NMS Project TUNDRA THUNDER!

Reliable brand name? Toyota!
Is it a truck? 2000 Tundra SR5 1st generation!
Does the truck have power? V8!

Project TUNDRA THUNDER? Are we going to Alaska to study the weather? Visiting the far north of Russia? Nah, it's a Toyota truck project we just started. It's about 100% positive that you've heard of the Toyota brand, and just as likely you know their full size pickup truck is the Tundra. So what's the deal with this one? Glad you asked!

Tundra SR5 with the small rear seat came with these wheels...

And then Brian added these wheels. 

When this truck became available, the NMS Acquisition Department quickly concluded that it would be even more reliable and suitable for a new driver than the 2002 PROJECT INFINITI. So, the INFINITI was sold to a new owner, and the TUNDRA THUNDER TRUCK will be our project to give to a young relative that just got their learner's permit! 

Ready to do some towing almost.

On a related note, the younger NMS-South wanted a truck when he started driving in high school, and his thinking that a truck holds up to other young drivers around a high school parking lot better than anything else, so there's some great thinking there! That was the NMS Ford Ranger that is now long gone, but man it lasted a long time!

Mileage? Only 166,000 miles!

This is a 2000 Tundra SR5 with 166617  miles. Unfortunately the owner passed away recently, and the family put it up for sale. It needs a little work, but this generation (2000-2006) of  Tundra trucks has a great reputation. They also have a reputation for a not-so-great lower ball joint design. Knowing this ahead of time, we checked it out and sure enough, Brian at NMS-South went ahead and replaced those ball joints with new Toyota OEM parts. This is a known issue on these vehicles, and as long as you replace them every bunch of thousand miles, you should be good.

New Toyota OEM lower ball joint. 

What happens if you don't maintain those lower ball joints? BIG PROBLEM. Like, the ball joint loosens/drops and your truck comes crashing down to the ground as the wheel falls off. With preventative maintenance, you can avoid the BIG PROBLEM. 

Creature comforts and modern technology? AC, along with CD player AND a cassette tape player baby! What could be more modern than 2 basically obsolete music systems?