New Owner - 2006 DC Crusty

Hey all,

Picked up a 2006 DC out of someone's backyard. Lots of crusty brake lines.

Starting this thread to document the process of getting it roadworthy again.

Attempted to fix the brake lines in the backyard and was able to flare and make it hold some pressure only to snap off the front caliper bleeders and got it towed.

 

Welcome from NY.

 

I am doing a brake job obviously now and the PO has some LBJs.

Going to head over to the LBJ thread but this is what I have. Better than nothing to just install these or should I get OEM ones? Have new bolts for them on order.

 

Sick find. How's the frame looking?

 

Solid 7/10. Was a veterans affairs car to start then went to someone who took it to a local shop. No holes but the Toyota applied coating that was done 100k ago is falling off.

Going to apply some fertan converter then cavity wax to keep it where it is. Picked it up for a reasonable price TBD on how reasonable once it gets on the road.

 

LBJ's are an OEM only solution my friend. DO. NOT. go with anything else. Make sure you add a double-read-through https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

Beautiful color on that DC (BC)! I hope the rest of the rust on your truck doesn't look that bad!

 

That LBJ thread is a hot mess express for actually finding information. OEM is everyone's first choice but I did not see any info on why. Only opinions, anyone able to point to why OEM is best?

 

From that link,

• Parts you should ONLY buy OEM, else you *will* eventually find yourself kicking your own ass: LOWER BALLJOINTS (bigtime). O2 sensors. Starter. Fuel pump. Cam bolts & sleeves (also huge). Lower control arms (also huge). Too many ppl ignored that lower balljoint warning & found their front wheel horizontal, stuffed into their cab. Don't be them. OEM pricing on LBJs is comparable to aftermarket, be sure to buy fresh high-strength bolts (8 needed) when replacing! Some aftermarket-is-OK parts exceptions HERE. But seriously, THE OEM LOWER BALLJOINT HYPE IS REAL, here's some proof, you don't want to be these people: , , link, link, link, link, link, link, link. If you're worried about costs of OEM, buy the OEM recall kit?

 

Yea I read all that and the other links, curious if anyone knows the reason for the failures.

Why is the hype real?

 

Can dig through the forum for more info on people's experiences with LBJ construction and longevity...like here:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/lower-ball-joints-gone-bad-in-37k-mi-and-mystery-noise.140765

Tip: Occasionally Toyota offers a 25% off sale on already discounted online prices at places like Serra Toyota so can pickup Toyota LBJs at about 1/2 off with free shipping for orders over $75.

 

The design of LBJ, for one. It's a high stress joint on the 1st gens. Second, the quality of the aftermarket alternatives for this part are sub-par. For being a part that is prone to fail in a catastrophic way, it makes sense to bite the bullet and go OEM.

 

Welcome and good luck with your progress! Bring crusty rusty back to life.

 

• The LBJ-under tension* design creates exceptional amounts of stress on the joint itself. Toyota knows this and beefed up their LBJ design intentionally, using all-metal bushings/inserts.
• Aftermarkets treat the joint like any other, don't beef up the design to the same level as OEM, and use plastic bushings/inserts, both of which are fail points
• Even Toyota had issues with their parts, hence the LBJ recall across almost all years other than the 1st.
• There are thousands of pictures of catastrophic failures all over the internet, just in case words aren't working for you, minimum 3-4 photos per week on the First Gen Facebook group, sometimes as much as 1-2 per day, "Fuck, I wish I'd have listened" (a thread is now started to track some)
• Bolt stretch on the fasteners is real, you should replace those also.
• A massive national recall happened not long ago for Moog (whose part quality is shit), NAPA, and two other known brands on LBJs for our trucks, and some of that inventory may still be floating around
• Your OEMs lasted how long? 19 years? Don't you want to get another 19 years out of them?
• I can give you the part numbers for both joints and the bolts, along with torque values, if you need it
• For aftermarket parts that don't suck, or REALLY suck, check this thread for things folks have had wins (or major fails) with
• This video speaks volumes on why the little extra you'll spend on OEM is worth it, but the LBJ-fail-at-highway-speed on that failure thread should tell you what you need to know.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RQWwTB8w2Hk​

 

Welcome from LA (Lower Alabama)!

 

I get the desire to actually understand the reasoning, but...don't get hung up on ball joints of all things. Compared to what this truck is going to cost you in time and money, the ball joints are negligible. The job is easy, the cost is low. The consequence for letting them go too long or using inferior parts is catastrophic. Don't get hung up on this.

OEM is best 99% of the time on all parts. But with some parts, it's not really a big deal, or doesn't really even matter. Certain parts, it matters. Lower ball joints are one of them. Believe it.

These images, and so the year division, are for Tacomas, but give you an idea of the problem. It's a design flaw. Like shifty` says, Toyota seemed to think that by using very strong parts, they could compensate. It mostly works. But if you buy aftermarket parts that use weaker materials, and don't compensate for this design failure, you get...failure.

You can make a good argument for going non-OEM on so many parts. Go for it. Don't choose lower ball joints as your hill to die on.

 

This also ^^

There's a good argument to be made for certain aftermarket, but there are also some exceptions I've seen bubble up over the years hanging out on here, reading, learning from mistakes of others.

It's also important to know you can save a lot of money on OEM by knowing who the OEM supplier was, versus buying the one in the Toyota bag at the Toyota website or stealership parts counter. i.e. Denso was OEM for many electronics, with exception of (at least) Hitachi on the MAF. Aisin for much of the non-electronic mechanicals. Advics for braking. Sumitomo for rubber items. General summary of all that reading/sharing, explaining when to use OEM:

• If the part either (A) requires more than an hour to replace and/or (B) is difficult to replace and/or (C) requires replacing other things you tore into replacing it, GO OEM. Examples: V8 starter. Fuel pump. Secondary air injection and/or its valves. Valve cover gaskets. Intake gaskets. (those latter two, DO NOT use anything except OEM or FelPro, there are too many examples of others cracking/failing).
• Certain electronic parts sensitive to operations GO OEM, and always purchased from a non-knockoff-prone vendor (i.e. avoid fleaBay/scAmazon): Coil packs. O2 sensors. MAF. Alternator. Fuel Pump. Starter. Sensors: Knock, Crank/Cam position, IAT. Senders: Coolant, oil pressure. We've even gotten reports of misfire problems with major name coil packs like MSD and Accel, so be aware reputation doesn't apply in all cases.
• Certain parts Toyota will instruct it's OK to go aftermarket. Spark plugs being one, in owner manuals over at least one or two years, they'll tell you NGK or Denso plugs are fine. Again, spark plugs are probably one of the highest-counterfeited-parts in the world, so buy from a trusted source.

If you're in question, you can always ask here. People are usually willing to chime in. And if you have specific experience that can help others, post it in that thread.

Also, if you have a borsecope or snake cam, take a peek inside your framerails to see how bad the rust is. Coated trucks often rust from the inside out. Check for holes thru metal in the typical places. If you need a list, happy to oblige. I like lists. Like, a lot.

 

Not planning on dying on any hill just curious where the hill was!

Thank you for the photos that helps me understand it wayyyy better and makes me quite happy I have a 2006. The first rev is understandably not ideal.

5th toyota I have owned so will not have a hard time getting me to jump on the OEM train. If you know toyotas you will notice a trend. haha

 

Thank you for the response above, it was helpful. I do default to toyota but when it is the difference of 240 dollars or zero want to know why I am spending the money. Might cut the ones apart I posted above if I end up with OEM. Current Toyota order is below for anyone interested in what it takes to completely redo your front brake lines. I will update it with what I find is no longer available.

The frame rails are crusty for sure. I wanted to clean them out but not sure where I could even vacuum out the dirt and rust. Just used a whole can of penetrating oil on the front end on the brakes so we will see. If you have any thoughts would love to hear them, I looked at your sticky and checked the obvious locations. Cab mounts / Rockers / Truck bed but will be doing quite a bit of rust work so hit me with what you got. Using this stuff as I have had good results with it. https://fertanusa.com/collections/sets/products/underbody-restoration-kit-black https://fertanusa.com/collections/underbody-protection/products/cavity-wax#application



Flexible Hose
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Welcome from New Hampshire!

 

Knew @shifty` and others would have advice. Lots of experience here. Best luck on the build. Suggest adding oil seals to the Toyota list too (they generally fall into A and B in @shifty` suggestion).

 

Grab a hammer, ballpeen ideal. The framerails are boxed in a couple of places, so you can't easily see inside.

Up front, I'd be checking the full outer box of the rails, including areas behind the splash aprons you'll find on either side of the strut tower. We had a guy recently with what looked like a great frame overall, and around/behind the aprons revealed a window into the framerail that was about 3"x6". Check carefully under the brake MC, in case of DOT3 leaks rotting frame. Check what some would consider the forward frame horns. Tap on everything inside/out/top/bottom. May as well inspect the LCA/UCA bushings, rack bushings, lower shock bushings etc. while in there, eh? Check everything between the the front crossmember and transmission crossmember, including those two. Wire brush the weld seams on the crossmembers, inspect/treat.

Where the framerail is open on the backside, under the cab, look at the frame stiffeners riveted in, check for delamination. And of course, you got it already, cab mounts. While under there, look at the swaybar and its hold-downs/mounts. Especially just below the A/C drip nipple on the firewall, where water will leak down on it. Another spot my southern truck was rusty, at the passenger side swaybar bushing/mount (not the swaybar end link, the actual swaybar mount).

Toward the rear, drop the spare tire, it'll probably need replacement anyway. Spare tire carrier should be checked out. Tap all over the X-shaped crossmember above the spare tire, especially the ends where it meets the framerails. Tap framerails where that xmember is riveted. If the truck has tow package, expect the OEM tow hitch/receiver will be rotten, like, really rotten. Even mine is rusting and I'm in the south. Junkyard for a replacement.

Other than that, check all the points where the leaf springs intersect with frame. Including the shackles/hangers. There should be a round plastic disk in between each leaf in the pack at both ednds, shimming the ends of the leaves to keep them from rubbing. Dorman sells replacements. Can get part number if you're missing any/all.


Other stuff that comes to mind when rust is at play...

Maintenance-wise, make sure you grease the driveline if 4WD. Sooner than later. Make sure you understand which zerks to hit, and the process involved with the slip yoke, specifically.

Inspect/replace the rear diff breather, it's the nub mounted to the top of the pumpkin. It should spin freely, but for a $10 part, knowing it's vital to prevent seal blowout, the rear bearings are a f'n bitch to do, and ... "rust belt truck" is apparent ... replacing it is cheap insurance.

If 4WD, you have two breathers mounted off the framerail next to cylinders 3 & 5 (driver side). Check those just the same.

If 4WD, check actuator vent tubing for integrity. Consider replacing; if nothing else, look for split ends. A lot of times failure to shift into 4HI initially can be caused by those tubes cracking/falling off and allowing the contacts inside to get corroded, simple cleaning of inner cap contacts and re-grease can resolve.

 

I like Eastwood for rust treatment and prevention:

https://www.eastwood.com/paints/rust-solutions.html

1. Remove the loose rust with a wire wheel, brush, de-scaler, whatever.
2. Clean the surfaces to be treated thoroughly.
3. Apply Rust Converter to chemically change the rust to an inert polymer.
4. Apply Rust Encapsulator to protect the area and prevent new rust
5. Use Internal Frame Coating to treat those areas you can't see or reach well.

 

Have used POR15 too.

 

Warning: Wear rubber/nitrile gloves with any of these products, if you've never used them. They'll harden almost instantly to your skin like superglue. Nobody told me my first time ~20 years ago. I wore that shit for days.

 

Right! ^^
The easiest way to get it off is to remove several layers of skin