Greggoindenver
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- Thread starter
- #1
I’ve been waiting to post this until after all the paperwork completed. The title is accurate. Yes, this is nuts.
My now-first 2024 Tacoma was involved in a “minor” fender-bender back in October. It was parked on the street. Another vehicle accelerated from stop about 20-30 feet behind it and missed the turn. The other vehicle hit my rear-left quarter and did some seemingly cosmetic damage, except.
We towed the truck into the shop because the accident bent the muffler down into the wheel. Irritating, but also not a big deal. About a month passes and I get a phone call from the insurance adjuster. The person says, “Are you sitting down? You’ll want to, because you won’t believe this: We’re going to have to total your truck.”
Shocked, I asked what happened. She responded, “Toyota did something strange with this new Tacoma,” I’m paraphrasing now, “Turns out the receiver hitch is no longer ’bolted on‘ to the frame like every other truck. It is now a unified part of the frame itself. Toyota allows for 4mm of frame flex before the frame has to be fully replaced. Yours exceeded that tolerance at the receiver.”
”The crazy part,” she continued, “is that there are no frames available. We’d have to order one … from Japan … and pay to have it brought over on a ship. But, they’re on back-order. We wouldn’t expect to see one for over a year. We can’t have you without a vehicle that long, so we’re totaling your truck.”
Yep, that’s right, a “minor” rear fender-bender resulted in my now-first 2024 Tacoma being totaled. I was able to source another one, but what a story. The moral, I guess, is be careful where you park.
My now-first 2024 Tacoma was involved in a “minor” fender-bender back in October. It was parked on the street. Another vehicle accelerated from stop about 20-30 feet behind it and missed the turn. The other vehicle hit my rear-left quarter and did some seemingly cosmetic damage, except.
We towed the truck into the shop because the accident bent the muffler down into the wheel. Irritating, but also not a big deal. About a month passes and I get a phone call from the insurance adjuster. The person says, “Are you sitting down? You’ll want to, because you won’t believe this: We’re going to have to total your truck.”
Shocked, I asked what happened. She responded, “Toyota did something strange with this new Tacoma,” I’m paraphrasing now, “Turns out the receiver hitch is no longer ’bolted on‘ to the frame like every other truck. It is now a unified part of the frame itself. Toyota allows for 4mm of frame flex before the frame has to be fully replaced. Yours exceeded that tolerance at the receiver.”
”The crazy part,” she continued, “is that there are no frames available. We’d have to order one … from Japan … and pay to have it brought over on a ship. But, they’re on back-order. We wouldn’t expect to see one for over a year. We can’t have you without a vehicle that long, so we’re totaling your truck.”
Yep, that’s right, a “minor” rear fender-bender resulted in my now-first 2024 Tacoma being totaled. I was able to source another one, but what a story. The moral, I guess, is be careful where you park.
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