2006 Tundra Crew Cab frame rusting.

I have been reading about this issue a lot on the web and I recently had my truck inspected and they found the same frame rusting along the main frame beside the fuel tank inside rail. In 2014 the truck was coated with protection and covered under the Toyota Warranty however, I think it made the frame rust faster by holding moisture in. The Truck has 114 K and is like new condition and no rust anywhere else except the frame. I contacted Toyota and gave them my vin number and they said the extended warranty has expired. I asked them for any help in getting a new frame installed and they denied that also. I then contacted the NHTSA.dot.gov and filed a complaint to look into this undercoating placed on a existing frame. Its very disappointing to have this situation when the truck is in excellent shape and I am sure that this truck would go another 250k easy but not with a rusty frame.

 

Did you or Toyota check your VIN to see if it’s part of the frame recall campaign? I read somewhere on this forum someone in a similar situation was able to get the frame replaced as part of the recall.

Check this thread for more info:

https://www.tundras.com/threads/early-1st-gen-2000-2003-tundra-frame-replacement-faq.54331/

 

Yes, I spoke to !-800 Toyota and they said the recall is over after they placed the coating on the frame in 2014. I should have requested a new frame at that time since I know now what is the end result.

 

Welcome to the club. I bought my 02 new and washed the salt off the frame regularly. As a result I never qualified for a frame replacement, so I coated the frame in POR-15 and toyota did their treatment on top.

That's all well and good, but now the frame is rusting from the inside out and I"ve got holes in the bottom of the frame rail up front so I know your pain. If your into welding, you could probably extend the life of her.

 

Couple of options, that rust looks bad but looks to be localized. What’s the rest of the frame look like? If it’s localized, the frame can but cut and new plates welded in. If it’s mostly surface rust sand it and put por15 or chassis saver on it. The stuff works wonders. If you opt to keep this frame under the truck a yearly fluid film treatment is in immediate order. I’d treat with salt away, and pressure washer the hell out of it before treatment.

Finally option is purchase a new frame or find a wrecked donor truck with a good frame.

just depends on how deep doesn’t be rabbit hole you wanna go with it

 

The frame coating does indeed accelerate the rust. If it was applied properly (like our 02 Tacoma) it lasts a long time, the issue is most shops just sprayed right over the rust. Best you can do is get all the crud off you can and POR it

 

Seems this happens every few weeks or so. Always someone posting about a good condition (other than frame) truck having been sprayed previously and they are now rusting out. Sucks to see and I don't think anyone has ever had any luck with getting a replacement after trying to call Toyota corporate as the half ass applied rubberized undercoating counts as being as good as a full frame replacement. If only we could go back in time and keep everyone from getting their frames sprayed and just waiting for them to rot out. Seems like this is the one area where not doing preventative maintenance will actually save you in the long run.

I agree with this. Inspect every inch of the frame you can and look/feel for holes. If no holes clean every bit of the rubberized undercoating off you can and apply POR15. If there's holes of course deal with those first.

 

Sorry you're facing such an issue as this . . .

 

@JGR201811 Time to put your best work pants on, grab some goggles and a hammer, crawl under the truck and start tapping away to see how bad it is. From the photo you shared, it appears to be surface rust, which could be cleaned up and then painted with POR15 or Chassis Saver. Were there any obvious holes anywhere on the frame that didn't belong there?

Oh, and welcome aboard!

 

Totally agree, I don't think it looks too bad. If that's the worst of it, it's treatable.

 

I am going to try the Corrison Free spray and see how that goes. No holes yet but they will show some day. Maybe Toyota will revisit this issue and help out there long time customers who have purchased Toyota vehicles for over 35 years from them.

 

Before you start spraying stuff on the frame, I HIGHLY recommend you remove any/all loose paint and surface corrosion. You could exasperate the problem by spraying over the existing surface.
But, I'm sure you know that....

 

10-4!

 

I've found a wire wheel and a pneumatic die grinder go a long way in removing loose rust effectively in tight areas.