Suspension Noise problems of the 2001 Toyota Tundra

My ball joints on the driver's side wheel catastrophically failed this morning without warning (no knocking/rattling/vibration/etc. ). Luckily I was only going 15 mph. I am concerned that Toyota is aware of an issue with the ball joints that could cause this failure without warning. I am worried for future incidents that would not be so lucky and happen on a highway going 70mph or more (which I was doing 10 minutes prior to this happening). I understand normal wear and tear but this is a sudden, catastrophic failure that is highly dangerous and likely to kill people. Normal ball joint wear loosens the ball joint and makes a rattling noise, this issue binds the ball joint with no warning and breaks it off. I called Toyota and was declined any information relating to trending and was told there is nothing they can do about wear and tear. This was in spite of knowledge I have of over 533,000 recalls of ball joints on similar models with similar suspensions. The Toyota personnel I spoke with would not even admit to any recalls of such like incidents. Toyota seemed completely unconcerned and even worried that if they provided information like this to other Tundra owners that they would be "liable" and expected to pay to have them fixed. It seemed Toyota was happy to sit by and watch the next wheel go flying off their Tundras/sequoias (and potential fatality) at the risk of having to communicate an issue to customers. I would have loved to know there could have been an existing ball joint issue, I would have performed a pm on mine!.

The contact owns a 2001 Toyota Tundra. While driving less than 5 mph, there was an abnormal noise heard on the front driver side of the vehicle. The front driver side lower ball joint fractured without warning and caused the contact to coast the vehicle off the road. The vehicle was towed to the contact's residence. The vehicle was not included in NHTSA campaign number: 05v225000 (suspension). The manufacturer was notified of the failure and provided no remedy. The approximate failure mileage was 304,000.

Toyota's Tundra corrosion recall focuses on the frame, fuel tank mounting, and spare tire mounting hardware. If the frame has no perforations and the fuel tank suspension and spare tire mounting are sound, the truck is determined to be safe. My Tundra has been so inspected by a dealer, passed their test, and found to be "safe. ". My complaint is that the vehicle's undercarriage shows extensive corrosion of frame, steering, and suspension components beyond the scope of Toyota's recall. The extent of the corrosion is so great that it calls into question the potential for a suspension or steering component to fail during operation, leading to a loss of control and injury to passengers and others on the highway. I have digital photographs of several corrosion sites on the undercarriage of my truck that illustrate my concern. I have taken my truck to a body shop for evaluation and was told it is not safe. Toyota's recall does not address the full range of safety issues brought on by their corrosion problem. Toyota should be required to inspect all of the critical components subject to the excessive corrosion and either determine they are safe or repair them. If my digital photos would assist you in understanding my concern, I would be happy to forward them to you. Thank you!.