Complaint Review: Toyota Motor Corporation - Torrance California

I purchased a 2005 Tacoma Access-cab 4X4 pickup in January, 2005 from Toyota of Nashua, Nashua, NH. This was the first year of the 2nd generation Tacomas. My truck is Speedway Blue. The 2005 was my third Toyota truck. Prior to owning this truck, I had a 1996 Tacoma Std cab V6 and a 1989 Deluxe Pickup.

In April, 2005, I noticed paint chips on the vehicle hood, roof and in front of the rear wheel wells. I took the vehicle to Toyota of Nashua for inspection. Bob Peterson ( Service Manager) and Josh Offit ( New England Service Manager) looked at the vehicle. They told me that the paint chips were caused by road debris and that damage would not be covered under warranty. Josh told me that he would paint the areas in front of the wheel wells if I would buy running Toyota running boards for $400. I told him that this response is unacceptable and he needs to fix all of the paint under the Toyota warranty. I pointed out that my 1996 Tacoma NEVER had a paint problem. He refused and the issue has not been resolved.

After doing research on the paint issue, I have found out that Toyota had issues applying the paint properly at the factory. My truck was built at the NUMMI plant in Fremont, CA. NUMMI had issues with paint application that were *supposedly* corrected in May of 2005. The paint is brittle and has no elasticity. Other Toyota truck owners have also had paint problems with their 2005 and newer tacomas. If you want more information on this issue, do a search for "Paint Defects" on Tundrasolutions.com or Tacomanation.com.

In August, 2005 I was attempting to load a riding lawnmower into the back of my truck. I was using a pair of aluminum ramps attached to the tailgate. The left side of my tailgate buckled out. I never thought there would be a problem like this, as I could load the mower in my 1996 Tacoma with no tailgate problems. That tailgate was rock-solid. Also, one would think that the components and techniques used to build new vehicles would far supass older vehicles.

I took the truck to Toyota of Nashua on Sept 14,2005. My truck had approximately 10,200 miles. Once again, Bob Peterson and Josh Offit looked at the tailgate. Josh told me that the damage was caused by abuse and he would not cover it. I told him that there were NO labels on the tailgate, on the truck or in the owner's manual that stated that the tailgate had a 200LB weight rating. I pointed out that this weight rating was unacceptable on a vehicle designed to carry 1000LB. I also stated that my 1996 Tacoma never had any problems with the tailgate. Josh got rude when I refused to pay for a new tailgate. He also refused to give me a service receipt stating that my truck was in the shop for this issue. There were no TSB ( Technical Service Bulletins) available at the time for the tailgate.

In May, 2009, I found a TSB for the 2005-2007 Tacoma Tailgate. This TSB number is BO07-018 I brought my truck to Precision Toyota, asking to have the tailgate fixed. First, they acted like they didn't know about the TSB, then I pulled out a copy of the TSB that I printed from the web. I was then told that there were probably over 100 TSBs for the Tacoma. Oh, really, now youu tell me. In any case, they did escalate my issue to the Western Region Headquarters, located in Denver,CO. One again, my request to fix the tailgate was refused. The reason- I was out of the 3/36 warranty. I told them that I did bring the vehicle to the Toyota dealer when the vehicle had 10,000 miles and they refused to give me a receipt, which was the fault of Josh Offit. Still, no assistance.

Toyota Customer Care is a joke. They did not help me, nor would they let me speak to any management. They listened and took notes regarding my issues. Furthermore, they blamed me for damaging the tailgate. Poor customer service.

Toyota built the new Tacomas with the composite bed and light tailgate to increase fuel economy. This new tailgate is much too light considering the weight that the bed is designed for. Toyota knows about this problem, but refuses to fix all affected vehicles. They are also having problems now with the 2007-present Tundras. Toyota is crapping on good customers, at a time that they can least afford it.

In summary, I have had many people ask me about my truck and I show them the tailgate and paint and tell them that Toyotas are not built like they once were.

Vx5436

Tucson, Arizona

U.S.A.

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