Rust on Exhaust

Hi everyone! I’m currently looking to purchase a 2005 Tundra AC 4x4 with 167,000 miles on it. It’s about three hundred miles away so I can’t exactly go look at it. It’s had one owner and the car fax shows getting serviced every 5,000 miles since it was bought. The only concern I have is rust on the undercarriage. He said it’s clean other than the exhaust (I’ve attached pictures), is this a big concern/does it look okay? I know body rust can lead to big issues, but not sure about this. It’s been in Montana it’s whole life, so hard winters but very little salt. Thanks for your help!

 

The exhaust looks okay to me. I've lived in the snow belt and usually exhausts are the first thing to rust. For a truck that's been in Montana it's entire life, looks very good!

 

Welcome from Vegas.
I just bought my 04 Dc a few months back for 7.5k off a used lot . Like this one, only the exhaust had any signs of rust. This one looks about the same and good to go, but How much are they asking and any more pics? Is this a carvana deal? I would not buy a vehicle without taking it for a test drive and or inspection.

 

Yeah, I plan on test driving it. I just want to make sure it’s worth it, no obvious deal breakers, before I make trip. He’s asking 10,500$ which is well within the range on KBB and under the value on Car Fax. It’s burgundy which I’m not super crazy about, but the colors not a deal breaker for me lol He did say the water pump just started leaking but he is having it replaced before I test drive it.

 

Looks fine. I live in Maine so I’m used to seeing the effects of rust on vehicles. Doesn’t look dissimilar to mine honestly.

 

Brush off the rust and apply Ospho (read about it). Once dried then spray BBQ Ceramic High Temp Paint.

Replace the existing shields clamps with Stainless Steel Hose Clamps from big box. Should be good to go as long as no holes in anything. You’ll want to poke around with a sharp screw driver everywhere including the frame before buying.

 

Since he's having the water pump replaced, it would be a good time to replace the timing belt to add more confidence in the possible purchase of the truck.

 

Also check to see if the timing belt was done. If he is only doing the water pump now, it sounds like it hasn't been done before. Timing belt/water pump replacement can translate to about $1000+ for parts and labor.

I've been shopping around for something similar and would say that a fair price could be had for considerably less. If you look around, you will see comparable models for around $6000, YMMV. That said, there is a relatively low amount of frame rust from the scope of the photos. How's the rest of the truck?

 

Oh wow, yeah I’ve been looking for a few months in Washington, Idaho, Wyoming, and Montana and nothing has been listed that low. I’ve found one or two for 9,000 but they’ve had lots of owners/more miles. Every other truck has sold before I could even look at it, ranging from 9k to 13k. Fortunately, the owner is holding this one until I can make the 6 hour drive to it. They are a hot commodity in the West right now!

Timing belt was done 40,000 miles ago the rest of the truck looks exceptionally clean (from the photos, won’t really be able to tell until I make e trip). It’s had 1 owner who is an old guy that babied it, no tears in the upholstery, light scratches on one of the sides (nothing for a 15 y/o truck), plus the car fax shows it’s been serviced every 5,000 miles at the Toyota dealership it was bought at (should it be serviced every 5k or 3k, what would you recommend?) since 2005.

 

Ok, sounds like all is in good order. Being serviced by Toyota every 5k miles is definitely a good thing.

 

Sounds like a fair deal if he replaces the pump. Truck looks extremely clean inside and out, which is a plus. Note that metallic red is notorious for clearcoat peeling on the roof within an inch of the windshield, but that one looks clean. Folks in NE USA would be jealous of a frame that clean looking, but be sure to check every inch of the frame for rust-through. A well-fit cap like that will easily set you back $800+ in good shape, you can potentially sell to recoup some expense.

Honestly, When I was hunting for my 1st gen around 2017-2018, a 4x4 truck like the one you're showing in my area and under 120k miles would easily set you back 12k-14k in clean used shape, easily. I don't know where people are finding these killer 5k-6k deals on clean 1st gens. Only ones I ever see going that cheap broke 200k miles long ago, were beat to hell, frame is shot, were used as trail trucks and are beat to crap, or are base model regular cab (single cab) with a V6.

If it were me and I had cash on hand, I would make the drive. But I cannot iterate or emphasize it enough: The frames are the weak point on these trucks with regard to rust. It's the one thing you want to be 100% sure there's no issue. Montana isn't in the rust-belt of states, so maybe not much to worry about. If and when you get the truck, pop back on here when you have issues. There's a plethora of wisdom across members, and in the sticky threads section to resolve quirks you'll find.

 

Oh, and if you have the VIN# you can run it through here to find a lot of info about it: https://www.toyota.com/owners/my-vehicle/vehicle-specification