. Sooooo much better. Should have been the first mod.

 

I have a 2001 extended cab, 4wd & 5MT. You bought an essentially new truck for $2500. Mine has 318,000 miles. Mine also threw the 420 code which turned out to be a crack in a weld made when the rear cat was last replaced. My advice is never miss an maintenance.

Mine was driven from San Diego to Sioux City Iowa and averaged 22.4 mpg. Works great in the snow.

Good luck, they're great vehicles.

Glen

 

My code has turned into a P0440. I still just reset it. Maybe one of these days I’ll learn to troubleshoot evap systems.

 

All the things will be black!

 

Ready for the struts that are showing up today.

 

As others have said, you got a great deal on this truck and you're making some great upgrades and improvements. Keep it going!

When I first bought my Taco and inspected a series of rattles in the exhaust, I discovered that the two nuts that hold the O2 sensor down were missing entirely. I think they dissolved!
I looped a pair of stainless steel hose clamps around the flange and exhaust pipe and it seems to be holding up just fine.