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Tundra Brake Problem

13K views 3 replies 3 participants last post by  JdSwiv 
#1 ·
Hello Toyota Nation! I hope you will permit a question from a Nissan man.
My buddy has a 2000 Tundra. He is not computer literate so I told him I would try to get an answer for his problem.
This truck is 4WD, automatic. His brakes keep going out. Seems like he said, that at around 15,000 miles he started to get a shimmy when he applied the brakes. Took it back to the dealer, they told him he had warped the brakes by improper driving, that he had heated up the brakes and driven through a mud puddle. He said OK, paid them to resurface the brakes.
Then, it happened again in 15,000 more miles. Took it back to the dealer, was told the same thing. He said, "How can you say that every 15,000 miles I screw up my own brakes??
The dealer stuck to his story and would not cover the problem.
Now Frank has 90,000 miles on the truck and the problem continues to recur.
What struck me was, my fiancee has a 2000 Infiniti I30 that has the same problem. She was told the same thing by the dealer. Funny, on all her other cars she gets 60,000 miles before needing brake work. But on the I30, every 15,000 miles we have to get the rotors machined.
Finally I got on a Nissan forum and found out that for a couple years Nissan put the wrong size discs on the I30s, but the factory refused to fess up to the problem. The only fix was to get a larger rotor assembly, I think it was one designed for the Maxima, and install that on the I30.
So Frank's problem with the Tundra sounds like our problem with the I30.
Has anyone else had brake problems with the Tundra?
 
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#2 · (Edited)
Brake problems were fairly common on the first model year Tundra's. Most dealerships actually ended up replacing entire brake systems on Tundra's at no cost to the owner (some trucks had entire brake systems redone 2 or 3 times before the problem was actually solved). I looked on the NHTSA website and found several TSB's that delt with the 2000 Tundra's brakes (many of them were released a year or two after the 2000 model year but they applied to the 2000 Tundra):

Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : BR00402Date of Bulletin: SEP 16, 2003NHTSA Item Number: 10003954Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULICSummary:
INFORMATION ON FRONT BRAKE VIBRATION. REVISED. *TT



Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : 00103Date of Bulletin: JAN 08, 2003NHTSA Item Number: 10001051Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULICSummary:
FRONT BRAKE COMPONENT IDENTIFICATION. 2000 - CURRENT TUNDRA AND 2001 - CURRENT SEQUOIA. *TT


Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : 00102Date of Bulletin: DEC 18, 2002NHTSA Item Number: 10006063Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTS ISC:pADS Summary:
TOYOTA RACING DEVELOPMENT (TRD) HIGH-PERFORMANCE BRAKE PADS. *TT


Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : 092302Date of Bulletin: SEP 23, 2002NHTSA Item Number: 635879Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTSISCSummary:
SUBJECT REGARDING FRONT BRAKE REPAIR SERVICE TIPS. *TT


Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : 00402Date of Bulletin: SEP 16, 2002NHTSA Item Number: 10007583Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULICSummary:
FRONT BRAKE VIBRATION. *MJ



Make : TOYOTAModel : TUNDRAYear : 2000Manufacturer : TOYOTA MOTOR NORTH AMERICA, INC.Service Bulletin Num : BR00302Date of Bulletin: SEP 16, 2002NHTSA Item Number: 635863Component: SERVICE BRAKES, HYDRAULIC:FOUNDATION COMPONENTSRUMSummary:
INFORMATION ON REAR BRAKE VIBRATION. *TT



These are just a few of many TSB's that were released on the 2000 Tundra that delt with problematic brakes. The dealership (or stealership in this case) should have fixed your buddy's truck at no charge- they took him for his money. Check out this website: http://www-odi.nhtsa.dot.gov/cars/problems/recalls/recallsearch.cfm for recalls and TSB's and also check out http://tundrasolutions.com/ (you have to register for this site- but it is free)- I am sure you will be able to find lots of guys with 2000 Tundra's on that website and they can tell you what Toyota did (or didn't do) to fix this problem. Hope this helps you out and best of luck!
 
#3 ·
2tacomas, thanks for all that info. I knew something wasn't right.

I spoke to Frank again. He said that the second time the brakes went out, the dealer found a crack in one of the rear drums. The dealer replaced the rotors and drums for free.

But, it didn't fix the problem because 15,000 miles later the brakes went out again. He had new rotors put on again last summer, and now they are gone out again.

I suspect there is an aftermarket fix, such as larger rotors and calipers that can be installed.

Frank is a former Ford owner, and he says he loves everything about the Tundra, except for this problem.
 
#4 ·
I sure hope Frank finds a fix soon. I certainly wouldn't have put up with that dealers non-sense. I have an 05 Tundra, looking for similar problem if somebody has experienced it. The problem comes from being cold outside. We live in Alaska and I know cold causes a lot of mechanical breakdowns. However, this problem doesn't seem to be affecting my ford or my older 4Runner. Below zero temps make the Tundra's brakes lock up. Once I put it in the garage (full of %@#@^) it fixes the problem, but only until it sits out overnight again in sub-zero temps. When you apply the brake, it grabs and then you really have to give her some gas to make the brakes release. This is not good for avoiding accidents in icy conditions. Anyone else?
 
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