alberta mac
addicted but not cured
- Joined
- May 21, 2009
- Threads
- 281
- Messages
- 1,324
- Location
- Paradise Calgary Alberta Canada
- Website
- forum.ih8mud.com
Just got a new to me 2007 tundra and have been driving it for a week but perhaps I should back up to where the story begins ?
I was surfing the web one day for my dream truck and 07 to 12 Toyota Tundra then one came up here in the great white north 3 hrs from home. I got on the horn pronto pronto and chatted with the guy quickly sending him a deposit for the $3400. purchase of a limited extra cab 07 with motor issues.
Hoping in my Sequoia I booted out the next day renting a trailer in the town of truck location.
I loaded the Tundra onto the trailer but the back wheels would not get on. I hit a Home Depot and bought some 2x10's then loaded the tundra on the trailer with the back wheels sitting on the 2x10 off the back of the trailer. Yahoo ! A little cowboy ish indeed !
The back end of the Sequoia sat low with the front end somewhat upward.
I set off grabbing a coffee for my 3hr drive home but first had to depart the town by going down a long hill then back up the hill to leave town.
That where the fun began ! I'm really not one that gets spooked at all and am pretty calm even when flying in thermals in a hang glider.
However as I was descending this big hill on the highway it also had a light layer of snow and was after dusk, yes dark and my visibility wasn't the greatest with the back end down and the front end up.
It was starting to veer into the next lane on my left so I counter steered but there was a delayed reaction then caught track and went to far, so I counter steered again to the left to bring it back. I was doing just under the highway speed for safety with traffic passing me on the left. When it came time to go up the other side of the hill the same thing happened with the steering. I immediately pulled over to a rest area and realized this would be death if I continued home like this.
I called a tow truck and they said sure by tomorrow morning. I grabbed dinner and stayed at a hotel having a decent meal and a few beers then met the truck in the morning.
The trailer I returned then drove home meeting the truck at my local Toyota shop.
A day later Toyota called and said your motor is done and I need a new one, as I didn't have the $12,000 not including labour I said I would pick up the truck. I brought some plates and drove it home on 6 or 7 cylinders.
There she sat while I looked for a used 5.7.
3 -4 months later I did find one another 3 hrs out of town. Made a deal with the seller as he was coming to town and I could pay him gas money for the drop off which we were both happy with.
So now the motor is sitting in my mechanics garage as he was going to do some prep work on it before I bring the truck. Another month or two he said ok bring her by and again between his regular jobs he did the odd thing on the truck.
I gave him a hand with taking out the starter, boy that was interesting and crazy where they put it !
Another month or two he texted that '' The motor is out ''
I guess some of you know but not that I or my mechanic knew that in order to remove the 5.7 you need a hoist to lift the body off the frame to pull the motor !
So now the motor was out and there was some lag time before the other motor could get put in. He had to pull some items off the dead and install them on the living then it would be ready to put back in.
As I dropped by he said he had a hell of a time getting the thing out and put a dent in the front rad support.
I suggested zip cutting it with my grinder and removing the rad support. He thought about it then said yes then it was out and ready for his attention.
You know with any construction job it always takes longer than planned !
At some point a few weeks or more another text arrived... ''Motor is in but I need some help ! ''
It's incredible ! When I saw under the hood of that Tundra the only thing I could think of was The Borg from Star Trek, how did they get that thing in there and how could anyone work on it ????
Within a few days my mechanic said it was ready so I showed up hoped in and yes it did sound good.
I put it in reverse and nothing ! So we towed it out with the Sequoia and put it in drive to take it to the tranny shop. As I was driving I put it in neutral and hit the gas and it booted down the road.
The rad shop called later that day with the bad news, need a new trans, we can get one for $5000 not including install. I said give me a few and I'll call ya back. I called my mechanic and he told me to call this auto wrecker he knew. Yup we have one sir for $2500. So I picked it up and dropped it off at the trans shop.
So now you are probably thinking its over and life is great ? Nope !
Got the truck back and it was going thru fuel like crazy with all kinds of idiot lights on the dash including the ''Engine'' light.
My mechanic gave me a number to a mobile tech and made a date with him the a couple of days later.
Bada B, Bada Bing ! He did his thing then checked some wires which were lose under hood, looked at his computer and said your catalytic converter sensors are indicating your cats need to be changed.
He said replacing your cats are about $1000. each. But since you drove around these last few days on 7 cylinders I think your cats are gunked up ! Take it to empty put injector cleaner in with premium gas and see if that helps, I have a feeling that will save you replacing your cats.
So far so good, I will be doing a second tank of premium and adding Sea Foam and see what happens. The engine light came back on for some reason so after I've run it for a 1/4 tank I'll call the tech to look at it again.
Though I've been drooling at these trucks for quite awhile and now have been driving it for over a week I am starting to enjoy it and you'll know why when I mention the Sequoia.
A few years back I was surfing again for Toyota's My 93 first gen Dodge cummins got written off due to a stupid Harley owner heading south in the north bound lane in a curve ! Doh !
I was bummed big time the truck was written off, The guy got taken away by ground ambulance but his 60 odd year old wife got air lifted as it was her that hit the truck when he swerved last minute or shall I say last second. I guess we know who the chicken was !
So I did find a rolled Sequoia that didn't go thru insurance so I bought it as we needed something to tow our TT. ( travel trailer ) I popped some dents out, replaced 3 doors, headlight, windshield and a sunroof and off we went. Good old Toyota dependability ! I used a the down strap to hold the hood down as the lock gave out.
That happened on the highway with my wife in the passenger seat. All of a sudden wiping along on the highway the hood flew up, the wife let out an instant scream ! I looked at the road ahead thru the bottom of the hood above my dash and put the hazzards on while picking a spot to pull over to.
Also the motor died in the rear window so there was a good amount of duct tape on the Sequoia and the radio had issues with a few speakers being ripped so you had to get the balance right Left to Right and Front to Back.
needed nothing mechanically but when the ps door was shut the gap between the top of door and roof was about 2'' or more. I put some foam in there with some duct tape but driving it was loud with the air coming in, sometimes having to talk loud and repeat what we were saying.
Other wise a great car really ! lol
It's all good really and we can have a laugh at it now. It did get the odd look sometimes when driving it looking like it was a smash up derby car ! It some areas these beat up cars are known as Indian cars. The reality is the Indian's don't even drive these cars anymore, they all drive nice cars so I'm the only one ! lol
So now I'm in the Tundra, a friend stopped and we spoke as he was on the passenger side of the truck, he said :'' so this is the new truck , it looks clean, good , is there any duct tape or tye down straps holding things in place ? I said no but he was in dissbelief as he got out of his car to inspect the drivers side of the Tundra.
Surprised and somewhat in shock he said '' Wow ! It's just hard to imaging you driving something so nice ! ''
I had to admit he was right and we laughed !
So I have a plastic front bumper with round plastic plugs in the place of where some driving lights would go if it were a premium Tundra and wondering what kind of light action some of you have done ??
I'd also like to know about replacement head lights and led bulbs, what brands and value ? tail light led bulbs ?
What mods and upgrades have people done ?
Future plans include BFG tires, Canopy with an exterior cargo roof rack, stereo aftermarket, possible steel front bumper and a roll of duct tape kept in the tool box under the seat.
Pics would also be great ! I'm starting to really enjoy driving the truck and my wife is also quite excited that we can hear each other speak to say the least. lol
I'll toss in some pics of the old milf , a little beaten up but still knows how to be dependable ( the Sequoia that is ) and the new girl the Tundra.
I was surfing the web one day for my dream truck and 07 to 12 Toyota Tundra then one came up here in the great white north 3 hrs from home. I got on the horn pronto pronto and chatted with the guy quickly sending him a deposit for the $3400. purchase of a limited extra cab 07 with motor issues.
Hoping in my Sequoia I booted out the next day renting a trailer in the town of truck location.
I loaded the Tundra onto the trailer but the back wheels would not get on. I hit a Home Depot and bought some 2x10's then loaded the tundra on the trailer with the back wheels sitting on the 2x10 off the back of the trailer. Yahoo ! A little cowboy ish indeed !
The back end of the Sequoia sat low with the front end somewhat upward.
I set off grabbing a coffee for my 3hr drive home but first had to depart the town by going down a long hill then back up the hill to leave town.
That where the fun began ! I'm really not one that gets spooked at all and am pretty calm even when flying in thermals in a hang glider.
However as I was descending this big hill on the highway it also had a light layer of snow and was after dusk, yes dark and my visibility wasn't the greatest with the back end down and the front end up.
It was starting to veer into the next lane on my left so I counter steered but there was a delayed reaction then caught track and went to far, so I counter steered again to the left to bring it back. I was doing just under the highway speed for safety with traffic passing me on the left. When it came time to go up the other side of the hill the same thing happened with the steering. I immediately pulled over to a rest area and realized this would be death if I continued home like this.
I called a tow truck and they said sure by tomorrow morning. I grabbed dinner and stayed at a hotel having a decent meal and a few beers then met the truck in the morning.
The trailer I returned then drove home meeting the truck at my local Toyota shop.
A day later Toyota called and said your motor is done and I need a new one, as I didn't have the $12,000 not including labour I said I would pick up the truck. I brought some plates and drove it home on 6 or 7 cylinders.
There she sat while I looked for a used 5.7.
3 -4 months later I did find one another 3 hrs out of town. Made a deal with the seller as he was coming to town and I could pay him gas money for the drop off which we were both happy with.
So now the motor is sitting in my mechanics garage as he was going to do some prep work on it before I bring the truck. Another month or two he said ok bring her by and again between his regular jobs he did the odd thing on the truck.
I gave him a hand with taking out the starter, boy that was interesting and crazy where they put it !
Another month or two he texted that '' The motor is out ''
I guess some of you know but not that I or my mechanic knew that in order to remove the 5.7 you need a hoist to lift the body off the frame to pull the motor !
So now the motor was out and there was some lag time before the other motor could get put in. He had to pull some items off the dead and install them on the living then it would be ready to put back in.
As I dropped by he said he had a hell of a time getting the thing out and put a dent in the front rad support.
I suggested zip cutting it with my grinder and removing the rad support. He thought about it then said yes then it was out and ready for his attention.
You know with any construction job it always takes longer than planned !
At some point a few weeks or more another text arrived... ''Motor is in but I need some help ! ''
It's incredible ! When I saw under the hood of that Tundra the only thing I could think of was The Borg from Star Trek, how did they get that thing in there and how could anyone work on it ????
Within a few days my mechanic said it was ready so I showed up hoped in and yes it did sound good.
I put it in reverse and nothing ! So we towed it out with the Sequoia and put it in drive to take it to the tranny shop. As I was driving I put it in neutral and hit the gas and it booted down the road.
The rad shop called later that day with the bad news, need a new trans, we can get one for $5000 not including install. I said give me a few and I'll call ya back. I called my mechanic and he told me to call this auto wrecker he knew. Yup we have one sir for $2500. So I picked it up and dropped it off at the trans shop.
So now you are probably thinking its over and life is great ? Nope !
Got the truck back and it was going thru fuel like crazy with all kinds of idiot lights on the dash including the ''Engine'' light.
My mechanic gave me a number to a mobile tech and made a date with him the a couple of days later.
Bada B, Bada Bing ! He did his thing then checked some wires which were lose under hood, looked at his computer and said your catalytic converter sensors are indicating your cats need to be changed.
He said replacing your cats are about $1000. each. But since you drove around these last few days on 7 cylinders I think your cats are gunked up ! Take it to empty put injector cleaner in with premium gas and see if that helps, I have a feeling that will save you replacing your cats.
So far so good, I will be doing a second tank of premium and adding Sea Foam and see what happens. The engine light came back on for some reason so after I've run it for a 1/4 tank I'll call the tech to look at it again.
Though I've been drooling at these trucks for quite awhile and now have been driving it for over a week I am starting to enjoy it and you'll know why when I mention the Sequoia.
A few years back I was surfing again for Toyota's My 93 first gen Dodge cummins got written off due to a stupid Harley owner heading south in the north bound lane in a curve ! Doh !
I was bummed big time the truck was written off, The guy got taken away by ground ambulance but his 60 odd year old wife got air lifted as it was her that hit the truck when he swerved last minute or shall I say last second. I guess we know who the chicken was !
So I did find a rolled Sequoia that didn't go thru insurance so I bought it as we needed something to tow our TT. ( travel trailer ) I popped some dents out, replaced 3 doors, headlight, windshield and a sunroof and off we went. Good old Toyota dependability ! I used a the down strap to hold the hood down as the lock gave out.
That happened on the highway with my wife in the passenger seat. All of a sudden wiping along on the highway the hood flew up, the wife let out an instant scream ! I looked at the road ahead thru the bottom of the hood above my dash and put the hazzards on while picking a spot to pull over to.
Also the motor died in the rear window so there was a good amount of duct tape on the Sequoia and the radio had issues with a few speakers being ripped so you had to get the balance right Left to Right and Front to Back.
needed nothing mechanically but when the ps door was shut the gap between the top of door and roof was about 2'' or more. I put some foam in there with some duct tape but driving it was loud with the air coming in, sometimes having to talk loud and repeat what we were saying.
Other wise a great car really ! lol
It's all good really and we can have a laugh at it now. It did get the odd look sometimes when driving it looking like it was a smash up derby car ! It some areas these beat up cars are known as Indian cars. The reality is the Indian's don't even drive these cars anymore, they all drive nice cars so I'm the only one ! lol
So now I'm in the Tundra, a friend stopped and we spoke as he was on the passenger side of the truck, he said :'' so this is the new truck , it looks clean, good , is there any duct tape or tye down straps holding things in place ? I said no but he was in dissbelief as he got out of his car to inspect the drivers side of the Tundra.
Surprised and somewhat in shock he said '' Wow ! It's just hard to imaging you driving something so nice ! ''
I had to admit he was right and we laughed !
So I have a plastic front bumper with round plastic plugs in the place of where some driving lights would go if it were a premium Tundra and wondering what kind of light action some of you have done ??
I'd also like to know about replacement head lights and led bulbs, what brands and value ? tail light led bulbs ?
What mods and upgrades have people done ?
Future plans include BFG tires, Canopy with an exterior cargo roof rack, stereo aftermarket, possible steel front bumper and a roll of duct tape kept in the tool box under the seat.
Pics would also be great ! I'm starting to really enjoy driving the truck and my wife is also quite excited that we can hear each other speak to say the least. lol
I'll toss in some pics of the old milf , a little beaten up but still knows how to be dependable ( the Sequoia that is ) and the new girl the Tundra.
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