Question about frame rust warranty/recall

Hi all,
Well, I finally pulled the trigger on my first Taco. I got an '04 with SR5/TRD Off Road with just a tad over 125,000 miles. This was a one-owner truck that was purchased in Pennsylvania. Although it did not have a frame replacement job done on it, I got a copy of the dealer record and it was inspected and sprayed under warranty in July of 2011, with just north of 100,000 miles on the clock.

I haven't been able to find out anything with regard to future warranty protection for me, the 2nd owner, or if there's any recourse should it all become biodegradable. The gas tank cover is rotted out and there's some visible rust on the springs but the undercoated frame doesn't appear too bad. The undercoating is flaking off in places, though.

Is there anything I can do if the frame winds up rotting? Can they verify that things are still fundamentally sound under there? Can or should the spray coating be re-applied to those areas it's flaked off?

I've seen a lot of coverage of the problem and of the warranty ending for those who've never had any service done, but nothing that covers my exact scenario.

Thanks in advance!

 

welcome to TW! where in Northern Jersey are you?

Since your frame was inspected and coated prior to the deadline you are covered for 15yrs from the production date of your truck (2004 +15 = 2019!!!) You should be able to bring your truck into any Toyota dealership and have a free inspection done at any time you'd like. If at that time it fails the inspection they will give you a new frame at their expense. They will not apply another coating unless you pay for it IIRC.

hope that answers some of your questions, also use the search function in the upper right-hand corner, there is a ridiculous amount of info on this forum!!

 

HI!
I'm up near the Essex/Caldwell airport, near Willowbrook, if you know the area.

Yeah, there's an awful lot of info here, that's for sure. Searching one topic often leads down the rabbit hole and opens up whole new cans of worms

Good to hear about the warranty issue. I've read so many horror stories of Toyota telling customers to pound sand even though their trucks should be covered under warranty. This is reassuring news, although in a few years, who knows what they'll do if there's a problem. There's definitely some rust down there; the gas tank cover is rotted out and I'll eventually have to replace that and the spare tire support rust recall is still pending, too. But everything else under there seems to be in decent shape otherwise.

My local car wash has the option for underbody spray. Would having that done repeatedly in the winter help by rinsing the salt off or hinder it by introducing pressurized water into places normally unseen by moisture?

Also, and this is a big one for me, I can't find any reference to a place where I can legally go off-road near me. I've never owned any kind of 4WD and would like to have some gentle fun with it. Marked trails, a bit of mud..basically a nice drive in the fall leaves for a few hours in a stock truck, and an excuse to use 4-HI and 4-LO for the first time, and get comfortable with how to drive in those modes.

Thanks for your help!

 

To the OP... you're good. What TIPICOTACO posted is accurate.

For peace of mind I would recommend scheduling a visit for frame inspection at your regional Toyota dealer. Assuming it passes, just make it a routine to once a year bring it back for the inspection.

Enjoy your Tacoma!

 

oh and be prepared to empty your wallet for your new ride :/

 

Hmmm. The only wallet-emptying that will occur for a while will be some very simple stuff...grille guard (maybe) and running boards (definitely, since I have short legs). Everything else will be to get it into a state of good repair, making sure everything's in tip-top shape first. I have a very persnickety mechanic who gives me hell if a recommended maintenance item goes past-due by even 100 miles, so that stuff will get done first I suspect. I'm not sure if the timing belt's been done yet. There's a sticker on the cover saying it was done, but no mileage or date was written in. My guy will try to determine what, if anything, was done down there.

Always up for a scenic trip into Sussex County, and some barbecue on Rt. 15 South, just north of 80.

 

good plan to get everything up to snuff first, but once the "mod bug" bites there's no turning back..

shoot me a PM if you wanna meet up some time, Sundays and Wednesdays are best.

You talking 'bout New Orleans Steakhouse? good shit right there!! There's another good spot on rt 206 in Newton called Smokehouse Barbecue worth checkin out if your up this way

 

Yup, Smokehouse is the place. I cook barbecue to nearly the professional/circuit quality and they're the only ones in NJ who are even close. I'll probably be ready to head out next week. I pick it up on Monday and want to spend the first week getting it checked out by both my mechanic and a 'Yota dealership for rust/etc...and get a better handle on how it handles . Wednesdays sound good to me.

 

So. Got the new Taco yesterday. Shiny!
In the 100 mile drive back to NJ I noticed a few things. One, it needs an alignment rather badly (steering wheel off-center about 5°), I have to put something in to rest my right leg on while driving -- so used to the console on my Honda -- and it appears I have a problem with the clutch return spring, preventing the cruise control from activating properly. Also seems as if the parking brake doesn't work and a couple of interior lights are out as well, but those are the only major complaints.

But TheBigQuestion™ will be answered in a few hours...it goes in first thing in the morning for a frame inspection. All appendages are firmly crossed.

As for other things of note, I was surprised at how high the RPMs were in 5th on the highway. I wish there were a better overdrive in there and I'm surprised that it's as high as it is. This will make the desire for long trips to mud puddles less fun, I suspect. I can feel the power in that engine, but it's nowhere near as smooth or quiet as my V6 passenger car ('06 Accord)!

Ah well, it's a gorgeous truck and I'm hoping I can get many good years out of 'er.

 

Congrats on the new ride!

For the parking brake problem: inspect your bell cranks on both sides in the rear, very common for those to be seized, also make sure the cable itself is not broken.

Switch to all LED lighting for the interior and you'l be very pleased.

In regards to the high RPMs take a look at the label on your drivers door jamb, there is a code there to tell you what gears you have. check out this website --> http://www.brian894x4.com/Gearratiosanddiffs.html

our V6 is a noisy bastard, but very reliable and capable!! could prob use a Seafoam treatment and/or tune up (plugs n stuff)

GL on your frame.. hope you get a new one actually

Enjoi!!

 

Pics coming in a couple of days. Nothing too fancy at the moment...just a stock, black 'yoda. I am the kinda guy who should probably never be allowed near hand tools again, so any repairs will likely be at the hands of my talented (and expensive) local mechanic. I dread the thought of anybody taking the dashboard apart to replace those bulbs (or convert 'em to LED), since invariably a reassembled dash = squeaks and rattles for the rest of its life. Don't ask me how I know this. Hint: it's related to the hand-tool proximity statement above. And I have zero clue about what a bell crank is or what to do with same. I'm a driver, not a fixer, alas.

I have the R150F tranny in 'er, which is .838:1. Kinda high, for sure. I can't find any reference to engine horsepower. It sounds powerful as heck on acceleration but that sound doesn't really equate to speed.

Turns out I also have the clutch return spring issue causing the cruise to malfunction, but I suspect that's a fairly minor service item.

 

ok.. I'm no "mechanic' by any means, but I am... cheap. haha.. so I've forced myself to learn a few things and tackle some repairs on my own to save quite a few bucks!

The dash lights are really easy, a few screws and a couple electrical plugs. take your time.. http://www.customtacos.com/tech.old/index.php?article=77

Bell cranks: http://search.yahoo.com/search;_ylt...rank&toggle=1&cop=mss&ei=UTF-8&fr=yfp-t-122-1 click on the first link (a .pdf) its a very good How-to

The v6 puts out 190hp, short of a supercharger/turbo there's not a whole lot you can do to boost it. read up on the "deck plate mod": http://www.tacomaworld.com/forum/search.php?searchid=10314104

What gear code does your VIN plate show (ie B03A) that will tell you what gears you have in your diffs, not your tranny


If we meet up some time I'd be happy to help ya out w/ a few of these minor things

 

That'd be awesome. Next Wednesday is probably good for me at first glance.

So. This morning I took the BlackBeast™ to the local stealership for a frame check and to see what's doing with the e-brake. Frame passed with flying colours, but they're asking ~$1,200 for the parking brake! Front cable is broken and both actuators seized up. That price includes 6 hours' labour, parts and tax. I politely declined, but scheduled the spare tire recall mod for next Monday.

I've decided to take it to my regular mechanic who'll inspect and estimate on Friday. Since his rate is a lot less than Toyota, even if he does have to replace (rather than repair) the faulty actuators, it'll still be a lot less money.

I fixed the panel light with my fist and a sharp rap to the dash.

I also have clutch pedal problems. The usual ones described here on TW. Pedal return is weak, not actuating the cruise-enable switch, and bearing squeak. I will ask my mech to just put in a brake return spring instead and remove the torsion spring.

I plan to do the grey wire mod for the rear lockers (just cuz--I doubt I'll ever need 'em) and I might do the blue plug 2-LO mod, too--provided I can figure out a bona fide use for it other than "because I can" and "because it's there."

 

congrats on the solid frame!

e-brake cable replacement is beyond my skillz, but I'm sure your guy will handle it just fine.. parts are pretty cheap thru Rockauto.com
https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carcode,1429084,parttype,20057
https://www.rockauto.com/catalog/x,carcode,1429084,parttype,1696

nice job on the dash lights too lol sometimes ya just gotta smack da bitch up..

grey wire mod is pretty versatile and not only useful for rock crawlers

also, I find the blue plug mod useful when I'm moving firewood on my dad's property and don't want to tear up his lawn. very effective on slippery grass hills

 

It's going in for the e-brake fix today. Took it in for the alignment yesterday and it was good/bad news. The good was that all the steering/suspension parts were rock solid, but the bad was that the left tie rod adjuster was seized up tight and couldn't be budged without risking damage to the boot (using the general-purpose metric-adjustable acetelyne wrench). It's a few tenths of an inch toe-out from spec. Not worth the $500 they wanted to replace an otherwise-good tie rod.

So. Here's the first image of the Beast after we got 'er home.
As I said. Nothing fancy, just a stock '04, all in black. More pics to come if we actually get another sunny day.

 

I'm just thinking how nice it'll look after I can afford to put on a grille guard/bull bar and a set of nerf bars. All in black, of course!

 

nice lookin truck! what tires are those?

 

Hankook Dynapro ATM. 265 70R16. Any good?

 

yea, think I had them on my '97. they look bigger than 265/70

 

That's what I read off the sidewall. I have to wonder whether the stock truck, without lifts or monster off-road rubber, will be able to handle a place like Rausch or similar. I'm worried about suspension/udercarriage damage with the stock machine.