general problems of the 2004 Toyota Tundra - part 1

2004 Toyota Tundra. Left rear upper shock mount rotted away and the shock absorber is no longer connected. (rust) auto service report 12/30/2024. October 21, 2021 Toyota dealership report: recommends replace spare tire cross member. (rust perforation damage) recall issued for rust and dealership performed a very limited service repair to this vehicle years ago. The recall repair consisted of rust proof paint applied to a very small limited area, not to frame, not to cross member, not to any shock mount) concerned about rust currently causing the shock mount to fail and the cross member rust damage along with frame rust on the passenger side. 2 different dealerships told me this concern it is not under a recall. This Toyota Tundra truck is well maintained with regular scheduled auto service checks and appointments. It is never used for towing or off road use. I am the original owner, central new jersey use only. The truck runs and looks good. The high amount of rust under the truck should not have occurred to the level of a shock mount rusting out and a cross member rusting out and frame rust.

Frame is rusting out, only one bolt is holding left frame per tire dealership & Toyota dealer knows of rusting frame. Spare tire underneath fell out while turning on road, thankfully no cars following.

I have a 2004 Toyota Tundra sr5 that was part of the frame rust replacement campaign. It was brought into bob rohrman Toyota in lafayette, in and determined that it did not meet the criterion for replacement. I now have a sway bar bracket that rusted off of the frame. No mechanics or body shops will touch it and I was told there is nothing to even weld a new bracket to and the engine mounts are just a matter of time before rotting away. The truck only has 118k miles and zero body rust. I have lost value in this vehicle because I cannot sell it and the dealership and Toyota both refuse to remedy the situation.

The frame has a large rust area and has a large hole near the passenger side wheel well. The body of the truck is in great shape. Truck is washed very regularly including special attention to the under carriage.

My truck was bought with no open recalls. I was recently informed my a mechanic while getting my brakes replaced, that the frame of the truck was rusted and cracked. He said the truck could literally break apart while driving. This truck is in great condition has zero rust on the body, has always been garage kept. The previous owner also kept it in the garage. It's 19 years old and only has 107,000 miles on it. The recall from Toyota for this problem was addressed per the records however the exact frame malfunction has occurred. Toyota says there is nothing they can do because the recall work was done. Even if the recall work wasn't done right or didn't fix the problem. My fear is there are other people in my position who have no choice but the drove the vehicle they already deemed unsafe. And the fix Toyota came up with did not insure that this problem would not.

I have severe frame rot, holes forming in the frame!.

My Tundra has a rotting frame due to rust corrosion. It was sprayed in 2014 but has since rusted to the point where it's safety is questionable. Frame needs to be replaced by Toyota.

The frame on my newly purchased 2004 Toyota Tundra is rotted through. The consumer protections Toyota claims to have taken to correct this, in this instance, the application of water seal to the frame in 2014 has trapped moisture and caused extensive corrosion rendering the vehicle unsafe. I have visited multiple Toyota locations received the same message. Toyota claims no responsibility for this course of events leaving consumers in my position with no recourse and with an unsafe vehicle we cannot use and in my case have spent almost eleven thousand dollars on. Where is the responsibility to consumer safety?.

Frame rust issue. I was told by a Toyota dealer that a recall was issued for frame rust(safety issue) was issued back in 2015. This was the first time I ever heard of the recall. In past years--shown by my actions--when I received a recall letter in mail---I set up a appointment and got it done. I have been told my truck is unsafe to drive. My vehicle has been inspected by 2 different dealers. Toyota representive told me they would contact me--and that has not happened.

I had the dealer take my truck in for the frame recall. I asked for them to replace the frame because I was not comfortable with how they were handling it. Per the service record they filled in perforations and “undercoated. I did not believe that filling in existing perforations was the safest way to handle this. After brining the truck to a shop to check the steering we were told that they wouldn’t even put it up on a lift. The steering issue was that the rack and pinion steering was literally falling out due to the rusted frame. We drove this vehicle home and parked it. About a week later the spare tire fell out right onto our driveway. Needless to say, I am certain there are many more Toyota trucks out there ready to fall apart on the road. We contacted Toyota corporate several times to try to rectify this mishandling of our recall. We called and sent certified letters. We asked to share the cost of a new frame and they said no. We then had the truck towed to a shop who could do the work. They ordered a frame from Toyota only to be contacted 2 months later saying that the frame was discontinued and they wouldn’t be sending it after all (we were willing to pay fir the frame and install because we had a useless and unsafe vehicle. We finally found a shop over an hour away who could rebuild/fabricate the frame and replace the fallen out steering etc. We had that truck towed about 60 miles away to have this work completed. This mishandling of the recall by Toyota and their lack of customer care cost me a whopping $17,000! again, unsafe Tundras out there for sure. Please advise…this is the 2nd time I’ve filled out this form and never heard anything. Thank you in advance. Dawn hiltz dphiltz@gmail. Com.

2005 Tundra. Holes in frame, and mounting points breaking off. 100% unsafe. No help from the manufacturer. I was changing the oil when I noticed frame rot. Further investigation revealed significant frame failure at not less than three areas. The vehicle cannot be driven safely.

Frame was rustproofing back in 2014 after 10 years of vermont winters. Guest what that did not work. Now I have holes in the frame. Total loss of truck with 49000 miles.

My vehicle frame has totally rotted out by rust.

The frame of the vehicle is severely rusted with large holes present. This vehicle is unsafe to drive as it puts myself and others in grave danger. Toyota has to fix this problem or deaths are a potential.

Truck was purchased brand new. It was brought to dealer for recall and they did not resolve the issue. Now recall is expired and vehicle is dangerous to drive and frame is rusted and there are holes. Almost had an accident when I turned and went down a hill and the brakes did not hold. Other incidents have occurred over the years.

Frame rust rot.

I went in to Toyota garage to have my frame checked,and at one time the lift I received a letter in regards to this. The truck , it went up on the lift they verified it was bad and then told me it has expired and I still have an air bag relacement still open. How can they expire the frame when iwould think this is more dangerous if I got in an accident than a air bag which has never expired.

Rusted frame. Vehicle was recalled for this and was taken to a Toyota dealer to have the frame sprayed as they recommended. Frame is rusted through.

Rust holes in frame 4 years after Toyota dealership inspected and applied crc under body coating that was suppose to slow down the rusting but I believe made it worse. Contacted Toyota corp and dealership, neither will do anything.

2004 Tundra frame rusted and will not pass inspection. Inspector noted rust holes larger than a quarter.

Excessive rust on sub-frame of vehicle; frontal sub-frame completely rusted out on vehicle with no apparent body rust; garaged throughout its history; and with less than 100k miles; rear frame rusted.

04 Tundra failed inspection due to excessive frame rust with holes. Toyota did a "limited service campaign" for which I never received a notice. I did receive the takata airbag recall notice. Called Toyota. They said they are not responsible for what happens with the mail. Nothing they can do for me. Vehicle is in great shape other than the rusted frame.

Truck frame is rusting from the inside out. This is the same issue as the 2000 tru 2003 model year. Toyota says it is not covered. There was a spray apply program but it ended in 2015. I bought my used truck in 2016 and I do not believe it was ever sprayed.

Rusted frame' I received a letter for recall from Toyota on the rusted frame . So I went to my longtime mechanic and he informed me it was bad, he then began to hit parts of the frame with a small hammer and punched a hole through it and than stoped any more hammering. When I checked my recall VIN# it does not show up, even though I received letters for it.

The local Toyota dealership has confirmed the frame on my 2004 Toyota Tundra has excessive rust and has holes in it. They told me its unsafe to drive as the frame could crumble in a severe accident, and stated the frame would qualify for a full frame replacement if Toyota would recall it. I called Toyota corporate, and they told me they aren't going to stand behind it and won't do anything about it even though it's obviously a faulty component. This is quite frustrating as the body is in excellent condition with no rust, the motor has only 91,000 miles on it and runs like a gem, no leaks or drips, and the rest of the under body has only minimal rust. How can the frame look like it's been sitting in the back field for the past 10 years and the rest of the truck look next to new, and for Toyota not consider the frame faulty?.

My frame has rusted to the point it broke,I believe it falls under the 1st generation frame as the 2003 models. I went for an inspection and it failed due to frame.

We were driving along at 50 mph when spare tire dropped out from under the truck in the middle of the road. The spare tire has never been used or disturbed in any way since the vehicle was manufactured. The tire started rolling at 30-40 mph could have hit a pedestrian or been an obstacle for following.

We had the takata airbag recall service performed on our Tundra on 12/19/14. Then, just a coupe weeks ago in June 2017, the airbag light came on when my husband was driving to work on the highway, and the light has not gone off since. We took it to a local auto shop to diagnose this past weekend, and they said it was an issue relating to the airbag recall service--they said they've seen this numerous times now, all in vehicles that had the airbag recall service done. Some of the common red flags they made us aware of were: horn is not working, as well as the cruise control. We took it to palm beach Toyota in west palm beach, florida, this morning, and they diagnosed it as a spiral cable assembly that needs to be replaced--at a cost to us of $700 plus tax. That is something that should be covered under the recall, since it appears to be such a common occurance, it's obvious that this stems from the airbag recall service.

The frame is rusted through I have been told by Toyota that the original owner should have had it inspected I have been told now that it is unsafe to drive have notified Toyota they say that they are no longer liable the unit still drives.

Just purchased as a used truck, the body is in real good shape but the frame is rusted. Called Toyota to be told that there was a limited service campaign to undercoat the frame but that campaign has ended. I tried to remove the hitch from the receiver a couple days after I took delivery of the truck, it would not come out. I crawled under the truck to see if it had been welded up or something to keep it from coming out, no weld just rust. I didn't notice the rust as it is under the back side of the frame at the receiver. The rest of the frame looks as if the undercoating is holding without additional rust. I hope that Toyota will do right by this at some point.

The frame is rusting thru on the entire truck. Rust has overtaken the entirety of the frame and needs replaced. I could not located any recalls or information on recalls for this year model truck. I looks like the year prior and after have had recalls. This needs to be addressed immediately and I have seen other vehicle owners with this year model describe the same problems. While driving started to notice steering issue and had it looked at and it was not good. Bad rust. I have not had it repaired yet and just found this about a week ago and trying to find information on what to do and if any recalls. I called Toyota and they said they sent out something to previous owners and there is nothing that they can do now.

Tl- the contact owns a 2004 Toyota Tundra. However the part to do the repair was unavailable. The contact stated that the manufacturer exceeded a reasonable amount of time for the recall repair. The manufacturer was made aware of the issue. The contact had not experienced a failure. Parts distribution disconnect. Cmb.

Frame has large rust holes on front passenger side.

Toyota sends recall letters to my old address and blames you for the error. They have the correct address on file but don't know how to fix the problem only pass the buck.

Hello, the frame on my 2004 Toyota Tundra has begun to rust. Toyota sent out a recall on my vehicle that I never received. When I took this to Toyota they stated that my recall had expired one month prior in August 2015. This is unacceptable. They know they have issues with the frames on the trucks rusting. The Toyota tacomas first now the Tundras. This is my only vehicle and Toyota is refusing to repair the frame.