Servicing, Concerns, and Inspection on my new Tundra

Hey everyone, sorry as this may be a TLDR. After making my first post and thoroughly reading shifty's awesome post below, I decided to investigate fully in depth my truck today on some of his outlined items.

https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

As I looked more, I realized I probably messed up, but not so sure how much I did. Excitement, lack of knowledge, and me rushing on a business trip all led me down this path, so I can only blame myself.

First thing I want to know, is how bad this truck seems on rust. Yes, upon closer inspection, it was definitely sprayed over with some type of shiny black coating, even most of the frame / diff bolts and nuts are coated, and probably won't come free anymore without difficulty. This truck was originally owned in Maryland, I brought it down to the Carolinas from DC.

The only high rust areas seem to be near the rear, I took out by hand some chunks of rust that are featured in one of the photos (key for scale), I felt water up there too, so water seems to settle on top of the frame near the tow hitch area where the rear leaf springs connect. Not so much anywhere else, at least where I can't see.

The only other rusty areas seemed to be maybe the area / bolts under the side steps (to get in the cab), bottom of the exhaust manifold covers are pitted, rusty parts on the exhaust, the spare tire + area, the right-rear wheel assembly. The frame seems like it's in good condition, it's smooth and I pressed it hard in many areas, and wasn't able to chip off anything or push through any metal, but that can mean anything.

The paint felt sticky in some areas like rubber objects / cables, so not sure if it was recently painted, or if it stays sticky like that, or maybe because it just rained. I've used a thick black paint on a wood work table 5 years ago, and it still is somewhat sticky. The paint on the main frame is bone dry, smooth, and hard though. I'm hoping the truck was lightly rusty, and someone treated it to prevent it from going too out of control. Or it could've been a last second spray and run.

Here is a gallery of pictures I thought were the most interesting / rusty.
https://imgur.com/a/eggczCa

I guess I just want to know if this seems too far gone, is it repairable / how long will it live as a pontoon towing truck in the Carolinas. Everything else works mechanically fine with no weird sounds. It's almost a 20 year old truck, so maybe I'm just being too paranoid?

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I do also have the clunk at low speeds when braking or accelerating, after reading a bit on the forums, it's probably the drive shaft internals not getting greased. The 4 bolts for the transmission mount are rusty, but all seem on there and tight.

I also am considering if I should check the timing belt, do transmission fluid change, and maybe brake fluid flush / change. I couldn't find any records on the timing belt, or a sticker.

Thanks!

 

2WD or 4WD? How many miles? Without more pictures, you're probably not going to get a lot of response on the rust questions. If there is no evidence of a timing belt change, that and water pump should be a top priority. Like ASAP. You can pull the left timing belt cover to check to see the condition of the belt, but that's only cursory. Lower ball joints should also be a concern. I would be concerned about the "sticky" paint or whatever it is.

 

Not gonna lie, that thing is pretty crusty in some spots. I know some of our New England members are probably, like, "Eh, not too bad!" because theirs is worse. (No offense, Bill and BroHon). But there's so much better out there in the Carolinas. I don't think you'll truly know how bad it is until you pressure wash off the coating, and I suspect a lot of frame steel will come with it. I can see delamination happening in some spots already.

It's what you're going to need to learn to live with. And just expect some things, like the e-Brake/p-Brake, which is vital to functionality of the entire braking system, may need to be totally replaced, your rear diff may be leaking soon, all three breathers front and rear will probably need replacement.

FWIW, not my post. I just compiled it from found input and stuff others offered up. It's a group effort. This is a great community.

What are the specs, starting with year? Cab? Drivetrain? Engine? Trim level? Just so people don't need to dig too deep in photos to see the 4.7 etc.

 

It's a 4WD at basically 100K miles. I might be able to get some more pictures tomorrow, most of the bad spots seem to be in areas I can't see. Just to satisfy my bias, I searched videos of people taking their beds off and sanding / restoring their frame, it makes me feel better seeing some other frames can get that bad where practically the entire surface of everything is delaminated, but can still be structurally stable.

Yeah, my optimism says a lot of the parts are dumb and can be replaced, but I feel like most of the delaminated parts are below the bed where I can't see, probably where the black spray did not reach. It's a 2005 AC 4WD 2UZ-FE with the Limited Leather Simulated Wood Interior. I may need to take off the bed one day to do a thorough cleanup, but I lack so many tools to get this done. My focus does lie more with the timing belt, any fluid changes, and the clunk / grease issue. I currently have a 3-month fix-anything warranty on the truck if something breaks, it's covered by any shop that can work with the plan.

Ya'll might laugh, but I did get the truck for $15,500. I was searching for months for Gen1 Tundras in SC, they are usually always above 250-300K miles, or the ones I wanted price / miles-wise were a 2WD base model. So hard to find them at lower miles, but it is the million mile engine after all. I just wanted something lower miles like my Corolla at 123K miles. It doesn't help I was also fixated on the Stepside bed model, there was another one in DC at a nearby dealership, but it was $11,000 @155K miles, and it practically looked like the engine mounts were about to snap off. It did drive perfectly though, and 4WD was fully functional.

Should I take pictures of anything specific in particular tomorrow?

 

I'd be curious to see what you find under the spare tire, where the spare tire meets the frame.

If you look just inside the framerails up under the cab, you should find a frame stiffener riveted inside the frame rail, getting a picture of that from mid-vehicle is helpful.

Shock mounts, upper and lower, and where the leaf springs meet the frame.

Front suspension as a whole.

Any body mounts that look rough/sketchy.

You tested, and 4HI seems to be working? I suspect you'll need to verify the actuator vent hose isnt' cracked up.

 

Seems like you've already accepted the fact that you might have made a judgement error. Hopefully that's not the case.

By the sounds of this, you purchased from a used car dealer. They do all sorts of hokey shit to sell a vehicle, like hiding known issues with rust. Hopefully you didn't pay extra for that 3 month "warranty". It's good that it's there, and there is some peace of mind, but the chances of something catastrophic breaking in 3 months is slim, and they know that. I would have them address the driveline clunk immediately. That should be covered, no?

If you want opinions on the frame, that would be a good place to start, from multiple locations. Also, drop the spare tire and show what's going on up in there. Any other photos that you might want to get an opinion on would be good as well. There are some very eagle-eyed folks on here, with lot's more knowledge than I, that can glean a lot from a photo. We also like to see photos of other 1st Gens! Exterior/interior too!

 

Well, the good, the bad and the ugly here. The good, a low / medium low miles FGT is a welcome addition to any fleet. You didn't provide pictures of the truck, but I'm assuming the user interface side is in good shape or you wouldn't have pulled the trigger. The bad, that frame is definitely a cover up job. Perhaps they thought the treatment would help, they are wrong. That coating will just trap moisture and accelerate the rusting. Some areas that really demonstrate the level of rust you're dealing with: Spare tire rim, KRUSTY. Rear diff cover appears to have been replaced already? Brake backing plates are perforated already. Numerous areas where the body looks OK, but all of the brackets and fasteners are barnacled up. The ugly, you bought a stepside. Kidding! (not kidding). Beauty is in the eye of the lien holder, or something like that.

 

Good suggestions! I'll try taking some tomorrow. I might as well take the spare off for now since it's so dingy. I doubt it's drivable anyways. I tested 4lo / 4hi while driving both Tundras in DC. I couldn't physically see both drive shafts rotating under the car while driving, I only heard a click after hitting the drivetrain selector buttons in Neutral, observed the 4lo/4hi dash buttons illuminated, then both trucks felt like they had 100% more power trying to keep them under control.

Yeah, the dealer was CEDARS CARS below IAD. There's a whole area below that airport of like 30+ dealers and repair shops nearby. They provided the warranty with the truck at no extra cost. You might be right with the clunking being covered, I'll have to call the company backing the warranty. I doubt they'd also replace the timing belt if it was cracked, as that's just general maintenance stuff. I'll try to peel back the cover tomorrow to investigate that part.

I got some pics on my first post! (link below) It's pretty clean for what it's worth! I've seen tons of 2010 Lexus ES 350 interiors garbaged on / torn through (I was trying to get one before my Corolla) unlike what I found in my Tundra.

It was in pretty good shape, some dings and really small chips on the paint, a few trim pieces that need restoring, but that's really it cosmetic-wise. The bed also looks like it was never used, not sure what the original owner used it for, but it probably wasn't a work truck.

I got some pics here from my first post: https://www.tundras.com/threads/wha...tundra-4-pin-black-box-black-ps2-port.140126/

I'll take a lot more tomorrow.

 

WTF is this?!!

 

Mine looked like this when I first got it. I had to buy a bolt cutter to free the spare, and then replace the winch assembly. Fortunately the cross members were OK.



I live in Maryland, and bought a truck that lived in Maryland its whole life. Prior to my experience I would never have guessed Maryland to be a Rust Belt state <sigh>. I've managed my rust issues (more or less), but not without considerable effort and expense. Issues like the fuel tank dropping because the straps rusted through, for example (concealing the fact that the tank was rusting through...no wonder I'd been smelling gas!).

If I had to do it all over again, I would take a lot more time, and be a lot more critical of the truck in question.

 

Some exhaust shop's bullshit hackery. Note the threaded rod they used as a hanger above this sketchy spot I'm highlighting on the crossmember.

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I got some videos and a picture of the timing belt.

https://imgur.com/a/MKd16bV

If I didn't know any better, it seems the timing belt is new? It was black and had a satin gleam (hard to tell from the photos). Hopefully it's not some cheap belt. It made me feel better about any immediate expensive maintenance though.

For the most part, the main frame under the cab and rear is C-shaped, so rust isn't getting trapped and causing a vicious cycle. The front though I think is a different story being a hollow square with drain holes.

I couldn't get an answer from them, but most likely the previous owner hired B&R Associates to install that custom muffler. It does sound nice, but yeah, it seems like it's a hack.

I wasn't able to drop the spare, it didn't look that bad above it.

 

Nothing uploaded other than the video of the underside of the bed. Oof. If the bed supports are any indication, there's going to be some bad and ugly.

 

The series of videos are here.

Man, that's a lot. How much did you pay for this again? If it was any more than $8k-9k, mileage be damned, I think you got boned and should probably return it. Even if it costs you a little coin. You're going to be dumping money into that thing.

 

It was $15,500, I'd be lucky to find any Toyota truck under $10,000 in this economy, unless I'm looking on Facebook Marketplace. Most of those listings keep popping up as scams or are even more sketchy, not that what I got is probably much better lol. Well, what's done is done, it was bought as-is. Everything feels super solid, mechanically works, interior is nice, might as well keep it and attempt some preventative maintenance as a southern truck now.

Not sure how many years or decades I can get out of it, but I'll use best judgement and keep an eye on things, maybe get a cheap borescope and look around further. If I'm able to get a garage and lift, I can do some more ambitious repairs, but hopefully it will hold until that time comes.

 

Thanks @shifty`

What was that famous quote from P.T. Barnum?

Totally agree. Those videos left me feeling really bad for you. So much ugly. I think @shifty` is correct in the suggestion of getting rid of it. Even if it costs you a little bit now. It's going to cost you A LOT later. Sorry man. You asked for our concerns, and I think you have them in spades.

 

@Pertinand if you are planning to use this to tow and launch a boat you need to do 2 things. If it is a tow package truck you need to inspect the big bracket that is behind the rear bumper and make sure it isn't rotted out. It's pretty common for it to rot. You also need to extend the rear axle breather up to the tail light so you don't suck in water while launching your boat.
https://www.tundras.com/threads/rear-differential-breather-mod-pics.93086/#post-2365850

 

The tow area was the most rusty, but felt very structural, but I think most delaminated pieces came from a thinner metal piece extending parallel right behind the bumper. It looked replaceable, but I'll have to take the bumper off to look a bit more!

Thanks for the tip on the breather mod! I didn't know that was a thing, wonder why it's like that with the offroad package. Maybe they don't expecting ya to go muddin'!

 

It's really just an issue if your axle is warm and you dip the whole thing under cold water while backing a boat in. The temp difference means the breather is open and it can let water in. Just one of those things it's better to be safe than sorry.

 

I'll be the voice of insanity. It's a little crispy but spray inside the frame rails with Fluid Film or the like and run it.

You've got a little scale flaking off but nothing that looks like it's compromised the frame.