[Rick2000TRD]

Thanks for having me back I have not been able to post for about 6 months and my login disappeared or I messed up so I re-registered. Funny thing is that I used the same name again and it took it. Maybe I was purged.

OK.... I am looking at a 2002 double cab to buy, V6, TRD, pretty loaded. I have had like 5 toyota trucks and a 4-runner to date so I have a good feel for them by now. What strikes me as odd about this one is that almost every fastener, the driveshaft and the entire exhaust system are real rusty. I mean hose clamps, heads of bolts, steering linkage... you name it.

The body is not damaged - it has about 27000 miles on it - and runs great. In all of my toyota's I have never seen anything like it. I am hoping that maybe someone can help me decide if that is normal / acceptable or if it is a sign of some prior trouble that I should avoid. The dealer provided a carfax (like their version) and it was clean. It actually makes me a bit nervous... but again it is an 02 and my last truck was an 00. Maybe I am not making a fair comparison.

Help !!

Thanks, Rick

 

[GodwinAustin]

Rick avoid rust man - in the words of neil young -rust never sleeps. Once it starts you cant really stop it without spending lots of cash - it will eat at your frame and seize bolts etc etc. The fact the underbody is so rusty at 27k is odd and probably a sign the previous owner didnt take very good care of it.

Avoid rust.

 

[tacoma_trd1999]

I love the Title of this post. lol
I wouldnt buy it just because you never know how it was treated. If the previous owner was too lazy to spray it off after a winter storm. He also was probably to lazy to change the oil on time.

 

[hytenor]

Thanks for having me back I have not been able to post for about 6 months and my login disappeared or I messed up so I re-registered. Funny thing is that I used the same name again and it took it. Maybe I was purged.

OK.... I am looking at a 2002 double cab to buy, V6, TRD, pretty loaded. I have had like 5 toyota trucks and a 4-runner to date so I have a good feel for them by now. What strikes me as odd about this one is that almost every fastener, the driveshaft and the entire exhaust system are real rusty. I mean hose clamps, heads of bolts, steering linkage... you name it.

The body is not damaged - it has about 27000 miles on it - and runs great. In all of my toyota's I have never seen anything like it. I am hoping that maybe someone can help me decide if that is normal / acceptable or if it is a sign of some prior trouble that I should avoid. The dealer provided a carfax (like their version) and it was clean. It actually makes me a bit nervous... but again it is an 02 and my last truck was an 00. Maybe I am not making a fair comparison.

Help !!

Thanks, Rick

I sounds like the previous owner liked to play in the mud...a lot of it...and never washed it off until now.

find another Taco.

 

[GodwinAustin]

I love the Title of this post. lol
I wouldnt buy it just because you never know how it was treated. If the previous owner was too lazy to spray it off after a winter storm. He also was probably to lazy to change the oil on time.

exactly...................

 

[tbplus10]

Definately a truck to avoid, for all the surface rust visible there'll be twice as much hidden rust. Every mod/repair will be accompanied with WD-40 and plenty of grunt with a cheater bar. Theres alot of Tacomas out there that have been taken care of, find one of them.

Tim

 

[Boheefus]

We love rust. It holds us all together in the bond of decaying matter.

Boheefus

 

[DesertTRD]

Thanks for having me back I have not been able to post for about 6 months and my login disappeared or I messed up so I re-registered. Funny thing is that I used the same name again and it took it. Maybe I was purged.

OK.... I am looking at a 2002 double cab to buy, V6, TRD, pretty loaded. I have had like 5 toyota trucks and a 4-runner to date so I have a good feel for them by now. What strikes me as odd about this one is that almost every fastener, the driveshaft and the entire exhaust system are real rusty. I mean hose clamps, heads of bolts, steering linkage... you name it.

The body is not damaged - it has about 27000 miles on it - and runs great. In all of my toyota's I have never seen anything like it. I am hoping that maybe someone can help me decide if that is normal / acceptable or if it is a sign of some prior trouble that I should avoid. The dealer provided a carfax (like their version) and it was clean. It actually makes me a bit nervous... but again it is an 02 and my last truck was an 00. Maybe I am not making a fair comparison.

Help !!

Thanks, Rick

rick, where are you located and what are you willing to spend, I know someone with a 02 or 03 with 100k on the clock (socal freeways) the thing is in emaculant condition, its lifted and setup already really nicely...

 

[atwinda]

Thanks for having me back I have not been able to post for about 6 months and my login disappeared or I messed up so I re-registered. Funny thing is that I used the same name again and it took it. Maybe I was purged.

OK.... I am looking at a 2002 double cab to buy, V6, TRD, pretty loaded. I have had like 5 toyota trucks and a 4-runner to date so I have a good feel for them by now. What strikes me as odd about this one is that almost every fastener, the driveshaft and the entire exhaust system are real rusty. I mean hose clamps, heads of bolts, steering linkage... you name it.

The body is not damaged - it has about 27000 miles on it - and runs great. In all of my toyota's I have never seen anything like it. I am hoping that maybe someone can help me decide if that is normal / acceptable or if it is a sign of some prior trouble that I should avoid. The dealer provided a carfax (like their version) and it was clean. It actually makes me a bit nervous... but again it is an 02 and my last truck was an 00. Maybe I am not making a fair comparison.

Help !!

Thanks, Rick

Probably lived around a beach, took time to clean the body, but didn't think to give the underside a clean every now and then..

 

[Jamier2]

I'd almost bet that truck had water damage at some point. Fresh water isn't too bad, but salt water will cause one to almost melt. I saw a car that a friend was checking out from a shady car lot where I'm from, and they found sand and a freaking starfish under the carpet in the trunk. Of course the dealer said it was never damaged and had it really did have a "clean" title. Some states have funny rules on branding titles with "flood" or "salvaged" and people can get around that pretty easily. Two states that I would not buy from (if I weren't in that state) are Florida and Texas. I've seen a few from there that are rebuilt wrecks or previous flooded vehicles but the titles don't say anything.

I do buy Carfax when I buy a car, but I've heard plenty of people say that some things don't ever show up on them. My wife's maxima had a fender bender that required bumper replacement and paint at the dealer before the original owner bought it, but Carfax had nothing at all about that. I just wouldn't put all my trust in Carfax, it's a good service to be sure, but it isn't perfect either.

 

[joeylead]

OK.... I am looking at a 2002 double cab to buy, V6, TRD, pretty loaded. I have had like 5 toyota trucks and a 4-runner to date so I have a good feel for them by now. What strikes me as odd about this one is that almost every fastener, the driveshaft and the entire exhaust system are real rusty. I mean hose clamps, heads of bolts, steering linkage... you name it.


Thanks, Rick

I dont know if you live near a coast, but I live on Long Island (NY) The only way I have seen a truck become that completely rusted underneath is when a person took it out on the beach, and into the water alot and never washed underneath. That rust is beyond not washing after snow, I never do and we use a lot of salt on the roads here. Mine is a 99 and not all that rust, and i used to take it out onto the beach all of the time.

 

[absolut taco]

So what is the best way to avoid rust on a new truck. My 2004 is 3 months old, and I want it to stay rust free as long as possible. I did not, however, want to pay hundreds of $ for the stealership's "Paint Sealer & Underbody Treatment Package". Is there something I should put on the chassis to keep it rust free? The tail pipe already has spots of rust on it...

 

[BMWTACO]

My father has a 98 tacoma with 120k on it here in new england. It was actually my truck, I leased it and he bought the lease out before I turned it back in. But anyway, he only washes the thing once or twice per winter, and it sees tons of road salt. It's actually very clean underneath. So is my 89 toy with 200k that I never wash. If it's an 02 and it's all crusty underneath, I would bet it spent some time in or around lots of saltwater. For those looking to rustproof for cheap, motorcycle chain lube in spray cans works awesome. Sprays on like wd-40 then turns into a light grease. A friend of mine does this every year on his audi. It's a 90 or 91 car with almost 300k and underneath is spotless.

 

[GodwinAustin]

you can get rubberized underbody spray at autozone for 3 dollars a can - and reapply every so often.

or just rinse the underside of the truck with a pressure washer every so often. doesnt take much to keep a truck relatively rust free - so when one IS covered in rust it usually points to very poor maitenence or excessive abuse

 

[BMWTACO]

you can get rubberized underbody spray at autozone for 3 dollars a can - and reapply every so often.

or just rinse the underside of the truck with a pressure washer every so often. doesnt take much to keep a truck relatively rust free - so when one IS covered in rust it usually points to very poor maitenence or excessive abuse

The only problem with the spray on undercoating is that sometimes water can get behind it and actually cause rust. When I restored my fj40 I scraped some of this stuff off and found more rust under it than in places there was no undercoating. Very strange, but i've actually heard the same thing from other people who restore older cars too. But on any of the newer rigs with way more corrosion protection, just washing them underneath every now and then does the trick just fine.