2005 Rusted Out Frame

My Bronco that I daily drove for 20 years in the north east didn't look that bad after 300k on it. All I ever did was wash it.

 

I have a 2005 4 runner with 150,000 miles and there very little to no rust underneath. I live in the hot island of the Bahamas, and it's just dusty on my underneath. Just crawled underneath and took a look.

Having said that. The pictures of the rusted end crossbars on the 4runner above are unbelievable.

Mine could pass as 3 years old.

My 4runner came directly from Japan to the Bahamas dealer, and maybe that has something to do with it. I owned it from new.

I know I'll be underneath looking again, but my body painted area is 100% rust free. NO RUST ON THE topside, doors, jams, hatch, and so on.

My 1995 GMC Jimmy rusted away to a junk heap. Hatch was falling off. Rust all over the doors - especially the bottom area of doors. I owned the JIMMY from new - and watched in disbelief as it rotted.

Toyota 4runner - Nothing!

Just crawled under the front of the 4runner to look again and those end frame ends on mine look perfect (as in the pictures above) - like new - no rust.

 

RI - https://www.autorust.com

 

Hi, I live in CT and here are just a couple pics of my 2005 SR5 (169,000 miles). I'm currently having this fixed by an auto welder in RI Pick up today.
This truck runs great and has been parked in a garage from day 1. The exterior paint is still rust free. Wish I could say the same for the chassis.

Not sure how this never snapped off.

 

I just got my 2004 back. They did a great job. Will have to take some pics.

 

Did you go with a frame swap or safeTcaps?

 

I did the kit. They were saying it wasn't that bad actually. Looks great.

 

TOMG... That rusted out frame picture is unreal! How is it possible one gets it this bad, and another doesn't? Both yours and mine were garaged.

I have minor/some rust (i.e., in front - by radiator - like yours - I just spray it with a little Corrosion X) on my 2005 4runner (150,000 miles). The rest of the factory underbody coating appears to have kept rust development very low. Absolutely NO rust on the painted body area and it's 15 years old!

OK.. agree the rust is an issue (but not mine - built in Japan), and my 4runner has been virtually trouble free mechanically.

I just changed the differential fluid for the first time on any car I ever owned. Change the oil every 4000 miles.

I owned a 1995 GMC Jimmy from brand new and it rusted away everywhere. I couldn't believe all the outer body rust. Sold it for $600 after owning it 10 years.

 

I did the same fall of last year. Mine was the rear trailing arm portion. What sections did you have done?

 

I can't help but wonder if frame suppliers were for a few model years, using Chinese steel? Aside, a number of condo towers built between 2001 and 2012 used Chinese steel, and Chinese PVC pipe for plumbing. A number of those buildings had to have the entire plumbing system replaced
after a few years at a cost of $50K per unit or more. As usual, each tower is built by a special purpose company that is long gone by the time issues arise. Be very careful if you are planning to downsize or buy a condo in a resort area. If you are buying new, try to find out if any construction materials were sourced from China.

 

Front right, hole was just behind the lower control arm.

Problem I have not is my fuel skid has a hole. I got an RCI one but I can't get one of the bolts off.

 

Oof that’s no fun. I need to pull my fuel skid at some point. It could use a good wire wheeling and painting. My tank could use some new straps and pins just for peace of mind also.

 

Wow. Just bought a new '19 TRD Off Road Premium. Paid a little more for the "Protector Package", which includes undercoating / corrosion inhibitor. Dealer did mention that '19's frame has "e-coating" from the factory, inside & out. After reading this I have concerns of a structural nature, especially since this model is kind of made for off road use. I still own 2 Explorers, both of which look good underneath, considering midwest winters and their age, 17 and 9 years old respectively. Maybe I'll just keep it clean for now, and trade in on a '22 Bronco. Disappointing to hear as I am getting attached to it.

 

I don't think it is a Gen 5 issue. My 2004 is 15 years old and lives in the rust belt. My other is a '16 and we take on the beach all the time. I have not seen any posts on Gen 5 rust issues (also not looking for them)

 

Thanks stewtopia. I can't keep keep my hands off her, and already have added running boards, front skid plate, and cross bars for the roof rack. There are so many great ideas and parts available (had no idea). In your opinion, what would the top 5 upgrades for a 4Runner be?

 

Hah, that's a loaded question on here. Depends on what you do with the vehicle, your tastes etc. I like to explore places in my vehicles and most of my choices revolve around that.

 

Me too, and my 4runner has 151,000 miles on it, and I'm 1 mile from the ocean in Nassau Bahamas

Bought my car new from the Toyota dealer.

Wow! Lots of rust on this page.

There is a post on here about a guy/owner of a 2005 4runner from Louisiana that thinks his rusted 4runner is all about Hurricane Rita. He thinks it might have been sitting in saltwater!? I think he's probably right on!

https://weather.fandom.com/wiki/Hur...ontinued through parts of southeastern Texas.

 

In my experience, trucks that are garaged suffer more from rust issues then trucks parked outside. Heated garages make it worse as well.

 

I find the opposite. All depends on where you live and climate, also the surface you park on.

 

The idea is that salt brine/rock salt is more active at the higher temps in the garage versus when it’s parked outside in what are likely freezing temps given road salt use, and the salt and water is kept mostly solidified. Also heat usually speeds up most chemical reactions.

 

I’m in the Northeast so see a good amount of salt and brine on the roads. Try to rinse the frame and underbody off once a week in the winter.

 

I own a 2005 4Runner with rust in the same place as yours - the support under the radiator. Mine isn't that serious - with only some "flakes" I knocked off - then sprayed with Corrosion X. The rest of my frame is practically rust free. My 4runner came and was built in Japan, and I live in the Bahamas where driving is almost never over 45 MPH. I think that has something to do with the rust under the radiator. My 4runner has 150,000 miles.

The Japanese factor dips the frames of all their cars for corrosion issues when they are built, and I am puzzled why some 2005s have serious rust.

I have never washed the bottom frame - and we don't have salt on the roads here - but the sea air hitting the frame on a highway at 70MPH would cause rust on that frame support under the radiator (in front of the skid plates).

I'm not certain, but many of the pictures below of rust in 4runners had their skid plates removed. Big mistake IMO.

https://www.bing.com/images/search?...rs&qpvt=frame+rust+on+2005+4runners&FORM=IGRE

 

Both from Bahamas, both posting (one incessantly) about having only minor rust, both with similar usernames. Is it the twilight zone in here?

 

Serious rust Tomg.




Hey Bob! (See post below). Yeah, I'm really very sorry about the duplicate post. These email alerts get confusing.

Just for the record, I made a few million $$ writing a book on tax havens - and that's how I ended up in the Bahamas.

In 2005 I repowered my "new" 42-foot Performance with Three Yamaha F225s with cash. Bought the powerboat new and made the mistake of buying Evinrudes in 2001. No rust issues on the Evenrudes (or the boat), but lower units failed a half dozen times (at $3,500 a shot with customs duties), and when I eventually drove the boat to Ft. Lauderdale to get hauled for the 3 new Yamahas, two of the three Evenrudes (power heads) blew up on the trip.

Luckily the second one failed right by the entrance channel to US customs, and I made it there alive. Got to the haul ramp on the last engine, but it stalled every 500 yards and had to be restarted.

BTW.. That's my gardner in the picture. He had never rod and reeled before, but I needed a 4th angler that day for the tournament and took him along when he showed up for work. I gaffed the mahi-mahi he hooked up in the Exuma Sound - 80 miles from my house in the gated community of Sandyport. boop boop a dupe!

50-pound test line was all that was allowed in the tournament so I had to coach Albert as to how to get the fish around the props so we could gaff him. They call these big Mahi Mahi bull dolphin in Honolulu.

The mahi-mahi weighed 71.1 pounds on the tournament digital scale. See the wire attached to the fish?

 

So, my 2005 just failed inspection, radiator support and rusted through. I don't typically crawl under, so this is the first time I was alerted to this issue. I see lawsuit and complaints, so since I'm left with a hunk of junk that I loved, how do I join. What numbers do I call?

 

That’s what you get for playing in the snow. Spray that shit with POR and take it to a different inspector....

 

I don't consider trudging to work even close to playing!!! Not to mention I'd like my radiator not to fall out if I can help it!

 

That crossmember doesn’t really hold much of anything. Just trans cooler lines if you have them and then the front skid plate mounts, which the skid is also secured by the other 2 rear bolts so it’s not just going to fall off. That piece can be bought from Toyota and you can have it welded in and the old cut out. However what you need to do is go look at the rest of the frame. If the front is that bad I’m sure the rest is in bad shape.

I haven’t seen anything new on the lawsuit since May. Last I saw was a petition for litigation to take place in person rather than by stationary being passed back and forth to the court. It’s being litigated by Bell legal group out of Georgetown, South Carolina. “Weinreich v Toyota”. But in my opinion isn’t going to go anywhere with the shitty basis and demands. They want to cover 05-11 4Runners which is like wtf?

 

So, here's what they called and told me: holes in front frame at both ends of the radiator support. That was one pic with their little arrow drawn, and this is the other stating flaking. I've owned it since 2005, get it inspected by them yearly. So, nice shocker they gave me today.