Rusty Knuckles?

Hi TW!

I got a 2018 TRD Pro a couple of weeks ago and I'm loving it! I just finished reading the sticky thread about the A/C drain mod / frame rust, so I thought I'd go have a look at mine. I didn't notice any rust on the frame yet, however, there is a noticeable amount of rust on the suspension, mainly the steering knuckles. Is this something to worry about? Should I hit it with some Fluid-film or similar? Is that stuff safe to spray on torque-sensitive suspension bolts?

TIA!

 

Yeah, I have an 18 too, and there are areas without paint that are already rusting. I've had 6 Toyota pick-ups in the last 30 years and they all had it. I've used oil, painted the surfaces (like on the exposed caps of ujoints), etc. Never had a problem. It seems that they have ground areas for fitment after production of the part and at installation. Only thing I can figure.

 

Following

 

Lemon law

 

I could barely see the rust underneath the nice mud coating you're rocking there.

As a chemist I don't worry about that kind of rust. That knuckle has a good 20 years of service left before you need to worry. Where rust is truly dangerous is when it starts delaminating sheet steel, metal that is already rolled thin, and you see enough corrosion that it's peeling in flakes.

In most cases, cast parts such as this have greater resistance unless there's already a defect that allows more than surface penetration. The rust stays on the surface and drastically slows oxidation on the underlying layer because the rust itself is a protective coating (in this case).

It's only when additional oxygen exchanging molecules are able to penetrate underneath the rust layer, either through chemical or mechanical abrasion, that you need be concerned.

In summary: dont fret over this kind of stuff. Go have fun on the trails.

 

The steering knuckles are painted and then machined to spec. Paint in precision machined areas where ball joints and attaching bolts are installed is not good. Bare metal rusts. It will take a millennia before a piece of forged steel rusts away to dust. Throw some paint on if you plan to own your Tacoma more than a 1000 years.

 

You guys are great and obviously knowledgable! I’m not going to let a little surface rust get under my skin. I frankly had similar thoughts after seeing some of the pics of surface rust on the frame welds in the A/C drain mod thread.

I’m still curious about one thing: Do all Tacoma’s have these cast steering knuckles or are they specific to the pro?

 

I should snap some pics of the suspension/brake fittings n stuff my '16.

Some of you that don't live in a rust belt would be horrified... meh, par for the course.

I have my truck sprayed every year with Rust Check too.

 

I had wheels off today and noticed mine is pretty rusty too. Also my rear drums have almost no paint left on them, it’s all flaking off.