Anybody deal with the Toyota truck frame rust recall?

[SLC_Punker]

Well, my 2001 Sequoia was in for inspection yesterday, and I was informed that the frame is so badly rusted, there is no way they can pass it. I knew there was a recall out for Tundras of those years, but even though they use the same frame, the Sequioas are not under the recall.

I'm just wondering if anyone here has tried to work with Toyota on this issue for either a Tundra or a Sequoia.

Here's some info from a few years ago: http://www.tundraheadquarters.com/bl...y-partial-fix/

I know, I know, rule #1. I'll get some pics tonight after work.

My plan is to file a claim with Toyota, like is suggested in some other threads:
http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forum...me-rusted-out/

http://www.tundrasolutions.com/forum...carriage-rust/

http://www.topix.com/forum/autos/T150C2R6RLPQP2HD2/p8

http://www.edmunds.com/toyota/sequoi...scussions.html

And a pic from our only snowstorm last year (Halloween):



Any thoughts, advice, words of wisdom, etc?

[dieselraver]

all i can say is wow. do you have any pictures of the rust so we can see how bad it is?


edit - also i'd contact toyota USA and go from there. they are very active on twitter, so you may get more of a response then calling india or manilla at the 1-800 number

[dopaz]

Any thoughts, advice, words of wisdom, etc?

Buy your next truck from a different manufacturer.

I had a 1994 Toyota Pickup (before they were called Tacomas) and the frame rusted through in front of the rear axle. Toyota initiated a truck buyback... for 1995-2000 Toyota Pickups! The buyback gave the customer either 1.5x or 2x (can't remember exactly) the book value of the car plus additional discounts if you took that cash and put it towards a new Toyota truck, but my truck was just outside of eligibility. I ended up selling the busted truck to someone who ghetto welded some diamond plate overtop of the weak areas, however he uses it as a farm truck and does not drive it on the roads.

I owned my Toyota while working for a dealership group that had a Toyota franchise. Some of the recalled Tacomas were not bought back, but instead they replaced the entire frame under warranty! The techs would remove the cab, bed, motor, trans, suspension, etc and transfer it all to a new frame. I believe it was about 40-60 hours of warranty labor for the technician, which probably means 60-90 hours of customer-pay labor. That could be $6000-9000 just in labor to replace the frame in your Sequoia (and easily more than that for the parts), one of those forum discussions you linked says a dealer quoted $16,500 to do the replacement.

Perhaps you could find a frame shop / hot rod shop to repair the frame. This would certainly be more reasonably priced than a dealership. Unfortunately, the back half of a Sequoia cannot be removed like the bed of a Taco/Tundra... the whole body needs to come off to repair the frame. Still lots of labor, though you wouldn't have to pay Toyota for a new frame.

Regarding goodwill warranty claims: unless you are a consistent dealership customer (bought it there, regular maintenance performed there, bought and serviced other vehicles at that dealership) I'd say you have zero chance of getting the dealership to help you out. They don't want to do that sort of repair anyways because the warranty time is so much less than what they would make billing it as customer-pay. It ties up two service bays for multiple days to do a frame replacement, that's two bays that could be much more profitable doing other work. Also, corporate Toyota will look at how many dollars are given away to customers as goodwill work, and a frame replacement would be a huge chunk of that goodwill pool.

The next avenue would be to contact Toyota directly. I'm sure Toyota is still reeling from the multitude of their products that have been recently recalled. They will most likely give you the runaround.

As mentioned in those other forums, perhaps contacting the NHTSA would be beneficial. NHTSA will collect the complaints from you and other Sequoia owners, and if they see a pattern of problems they could pressure Toyota to do a recall. It certainly won't be a quick fix though, you're in it for the long haul. If you get any repairs done, keep all your receipts and documentation in case Toyota initiates a recall at some point in the future.

[dopaz]

all i can say is wow. do you have any pictures of the rust so we can see how bad it is?

Until the OP puts up some pics of his own vehicle, check this:

Google Images "Toyota Tundra frame rust"

That's a good representation of what the Taco / Tundra frames looked like. My frame had holes clear through the steel, it looked like swiss cheese.

I've never heard of domestic truck frame problems with the severity and frequency of Toyota. After owning a Toyota, my next truck will be a GM / Ford / Dodge.

[SLC_Punker]

Thanks for the comments. I should have mentioned, I was planning to trade the Sequoia in on a new car in Jan - Mar timeframe. I was just hoping to drive it through most of the winter, and then get into something new. So my plan for now is to file a claim with Toyota and NHTSA, and hope they offer to buy the truck from me at some point soon. It can sit in my driveway for awhile.

I am currently soliciting offers from dealerships for ordering a 2013 WRX (i only drive a truck because i was basically given it by my dad). I spent yesterday test driving a GTI, a Focus ST, a MS3, and a WRX.

[dopaz]

planning to trade the Sequoia in

You might want to get it appraised while you are test driving other cars. Non-Toyota dealerships may not be as knowledgeable about the frame problems. If you try getting it appraised with an expired inspection they will know something is up.

You could also try taking it somewhere else for inspection. A different shop / different technician might not give the frame as thorough of an examination and pass it. Unless, of course, the frame is awful and there's no way to miss the problem. In that case, you might not want to continue driving it. Certainly don't tow or haul anything if you decide to continue driving it.

[dieselraver]

You might want to get it appraised while you are test driving other cars. Non-Toyota dealerships may not be as knowledgeable about the frame problems. If you try getting it appraised with an expired inspection they will know something is up.

You could also try taking it somewhere else for inspection. A different shop / different technician might not give the frame as thorough of an examination and pass it. Unless, of course, the frame is awful and there's no way to miss the problem. In that case, you might not want to continue driving it. Certainly don't tow or haul anything if you decide to continue driving it.

thats not very nice.... but I would do something like this....

in this world unfortunately its every man for himself.

[SLC_Punker]

Picture time!













If you can't tell, i did just replace the exhaust last year.

[marko.f]

wow, hope toyota fixes this

[1995Camry]

I know someone that had a 1996 Tacoma that Toyota bought back for like 8k a few months ago. Call Toyota and ask if your vehicle is in the warranty, I'm sure it is btw. And they will gladly buy it back.

Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk 2

[NoLongerLow]

A good friend of mine had a late 90's Tacoma and Toyota bought that back 2 years ago. They gave him a lot more money that I expected and it was fairly painless. He even had a rental car while he was in between vehicles, paid for by Toyota.

[dieselraver]

Picture time!













If you can't tell, i did just replace the exhaust last year.

that is absolutely insane


what happened with these frames? did they not coat them properly or something?

[O2VW1.8T]

The way we test it is if a hammer can go threw the frame when we hit it, it will need a frame. Our dealer has done a few frames and i will never buy a car from up north.

[gti2.0vw]

I seen this everyday with Toyota trucks. Contact Toyota i know they replace frames daily on these things. It was a recall so they should fix it

[emmettlodge]

what happened with these frames? did they not coat them properly or something?

Correct. Dana is actually the manufacturer of these frames. It was an on-going issue with the paint Dana was using. Problem with rust is by the time it shows up and you see you have a coatings problem, you've shipped 500,000 frames

Dana was also the manufacturer of the Ford Windstar frames - the ones that would rust through and crack in half while you were driving.

I feel pretty bad for Toyota 'cause they had to take all this heat for their subcontractor.

[BRealistic]

My 1988 F-150 has less frame rust NOW than my 2002 Tundra had in 2004.
That Toyota truck frame rust issue is crazy.
At some point during the years and years and years they received inferior frames, somebody should have tested one and said "Hey, this is not good."

[urogolf]

Over the past few years we have replaced over 1000 Tacoma and tundra frames... and in the last couple months 3 sequoia frames... there is a new manufacturer making the frames and the delivery drivers say the lot where they pick up the new frames has been stockpiling the sequoia frames over the summer in preperation for the same recall the tundras had.

There are far fewer sequoias on the road than tundras so this is not as big.. be prepared to spend a couple bucks. As they will not pay for wear and tear items like exhausts, sway bar links shocks etc, but will pay the labor if u decide to have these things replaced...

We just got the binder with all the specs on the sequoia recall ( officially) a few weeks back.. the few we did so far were done as a case by case and done as goodwill.

OH and the drivers say there's a new frame starting to be stockpiled there too. We're not sure if its 4runner or 05 &up Tacoma as those both are gettng crusty too.

[Mr Niceguy]

...

OH and the drivers say there's a new frame starting to be stockpiled there too. We're not sure if its 4runner or 05 &up Tacoma as those both are gettng crusty too.

Any idea if this would affect the lexus gx's as well? As far as I can tell they are all on the same frame, right? I just inherited an 03 gx that has lived its whole life in colorado so the frame looks solid now, but I'm worried about how it will fare up here in the pnw

[FlyRide337]

I had a 98 Taco that I bought from craigslist for 4k. About 8 months later Toyota cut me a check for $94xx after my rear shackle broke loose from the frame.

[urogolf]

Any idea if this would affect the lexus gx's as well? As far as I can tell they are all on the same frame, right? I just inherited an 03 gx that has lived its whole life in colorado so the frame looks solid now, but I'm worried about how it will fare up here in the pnw

I imagine, but even though they are the same company they give us no Lexus info at all! Lol

[Ferris Buehler]

Yes, I deal with my 2010 Tacoma by Krown rust proofing it every year.

[2.0TJett]

Take it and trade it in and this time buy Chevy if you need a truck!

[adrew]

Take it to the Toyota dealer for an inspection and see what they have to say about it.

[leaftye]

I feel pretty bad for Toyota 'cause they had to take all this heat for their subcontractor.

Toyota shifted blame the same way for the unintended acceleration fiasco. Apparently their design and quality is so loose that it allows suppliers enough latitude to deliver this kind of product, but it's not just the fault of the supplier. Even the parts were produced in house, the same problems might have occurred.

[eurowner]

My co-worker just brought his to a dealer in Boulder and he did not have any problems. The service guy did say that Toyota had given new trucks to customers that had really rusted frames. Hmmm, odd.
A good friend of mine let his 17 year old son borrow the '05 GMC 3/4 ton quad cab 6' bed for the weekend. Came out a few weeks later looked at his left front wheel and brought it into the dealer for an alignment. Hours go by and that service guy said the frame was bent. $10k later the GMC had a new fame!

[urogolf]

Take it and trade it in and this time buy Chevy if you need a truck!

we've got a 99 chevy silverado we used only to plow the lot since 2004... sitting in the back yard with a body mount rotted off so bad, the cab shifted when it broke and now you cant steer it anymore... so thats not really much better..

[Vanilla_Coke]

Take it and trade it in and this time buy Chevy if you need a truck!

Uh, yeah, lets downgrade even further!

[Cooper]

My brother-in-law had his truck re-purchased several years ago. He was very surprised and pleased with the buy-back price.

[Air-over-water]

Uh, yeah, lets downgrade even further!

[Spray`]

This has been fixed right?

This thread makes me very scared to look at the underside of my fj cruiser.

[BRealistic]

Uh, yeah, lets downgrade even further!

Yeah.
Toyota may use iron oxide for frames, but the rest of the truck falling off said rusty frame is solid.
Wait...what?

[DrewDub2.0]

Interesting...

I was cruising a local Toyota Dealer's lot this morning to scope a 2003 Sequoia. My wife is looking to get a SUV. It is a Michigan car with 129,xxx miles.


Sure enough, I was poking around the truck and looked underneath, and was appalled by the amount of rust underneath the car.

[1985Jetta]

x2...

[Zstampe]

This has been fixed right?

This thread makes me very scared to look at the underside of my fj cruiser.

No, go look. My 2006 4runner (basically the same vehicle mechanically as your fj) is starting to look pretty rusty on the underneath side and its meticulously cared for.

[s-rocc]

I feel pretty bad for Toyota 'cause they had to take all this heat for their subcontractor.

I don't. Nor should anyone.

The way business works is companies beat the hell out of their suppliers to make things as quickly and cheaply as is humanly possible. Suppliers have little choice, turn down the contract and you are putting yourself out of business. So you rush like crazy to get everything setup and production running, and you do the best you can. Sometimes there are oversights that could have been corrected if you had the time to stop and think about what you are doing. Sometimes the issue is that you had to cut your costs so much that the process got essential parts skimmed off of it.

I am a production manager for an american manufacturing company. It's a tough business.