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Recall Frame Coating Questions

Discussion in '1st Gen Tundras (2000-2006)' started by bhb983, Jan 14, 2025.

  1. Jan 14, 2025 at 6:56 PM
    #1
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    So I found a 2007 Sequoia that I am interested in. I currently own a 2006 FGT and will be keeping it! My question is that the frame on the Sequoia was coated, by Toyota, as apart of the frame recall service. My question is, was this a good coating? Was it a rubberized coating that would trap moisture? I ma planning on inspecting the frame myself before I would purchase it. It is almost 4 hours from my house and I’d like to know if the coating would prevent you from buying it?
     
  2. Jan 14, 2025 at 7:07 PM
    #2
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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

    There’s a thread for the topic, it was being over-asked. Link above. While it says 2000-2003 because those are the years still covered for replacement clearly, I’d recommend putting commentary in there.

    The coating is trash. It allows rusting from inside out. If the frame was rusty enough to get coated, it’s probably fucked by now. I would strongly advise you not to bother.
     
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  3. Jan 14, 2025 at 7:11 PM
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    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    That’s what I needed to hear! I was going to have a shop inspect it before I even made the drive but I’m not sure that’s even worth it. I’ve seen pictures and it looks good but we all know how pictures are.
     
  4. Jan 14, 2025 at 7:14 PM
    #4
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    I mean, if you want to share pics, you’ll get no shortage of input from folks here. But yeah, if it was the Toyota coating, it was a bandaid, not a cure. Sadly, the bandaid went on rotten flesh, and that doesn’t help the underlying condition.
     
  5. Jan 14, 2025 at 7:59 PM
    #5
    Jack McCarthy

    Jack McCarthy Working remotely from the local pub

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    No, not a good coating if you’ve got rust eating away underneath. It wasn’t rubberized but it doesn’t really do the job since it will trap moisture. Stay away.
     
  6. Jan 15, 2025 at 5:07 AM
    #6
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    Let me pose another question to you. I have another one, I can go look at, that is a southern vehicle. I would obviously have to fly there. The concern I have with it, is that the guy had the transmission “flushed” about 4-5 months ago. He said he wasn’t having any issues with the transmission but that the service tech advised him he would do the service as he just hit 200k miles. They also flushed the coolant and used green universal coolant. These services were not done at a Toyota dealership rather an independent shop. Are either of these things to be concerned about? I was under the impression, and it has been talked about forever, that you should not start “flushing” the transmission of it wasn’t done on a regular basis, rather you should do a “drain and fill”
     
  7. Jan 15, 2025 at 5:49 AM
    #7
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    Dealing with questionable/rusty the frame is a far more tedious and consuming than dealing with replacing a transmission or flushing coolant. One is potentially easily reversible/correctable. And if the shop that did the transmission work is a BG shop, and they did BG's transmission treatment, it's a huge bonus. The other (frame) is not a reversible/correctable situation. But beyond that, any truck you get that had the frame treated is going to also have the bane of rusty fasteners elsewhere, which is something you'll fight with on every. single. thing. you do to that truck.

    I wouldn't hesitate to buy but I'd find out if it was truly a trans flush, the BG treatment, or just a simple drain/fill. Replacing the coolant is easy enough. Get a few gallons of distilled water, run the engine for a minute with the heater on full blast, shut it down, open the radiator petcock and both block drains to drain everything, refill with distilled water, run the engine with the heater on again to cycle the water through, purge again. I'd probably do that purge twice (so roughy 7gal water) and refill with SLLC.

    Say, worst case scenario, the transmission ends up failing due to the service. It's SUPER unlikely that will happen. But even if it does, it's still half the cost of replacing a frame, and if you do it yourself, it may end up being a third or quarter of the cost/hassle.
     
  8. Jan 15, 2025 at 6:19 AM
    #8
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    I hear you! I think I got spoiled with my FGT, it was a one owner from the South. Guy was a master Toyota Tech, still is and had every receipt and had gone above and beyond to keep it maintained and clean! Now if I can just find that in a first gen Sequoia! If you know of any pass them on my way . I’ll post some pictures of the o that had the frame coating, over the weekend. He is an older gentleman and only sent me one frame pic, that’s how I knew it was coated. I’ve asked for more so his son is supposed to come over this weekend and take pictures.
     
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  9. Jan 15, 2025 at 6:37 AM
    #9
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    I mean, if the guy lives up north, a lot of our savvier members Fluid Film (or Woolwax or similar) their frames. And it does work. But, one of the classic tells a truck has been driven in salt is under the hood. If you see all the steel clamps and hardware in/around the engine bay, on the firewall, etc. are rusty, the frame will almost always also be rusty, unless it was replaced. It was a tactic I used when hunting down my truck, and it worked 90% of the time. There was at least one truck which was a beach-driven truck I found in Jacksonville which had surface rust all over the place, and rusty bits in the engine bay. But the rear axle was rotten because the guy, a fellow angler, launched boats in salt/brackish water.

    All that to repeat: Look under the hood for rusty fasteners. If you find them, realize something. 50/50 chance with every maintenance item you do, if rust is hitting those bolts which aren't directly exposed to the elements, you're going to be fighting with rust when removing fasteners. The closer to the ground the fastener you're trying to break loose is, or the closer to hot/cold cycles it is (like the manifolds, O2 sensors, cats, etc.), you're going to be busting knuckles and cussing.

    I also realize you're in IN, so I'm probably preaching to the choir, or overstating things because of my many decades of living in the south and mostly buying southern vehicles.
     
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  10. Jan 15, 2025 at 6:59 AM
    #10
    G_unit3000

    G_unit3000 New Member

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    I live in North Jersey and agree with what shifty stated here. I will add that I have seen unicorns in the salt belt, vehicles that potentially got oil/wax sprays or maybe got an underbody wash everytime there was salt spray. I say this after seeing a FB Marketplace ad for a one owner 2006 4runner v6 4x4 with 103k miles in Queens NYC that looks immaculate. How is this possible? So it might be worth looking to find that unicorn
     
  11. Jan 15, 2025 at 8:04 AM
    #11
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    That frame is clean! I wonder if it was replaced at some point?!?!
     
  12. Jan 15, 2025 at 8:19 AM
    #12
    The Black Mamba

    The Black Mamba He must increase, but I must decrease - John 3:30

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    This frame "LOOKS" clean. It was certainly spray painted at some point very recently. Doesn't mean it's not good, but it's had lipstick applied.

    upload_2025-1-15_10-19-33.png
     
  13. Jan 15, 2025 at 8:25 AM
    #13
    Jack McCarthy

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    A magnet over any questionable areas that aren’t super smooth as you’d expect from a good frame would tell you if you have rust or bondo underneath. Rust on welds aren’t a big problem and are expected to be surface rust only.
     
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  14. Jan 15, 2025 at 8:55 AM
    #14
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    Usually what shady dealers try to do to get a sale!
     
  15. Jan 15, 2025 at 9:42 AM
    #15
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    See how fresh that spray paint is on the underside of the body, the overspray? And it's flat, rattle can, not satin, like OEM.

    Someone knows damn well what's up, and recently sprayed it to cover up any areas of concern. One must ask themselves, "Why? Why do it RIGHT BEFORE SELLING?!" Like, wouldn't you want someone to see the frame is clean, without it being treated? Lipstick on a pig. That's the type of stuff that scares me.

    I would add, Fluid Film has a new(ish) product that's got black dye or something in it. It's possible that's what's on there. Or it's possible they went to the local hardware store, grabbed a cheap rattle can of paint, and sloppily went to town. Shocked they wouldn't grab a cardboard box to slide between the framerail and body to avoid the overspray, make it less obvious. Although the flat color of the surface is a dead giveaway. Frames rarely ever use matte/flat paints. Typically eggshell/satin, although I've seen some gloss frames too.
     
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  16. Jan 15, 2025 at 9:50 AM
    #16
    G_unit3000

    G_unit3000 New Member

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    I didn't even notice the over spray at first glance!
    That is a suspicious thing to do before sale.
    I definitely would need to see many more photos of the frame and underside before driving even an hour to check it out.
     
  17. Jan 15, 2025 at 9:51 AM
    #17
    G_unit3000

    G_unit3000 New Member

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    Agreed. I take it back, most likely not a unicorn
     
  18. Jan 15, 2025 at 9:58 AM
    #18
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    Ive had my FGT coated with Krown, the last couple of years and just switched to woolwax this year. I bought my FGT from the south, with no rust. I am in Indiana now so I try to do what I can to prevent any issues.
     
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  19. Jan 15, 2025 at 10:19 AM
    #19
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    the bad part is, someone who doesn’t know what to look for will buy it!
     
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  20. Jan 15, 2025 at 10:23 AM
    #20
    The Black Mamba

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    Again, it could be good. I've been tempted to paint/refresh my pristine southern truck rust free frame. It doesn't mean I'm hiding anything. I know others on here who have painted theirs for fun too.
     
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  21. Jan 15, 2025 at 10:31 AM
    #21
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    That is true.
     
  22. Jan 15, 2025 at 11:37 AM
    #22
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    If you ever do it, Rustoleum "satin black" is a damn near OEM-perfect match for almost every truck I've owned, across multiple brands. Even matched my 1968 C10 perfectly.
     
  23. Jan 16, 2025 at 10:41 AM
    #23
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    So I found a 2007, in Georgia with 145k miles. Since I am several states away, I had an independent shop inspect it. They said they found a leak at the front differential. The said “the seal” was bad. They recommend pulling it apart, cleaning it and resealing it. I am having a hard time understanding what this “seal” is that they are talking about. I thought the front diff was somewhat sealed, meaning they weren’t bolted together. Can you help me understand what’s going on from these pics? I’m leaning towards a sloppy oil change but I didn’t know if you saw something different?

    IMG_1032.png
    IMG_1031.png
    IMG_1030.png
    IMG_1029.png
    IMG_1028.png
    IMG_1027.png
    IMG_1026.png
    IMG_1025.png
     
    Last edited: Jan 16, 2025
  24. Jan 16, 2025 at 11:02 AM
    #24
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    Honestly, at first I thought it was the figure-8 gasket on the oil filter housing (filter cooler). That does go bad. Then I saw the oil all over the front diff, and I'm thinking the truck either has cam seal leak or the (far too common) valve cover gaskets are leaking like a sieve, and raining oil on everything below it. If it's a cam seal that's $$. If it's valve covers, that's TIME. The front differential does not appear to be the problem, tho those pics are tiny. The problem appears to be the sub-par mechanic looking at it. I wouldn't trust them on this one.
     
  25. Jan 16, 2025 at 12:00 PM
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    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    I’ve done valve cover gaskets but never cam seals. How bad of a job is that? Worst case are you thinking cam seals? It’s a 2007 with 145k miles absolutely zero rust on the frame and he wants 8k for it.
     
  26. Jan 16, 2025 at 2:34 PM
    #26
    shifty`

    shifty` We skipped the light fandango

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    On the later-year VVTi engines it's far more intensive, and easier to fuck up. Bluntly. I'd feel comfortable doing it on the non-VVTi pre-2005 years. I'm not sure I'd want to do it on the 2005+, honestly.
     
  27. Jan 16, 2025 at 3:18 PM
    #27
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    Right on, I may pay the shop a little more to do some more digging.
     
  28. Jan 19, 2025 at 6:13 PM
    #28
    bhb983

    bhb983 [OP] New Member

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    Well that Sequioa/Seller ended up being a complete shit show! Guy was meeting around with the VIN. He sent me a carfax but it only listed a 16 digit VIN and then I called him out and he sent a new one with 17 digits that wouldn’t pull anything up. Wasted $140 on the inspection but cheaper than what it could have been!

    I found another one that is going to be inspected tomorrow. It is a one owner but has spent some time in the rust belt. The seller is the original owner but is an older gentleman so he hasn’t been able to send me any frame pics. Are there certain areas of the frame/undercarriage I should h e the shop pay special attention to and have them send me pics? I will inspect it myself, once/if the shop gives the ok. I just didn’t want to wast 2 days and a hotel stay to get there and find a surprise.
     
  29. Jan 19, 2025 at 6:54 PM
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    Jack McCarthy

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    If it’s identical to the Tundra, the entire boxed section of the frame from the bumper to under the doors and then the rear section in front of the rear tires where it’s reinforced with a secondary brace. Rust gets in-between and under the reinforcement and sometimes eats through the outer frame itself if it’s bad enough.
     

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