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Hello everyone, brand new member of the forums here! Long time Toyota fan (the girlfriend and I both own Lexus). I work in a dealership as a parts dept. clerk and I used to be an automotive painter in a former life so I have a pretty strong automotive background. Last year a uncle of mine decided to give me a 89 Toyota pickup V6 extended cab so I jumped on the occasion. I took a few pictures of the truck and decided to get your honest opinion (especially the guys from up North that are used to deal with rusted through projects).
From this angle, the truck looks quiet good actually
Now you can see it starts to look a bit tired with the windshield cap (not sure of the name) sagging
Now for the real hurting part, the bed is pretty much gone (the tailgate too)
Under the cab, the floor is still pretty sane but the underside of the bed as well as its frame seem to be in pretty bad shape.
Last but not least, the interior is in need of some TLC but is not that bad for a 30 years old truck that saw much sand pit off-roading and not much more in the last few years.
Sorry for the length of the post with all those pictures but I guess the real worry I have is the rear frame portion and the bed. Doing a quick search I found a full replacement bed made of fiberglass but being in Quebec, shipping is going to kill me and I'm a bit weary of fiberglass parts. I want to know what you guys think, how hard is it to find parts for this Pickup? I want a mostly stock body (I love the cap up front, it is sooo 80's!) and some suspension modification but it really is the body parts that worry me. I just ditched a 85 mr2 because it was next to impossible to find body parts.
Man that’s pretty hairy If you are talking about Toyotafiberglass he is a member on here and his fiberglass anything are nothing but awesome according to many members on here.
But man that frame looks pretty bad......
Finding parts is not impossible, eBay, here, junkyards and the dealer you’d be amazed what’s still available.
So are you looking for a full rebuild or?? What are your plans?
Hey Disco, thanks for the reply! The truck needs an inspection because it has been without registration for several years. Being perfectionist as I am, I'm looking for a frame up build. I guess I'll have to ditch the bed to really see what the rear of the frame looks like but it'd pain me to get rid of a V6 manual 4x4 but I don't want to get myself into an impossible situation either
You can see the rust hole by the exhaust
Hey bro! Longtime Toyota fan myself. I do parts for a Lexus dealer. I've been doing parts for Lexus for 9 years, and before that 10 years for Toyota. I also used to live up North so I know firsthand the damage the salt does. My truck was originally in New England, it only went through 7 winters and the rust is noticeable. It's in Sunny Texas now and is infinitely cleaner than native New England truck but compared to the local trucks it is a little crusty underneath. Good luck on your project!
hello everyone! Almost a year later, wow how time flies by!! Quick update on the pickup (It's a 90 by the way as I learned, not a 89). The truck cranks but won't start. I tried to bypass the COR to test the fuel pump but it's a no go (The relay is busted, but I guess my problem lays elsewhere as well). I'm in the process of removing the bed to see just how badly damaged it is as well. Been using an inductor to heat up the bolts and it works pretty damn well. Of the 8 bolts holding the bed, only 3 are spinning and I'll need to grind them out
More than 2 years, wow this post almost makes me depressed LOL. I removed the bed and the only part of the frame rusted thru is the cross brace where the exhaust and fuel tank hooked up and the 2 braces where the hitch attaches. Those parts are still available through Toyota so no biggie. Most of the sheetmetal is still available through Toyota as well. I inquired for fiberglass beds and shipping alone would cost more than if I order a new floor and 2 side panels straight from the dealer so I guess I'll be doing some welding to build a new bed.
As for the engine turning but not starting, the fuel pump was seized so I have to change it. I quickly hooked the new one on the harness and it's turning on perfectly. Of course when I unhooked the old one the piping broke so I had to replace it. Had to remove the upper plenum to remove the fuel line all the way from the engine, plenty of fun time. I also installed a jobber fuel filter just for now. I'll hook the fuel pump in a small container while I send the fuel tank to be cleaned and restored.
I'm impressed at what is still available through Toyota directly, you can even buy short blocks and heads!! I now have a garage so plan for the winter is to wirewheel the whole frame and paint it and start patching the cab. I promise the project will move quicker now or the wife will divorce me...
Warning, another long winding post coming. I keep reviving this thread but I guess it means my project isn't dead yet!! So I got a garage built where I wash cars as a side hustle for the summer. As winter settled in, I brought the old truck inside to strip it more. Keep in mind, I work on it once a week so it's a very slow process. We got it to start and sure enough, left side head gasket is blown but it's fine, the engine will get a rebuild as well. (Side note, it's not me on the 1st picture)
After the engine, out went the tranny and t/c. What a pain in the butt to take out and wow, what an heavy beast (is it heavier than the engine? Gotta be close). What gave me the most trouble? The driveshafts, but parts are piling up.
Saved the last part as it's the best. I'm now wanting to take the cab off so I can completely strip the frame and have it sandblasted. I built a cheap man's frame to carry the cab but as you can see in the last picture, one of the wheels didn't survived so I have to get back on the drawing board about it. I tried to lift the cab for the last 2 Sunday's and probably almost killed myself twice. I have no idea how DIYers do it in their own garage without a lift but I got to bring it to my garage and use a lift. So plans for the end of the summer is for the frame to be either powdercoated or painted.
Thanks guys for tagging along. The project is really moving forward now and it's a mix of fun and frustration. Any comment or advice you guys have throw them away!
06-25-2019, 04:09 PM
If you are talking about Toyotafiberglass he is a member on here and his fiberglass anything are nothing but awesome according to many members on here.
