Bought a Taco instead of a 996.
 

Had a customer call me , and wanted me to help him flip a 2003 Tacoma he fell into . He got it for under a grand, needs a clutch ( does not move) , and supposedly an 02 sensor. Inside is dirty but will clean up nice, outside is real nice, but wheels have never been washed and are pitted , ugly , and black.
He wanted me to put the truck, back together, and he would provide the truck,, and the cash for parts, and we would split profit.
I was looking for a replacement for my Shop beater jeep, so I made him a nice offer, and he took it. He made a nice chunk of money, and I still got a sweet deal.
Had one of those epic nights trailering it home tonight. Had to squirrel my truck, and trailer through some of the hilliest, narrow, winding ,cars parked on both sides , not nice neighborhood Pittsburgh city Streets. The truck was actually in a nice neighborhood, but in trying to avoid the real hilly narrow streets, I had to go though pretty much one of the worst neighborhoods in the Burgh. There was one moment, where we had to squeeze through a straight shot of about 6 cars on both sides . I had less than 2 inches on either side, and had to stop , and back up several times, all the while , the boys in the hood, were making comments , I think I shat a little.
I'll post up some photos in the am. Just got home.

Can't talk about a trip through Pittsburgh without mentioning the word s-h-o-t!!

Put some pics up when it's been bathed.

Ain't snipe from Pittsburgh?

He'd slap you for that. He's Philly thru and thru.

Hope you checked the frame out good.
Here's my 2003 tacoma
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No Worries, Toyota will inspect it for free and apply the rustproof for free! or will buy out your Taco at 150% of market value or they can pay for the frame replacement!
You can actually make good money!

<---- Quickly monkey rolls to avoid said slap!! :D

I wish.
I took it in for the frame recall in 09 and was told mine was OK.
Then they sent a request to bring it in and have the frame sprayed with some miracle
preservative which i never got around to doing.
So because i didn't get the frame sprayed they said tough luck.

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Well aware of the frame issue, I crawled all over/under it before I even shook his hand ,and made the deal. The frame looks suspiciously cleaner than the rest of the chassis, and undercarriage. It may have been replaced, but it was def. undercoated.
Have to finish up putting a flywheel in a customer's Surbaban today, then this goes straight on the rack, to remove the trans, and replace the clutch. I'll post up some in progress pics throughout the weekend. And to think I was going to take it easy this weekend, nonsense.

Nice trucks. I learned to drive a stick on a ~'90 and still chuckle when I see one.

Front corner painted?

Your frame looks a lot better then mine.
I fixed it....new cross member,fuel tank strap,and a lot of welding
Pretty sad when the original exhaust out lasts the frame.
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Congrats Fast Fred! That's a nice ride! The Taco isn't bad either! :)

Thanks Baz!, I love my 2500 hd. Last night was the first time I have hauled anything heavy on a trailer with it. It rocks. Way more powerful than my old 454 dually, better on gas, and I was able to manuver/ and climb through all those city neighborhoods with ease . A/c blasting, I cold maintain 70 mph up the long climbs on the interstate heading back to my house.

Nice get.

I would have been all over that as well.

Has it been sprayed?

Aft of the B pillar looks a shade darker.

That's a great looking truck. Around here any clean Taco 4x4 is an $8k minimum truck, even with 200k+ on it. It does look like the right door and front fender have been resprayed. I bet with some work you can get those wheels looking presentable, worst case you can rattle can them with silver wheel paint and I bet they'll look good.

I did not notice the paintwork until you guys pointed it out, it was dusk when I got there, and i was really looking for undercarriage rust, and stuff like that. There is a tape line in the door jamb, I actually think that the right rear quarter, and bedside were what was sprayed. Still looks, good, and this is going to be my new beater.
I'm a geek, already looking at a 2-3" lift, and maybe some decent wheels/tires, There is a lot of room for me to not get upside down on this one, so I may dress it up a little. I have had a ton of cars over the years, but I have never owned a small japaneese pickup, and have always lusted after one, so I may have a little fun .

meh, the respray would not have been a stopper for me nor would I care if I got it as cheap as I think you did.

that thing is showroom new compared to the last beater Bronco that I had.

A buddy of mine bought a car in the twilight and the next morning he found a huge dent on the roof! LOL!

At the price you paid, it could have different color body panels, you'd still get ahead!

G

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Even in my old age, I can still blast out some work in a days time . Got the flywheel back in the Surburban, diagnosed , and replaced a crankase control valve, on an x3, put 4 tires on a corvette, then unloaded the taco from the trailer, put it up on the lift, and ripped out the trans. I'll have this thing back on its wheels, and running before lunch time tomorrow. Clutch was down on the rivets on the pressure plate side, but did not gouge the flywheel side

Two summers ago I was in one of the "better" (yes I used quote marks) sections of Pittsburgh in my Boxster, I made a wrong turn going to Children's medical center, and was not too thrilled with some of the comments, I was hearing. I even had one guy stop in front of me going through an intersection and make a comment. Guess he didn't figure I would get out of the car. You can keep that whole area up yonder where it is.
Nice grab on the truck Fred

:rolleyes:


You could be 85 and knock that stuff out with a LIFT! :D

j/k!

Nice work! I am just jealous! Reminds me that I need to move further out where I can have a lift too. It would really re-kindle my interest in wrenching and even for profit side projects.

G

My envy runs deep for those with a lift. I'm adding onto my existing 2 car garage to make it a 3, but I could really use 4. I'm already planing seeds with the wife. "But honey, $2500 for a lift is waaaaay cheaper than moving." :)

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A few shots of the shop from last week. I have 3 lifts, my next large shop project is to put another garage door behind where that black 930 is sitting, and then those bays in the back will have their own ingress, and egress. Then I want to add a drive on lift/alignment rack where the white Jeep is sitting. One can never have enough working bays, even as a one man shop, I always have lifts clogged up with long term projects, or waiting for parts etc...
There are just simply jobs that cannot be done without a lift these days. I have 3 , but have paid my dues, working my first 5 years in the biz with floor jacks, and jackstands. I did it all too. Major trans/motor work. R&R ing a Taurus trans on the floor is no simple feat. I did tons of them back in the day.
Once you have a lift, you need tall jack stands , a tall oil drain and a transmission jack, but after that , you will become unstoppable.

Real nice Fred.....those like you who pay their dues deserve and get our respect.

You earned those lifts and nice shop - and your 930's! :) Thanks for sharing.

Hey while we're in brag-mode...check out my refined facilities....I know I know - 2 car garage - yeah - it just doesn't get any better, eh? No worries!

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;)

I hope you aren't working in those shoes and just there for the photo op! ;) You look like someone that came by as a spectator! That's my operation there - minus the flip flops. I have been crawling on my back since I started wrenching. One time I had a mechanic buddy who would let me come to their shop on Saturdays for some work - that's how I know how NIIIICE a lift is.

If I had a tall enough garage, I'd get a lift immediately. I don't care how much it costs!

G

I think I just got done washing my truck in the driveway (see bucket and sponge by door). :)

You and I are obviously amongst the majority of do-it-yourselfers who can only do what we do because of online communities like PP.....thanks Wayne! SmileWavy And all the Pelicans who share our passion! SmileWavy

It's great to have pros here like Fred as well...an added bonus! SmileWavy

These P-cars are actually fairly easy to work on - but like you said - having a lift is where it's at. I have a friend who helps me once in a while. He owns the garage and makes his living as a mechanic so I try not to overstep what's considered good reasonable requests. And I always always always drop off beverage tips!!!

Here's Tangerine at his place last year when I had a brake caliper issue...

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Got in late ( had to bring the kid )http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1342904135.jpg

Got the clutch installed , and trans hanging back in, then got a call from Traci. Our cat of 17 years died this am. RIP Milo. Had to go home, and dig a hole, but back up a few hours later, clutch in all re- assmebled, feels like it works . Quick bead blast of the wheels, and one rattle can of Dupli Color wheel paint, cleaned up the wheels nicley .
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While the wheel paint was drying, I did a quick cut/buff of the lower half of it while it was up in the air.
Tomorrow , I will buff the top half, and probably just remove the seats, and scrub, scrub scrub away at the inside. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1342904530.jpg
By the end of the day tomorrow, It should be standing tall again. One surprise, when bolting back up the rear driveshaft, I noticed a little up , and down play in the pinion bearing. I checked the fluid, it is full, clean , and free of metal debris. If it is noisy, then I guess , I have to go in, if it is quiet, I may just try snugging up the pinion flange nut , and see what happens. All else looks good, everything is tight, new calipers, rotors, pads, rear shoes, exhaust, No more surprise rust. Should be a nice little shop beater.

Sorry about your kiddle, Fred. He lived a long & happy life though - 17 years - wow.

R.I.P. Milo.

The Taco looks awesome!

Good luck with the rest of the project! :)

I'm guilty of not updating my threads sometimes, so here we go. Last weekend, I pulled the seats, and console, and scrubbed, washed, and vacum'd the life out of it. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1344114843.jpg
Got the outside all finished up that weekend as well, starting to look good now. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1344114884.jpg
I also lifted it 3 " in the front , and 2 " in the rear last weekend. I like it now. Little toy truck. http://forums.pelicanparts.com/uploa...1344114996.jpg
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The rear end did end up being toast, I have been driving it for the last two weeks, with the gears singing away, but I finally got a used center section ( was tough to find 4:10 gears, with electric locker ) installed , and it is officially in service as the new shop truck now. I hauled my first transmission in it yesterday. I am still going to put some decent wheels, on it, I have made a deal on some nice aluminum old school looking deep dish slots, with 31x10:50 tires on them and should have them bolted up after vacation in a few weeks. Love this little truck, and though I miss the power of my old jeep, I am enjoying the gas milage.
Nothing wrong with that setup Baz. That is a nice sized garage. Not really anything you cannot accomplish in a two car garage with some good planning. My parents garage was about that exact same size, and my dad and I blew out all kinds of work in there. Side jobbing out of my parents garage over the years, is sort of how I got into my gig now. I remember that there came a day where I was making more money nights, and weekends at home, than I did all week at work, and wondered why am I getting up every day and going there?.

Yo Frederick.....very nice sir! SmileWavy

I like the extra height. Look forward to more pics when you get those new wheels.

It's good to be your own captain I always say. :)