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Newbie on this forum..
I have a 2001 Tacoma. I was told today by a muffler shop that I'm basically driving a ticking time bomb. That my frame could cave in any day. Next month will be 5yrs I have the truck and the last thing I want to do is sell/trade it. I'm getting mixed results on whether Toyota will repair/replace my frame free of charge or require me to pay for the parts/labor. Do I just call and make an appointment with Toyota? Is there some legal document stating they must pay? I didn't know so many other Taco owners were have the same issue as me. Any feedback would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.
I had my 2001 frame replaced and I knew what would come in the replacement.
Frame, rear springs, lower control arms, emergency brake cable, hardware, free labor. Free parts!
I did have the f/r shocks replaced as they had 100,000 miles on them and the labor is free. They are going through the same work operation anyway and it's easier and quicker with new parts.
While apart, the clutch was replace with a labor savings. Easier with everything out of the truck.
Parts I bought were clutch, f/r shocks, fuel filter.
You get new brake fluid, A/C recharge and new antifreeze, all free!
Total cost sent to Toyota was over $11,000.
I have a "new" 2001 Tacoma now.
Don't let your dealer take advantage of you. Plenty of info on the internet if you check.
Please see my posts 05/11 & 05/17. Appreciate u adz if BOTH the front & rear emerg brake cables were replaced on ur Taco - Thx!
“ Frame rusted through. Dealer said i will have to pay 2k+ for parts. ?? What parts does the new frame come with. Afraid Toyota dealer will charge me for parts that come with new frame. Toyota case manager rep in Calif ,Kevin, was the most rude person I have ever had to deal with. Sure makes me not want to buy another Toyota. 95-2000 owners you were very lucky. 2001-04 new frames but we will have to BUY parts from Toyota to fix our vehicles. Dealer said he would only give me 5K for veh but minus 2k for the parts = 3k for trade in. What a rip off. Thanks Toyota for nothing!!!! ”
*** rustedframe wrote
When the Toyota dealership did my rusted frame replacement,
I made it VERY CLEAR I would not pay 1 penny for anything,
they agreed there was no costs to me & I in fact write on the paper
work they had me sign, above my name – “customer not to pay
any charges, fees or costs of any kind ”.
I then picked up my completed repaired truck (after careful inspection)
drove it home, posted it on craigslists & sold it . at a profit!
When they agreed to buy back any 1994-2000, Tacoma, they also EXTENDED the warranties to 15 years, for ANY subsequent Tacoma, starting in 1999.
How many parts does it take to fasten a frame in place - are you kidding me?
$ 2,000.00
If your frame is rusting through and it's only 8 years old, I'd raise hell with Toyota, and tell them they either replace everything affected, or I will find me a lawyer willing to take this case on a class-action basis.
Thousands of Tacoma owners have been affected by rusted frames - some slight - some major. I wouldn't put up $ 2,000.00 after buying thier product.
I had an 02 that became an 09, as a result of the frame recall.
Toyota also threatened me with taking loners away, etc.
Toyota does not care IMHO.
Vote with your wallet. I sold the 09 a year after.
Lifetime Toyota customer... Gone!!!
I had mine bought back and it was a 2001 but I fought hard and it was just as they were acknowledging 2000 and up..
they threatend me with a frame replacment.
We only 75,000 miles on this truck and owe over $10,000 still, they tell me $9,000 new frame, along with powersteering pump etc. several more thousand....but get this, they said they will pay for 1/2 of the frame...what ? why? Is it defective?
I have no warranty, but they are saying we'll pay 1/2, that just shows that it is their fault and we aren't going to take that. It is not fair to sell us junk, and charge us a fortune for it....Going to the top, hopefully that will do something? I am loosing my Faith in Toyota
So I have deposit on a 01 Tacoma with 84k. It already has a new frame in place, with a new muffler and rear shocks. Car has some rust but not much. I am only paying 8k for it. Sounds like a fair deal that I can drive to 150k.
Am i making the wrong choice?
I don't think it matters what the YEAR the vehicle is....it's HOW MANY MILES ARE ON IT and how well has it been maintained?
84,000 miles isn't a huge amount on a car that's 9 years old. That's only 9,000 miles a year...- not alot.
The key is: Has the car had REGULAR oil and oil filter changes?
Has the car been well-maintained?
In 1999 I purchased a '99 Tacoma, had the oil/filter changed EVERY 3,000 miles.
When a belt broke I replaced THEM ALL. When a hose broke I replaced THEM ALL. I put 141,000 miles on it with mostly normal maintenance issues..it was a really dependable truck, but then, I helped it by replacing these items before they caused a problem.
I found out about the "rust" buyback and was lucky enough to sell it to Toyota in 2008, for $ 8K. If not for that....I was the original owner and KNEW it had been well-maintained and was fairly confident it would have lasted until 200,000 miles.
I know someone who has a '90 Ford Ranger. It's 20 years old...HOWEVER...
he has given it regular oil changes/filter changes and regular maintenace.
it just turned 200,000 miles.
lst thing I do after buying an old car is "have the oil and filter changed" immediately.
It doesn't matter if the previous owner said it had a recent oil change or not - I do it RIGHT AWAY.....so I KNOW it has just had one !
2nd thing I do is have ALLTHE BELTS AND HOSES REPLACED.
If the vehicle has 50,000 or more miles on it, and I know the hoses and belts are original, or appear to be old - I replace them all. Yes, it's an expense.
But it's just a matter of time before a belt or hose wear outs and breaks, causing either overheating, breakdown and/or tow truck to garage - in short - headaches.
Having hoses replaced also means the radiator coolant/anti-freeze will be replaced! These items will help an older car get a "new lease" on life from the get-go.
That's what I did with a 2001 Mitsubishi Eclipse I purchased for a teen in 2007.
It had 52,000 miles on it. I knew the owner but decided to have the oil and filter changed right away, have all the hoses and belts replaced right away because they were original and would wear out "anytime". The car now has 113,000 and I have no reason to believe it won't last to 200,000 miles.
one of the things it needed a four wheel alignment (not horribly out of alignment). in my head, i'm thinking that this would be happening anyway given they are stripping everything off of the frame...
the other item is the replacement of the right rear emergency brake pivot and bell crank... i've seen people reference the e-brake in other posts, but was unsure if this is the same thing...
lastly, i guess, are there any questions in particular i should be asking about things they should be doing that they might try to slip through that i should specifically ask about? admittedly, i don't know much at all about vehicles and would appreciate any guidance...
cheers.
-greg
2013 LX 570 2016 LS 460
Keep in mind, the frame replacement is just that, a replacement. It falls under the same category as any other warranty part Toyota replaces. Sure it's a big job, but the truck wasn't in an accident so the truck won't be on any lists showing damage as if it was in an accident.
Has anyone been successful in getting them to either honor the 1.5 KBB replacement value or offer comparable credit towards a tradein for a new/used Toyota.
-Thanks
David
Mine is a 4x4 SR5 Standard Cab and has been a great truck with 89K mi
Thanks. Glad to have found this forum
Ells Dutton
Boulder, CO
for the 2003, they will replace the frame.. you can kiss the 1.5KBB goodbye.
they wont buy back any trucks that they can do a frame swap on it..
anything after 2000 i know for sure they will replace the frame.
I had a 2001 and i fought with them hard and got them to buy it back but i was just lucky because I fell in just prior to them deciding to do the frame replacement.
they even offered to do the replacement for me and I said no.
that was almost 2 years ago.
(Will be taking the truck to my local & trusted mechanic today.)
This was the one vehicle we had without ANY problems until Toyota got it's hands on it again!
Any reasonable customer service will be listed here. So far I haven't seen any.
Sorry for the bad news.
http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=120463654675522&v=wall
Of course in the order of fairness, I will let Edmonds know what (if anything) Mr. Lentz' response is when it arrives.
kcram - Pickups/Wagons Host
I am still waiting for a reply from Toyota USA president Jim Lentz.
While shopping for a new small 4X4 p/u back Christmas time 2001, I had tested some Rangers that were much better equipped and comparable prices. The top-of-the-line Ranger that I almost bought was loaded with a 4.0L V6.
I choose the Tacoma with the 2.7 for it's name only. The salesman who sold it to me showed me where all the lights were, buttons, etc; and said "If the check engine light ever came on to give him a call, he'd never seen one come on." Like an idiot I felt confident in his assertions. I was a long-haul trucker back then and the truck sat at the yard for months on end until I got home. 4 years and 37,000 miles after purchase my check-engine-light came on and stayed on. A free test showed a bad O2 sensor. I asked the mechanic how much and he said $120.00 but to not bother because they eat them like candy. The truck's now eight years old with only 56,000 miles on it and the idiot light has glowed the last 4 years.
At 4 years and 41,000 miles my factory exhaust fell apart to the tune of $500.00.
At 5 years and 48,000 miles my rear bumper rotted off. Oil leaks started to develop.
At 8 years and 56,000 miles the frame has been replaced but the dealer's shop couldn't get the right shock off and they had to cut it off and I had to buy the new shock for $115.00. The truck had sit out in their repair lot for over a month and the breaks had seized up and I had to pay for a new caliper and master-cylinder. Total bill for a "Free" frame came to $1052.00 for a new shock, new bumper, and new breaks . Took them two months to complete all the work.
Those Tacoma television ads drive me crazy!!
I took it in they told me it failed and would need a new frame .
I freaked being a machanic and knowing what was involed . But really had no choice after calling Tayota hotline on the recall notice .
They said the frame and all the parts would take about 4 weeks to come in and almost to the day they called and the new frame had come in to the dealership .
I drop it off they gave me a new Camary with 1000 mile on it free of charge to drive ,it took them 5 days and they called and said it was ready .
I spent quite a bit of time checking over the truck before signing the paper work and also demanded a test drive with a tech before accepting the truck back .
Well to my amazement the truck drives like a ''dream'' ,they replaced most moving parts ,break and fuel lines ,springs ,I bought my own shocked and struts they installed free of charge with rebate for 150 for new Gabrials all the way around .
The shocker I had to sign the bill they sent to Toyota to be paid by the company for the work ''$11,375'' bucks,that's eleven thousand
I bought the truck used in 05 for 12,000 bucks wholesale through a dealer friend .
Never a day of trouble with the vehicle .
I have a brand new freaking truck underneath ,only complaint is with all new suspension including Springs paid for by Toyota is it rides much harder now but will calm down in time .
Yes a little ticked I had to go through all this but let's face it I got a tons of stuff done on the truck for free that may have had to be done down the road being 7 yrs olds .
I was told at the dealership they have special trained techs this is all they do day in and out .
I have a feeling some of the negitive posts on here are from American truck owners bashing .
The bad news is that I took my Tacoma in today, just to have it checked, not thinking that it too had a problem. I was wrong. They would not give it back to me! Gave me a loaner and told me Toyota would be in touch. They mentioned 150% of Kelly BB value. Is that retail value? I'm not a very happy camper. Truck was in great shape otherwise and will be difficult to replace with something comparable even at 150%!
Upon further review....the offer was legit. I had 140,000 miles on my '99 but I kept it in excellent shape, outside looked good, interior looked excellent, engine was clean, and I changed oil EVERY 3,000 miles (at no small expense).
However, I did the math, and checked blue book and figured out that IF they were telling the truth by the 150% excellent retail value, they would have to offer me
$ 8,990 for a 9 year old truck with 140,000 miles that would probably have gotten
$ 3,500 - $ 4,000 for if I sold it to another person. They verified without me telling them my figures - sure enough, they offered me $ 8,900 PLUS $ 1,000 more if I purchased another Tacoma within 60 days (or $2,000 if I bought a Tundra).
I took the deal, drove my old Tacoma out of there...for a week or so while the paperwork got done in Texas, then dropped the Tacoma off at the dealer and yes, they gave me a check for $ 8,990, a certificate good for $1,000 / $2,000 AND a loaner for 30 days.
I bought a 2009 Tacoma, used the $ 9,990 and paid $ 6,000 for a NEW Tacoma.
However, I purchased the Tacoma from another dealer, because the experience of the service guy telling me I could not and would not drive my old Tacoma away from the dealer....left a bad taste in my mouth. Any Tacoma dealer, at the time, honored the $ 1,000 certificate.
The buyback on the recall paperwork stated 150% retail. Good luck getting a buy back. My 2004 has been gone for almost 2 months. I have had rental trucks (Dodge and Chevy) at cost to Toyota. I filled 2 tickets with Toyota customer service requesting a buy back, no luck. I am told that the frame replacement is $12000 and the rental will be close to $4000. I would have taken the $16000 and applied it toward a new Tacoma. I also wrote to the president of Toyota USA when this all began. He must be too busy with all the recalls to respond.
So I wish you good luck with the buyback $$ and if you get it, take it. Let us here on Edmonds know. Thanks