Either the practice stopped, or Toyota improved the beds (or I got an exceptional one).  My '93 Toyota Pickup (just before the name change to "Tacoma") ran for 297K miles before I sold it to a fellow going to Mexico to sell it there.  I sold it to him for more than I could have gotten by selling it to someone planning to drive it here, btw.  I used the dog out of the bed, hauling everything from firewood to dirt to gravel, even beach sand, and it never rusted.  That was one tough truck, too.  I took it onto roads most people wouldn't take a 4wd in Mexico, and drove it on the beach untold numbers of times in Texas.  Never rusted.

mcneely

---- "Peter T. Owsianowski" <pnoceanwesty@GMAIL.COM> wrote:
> I bought one of those trucks new in '84.  Believe it not, the beds were
> known for rusting out before the cab!  Not unusual few years later to see
> one those still cruising down the road with the bed rusted away.
>
> Pete
> '79 Westy "Aardvark"
> '87 Westy "JoesVan"
> WWW.Busesbythebeach.com
>
>
> On Wed, Jan 19, 2011 at 19:32, Kim Springer <kimspringer@astound.net> wrote:
>
> > ...and VW probably couldn't do what Jeff mentioned with their truck because
> > the truck and bed are all one piece?
> >
> > I remember seeing train flat cars loaded with small Toyota trucks stacked
> > on them, heading to get beds installed.
> >
> > Kim
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> > Mike
> > Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 2:36 PM
> > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > Subject: Re: Just like a Vanagon, but modern..
> >
> > So that's why those beds rotted out so badly, well before the cabs!
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Jeff Schwaia
> > Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 2:00 PM
> > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > Subject: Re: Just like a Vanagon, but modern..
> >
> > Not really... there are relatively simple ways for manufacturers to get
> > around the "chicken tax".  The most common is to ship incomplete vehicles
> > and finish the assembly in the USA.  This is not as big of a deal as it
> > sounds.  Look at the Sprinter.  Do you think Dodge (now Mercedes) is paying
> > 25% import duty on those vans?  Nope.  They send them as incomplete
> > vehicles
> > and then add the final bits (usually made in the USA) before sending them
> > on
> > to their dealers.
> >
> > If Toyota, or any other mfg, believed it was financially viable, they would
> > do the same.  As a matter of fact, Toyota was one of the first mfg's to
> > utilize the incomplete vehicle loophole with their small trucks.  They
> > would
> > ship them to California without the pickup beds.  The beds were made in the
> > USA and attached at a processing plant in California.  Viola!  A Japanese
> > made truck without chicken tax...
> >
> > Jeff
> >
> >
> > -----Original Message-----
> > From: Vanagon Mailing List [mailto:vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com] On Behalf Of
> > HotelWestfalia
> > Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 10:33 AM
> > To: vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM
> > Subject: Re: Just like a Vanagon, but modern..
> >
> > Almost anything that was or is not threatening the US vehicle sales was
> > allowed in with severe restrictions that did not apply to the locals.  We
> > did not get Vanagons with diesel turbo, or with carburetors either.
> > The huge success of the HiAce was a serious threat to the local van
> > manufacturing.  The unions ruled them out.  The local manufacturers treated
> > the local market exactly as the drug dealers their own turf.
> > Z
> >
> >
> > ----- Original Message -----
> > From: "J Stewart" <fonman4277@COMCAST.NET>
> > To: <vanagon@GERRY.VANAGON.COM>
> > Sent: Wednesday, January 19, 2011 7:06 AM
> > Subject: Re: Just like a Vanagon, but modern..
> >
> >
> > > Still do, if you can call it that, the Sienna. More car like than van,
> > > though. Toyota's first mini van sold in the US (1983?) was cool looking,
> > > it too was Vanagon like only smaller, and even came as a 4X4. Mitsubishi
> > > had a nice looking small van back in the 80's as well.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > Jeff Stewart
> > >
> > > Sorry, left off the link originally. Here it is:
> > > http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toyota_Hiace. According to this, the Toyota
> > > Hiace came in a camper version. Of course, Toyota sold vans in this
> > > country from long ago. Must be something other than emissions control
> > that
> > > kept these from being marketed here.
> > >
> > >
> > >
> > > mcneely
> > >
> >

--
David McNeely