2002 Toyota Tundra problems

What is wrong

Toyota is recalling model year 2000-2003 tundra vehicles originally sold in or currently registered in the following states: connecticut, delaware, illinois, indiana, kentucky, maine, maryland, massachusetts, michigan, minnesota, new hampshire, new jersey, new york, ohio, pennsylvania, rhode island, vermont, virginia, west virginia, wisconsin and the district of columbia. Excessive corrosion of the rear cross member may cause the separation of the spare tire stowed under the truck bed which would present a road hazard that could cause a crash. Also, corrosion of the rear cross member could affect the rear brake lines and the proportioning valve resulting in diminished braking capability.

Risk

Separation of the spare tire and diminished brake capacity could increase the risk of a crash.

Remedy

Toyota is asking owners of the affected vehicles to remove the spare tire from under the vehicle until a remedy can be obtained. Dealers will inspect the rear cross member and related components, including the brake lines, and replace them if necessary. If the cross member does not need to be replaced, it will be sprayed with a corrosion protection compound. These services will be performed free of charge, however multiple visits to the dealer may be required. The safety recall is expected to begin on or about april 30, 2010. Owner may contact toyota at 1‑800‑331‑4331.

Recall number 09V444000 · Recall details

What is wrong

On certain sport utility vehicles, due to a manufacturing issue in the front suspension lower ball joint, there is a possibility that the surface of the ball of the joint may have been scratched. The ball joint may eventually experience excessive wear and looseness, resulting in increased steering effort.

Risk

The lower ball joint may separate from the knuckle causing loss of steering control and a crash could occur.

Remedy

Dealers will replace the front suspension lower ball joints free of charge. The recall began on july 5, 2005. Owners may contact toyota at 1‑800‑331‑4331.

Recall number 05V225000 · Recall details

What is wrong

On certain 4x2 vehicles equipped with an alloy wheel tire upgrade (options wm4, wm8, zl1-zl4, dh4, or dh5) installed by the processing centers in jacksonville, florida or commerce, georgia, a label identifying the spare tire as a temporary use spare tire was not installed. The upgrade includes 4 larger size tires with alloy wheels. The original spare tire/steel wheel is not part of the upgrade and was not changed.

Risk

Different operating characteristics can be experienced when the spare tire is installed on the vehicle.

Remedy

Owners will be provided with a caution label and an insert for their owner's manual. Owner notification began july 15, 2002. Owners who do not receive the free remedy within a reasonable time should contact southeast toyota at 1‑800‑301‑6859.

Recall number 02V129000 · Recall details

This investigation was opened based on 20 reports of model year (my) 2000 and 2001 vehicles experiencing severe corrosion of the frame, resulting in either under-body mounted spare tire separation or rear brake failure.the failure report counts shown above are for my 2000 and 2001 vehicles only.by letter of november 16, 2009 toyota has notified the agency that it will conduct a safety recall (09v‑444) of approximately 110,000 model year (my) 2000 through 2003 tundra vehicles.the affected recalled vehicles were sold or are currently registered in the district of columbia and the states of ct, de, il, in, ky, ma, md, me, mi, mn, nh, nj, ny, oh, pa, ri, va, vt, wi, wv.toyota alleges high amounts of road salts are used in these areas and excessive corrosion of the rear cross-member (to which the spare tire is mounted) can occur and cause the spare tire to separate from the vehicle and can also lead to rear brake failure.toyota stated: toyota has tentatively concluded that the root cause is a combination of factors, including usage in areas where road salt is applied, inadequate vehicle maintenance (I.e., not following the recommendations in the owner's manual), the design of the rear cross-member, and manufacturing issues.the design of the rear cross-member is such that it is open on the top side and susceptible to accumulation of dirt, water and road salt.manufacturing issues of the rear cross-member related to the coating process also affect its corrosion resistance.toyota also states that owners of my 2000 through 2003 vehicles in states not covered by the recall will be notified on how to obtain the same inspection and repair as the recalled vehicles, free of charge.further toyota states: please note that while toyota has not determined a defect exists in 2004 through 2006 my tundra vehicles, toyota plans on initiating a field action in the near future to prevent future corrosion on those vehicles originally sold or currently registered in the affected region at no cost to the owner.by letter of january 8, 2010 toyota has notified the agency that it amended its defect information report for safety recall 09v‑444 to include the fuel tank mounting system (I.e., fuel tank support straps and fuel tank mounting cross-members) in the safety recall.toyota states: toyota has not decided that the fuel tank mounting system in those vehicles contains a safety-related defect within the meaning of federal motor vehicle safety law.rather, toyota is taking this action at odi's request and to avoid future disagreement with odi with respect to this issue.my 2007 and newer tundra vehicles are not included in any of toyota's actions as the rear cross-member in those vehicles have been redesigned so that it is open on the bottom.the actions taken by toyota are sufficient to resolve the issues raised by this investigation.accordingly, this investigation is closed.the closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist in the subject vehicles.the agency will take further action if warranted by the circumstances.

PE09049

Odi received 3 consumer reports of alleged ball joint separation on my 2002 tundra vehicles.the complaints allege that a front suspension ball joint separated while driving, which caused the suspension to collapse and resulted in a loss of vehicle control.based on these complaints, odi opened pe02-040 and later upgraded to ea04-024 for my 2002 tundra vehicles.during ea04-024, additional failure data was identified as noted in the failure report summary above. On may 16, 2005, toyota notified the federal safety agency of a safety defect on my 2002-2004 tundra and sequoia vehicles (produced between august 1, 2001 and september 30, 2003), my 2001-2004 tacoma vehicles (produced between july 31, 2001 and december 23, 2003), and my 2001-2002 4runner vehicles (produced between may 22, 2001 and august 23, 2002).the notification stated that due to a manufacturing issue with the front suspension lower ball joints (which connect the lower control arms to the steering knuckles of the front wheels) there is a possibility that the surface of the ball of the joint may have been scratched.such scratches may result in significantly accelerated wear of the joint. According to toyota, if the [subject] vehicle is operated for an extended period of time in this condition, the ball joint may eventually experience excessive wear and looseness, resulting in increased steering effort, reduced vehicle self-centering, and noise in the front suspension.in extreme cases, when the driver continues to operate the vehicle in this condition, the lower ball joint may separate from the knuckle causing a loss of vehicle steering control. Toyota will instruct owners to return their vehicles to any toyota dealer for replacement of the front suspension lower ball joints.odi will monitor the effectiveness of the remedy and take further action if warranted.

EA04024

Odi opened pe04-040 based on three consumer reports of alleged ball joint failure.the complaints allege that a front suspension ball joint separated while driving, which caused the suspension to collapse and resulted in a loss of vehicle control.all of these complaints involved the failure of a lower ball joint.during the investigation, toyota identified a total of 15 complaints of lower ball joint separation, one of which resulted in a crash, and 28 warranty claims related to lower ball joint wear.odi's analysis showed that of the 15 separations, 11 were on four-wheel drive vehicles (24.2 per 100,000 vehicles), which make up approximately 40% of the 2002 my population (45,448 vehicles).odi's analysis also showed that some drivers lost front braking ability as the brake line severed when the front suspension collapsed.this preliminary evaluation has been upgraded to an engineering analysis to further investigate this issue, to assess the safety-related consequences, and to determine the scope of the affected population.

PE04040