Full Body Swap 2000 Tundra??

Hey guys just wondering how difficult you think it would be to do a full body swap onto my 2000 Tundra's frame?
Found a donor with 445k miles for a couple grand, the paint is rough but there doesn't seem to be any rust from the pictures, and anything is gonna be in better condition than my rolled body lol.
I personally don't have the tools with me at school, or the space, to do it myself, so how much do you think someone would charge to do the job?
This is of course assuming that my frame is still okay, had a pretty good view of it while it was on its side and everything seemed to be in check, but still want to get it checked out by somebody in case I'm missing something.
Thoughts? I'd rather spend the $2k on the donor truck plus the $2k(?) on the installation than $10k+ on a whole new truck.

 

There's another member here who did it recently. Took him a couple of weeks. Wish I could find the thread.

 

https://www.tundras.com/threads/3-week-build-drax.27041/

 

i dunno man. sometimes it's better to let it go.
that's a lot of work plus unable to drive the truck for some time and I will never be the same no matter what.

 

How about buy the donor truck, but instead put your suspension on it as well as engine and drivetrain.

 

Oh dang that's awesome, thanks for linking it! Love how that blue turned out, has me drooling

I'd definitely consider it, but I'm not sure which way is going to be cheaper.

 

I mean I already can't drive the truck right now which is killing me so it wouldn't be that big of a change. I also don't know if I can afford to just let go of it, trying to find the cheapest option to get it back on the road and through this winter. I've got a BMW back in Chicago that I'm trying to prevent having to take out here

 

My RA for my dorm's dad actually owns a shop in town so I just gave him a call, said kinda what I was already expecting that the body swap would be a little cheaper than the power plant swap because I'd have to move over the diff's and axle housings on top of that, quoted around $2k which is in my opinion not that awful, kinda what I was expecting

 

What's wrong with the donor?

 

I think it would be a fun project. But as I've aged gracefully, life has taught me, sometimes its just better to let it go and start fresh.

 

Yeah, other than the mileage being pretty high. Does the donor still run?

And a couple grand for a donor, plus the $2k labour for the body swap, seems like you arent that far away from getting an older but still decent truck that runs now.

A quick google search and based off my area, $5,500 03 prerunner tacoma popped up.

 

Other than the mileage the frame was never replaced through the recall because Montana doesn't get enough salt to warrant it, seller claims it's still in good condition but that would worry me. He says he's narrowed down a grinding noise to the rear brakes somewhere but never got around to fixing it. No clue when timing was done last because he's only had the truck for two years, but he says the transmission had to have been replaced because it shifts better than his 2004 tundra. Shift lever came off so you have to reach into the column and shift it with some sort of wires(?).

 

Honestly I'd been looking at Tacoma's these past few weeks, and while they're great trucks I could only afford a first gen with higher miles. My goal in all of this is to not have to sell my BMW to fund the new project, but I can get by right now if I do this swap. I'm sitting at a current budget of about $5k without selling the BMW. Figured I've already gotten to know this platform and put a decent amount of money into it, can't see myself just chucking all the parts and work I've put into it recently.

 

Curious what Bayerische Motoren Werke you have?

 

Ah, I see you're also a man of culture lol, but I've got an 04 330i ZHP. If I didn't live in Montana I would just cut my losses and bring the Bimmer to school. Honestly if I didn't find this donor truck my next step would be buying winter tires

 

I can understand that.

 

That grinding from the rear brakes is probably the wheel bearings.

 

I’d buy the “doner” swap your nice parts over, keep the rollover for other parts, as drive the piss out of it. You can always do a frame swap later in if you encounter rust issues or feel the need to.

 

I'm just not sure how much life it has left with 445k on the clock

 

Oh that makes sense, won't be bothering me when I just take the body off of that one though lol

 

I guess, but if you have an entire parts truck who cares?
Do a compression check, make sure everything is in order. That should make your decision.

 

Seems like your truck rolled because you had no spare tire or muffler underneath acting as counterweights.

 

I don't have any space here to keep a parts truck, if I was back home then I would without a doubt keep it

 

Yeah that's gotta be it lol

 

well you could buy the new truck, rent a trailer, and tow the rolled one home?

 

Lol you and I have a very similar thought process, if I had my own place I would but that idea already came up during a phone call with my mom. Shot down right away, I mean ya know we've got space for four cars, between three drivers we have seven vehicles, and there's still only three parked at the house right now. But it's understandable, she doesn't want it rotting next to the garage under a tarp for the next four years

 

Definitely not a bad idea, but that kinda coin would just be used on buying another Tundra, probably with higher miles than the one I have now. I've already scoured the state of Montana for 1st gen Tundras and they are few and far between, or overpriced to the point where you'd think all Toyota trucks are backed by gold out here. I'd end up having to pay close to a thousand dollars to buy a truck sight unseen to have it shipped up here

 

If I'm coming off stubborn to anyone, I apologize, it's just that I've thought about every route possible and they're all either as or more expensive than doing the body swap. I'm actually pretty excited to get my truck back on the road, it's gonna cost a pretty penny and it might not be worth it in some people's eyes, but this is the route I wanna go down.
I'm taking a greyhound this weekend to go pull the trigger on the 445k mile beast, hopefully be able to talk the guy down to $2k even, and then the process of the body swap should start next week