Rusted Seatbelt Brackets & Seat Brackets - Normal?

I wanted to post this to get your opinion of a matter. I bought a 2017 Tacoma TRD Off-Road a little over a month and a half ago. We have been very pleased with it so far. A couple of weeks ago, I noticed that the front seat seatbelt buckle brackets were rusted. I thought that was not only strange but also potentially unsafe down the road. This truck was not used for 4wheeling nor overlanding by the previous owner and the rest of the interior is pristine.

We took our truck down to the local Toyota Dealership (Knoxville Toyota) because our truck was still under factory warranty. We had the Service Manager help us out. He also checked the seat brackets themselves and found that they were also rusting. I have pics of the seatbelt brackets and the seat brackets. He had to order certain parts, and he thought all this would be covered for sure. He had to send in some Corporate paperwork for approval as part of standard procedure because it was such a n odd issue. But he did not think it would be a problem at all. He said he would contact us the following week when the parts came in.

We waited and did not hear back from him for almost 2 weeks. He had to be the bearer of bad news that our issue would NOT be covered under our Toyota Warranty. Toyota not only denied it but proceeded to tell us that the rust is not a big deal and that there is a protective coating that makes it alright. We could tell that the Service Manager did not want to make this call to us, and that Toyota set him up to be in a bad situation. He told us that we should take this further and call Toyota Customer Service ourselves and push for a better resolution. I whole-heartedly agree and shall. Also we were sent a quote to fix this is for $2000.00! Wow!

So, having the brackets that hold your seats down and your seatbelts attached rusting is not a big deal, and they said that this is a normal characteristic of the product. WHAT?!? I would think that after the major issue they have had with Tacoma frames that they would not want to describe any rusting issues as “normal” or “Not a big deal”. It was not that big a deal that the issue happened initially, but I do think that this should definitely be covered and fixed under my warranty especially because it is Toyota. I feel that the adding insult to injury is when they try to tell us that this is “normal” and should not really be a concern. Actually, the true insult may have been looking at a $2000 quote to fix the issue! I think it’s far from normal for anything rusting like this in my interior especially when my truck is only two years old. I feel like they are trying to Jedi mind-trick us into believing that this doesn’t matter. I find it insults our intelligence and common sense. Plus, it just doesn’t seem safe and is cosmetically filthy.


I wanted to ask everyone that reads this post, if they believe this is normal. Any advice or comments about this customer service issue? Thanks in advance!

 

Flood vehicle?

 

To me this rust is not normal for a two year old truck. I suspect this trucks' interior was subjected to high humidity levels and/or rain water at some point while the windows were left open. I'd check the third stop light for water intrusion as well. Does your cab smell musty? If it does then you have a water leak somewhere.

 

looks kinda normal, just surface rust.... take a wire brush to it, and then coat it with some light oil like litium or something... its a rust belt vehicle.. every car or truck I ever had did this due to the salt on the roads, and moisture in the cab due to snow, rain, and otherwise.. $2k is a bit much.. but they are talking about the seat bracket, and the seatbelt mech.. plus disassembly, and re-assembly of the ineterior.. labor is the killer here..

in all honesty I would just clean the area with a wire brush, maybe take some emery paper to it, clean with alcohol, and then wipe it down with a little wd-40, or thin white lithium.... call it a day.. I understand you are upset theres rust there.. but its bound to happen sooner or later, and the seat brackets are thick enough that this is just cosmetic...

 

If my seats looked like that, I'd be doing anything I could to have it replaced without costing me anything.
I don't care what anyone says, this isn't normal.

 

How is this bound to happen eventually? That makes zero sense. Maybe if he parked next to the ocean and let the tide roll in?
Two year old vehicle, interior metal covered in Rust, and you're simply going to spend your weekend wire brushing your seat brakets once you've removed your seats?

I'd dig behind the dash and see if that structural metal is also rusting.

Remember, surface Rust in two years is just cosmetic according to this post. So what about 2 more years? Still cosmetic?

 

you dont live in the rust belt I take it.... you wouldnt understand how quickly this can happen especially in areas where liquid brine/ice melter is used.. previous owner may have left window open on a rainy day.. perhaps the carpet was covered in salt... you dont know.. its surface rust.. I know salt fromt he roads gets all over the interior of my car/truck.. if he does something about it now it wont be an issue..

and if he is concerned about it being a flood vehicle.. open up the panels, and lift the carpet at the footwells, and look up into the dash area.... check for water levels, or other rust.. if he finds any.. return the vehicle, and be sure to check the VIN for flood/recovery, or recovered/repaired title...

 

OP where is your truck originally from? Use a vin decoder and it'll tell you the dealership it was first sold from. In Tennessee there shouldn't be that much rust on the inside. This makes me think it's from an area that either had a flood, or someone drove that truck into a puddle that was a lot deeper than they thought it was. Even in the north east it's rare for interior metal to rust that quickly.

 

Looks like a flood vehicle...my guess is the previous owner left the windows down in a heavy ass rain probably more evidence under the carpet and pawned the problem off on you. Have to side with Toyota on this one as they are not obligated to pay for owner neglect.

 

I live in Canada dude. All it does is rain and snow. It's not normal. It just not. No need to defend it.

 

Glad I live somewhere where this isn’t considered “normal”. A quick peek under the dash should show you the underside of the braking and steering mechanisms and brackets. If those have any rust, then the humidity/ open window in rain theory looks correct. If those structural metal pieces look clean, then it’s really likely a flood vehicle. Sorry OP, either way it’s a pain.

 

It ain’t normal, there’s been a lot of water in the cab to cause that, however it is an easy fix. Go to Home Depot and get Rustoleum rust remover spray. Should be careful not to spray the electrical connectors though.

 

Is it a salvaged title?

 

Where's the OP?

 

At Home Depot

 

I bet he is. It's been 27 hours since he posted this rust issue.

 

Huston flood survivor.

 

I live in Vancouver BC, rains most days out of the year..we get some snow. I dont have any rust on my seats

 

My truck from '92 had 0 rust inside. This is fucked