Tl* the contact owns a 2000 toyota 4runner. The contact stated that the frame exhibited excessive rust build up. The contact called the manufacturer, who stated that they would provide a remedy for the vehicle. The vehicle was no longer drivable. The failure mileage was 140,000.
2000 Toyota 4RUNNER body complaints
Page 8 of 10: complaints 191 to 220 of 256, newest first, as owners wrote them.
2000 toyota 4runner was in for scheduled routine maintenance. At this time, it was reported that the vehicle's frame is cracked and not safe to drive. The vehicle was then looked at by a local welder who confirmed the cracked frame and reported excessive frame corrosion.
Frame rusted through. Will not pass state inspection.
Vehicle had no visible signs of frame rust. Drove vehicle over a small bump at 5mph & heard a sound from rear. Parked car. When driving away later noticed a sway in low speed driving. Got out and saw the rear drivers frame rail had cracked where it mounts the lower control arm. That section had to have rusted from the inside out as it is a boxed frame and there was no visible rust on the outer frame. This is a very alarming issue and a major safety concern. Vehicle is driven in northeast but garaged. We've had rusted body panels only on much older cars - this seems like a major flaw in vehicle design. Especially as it isn't visible and just recently passed a state safety inspection.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 toyota 4runner. The contact stated he was performing a repair to the vehicle for an unrelated failure when he noticed that the entire passenger's side frame was completely corroded. The vehicle was taken to an independent mechanic, who confirmed that the frame was severely corroded. The vehicle was not repaired. The manufacturer was not notified of the problem. The approximate failure mileage was 117,000. The VIN was unavailable.
My 17 year old was driving our 4runner, and it began swaying all over the road. Luckily, he was only a couple miles from home, and made it back safely. The frame has rotted away from the inside out, leaving the rear axle components not properly "attached", and making the vehicle unsafe to drive any distance. The body on this vehicle is in immaculate condition, and I was looking forward to being able to drive this vehicle up to 200,000 miles, which should not be uncommon for this vehicle type. I've contacted toyota customer experience and filed a complaint. I was told nothing will be done and no financial considerations will be made either. This is a known problem with this generation 4runner, and toyota should be made to offer to fix or make financial considerations for this vehicle just as they have done with the toyota tacoma with essentially the same frame.
While having my 2000 4runner serviced recently, my mechanic advised me that my carriage frame was cracked and rotting. I took it to toyota dealer in bristol ct, who put vehicle on hoist and confirmed the problem. I was advised there was no recall or tsb on my SUV, and probably nothing they could do. They said they would send info & pictures to district office for review and advise when they heard back. I asked them about fixing it in the meantime, but they said they couldn't accept the liability? I can email pictures if you want to review these as well. I am having it welded in the meantime, as the crack was rather severe. My mechanic and toyota both advised that if the crack broke thru while driving, the rear axle would come loose from the frame. The estimate to fix my SUV is apx. $1,500, which includes replacing the gas tank under-shield, which looks like a chunk of swiss cheese as well. Please advise of any recourse I may have.
I discovered that my 2000 toyota 4runner has sever interior frame rot in front of the rear trailing arm connection points, more so on the passengers side. This will become very unsafe after a while if nothing is done to address the problem. I remember toyota recalling tacomas for the same issue. Why will they not uphold toyota quality and safety and recall a vehicle that is built on basically the same frame as the tacoma? The rest of the body is perfect. That in itself proves a design and construction flaw of the frame.
Frame rot. Right side along rear wheel. Crack in the frame. Otherwise frame fine and no rust/rot on left hand side.
Frame has severe rust that has caused the frame to become weak and unsafe. Multiple holes in frame have developed. Vehicle has been washed regularly and stored indoors for years but has severe frame rot. Toyota will not repair because they say there was never any problem with the 4runner frames just the tacoma and tundra had issues. The frame on the 96-02 4runners are the same as the tacoma, only difference is the rear suspension setup. They appear to have the same rust issues.
The longitudinal frame rails are completely rusted through on all four sides of the box frame on both sides. There is also significant rust in the cross rails, particularly at the attach points to the side members. An auto body repair shop owner says that the vehicle is unsafe to drive and needs a complete frame replacement. The vehicle has been garaged its entire life and there is absolutely no rust on the body. The shop owner says that he has seen a lot of 4runners with the frame in this condition and that toyota needs to step up and support the 4runner as it has with the sequoia and the tacoma, which also have severe frame rust issues.
Went to go and have my 2000 toyota 4-runner inspected and was told it would not pass due to the frame being rusted out and was not safe to drive....called toyota and was told sorry there is nothing we can do.
Went to change my oil at my local toyota dealership and was alerted to come and see the frame. It was rusted and had holes in the frame. This should not happen to a car this old. Shame on toyota to not recall the vehicle! This is an embraceable to a company built by safety, quality and loyalty. Called toyota customer service and was informed that they could not do anything about it and that a recall was not issued so they would not fix the problem.
Replacing the muffler and was informed by the mechanic that the frame is rusted through. Should not have happened. Needs recalled.
My mechanic informed me that my well maintained 4runner has holes in the frame from rot and is junk. The rest of this vehicle is in beautiful shape. I am really upset.
At a regular oil change, at a toyota dealer, I was shown a picture of a hole in my frame. My 4runner has been an excellent and reliable vehicle with regular maintenance. It has a rust spot on a bumper, and that's all! This is our family vehicle, and is not abused. I only have 154,000 miles and feel strongly that a frame on a vehicle should last much longer, as in past vehicles I've owned. I have had no problems with my 4runner, and don't want to junk yard it over a bad quality frame from toyota, but it may come to this if I can't have it welded. The vehicle is not safe, the hole is in a weight bearing area. Shame on toyota for not doing a recall on the 4runners like they did with their trucks. Safety should be first. Yes, I do transport children in my vehicle on a daily basis, so again, shame on them. I strongly feel that others are not safe, and someone should address this pressing issue.
I had an issue with the 4wd so I brought the car in the my local shop. While investigating the issue, the auto shop discovered some major frame rot towards the back right wheel that extended into the arm that holds up the back wheels. I was told that the car is unsafe to drive and there is no telling what would happen in an accident or if I simply went over a bad pot hole. I was also told by a separate auto person that the 4wd issues I had been experiencing may also be the result of the frame rust which most likely warped the frame and messed with the gears involved in 4wd. I brought my car to the local toyota dealer for a second opinion on the safety of the vehicle. The dealer refused to take a look and instructed me to call customer service. I called customer service and they offered no assistance. This issue is very similar to the toyota tacoma recall and should be addressed in a similar fashion. I was told by customer service that they do not consider them similar because the tacoma frames were made in america while the 4runner frames were made in japan. I don't know why that takes away their liability for a poorly made vehicle with clear manufacturing issues. I have read about this problem with other 4runner owners and know that it's not just my problem, this is an owner-wide issue and clearly something that can be traced back to toyota's manufacturing process of this vehicle. Now I am stuck with an unsafe vehicle that I cannot drive with a clean conscience nor sell with a clean conscience. Toyota's poor manufacturing has left me liability issue that I think should be addressed. I would at least like to trade in the vehicle for a new one with a sound frame!
Exstensive frame rust.
Severe frame rot on otherwise very well cared for vehicle. Will certainly result in catastrophic failure.
Brought vehicle into dealership for general maintenance. Service tech indicated that the frame was rusted through so bad that the vehicle might not be safe to drive. Service tech was concerned even lowering it from the lift. He indicated that he has seen this issue on a fair number of other toyota vehicles that share the same frame design. I'm now left with a car that would be very drivable if it wasn't for the defective frame.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 toyota 4runner. The contact stated that the frame exhibited a large amount of rust. The manufacturer and dealer were not notified. The vehicle was not repaired. The failure and current mileage was 108,000.
I have a 2000 4runner sr5 sport that has lived its life in new england. The car is in good shape and the frame of the car appears to have some surface rust. I had the exhaust replaced last week and they found that the inside of the frame had totally rotted out from the inside, so that the there are only three sides to the four of the tube frame left. I heard that toyota has had issues with frames rusting. I have two children I drive around in this car and I feel this is a serious safety issue toyota should address before someone gets killed.
While driving on the nys thruway in the vicinity of harriman, ny, the steering began to wander, and the vehicle felt unsafe to drive. I was able to drive a short distance to an auto repair shop, which inspected the 4runner and found extreme rust damage to the undercarriage frame such that it should not be driven again, and could only be scrapped. They observed that the right rear wheel was close to breaking off, which would have resulted in a serious accident where we could possibly have been killed. We were shocked that such a dangerous rust condition could develop in a toyota 4runner that was only 12 years old, was built and intended for heavy duty use, and had been maintained in strict accordance with the owner's manual. This vehicle had never been driven off-road. We notified toyota by telephone and letter of this occurrence, and were informed that there had been no recall of this model, and that there was nothing that they would do. A search of the internet showed many reports of similar occurrences for this year and model. We strongly believe that a safety recall needs to be considered.
Frame rust-through - vehicle's frame has prematurely rusted through from the inside-out along passenger side in area of muffler assembly.
Vehicle was taken to dealer for scheduled 95k mile service. I was contacted by the dealer and told that the vehicle was "not worth working on because the entire frame is rotted and this is a safety hazard. The vehicle should not be driven". The vehicle has been well maintained and is excellent condition in all other aspects. I see many instances of this happen in other on-line sites. Toyota has recalled other vehicles in the same model year (2000 tundra) for a similar problem yet this one has been ignored.
I hit a pot hole traveling at 25 MPH and broke the frame of my 2000 4runner. I brought the car to my mechanic and he said the frame has rusted from the inside out and is non-repairable and was very dangerous to be driving. The truck is in otherwise good condition mechanically and the body has no rust.
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 toyota 4runner. The contact stated that the vehicle was parked when he noticed that the frame was rusted. The vehicle was not taken to the dealer. The manufacturer was contacted and they stated that the vehicle was not included in any recalls. The failure and current mileages were 121,000.
Brought my 2000 toyota 4runner sr5 to toyota dealership to repair my rear differential assembly that was leaking. Once the truck was put on the lift it was quickly discovered by the mechanic I had much greater problems than a leaking rear differential, he informed me that my frame was "junk". He told me there was substantial rot on the passenger side frame rail starting from where the rear suspension ties in all the way to the front of the vehicle. He saw no point in removing gas tank on the other side to investigate how bad it may be there, that the passenger side was enough to render the car unsafe to drive. I quickly asked if there were recalls on the frame to which he said no, toyota isn't doing anything to remedy this issue at this time. He told me a frame for this vehicle would cost me between $10-12 thousand dollars! I've taken it to two different highly qualified body shops and both have given me outrageous quotes to get this frame patched, yet both also said it would only be a temporary fix, that the frame would in fact need to be replaced, and both encouraged me to stop driving the vehicle. I have two small children and am now left trying to figure out what to do with transportation as I no longer have a safe vehicle. My truck has been well kept and dealer serviced its entire life it only has 128,000 miles on it. Toyota.... Stand behind your products and replace these frames before someone gets killed. Im sure there are thousands of motorists driving this same year vehicle that look to be in great shape and have no idea their vehicles could literally fall apart at a moments notice!
Tl* the contact owns a 2000 toyota 4 runner. The contact stated after inspecting his vehicle there was rust and corrosion on the frame. The dealer was notified and stated there were no recalls or related warranties; however, they agreed to repair the vehicle for $1200. The manufacturer was notified and stated there were no recalls or warranties. The failure mileage was 120,000.
I own a 2000 toyota 4runner. I took my car for state inspection. My mechanic told me that the frame is rusted out an is a major safety problem. The 2000 $runner has the same frame as the 2000 toyota tacoma in which toyota bought back the tacomas from the owners for 150% of the kelly blue book value. If toyota knows that there is a problem with one model (tacoma) and fixes then they should also fix the 4runner.
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