My first Tundra!

Just picked up a 2002 Tundra Limited AC with the V8, 4X4 and leather interior. Came with a nice topper as well, brand unknown. I'm dedicating this thread to asking questions and gathering info, because it's the nicest truck I've ever had, and I want to keep it that way. This is my first Tundra, and first Toyota truck. I guess technically I also had a 93 4Runner, but I digress.



Small awesome detail, note the additional tubing under the front bumper - this truck originally had a ladder rack! The dealer threw it away because, quote "it was ugly" but I'm a fabricator, so I'll eventually get around to putting a roof rack back on it.

Anyways, let's get to the important stuff.

Current issues:

• Smokes from the exhaust on every startup, only for like a second, then it's gone. No clue what that's about.
• Leaks power steering fluid like crazy, fully filling the reservoir every couple of days. Appears to be one of the hoses, it's the only thing that looks wet.
• At 176k miles, it's due for a timing belt change eventually. Unknown when it was last done.
• The steering wheel shudders back and forth under heavy braking. It tracks straight, but it's enough to feel it.
• When coming to a complete stop, there's an additional... not quite "lurch", the truck doesn't move, but there's some sort of driveline clunk as you come to that stop.
• Someone screwed up rekeying it at some point in the past, there's an ignition key and a separate driver door key - the passenger door doesn't unlock with either of these keys. I'd like to eventually get both doors rekeyed to match the ignition key, but that's down the road.
• More immediately, it has no remote. I've done a bit of research and purchased a set of RS3200 remotes off ebay, making sure the seller offered free returns. The remote unlock situation on these trucks seems a little messy, so it's unclear if what I got will actually work.
• The front and rear tires are separate brands. They have similar life left on them, and the rear/front pairs are matched, so it's probably fine. It just annoys me.
• The rearview mirror is impossible to see out of with the topper. The two extra layers of glass are tinted, and the windows inbetween the cab and bed are really dirty. I've ordered a backup camera and rearview mirror combo kit, so this weekend I'll be installing that. I'll probably go through a car wash first to see if that helps at all.
• Lastly, and maybe most importantly - according to CarFax, this was an east coast truck that eventually came to Colorado. From doing research after buying it (I know, I know), I can confirm the frame is shiny, so must've been sprayed with some sort of coating, rather than being recalled. So I've been getting under it the last couple days and hitting random points to look for weak spots. Haven't found anything yet, so fingers crossed I got lucky and there's no rot anywhere.
• Okay one more, maybe least importantly, the clock is bad. Unless 7:8(backwards F) is a real time I was previously unaware of.

I think that wraps up my first week of ownership. Let me know if I'm making any really dumb mistakes so far, and if you have any advice or tips, it would be much appreciated. Thanks!

 

Check out the mega thread in the first gen section. It will answer many of the questions / problems you have posted.

 

A lot of your questions/problems are covered in the community megathread @KNABORES mentioned: https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

Smoke at startup is likely power steering air control valve or its vacuum hoses. Could be leaky injector. Search 1st page for “SMOK” without the trailing I or E so you get all instances.

Clunk is lack of greasing driveline, probably. Search for “CLUNK” on 1st page of megathread.

Topper looks like a LEER 100XL. Look for a serial number plate on the driver side rail between the driver side window and rear door. Possibly SnugTop. Can’t see clear enough pic of the rear. A lot of times the inside cab-side window of the cap folds down so you can clean. Can’t help you without pics of inside, bulkhead window so I can explain.

Colorado isn’t too bad usually, Utah can be.

Shiny frame may be a bad thing. Should never be shiny. Need pics. Someone may be hiding something. Hopefully you found the Megathread BEFORE buying and knew where to look for rust.

Shuddering under braking is probably warped drums or warped rotors. It’s common for aftermarket brake parts to be warped right out of the box. We can give a lot of advice here.

Timing belt only takes seconds to check, loosen the timing cover. Don’t fuck around. It’s due every 90k/9yr ***IF*** you use OEM (i.e. Aisin/Mitsuboshi) parts. This is not a suggestion. Also, if no evidence lower ball joints have been done they’re 50k miles overdue and you CANNOT use aftermarket parts. Toyota is having a national sale for the next couple days thru the TPP website. You need new hardware too.

Hit us up if you have probs with programming. Be sure to space out actions for each step evenly when entering programming mode and erase all pre existing remotes. More info in megathread, search for “KEYS” on first page. It takes me 2-3 tries to get the right sequence timing. Also. Look under the driver side dash for evidence of T-taps. If you are like “@shifty` WTF are you talking about!?” Send a few pics of everything under the driver side of the dash, between the firebox and center console.

We are here to help. Welcome!

 

This is the thread where you'll find a lot of your answers.

https://www.tundras.com/threads/so-you-wanna-buy-just-bought-a-1st-gen-tundra-eh.115928/

Take some photos of the frame, there are a few main spots where rust can cause failure.

 

PS - the truck looks fucking awesome. Twinsies with @The Black Mamba

 

Thank you for the detailed response! This is exactly what I was hoping to see. I will be doing a lot of reading through that thread now that I've been made aware. Unfortunately, I did not see it before buying this truck, so I will be checking the hot spots recommended in that thread for rust this weekend. It also sounds like I'll be doing my timing belt pretty soon, the used dealer told me I had 25k miles, but based on what you're saying (And I trust a dedicated forum more than a random used car dealer) I've only got like 5k miles before it's due, assuming it was done right at 90k previously.

If I run into problems programming the new remote, I'll definitely come back here first to make sure before returning anything. Thanks again!

 

Thanks, I thought so too! I'll be honest it caught my eye and held it for like two weeks before I bought it lol

 

I was wondering what the chrome bumper and grille would look like in body matched paint! Looks great

 

Welcome from TN!

 

Rustoleum gloss black is pretty close to Toyota 202. My hood, bumpers and all chrome trim are now Rustoleum gloss black. Just prep, sand, apply self-etching primer and then paint.

 

It was actually an option included with Limited trim trucks. SR5 got chrome mirror caps and chrome bumpers, Limited got paint-match (some call "chrome delete") package.

 

Welcome from NY.

 

That's a great tip, I was ready to spring for the expensive color matched paint. If Rustoleum is that close, I'm just gonna go with that and save a bunch of money. Thanks!

 

Thanks for the welcomes!

 

You bet! This is a great sight and Jim was the first person that welcomed me. So now I try to be one of the 1st if not the 1st.

 

Here’s some topper pics

Interesting little black box in the roof, wonder what it could be? Would also be nice to get this light working again.
Found this little label on the door, looks to be called a Snugtop

 

If that is the nicest truck you have ever had, congrats. The paint looks GREAT for a truck of its age. Me personally, i try to take care of my paint and take the time every two years to polish and seal it to protect it. If you want the paint to continue to look good i can walk you thru the steps to make it shine almost like new and stay sealed up so the UV rays dont eat the clear coat up. You can keep it shiny and black if you will spend the time to polish it and seal it.

I would check the timing belt ASAP, like today or tomorrow, not in a few weeks. Its a death sentence when the timing belt lets go. A 10mm socket and 1/4" ratchet and about 8 minutes total you can have the plastic cover pulled back and the belt checked out. Take pix and post them. If the belt looks bad, as in OEM never changed, you need to do that yesterday. If the belt was done at 90,000-100,000 and it looks good you probably have a little time but it does not need to be neglected.

Lower ball joints up front, read the section about them and how to check for any slack in them. Floor jack, jack stands, and a long pry-bar or tire tool or even a solid 2x4. Do the required wiggle wobbles to check for slack in the lower ball joint before riding the roads. They too can let go and total the truck with a quickness.

If you get those two things checked, and they check out, it looks like you got a nice truck.

 

Keep that topper. Do not give it up cheaply. Lol.

 

I'll be opening the timing belt cover tomorrow and taking pictures, will report back. Also, I'm interested in learning more about keeping the paint nice! My last truck was a black Mazda B3000 and I loved the thing, but the paint on all the horizontal surfaces was toast.

On that note, I finally decided to quickly spray down the truck and wash away most of the dust. It also confirmed the topper is water tight, which is awesome because my old Mazda's was not.

 

Nice looking truck. If you want to keep the finish looking optimal, remember, polish is what matters, not the wax. Wax is merely a sealant of everything underneath. I use Meguiar's polish, but there are many others that are good. Again, focus on the polish, seal it all with a good wax. Carnauba is preferable.

 

im on my phone with crappy service and can’t load pix from phone. I’ll load some pix when I’m at work tomorrow from computer. Lay some info out. If you want it to shine like new and seal the clear there is a polish/sealer that will do it all in one shot and does an incredible job at saving and protecting the paint and clear. It works on single stage and two stage paint and clear.

 

This is what I use and I love the results, but I don't recommend doing it by hand although you can in small sections. A random orbital polisher works best.

https://www.meguiars.com/automotive/products/meguiarsr-ultimate-polish-g19216-16-oz-liquid

 

2001 AC V6, started as a trash hauler, slowly upgrading

 

That’s my go-to also. Works great with random-orbit, and appropriate pad color for what you’re attempting to accomplish (cutting vs. polishing vs. waxing)

 

Depending on how sensitive you are to "slack" in the truck, you might just need to get used to the slight clunk when coming to a stop. When I got my Tundra, basically same exact truck as yours, I noticed what I'm guessing is the same thing. A little slop when coming to a stop. Driveshaft greasing had no effect. I learned to live with it.

Now I'm wondering...have I just gotten used to it, or did it go away? I'll check later today when I drive it. I did a lot of suspension work and maybe that fixed it, but honestly I don't know.

Somebody probably also did exactly what I did to my truck - they took off the TRD stickers. Pretty sure all Limited models were TRD? Doesn't mean much on these trucks unfortunately (same year range Tacomas with TRD stickers got locking rear differentials - not the case with Tundras). Just a sticker at this point.

I have the same deal with too many layers of tinted glass. Pretty hard to see out the back. Backup camera is a life saver.

Post photos of the frame!

 

If you're leaking that much PS fluid, it should be easy to track down...where's the puddle?

 

Funny story on that. My previous truck was a disaster heap of an F250 diesel. Had it for about two weeks, it sprung a massive rear main seal leak where I park. Now my parking spot is so stained, I can't tell where any leaks from the Tundra are coming from. I'm going to put a cardboard box under it tonight and see what that turns up.

 

I tried to check my timing belt today, and failed to pull off the driver side cover. The bottom bolt is totally rounded over, and I couldn't manage to hammer a smaller 9mm socket on it. And I don't seem to have a 9.5mm.

Tried to get at it with vice grips, different 10mm sockets, angled pliers - no dice. Anyone have any suggestions?

This is the only sliver of the timing belt I could see by prying back the cover.