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Pickups Toyota Tacoma Toyota Tacoma 2004 and Earlier Frame Problem
929 messages, Last post on Dec 04, 2009 at 8:59 PM
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Replying to: thewease (Jul 16, 2009 6:36 am) The Service Manager at the nearest Toyota dealer (Nassief) indicated that it would probably take 2 weeks for an offer letter to be generated. She didn't have much more to offer, other than to say that if the frame perforation is as I describe, our '98 is junk. I also called Toyota's customer service line, and the fellow (Jason) confirmed the 2 week wait for an offer (to give a field rep time to inspect the truck and crunch numbers). Once I receive the offer letter, I sign/return it, and await a call, at which point I take the title down to the dealer and pick up a check. Jason indicated that the buy-back process can take up to 30 days. So, we'll see. I'm a little annoyed by the whole process at this point, despite the fact that if Toyota does buy our '98 back, we'll do pretty well. KBB Retail Excellent factors out to be anywhere from $7200 to $7400, so 1.5 times those figures comes out to $10.800 to $11,100. That's cool, but it chaps my ass that I spent money on new brakes, a couple lines and new exhaust last year. This spring I nearly spent $800 for a body shop to repair the small rust areas to both rear wheel wells on the bed... We intended to drive this truck for many years; we'd previously owned a '95 T100 4x4 Xtra Cab V6 for 11 years; we put 198,000 miles on it, and never had a problem. We sold it when the sheet metal rust got way out of hand. I still see it around town. I don't buy Toyota's crap concerning 'bad metal' and 'inadequate application of corrosion inhibitors' to these '95 to '00 Tacoma frames; total nonsense. To me, it's a clear design flaw: there's either inadequate or non-existent paths for water that enters the boxed to drain out. So when the coating of the interior of the frame begins to flake and falls, it clogs the so-called weep holes and prevents the water/debris from getting out. Things go downhill from there: factor in this mysterious 'bad metal' coupled with road salts, and bingo! Scads of junk trucks. It's very clear that the frame on our '98 rusted from the inside outward. The bottom surface of the frame rail looked solid, only being held together by the remaining factory coating and layers of paint/undercoat that I'd added over the years. There was at least 3/4" of rusted, decomposed metal and rust debris that fell out of the frame after I punctured the 'skin' of coatings. Here's a shot of the frame rail just behind the front passenger wheel; note the factory barcode still firmly attached just 6 inches from the failure area, as well a a glimpse of the rust inside the boxed area: http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Padfoot_barcode.JPG No surprise that '01 thru '04 Tacomas are showing the same frame issues; the design of the newer frame is essentially the same, although they appear to have added small drain holes to the bottom of the boxed areas. That'll work until something falls off the inside of the frame and clogs it. Here's our '04 95K miles, which sure as hell looks to be well along the way to becoming premature junk: http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony.JPG I'd call this excessive corrosion on a 5 year old frame: http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony_frame5.JPG Note how the weep hole is almost completely clogged. And why is there water on the frame? It rained last night. But the truck wasn't driven in it. Looking at that, I'd say within another year or two, we'll have failure. Total krap, as the rest of the truck is pristine. More scary stuff from our '04 Double Cab: http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony_frame1.JPG http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony_frame2.JPG http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony_frame3.JPG http://www.edgeradio1067.com/Moony_frame4.JPG Nice, innit? When I asked Jason about what to do concerning '01-'04 frame rust, he said not to worry about it, as they've had no issues with those models as the frames were manufactured by a different vendor and hold up as they should. He changed his tune when I mentioned that I owned an '04 with excessive rust showing on the frame. Jason then indicated that I should have a Toyota dealer inspect it. He indicated that it was normal for metal to rust once exposed to weather, and not to worry. He didn't know if the dealer would be able to "spray" the frame, as that is Toyota's procedure for newer trucks. He also said that if there were any problem areas, that Toyota MIGHT repair them. He didn't know exactly how a rusty frame might be 'repaired', I asked about the frame replacements I'd read about online, and Jason responded that Toyota wasn't doing that. Right. Spraying the exterior of the frame with some undercoating isn't going to protect the inside of the box, especially when corrosion is already present. Looks like I'll be calling Toyota again. I always thought it odd that I didn't see many older Tacomas on the road here; now I know why.
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Replying to: wolfiekins (Jul 18, 2009 4:21 am) Good Luck.... I empathize with you feeling burned about the money you put into the vehicle with it only to be taken away...i drive my tacos into the ground too. Luckily this year...before i decided to invest in some minor repairs...brakes..bad leaf spring, fluids, belts, hoses, and plugs, i thought it smart to get the inspection...so i have avoided it. Chris
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Replying to: thewease (Jul 20, 2009 6:33 am) Sometimes I 'think smart' too, but not often enough... Took our truck down to the dealership yesterday for the inspection. Service Manager was really cool about it. The tech guy who performed the inspection said our frame was one of the worst he'd seen. So I'm in a rental for the duration of the process. We'll do okay in regards to our '98; it was all mostly stock and not tricked out like many were. I took some photos of our '04's frame with me and showed them to the service manager, who indicated that I should schedule it in for an inspection, but not until after the '98 is disposed of. Her words: "One disaster at a time." Great. Hopefully your buyback is progressing... |
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Replying to: wolfiekins (Jul 21, 2009 5:33 am) Keep ya posted. Chris |
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Replying to: thewease (Jul 21, 2009 5:52 am)
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Replying to: johnny66 (Jul 21, 2009 5:55 pm) |
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Replying to: thewease (Jul 21, 2009 5:52 am) Wow, three weeks; that doesn't seem right. Has Toyota made you a buyback offer yet? Rep from Toyota called me this morning with an offer on our '98: $11,737.50, which factors down to a KBB value of $7825.00, which is pretty much what I came up with for our Tacoma with 84K miles, 2.7 litre, 4x4, Auto, PS, Tilt, AC, SR5, AM/FM CD, Rear Slider, Bed Liner and Alloys. Can't really complain. Rep said the offer letter would go out today via UPS, and that I should have it tomorrow. Once I return it, it could take a max of 10 days for me to receive a call to go down to the dealer, sign over the title and pick up the check (although it might happen faster). Don't know what's up with your buyback, Chris...I'd call Toyota  1-866-799-4849 and straighten things out; they should have your claim filed under your last name. Good luck!
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Replying to: johnny66 (Jul 21, 2009 5:55 pm) We had two Tacomas, a '98 (which is in the buyback process) and an '04. From what the service tech at the dealership told me, the buybacks on '95-'00 Tacomas will continue until 2015 (at which time the '00's will fall out of the 15 year warranty extension on the frame). The service manager mentioned that the 1.5 times KBB value will ONLY APPLY to someone who's owned their '95 - '00 Tacoma PRIOR to March of 2008, when the buyback process was initiated. Anyone who bought a covered Tacoma AFTER March of 2008 and experiences frame perforation will only receive the ACTUAL AMOUNT THEY PAID FOR THE TRUCK. Of course any of us who've already gone through the buyback are totally excluded from anything from Toyota should we buy another '95 - '04... As for the '01 - '04 Tacomas, the Service Manager showed me Toyota documentation that clearly stated that should perforation be found on '01 - '04 frames, Toyota would replace the frame on said vehicle. If your '01 - '04 Tacoma has holes in it's frame, then it should be replaced. Not sure if the dealership you've been dealing with is the issue, but I'd try another Toyota dealer if one is nearby. We haven't taken our '04 in yet, and I doubt that it has perforation (I haven't found any), but I want to document it's current condition and get Toyota to sign off on it. Not sure if any of this helps, but good luck! |
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I posted earlier about the rust on my frame and since then found a hole in a cross member of the frame. The frame inspection Toyota performs (according to their documentation) only mentions side rails. Will the frame pass if the holes are in other frame components? http://www.flickr.com/photos/40274012N03/3756509732/
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Replying to: wolfiekins (Jul 22, 2009 7:20 am) You are the man! You were right. Local Toyota said they failed to process it. I corrected that, and now i am in the system when calling the #.. Seems that they are still missing the copy of the registration (local screw up again). So i will email over to ISG. Keep ya posted, and again...if anyone needs detailed information...i would call this number....it is where the rubber meets the road! Thanks! |
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