Looking at buying 2004 Toyota Tundra SR5

Hey there - new member here, looking at buying a 2004 Toyota Tundra SR5 double cab. I know this photo isn't great but it's the only one I have thus far where I can sort of see the frame. Does it look messy, specifically in the top right corner?

Thanks in advance!

 

Looks like it's got a lot of dirt and crud on it. Look underneath to get a better idea. Just don't crawl underneath unless the owner is there otherwise he might think you're stealing his cats.

 

Hoping to have more photos of the frame from underneath today...

 

I would never buy a 1st gen based soley on pictures. We've seen so many members join the forum after buying one with a rotten frame they didn't inpsect before purchasing. You need to be under there with a flashlight and screwdriver poking around.

 

Agreed there. I'm seeing it in person tomorrow. I've had it inspected and the mechanic thinks it's a great truck and the frame is in good condition but I was burned on the last truck I bought (2004 Dodge Ram 1500) so I'm hesitant.

 

Bring a ball-peen hammer, screwdriver and flashlight. If you can drop the spare tire, the frame under it is a good place to look. Tap along the longer framerails with the ball end of the hammer, they should sound solid. If they sound muffled, and the truck isn't coated, I wouldn't trust it. Most people selling won't let you touch anything with a screwdriver, but ... if they will ... you know what it's there for.

 

Great info - thanks! The Toyota dealership coated the frame at some point as I spoke to them recently.

 

A lot of times, as reported on here more than once, the coating only served to encapsulate the rust, purely cosmetic. Owner felt better about not having to swap the whole frame, only to get back a frame that will eventually eat itself apart under the coating, then crack later.

Oh, and frame is not eligible for frame swap program if the original owner opted for coating.

 

Where are you located? Assuming salt state since its been coated?

 

British Columbia

 

Noted - thanks! Would you suggest only buying a FGT that had frame replaced?

 

Looks suspect to me. The brake drum and inner wheel hub are coated in rust. Guilty until proven innocent.

 

Any access to run a Carfax on it, in order to see if it's ever been in a place where roads get salted?

One of my ex g/f of 5ish years lived in Surrey and a couple other nearby places in BC and I don't recall ever seeing the roads salted while I was up there, so I wouldn't expect rust. There's gotta be a reason the frame got coated, I'd think? Or maybe you're farther up in BC than she was, from Surrey, shit's just a hop-skip-and-jump away from Seattle.

Do you need to pay import duties if you buy a truck from across the border in OR or WA states? I'd reckon there's a surplus of rust-free trucks there. I see them all the time, though the prices for PAC NW trucks seem to be inflated about 25%-35% over what you'd pay a few hours south.

 

I ran a Carfax report and spoke to Toyota where the truck was taken for yearly maintenance. They said there was never anything seriously wrong with the vehicle and maintenance records suggest each time it came in, it was just for that - general maintenance. The truck was mostly driven on Vancouver Island well below the snow line where streets are salted only a handful of times each winter. It's been driven in a city for the last year that salts more often.

You have to pay import duties when you buy a vehicle south of the border but I'm not sure what it costs. I'll keep an eye out for vehicles in the PNW.

Appreciate your willingness to help as I feel a bit like a fish out of water haha.

 

It's an unusually good bunch here @ Tundras.com at least on the 1st Gen side. All I ask is you stay on the hunt, and be sure to come back and post pictures of whatever you end up with.

 

Oh I'll be sure to stay on the hunt and post pictures when I finally get a truck. Crossing my fingers the truck is in good shape tomorrow when I see it.

 

Photos of undercarriage. Thoughts?

 

Doesn't look too bad. Mostly surface rust. The differential is the only iffy part. Hard to say from the unfocused picture.

 

I’m a bit unsure of the differential too…

 

Again, pics never do rust justice. You have to wait and see it in person. To someone from New Hampshire it looks great. From Tennessee it looks questionable.

 

Also check under any plastic bedliner for holes on the bed. These trucks are notorious for it.

 

It's hard to say for sure, the diff looks like surface rust, what we can see of the frame looks ok, but the problem areas are above the spare tire and and inside the frame towards the back.

On the diff, can you get a wire brush and see how much dusts off versus flakes off?