Is my frame bad?

So I bought a used 2012 4Runner oct 2019. It had a slight wobble when purchase but the hubs said it was just tires. Purchased a new set of tires and was told it couldn’t be aligned at that time but the hubs never told me The wobble continued and so we put new brakes and rotors! Still continued and was accompanied with roaring sound. So we had a new right wheel bearing pressed only for it to go bad a couple weeks later. Finally took to Toyota. Needed a new rear axle and bearing plus the control arms were extremely “loose”. All good for 2 weeks and bam the bearing is bad again. So now my hubs says the tire is unevenly wore and causing the continued wobble and noise and shimmy. warrant won’t cover because of the alignment issues being the cause. So now we’re sitting here putting six hundred dollars on tires in less than a year and I’m almost certain the bearing is bad again and the control arms are loose again because it’s driving all over the road especially in wet conditions. Help! I’m so worried my frame is warped and someone passed this nightmare down the line to me which is what I’m about ready to do honestly.

 

A couple of questions. Why couldn't it be aligned?

Have you checked CarFax for any previous accidents?

 

It has been in several accidents we found out after the fact not sure how severe tho. They never said why it couldn’t be aligned just simply that it couldn’t. Toyota was able to get it aligned it just won’t hold it longer than a couple weeks

 

Oh I forgot to mention when doing a 3 point turn or back out of my driveway sometimes this light pops on I think it’s the traction control and something beeps like an alarm

 

The several accidents part is likely the cause. I'm sure there are others on here who know how they do it (I don't), but your frame can be checked to see if it's bent.

There's a ton of things that can cause wobble. There are other things that can cause unequal front tire wear and front wheel bearing failure. But, for one vehicle to have all that going on, *and* improper rear wheel wear and damaging control arms...all at the same time? I don't know what else can cause all that but a frame not being straight or possibly a poorly designed/installed lift kit.

 

My apologies it is the rear right axle and bearings going bad.

 

Also there isn’t a lift kit installed. Regardless my thought exactly my husband has a 2011 tundra and he has just had maintenance and some oil leak due to defect parts

 

Sounds like a bent frame. I am sure the vehicle was dumped due to these issues and now you are stuck with it. Get the frame checked and then you will need to make a decision.

 

I have to agree with the frame.....i know several people who purchased vehicles that were in accidents . Had various problems (mainly alignments staying intack).
We have a guy thats been doing frames for 40 years n he is magician on how he can get frames as good as new .....hes not cheap.
I would ask around to see if you can find a real good frame guy to check it out....

 

Buying a car that has been in accidents is not a good idea, even if the title says restored. Its weird but cars that have been in accidents just drive... different. Its like crumpling a piece of paper, you can straighten it out again but you can never fully remove the wrinkles.

 

Well said.

It's also worth noting that even if it's a clean title, that doesn't mean it hasn't been in a bad crash. If a dealer doesn't voluntarily offer a CarFax with any vehicle, I'd begin to sniff around, especially if it's a small dealership that buys from auctions. An insurance company won't total a vehicle if it can be fixed for...generally, under 70% of the vehicle's value.

If you can get proof the frame is bent, I'd be back at that dealership raising hell. Hopefully, it's the same dealer which sold it to you as the one who misdiagnosed the problem...a problem they could fix by selling you stuff.

If they refuse to buy it back, I'd spend the next year on a P/R campaign making sure they lost far more money than they made by selling this vehicle, along with calling the local TV stations and state attorney general office.

If none of that was enough to encourage them to buy it back, I'd sue them for as much as small claims court in your state allows.

IMO, there is no way any auto dealer who has any mechanics with a 3 digit IQ can't tell when a truck has a bent frame to the degree as yours appears to be.

 

It was in fact a small dealer who did in fact purchase from auction for a truck for his daughter it seems as he told us it was his daughters. She owned it less then a year before he sold it to us. We just found this all out after the car fax we purchased. My husband did one soon after the purchase but was vague about the details of it to me simply saying g it had been in an accident. Turns out one of the 2 accidents was listed as severe to both front and rear end so in all honesty that confirms my instincts but my husband will surely needs more convincing as he is in extreme denial like I want the car to be a lemon or something.

 

Unfortunately, there are "Lemon" laws in place to protect you on new cars...some states are better than others. AFAIK, there are no laws like that for used vehicles. Your dealer likely got it for cheap, then dumped it later on.

 

Sounds like he knew the 4runner had issues and dumped it on yall. Always do a carfax before buying and if not, have it inspected. Expensive lesson to learn. You may need to hire a lawyer for this if the dealer won't help.

 

Welcome to the forum, @areese0727 ! I'm sorry to hear you're having such a bad experience with your 4runner!

I could be mistaken here, but I believe known frame damage must be disclosed on the window sticker. I'm sure this varies state to state, and there are ways around it, though.

Sounds like a shady dealer to me!

 

sorry to hear about this..

 

Horrible ordeal to have to go through. Hopefully, it can all get worked out to your benefit.

 

It may also be the combo of tweaked frame and bent rear end housing. Just speculating, having trouble like this is never good.