The dreaded double whammy......

That sucks …I would try an independent shop to do the repairs to get a better price .

 

I know the tube is plastic still but they changed something about the new one . That’s why you don’t here much about any more except for older Tacoma’s

 

The dumb ass thing about all of today’s cars and trucks is the fact that there is no room to work. Just to change spark plugs is a fiasco on most cars . ( Tacoma is easy compared to some ). Look at the coolant pipe thing , if your going to have a thing like this, plastic , metal , rubber or whatever. Put it in a place you have access too. Besides it being in a weird place it’s simple to fix . But no…… let’s make it where you have to remove the intake manifold and a bunch of other crap to get to . I had a couple of Nissan frontiers that a plug change / the intake needed to come off . When I was younger on older V8’ s I could do plugs , wires , cap, and rotor by the time I finished a cup of coffee in the morning. Long gone are those days . So easy to do stuff . Even the timing cover thing , on most stuff back then it’s maybe 3 hour gig, and only because you need to remove all the front stuff.

 

I've read on other car sites about doing a fix like mentioned earlier - clean off the outside of the leak, put some goo on it - but stuff a shop vac in the oil fill to create a vacuum in the engine when you do the goop. Supposedly will suck some of the sealant into the leak.
Never tried it but can't hurt.

 

so this is strange.....I mistakingly went to the parts dept instead of the service dept (hadn't been in the dealership for 18 years, my '05 4Runner never needed anything)....the guy brings out the pipe and it's metal...I said this is perfect, make sure that is the one getting installed....."sir the service dept does that"...lol. Go to the service dept and they order the plastic one.....the tech swears this is the right part. So the damn dealer doesn't even know which one to put on.....I'm letting them do it simply because it is warranteed for a year after.

 

I wondered if that was viable (pulling a vac)

 

https://youtu.be/zqpson0oIf4?si=l6Y5_8l0uPwtiq1A

 

I'm pretty sure the metal part is for Lexus. It's not a 1:1 match with the plastic. Maybe someone who knows better can correct me because I hope I'm wrong

 

and I said that to the first tech.....that I'm glad the part is metal now because people were buying the Lexus pipe and modding it.....he said it's a big problem on Lexus and Rav4's.....he prob pulled the Lexus part because he was def unsure about the correct part....

 

Yes that is the Lexus one , some people have modified to to fit , but I can’t remember what they did .

 

All I can say is I did my homework before buying. Whether you wanna believe it or not.... Don't care.

 

I do not think anyone has successfully modded the aluminum pipe and documented here on TW.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...for-plastic-rear-coolant-bypass-joint.701890/

 

Wasn’t someone possibly selling a modded one I thought . I could be wrong but I feel like I saw it somewhere

 

suuuurrreeee

 

I just bought mine 3 months ago, invested way too much in upgrades already, and just payed it off today, so it's my shitbox now.
In all honesty though, it does suck when a new vehicle you enjoy has an issue. This issue though is nothing to worry about and I keep telling myself that, because it could leak for 300K miles and it wouldn't impact the reliability given the location of the leak. I do intend to have it fixed though if I can find the right dealer to except the challenge. I wish the fix wasn't so invasive, but countless others have had theirs fixed with no issue so I'm hoping I am no different.

I do believe this issue is way more prevalent than is being reported even by dealer stats. This engine has been in Camrys, Siennas, Highlanders, and Lexus models all with the same issues. Even the 2nd Gen experienced this and at a higher level even. The problem is, it rarely leaks bad enough for people to notice, and the average owner is not/has not contorted themselves under the passenger side of the engine to know where to look for this issue, especially if it is in the other vehicles that sit low to the ground. When I bought mine 3 months ago it had 19K miles, and I even crawled under the truck to inspect it and still missed it, although at the time I admittedly wasn't looking for the timing cover leak (I still gave it what I thought was a good look over). I cleaned it all off a few hundred miles ago and I am now monitoring it which seems to be a "Seep". I will wait until my next oil change which I was going to do myself, and just take it in and have it documented, and see what they say. Luckily I am still under Factory warranty, and I have a 3rd party lifetime warranty, so I should be able to get this resolved without additional cost.

All that to say, don't let it hinder you from loving your truck. Its not a big deal really.

 

I can't believe how much all Service of any kind SUCKS! nowadays....
You name it and it sucks.

 

Most of my vehicles have developed an oil leak by the 8 year mark. I wouldn't drop $5k on it unless it's a puddle under the truck each morning, or the tailgate is covered in oil splatter (I've experienced both with other trucks)

 

Gawd, you sound like my sister.

 

When you guys are degreasing the splatter, where are you doing this at? Driveway? Carwash??