Joining the Club tomorrow! I have a couple of questions for you.

Hi everyone!

I will be potentially buying a 2016 CM SR5 tomorrow with just over 150k miles on it, and I had some questions for you all after doing a good amount of searching on here.

I unfortunately will not be able to get a PPI done, so I will be doing a good once over myself. I'm no certified mechanic, but I have done a decent amount of wrenching in my days. The current owner seems to has been taking great care of it (2nd owner starting at 50k miles) with 5k OCI. After pulling up the service records on Toyota, the first owner seemed to have neglected it a bit with doing 10k-15k OCI intervals, with not much else on the books outside of the basic warranty maintenance from the looks of it. I'm not terribly concerned about this as the current owner has put the most miles on it, and corrected this habit. Most all the mileage from the 2nd is also highway miles.

I will be taking a close look at the cam towers, and any other spots that may have leaks in them. The current owner states that there are no current leaks, but I prefer to trust my eyes than someone else's' words.

What would you all recommend me going through to give me extra peace of mind, knowing I cannot get a PPI until after the potential purchase? I will also be listening for any major ticks/diesel sounds as well.

I do plan on changing out all the fluids once it's in my hands, no tranny flush of course.

I have a backup truck I'm also eyeing, but i'm curious to what you all here have to say!

 

A little bit of oil on the cam towers wouldn’t bother me. Most of them at that mileage seem to do it. There’s a difference between seeping and leaking, though. Most of them are just a little wet with oil. No burning, no needing to add oil between changes. However, a very small minority of cam tower seepages leak enough to burn oil on the engine block. If you smell burning oil coming from the engine bay, that’s probably the culprit.

Does he have any other maintenance records besides 5k OCI? I would also ask if he adds oil between changes and if he’s ever done a transmission drain & fill (this swaps out ~5qt). Has he performed a coolant flush or bled brakes or bled power steering fluid? How old is the oil in the diffs and transfer case? Are the water pump, thermostat, fan pulley bracket, tensioner pulley, idler pulley original? How old is the serp belt?

 

This is one thing I will be taking a close look at. If the cam towers do have a leak, would it be just standard seepage, or an actual dripping leak. I do plan on giving it a good sniff while in the engine bay, and underneath checking out the frame and suspension. I do plan on changing the oil from 0w-20 to 5w-30 for extra towing protection and to handle the hot climate a little bit better. I've also heard this can also help slow down a leaking tower, is this true? Any success in using

$21 AT-205 Re-Seal Stops Leaks, 8 Ounce Bottle

AT-205 for this as well? This will be my first Tundra, but I've had past success with other HD trucks I've had.

These are all great things I will make sure to bring up, a few were already on my list actually.

I'm not too sure what else has been done outside of OCI, but they do have receipts from all their previous work, so I do plan on going through all of it to see what else has been done outside of what I could pull from the VIN. I will for sure be asking about any potential "top offs" with the oil.

The truck does have upgraded Powerstop brakes, so I'd assume the fluid was handled then, but I do not know the date/mileage of when this was done. As for the other components, I'm going to assume they are all original, unless their receipt records state otherwise. I do plan on handling all the fluids regardless, unless it was done very recently.

IF all the components you listed are original, I would want to go ahead and replace them all. What would I potentially be looking at repair wise on this?

 

This is my cam tower leak before I got it fixed.

https://youtu.be/vhxa092g8W4

Remember unless it is a flex-fuel Toyota recommends 10K oil changes.
The initial owner may have done it himself or elsewhere after the 2 year free oil changes expired.

As well if you hear a 'click' in the front end every time you drive the truck, it is an ABS test and normal.

https://youtu.be/H1XCK29lAXE?si=OBqNYwnRPjYbc4Wq

Welcome to the forum and good luck..

 

Check for well functioning 4x4 actuators, all of them. If not used, they get sticky. Also look for paint wear on trailer safety chain loops, sign of frequent towing.

 

The 5th sequence in the VIN is "W" so it should be FF if my memory serves correct. I wish I had anything else to go off of from the original owner outside of what I found. I do hope they did their own changes, i've always been a huge fan of 5k OCI with full synthetic no matter what I'm driving. I did not know about the ABS test, thank you for that information and i'll keep note of it during my walkthrough!

Most definitely on the 4x4 actuators! I learned this the hard way many years ago and won't be making that same mistake. They did "use" the truck for camping trips and trails, so i'm assuming 4x4 has been used on the truck over time. There is very slight wear on the chain loop area, but looks fairly light. I've towed a ton in my life, so from the looks of it, the truck only did towing hauls a few times/very occasionally. No signs to me showing that is was a work horse that was constantly towing something.

 

Outside of the covered items, I will more than likely go ahead and change the PCV valve to make sure it's fully functioning and new. Anything else that may have been missed so far?

 

Rad cap, seal fails and falls in coolant then gets lost in water pump/jacket/tstat

 

Good call. I do plan on checking out the coolant system, especially the water pump.

Outside of what's been discussed, are there any other red flags I should consider that would be a "walk away" situation?

 

Was cabin air intake screened under windshield cowling to keep míce out of hvac sys.? You don't want a dead mouse or mice in your duct work. Check cabin filter at the very least.

 

I will make sure to check this as well, thank you! I haven't had any issues with this in the past with any of my other trucks, so I never thought about putting in a screen for this, or even had this on my walkthrough checklist. I will do a search on here and see if it's been a topic covered, and show the screen install so I have an understanding on what's typically being used.

 

https://www.tundras.com/threads/my-tundra-and-the-rats-that-almost-killed-me.102095/#post-2618263

 

This is not entirely correct. 5K changes are recommended if the majority of your driving is done under the special operating conditions.

 

Thank you all for the recommendations! The meat and bones were still solid on the truck with very small "quirks" here and there that are easily fixable. The engine is SOLID and VERY QUIET, never heard a single noise out of it. In a nutshell, I actually joined the club today and it's no longer hypothetical

 

Congrats on the new rig...

PS>>>

 

I had a long drive back home and couldn't beat the sun, so once there's some light, I'll snap a few for you all here.

 

Dude, you're suposed to snap a pic right when you buy it. Anyway, congrats and best of luck!

 

What a tease!
At least post WTF you are referring too.

If you only occasionally drive under these circumstances, it is not necessary to perform the additional services.



Here are the Special Operating Conditions for 5K oil changes..
If you aren't doing any of these, Toyota suggests 10K oil changes..



Are you happy now @seydou?
@SilentC please feel free to change the oil as frequently as you desire.
I was only stating the Toyota suggested oil change maintenance.

 

I'm not triggered at all.
The issue is you didn't clarify your point..
You simply stated some random BS without stating the definition of your said BS.

If it was that important to you, define what exactly the “special operating conditions” are..
Next time state your point in its entirety, don't leave the OP hanging on what the fuck you're talking about....

 

Didn’t really think he needed to clarify as it has been repeated ad nauseam in oil threads that Toyota’s “special operating conditions” are just using a truck like a truck, which one would think every truck owner does, but maybe not these days.

Seems far more people fit the special operating conditions than not.

 

Why are there missing posts in this thread?

 

Unhelpful drama and name-calling

 

Sorry in the delay on the photos! Life has been hectic the last two days. Once I give it a good bath, and can catch my breath, I promise to not keep you all in suspense!