New guy, new truck, new problems. Options?

So, I bought this Tundra for $2,700.
Strong drivetrain, needs some minor work, sounds like a good beater to add to the fleet.

Well, once the effects of the "black ice" air freshener wore off and I did a more thorough inspection, I'm not so sure.

The TLDR version is, at 324k miles with possibly $4k-$5k of work to just make it NOT a POS, am I better off buying another can of black ice and selling it cheap, parting it out, or...what else do you do with something like this?

Problems:
-I don't think the interior is salvageable. Cat pee, human pee (most likely), needs

• a new steering wheel, ($70?)
• seats, ($1200?)
• carpet kit, ($200?)
• and the headliner sags and is probably peed on too. (200?)
• Black ice is apparently awesome at covering every smell. (Priceless)

-Body:

• roof is rusted, at least 2 layers of flaking. Plan was to sand it, primer it, roll on line-x. ($100?)
• Driver's door panel is separated. Planned New door. Or, not. It's liveable. ($150?)
• Holes in the bed floor. Planned to weld patches in. I don't weld, but a friend does. ($30)
• Dent in rear DS corner. Pull out bumper corner, sand and mitigate rust. Leave the dent, primer, rattle can. ($50)
• Leave the rest. A few dents, but nothing that compromises more than appearance.

-Mechanical: I'm starting a new job and don't have the time. All significant mechanical work is being sent to a shop.

• Idler pulley needs replaced. ($150?)
• Exhaust leak ($150?)
• Brakes may need repairs. I think the wheel cylinders are leaking. (Up to $1200 if everything needs replaced.)
• That's all I know about. Seems solid.

Other:

• Rims are crap ($250?)
• Tires are cupped and need replaced ($1200)

My math puts that about $3750 - $5000 plus my labor. At a finished cost of $6500-ish+, is it worth it? Are my guesstimates off?

Help me think this through.

I'm new here, but I'm guessing this isn't @shifty` approved.

-

 

Looks like other than tires, the big issue is the interior.
Years back my daughter wanteda 99 Accord as her first car. To be fair they are stupid reliable and drive like a dream. So we find one at Honda a dealer It smells completely normal. Rund properly. We buy it drive it the 100 or so miles home. Next day it will not start and the smell would drive a possum away. The no start was the plugs, apparently I got the last 100 miles out of them.

As to the smell, can't say what caused oit, but can say what cured it. Removed seats soaked them in LA's Totally Awsome and took the house to them. The flow of brown nastiness that came out was incradible. Repeated the process till they flowed clean. Put it all back together and set off one of these:
https://www.amazon.com/Biocide-Syst...01&sprefix=car+odor+eliminator,aps,110&sr=8-5

Sold the car last year after 7 years and the stink never returned.

You used the word beater. If that's what you want, rip the fabric off teh headliner backer and forget about it.
Maybe a 15 dollar sterring wheel wrap.

As far as tires find out why they are cupping before moving forward with anything. If there is something wrong in the suspension new tires aren't going to solve it and the suspension could kill the budget faster tahn anything else listed.

 

You can pretty easily get rid of the interior stink leaving an ozone generator running in the truck, closed, overnight.

 

Well, a sort of nice beater.

The tires were purchased from the seller to flip the truck. Not original. The old ones were bald, but fairly even.

The steering wheel has had the rubber cut off. No idea why.

I'll look into that product.
As for ozone, I've used it in the past with mixed results. 3 days in a used minivan worked great for a couple months, but spilled milk and kid stink came back. This is much worse. I know I can rent a machine locally for a reasonable price and it's a good option in addition to the deep clean.

 

Spilling milk in anything will make its own horrendous smell. Deep clean ala @bmf4069, then let it dry out fully, and then ozone.

But seriously, just go find a parts truck that’s a bit nicer for like $1k-$3k, with a blown engine or something but nice everything-else, and blend the two to make one $10k truck. Then sell the carcass to a junkyard.

 

When you cleaned the seats, I assume you pulled them out then soaked them. Did you replace fabric or just press the hose into the seat, or...??

I've never used the LA product. Trying to envision the process.

That biocide sounds like magic!

 

So how’s the frame? If the frame is rust free and not full of holes, you got a good deal for the money. Better condition would easily be double to triple that.

 

I'll work on getting a report back from my mechanic this week. Hopefully the drivetrain is as solid as I think it is, then this will be a good option.

 

FWIW, look in the 1st Gen Marketplace on this forum for parts. I know for a fact there's a steering wheel for free, and a driver's seat listed. Check it out!

 

Sweet!

 

Strip it. Cage it. And make it a trophy truck. Cause fuck that’s a lot of work to make it stock

 

Steering wheel replacement is stupid simple, and takes maybe 30 minutes. The only "special" tools you need is a crows foot and a torx bit. I forgot what size, 15 or 25.





The interior may take a bit longer. I used a drill brush and an extractor. Pulling the seats is easy, but it's gonna take a few hours and a few passes to get everything clean. Another option is to pull the carpet and power was it after hitting it with the drill brush.

 

That's one hungry SOB.

 

... And ony special step to take is disconnect the negative battery cable...

 

Depends on how exciting you want it to be.

 

I recently bought a Lexus LS430 for real cheap, I needed a winter/highway/beater car. Previous owner must’ve been a pot dealer, or at least good friends with one. The interior was f’n disgusting. Everything reeked.

A single cycle with an ozone machine got rid of 90% of the smell, and I did another 4 or 5 cycles because why not. Replaced the cabin air filter, and the smell is completely gone.

Removing the seats and cleaning with a steam machine/extractor did wonders.

If I was in your situation, I’d rent a steam machine and ozone generator and spend a few hours cleaning. Then reassess your situation. Even if the truck is mechanically perfect you’re going to hate driving it if it’s disgusting on the inside.

 

I've had really good luck with takeoff tacoma or 4runner rims and tires. My last set was from a guy in sugar house (UT) for $350 and they had less than 5,000 miles on them.

UT has quite a few good junkyards with tundra parts if the seats aren't salvageable. I forget the name of the one in Lehi right off the freeway, but they have tons of toyotas.

Worst case, I had a bucket seat fully rebuilt for $350 and it's the most comfortable seat I've ever sat in.

 

IMO a bissell spot clean is required equipment for anyone who owns a car, carpet, or a couch. Mandatory if you have kids. Might be the best $150 I’ve ever spent. Legitimately can make disasters look like new.

I’m sure a thorough cleaning with one of these machines and an ozone generator will do wonders for you.

$175 Bissell SpotClean Pet Pro Portable Carpet Cleaner, 2458

https://www.amazon.com/BISSELL-Spot...mzn1.fos.f5122f16-c3e8-4386-bf32-63e904010ad0