Yes, the gas cap was on!

Hi John,
You hit the nail on the head when you said my Tundra had warranty issues.  I took it to Toyota of *****and and they did ~$2000 worth of work.  It was all covered under warranty except $7 for gas for the loaner.  They found code P2442 and water in the air valves. (Thats what I had too, JP) The invoice says they performed TSB repair replaced valves and both air pumps.  It took almost all week last week to get things straightened out, though.  

The first guy I talked to in service (on Monday) said he was 99% sure it was a loose gas cap.  He said to tighten the cap and drive it for a couple days to see if the dash lights cleared.  He said it wouldn't hurt to drive it.  Of course, it didn't help the light situation.  I called back Wednesday late afternoon and talked to a different guy who said to bring it in right away.  I took it in Thursday morning and picked it up Friday afternoon, good as new (almost!).  Thanks for your help.
GS
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When I first saw this 08 Tundra, it was in limp-mode and 4-wheel drive. Have you ever seen a vehicle that goes into 4WD if an emissions component is bad??? 

I like the safe diagnosis, the one that covers everything - "loose gas cap". Hmm, well new to me and I've been doing this automotive service/repair thing for a living since 1974... hmm

Is it a new-car warranty issue???

Do I really need brakes?

...well do you want to stop?

You could say “isn’t there a super cheap way to fix my brakes” or better yet “can we do just one wheel at a time” my response to either would be no. In life the saying “you get what you pay for” most definitely applies here.  

Let’s say you own a higher-end 1998 to 2003 model year vehicle. The brakes are causing all sorts of warning lights to illuminate your Christmas tree dashboard. Ignoring it seems like a good choice. Just forgetting to mention the problem to those of us who service your vehicle is not really a test of our honesty.

Decide to ignore that bright BRAKE or ABS warning light and you have three choices;

1)   Immediately depart the service facility on the back of the tow truck.

             Or

2)   Own up to a problem you feel should be addressed by skilled in brakes.
             Or

3)   Repeat step two, ask for a diagnosis and an estimate. Best choice.

Here are the/your reasons:

Many pre-2000 brake problems can be traced to the fact that those Cars or SUV’s had options that were considered standard. Yes, they were installed on only that one year, make and model and you purchased it. You didn’t know that all the driving you were doing was really just for research and development?

The Twist or call it Luck

A little twist to the above statement; the car company that manufactured your vehicle is out business or they sold themselves to another country. Many of the parts that were available, although for a short time, are now on a shelf in a warehouse somewhere waiting to be cataloged and inventoried.

Some food for thought:

If you like your car, sport utility vehicle or crossover utility vehicle then you’ll fix it. Do you feel safe and comfortable when you’re driving it and fuel mileage is acceptable? Once again you will fix it. After all why wouldn’t you want to fix it? Ever heard of a Tucker or a Corvair..?

Tune-Ups - REQUIRED!

The photo included in my post is to visually stress the importance of routine maintenance. A simple spark plug change with estimated cost of $145.00 would have saved this person an additional $1100.00 on the replacement cost of two damaged catalytic converters.

The owners manual gives a mileage interval to replace a normal wearing part. There's good reason too, the spark plugs pictured here aren't just normally worn, they are actually worn away.

Much more material is gone than what I would expect to find at the correct replacement mileage.

That brown coloring is was un-burned gasoline, money just being tossed blown out the tailpipe as the SUV went down the road.

The CHECK ENGINE or SERVICE ENGINE SOON lamp had been flickering away for hundreds of miles.

BTW.. Why do they call those warning lights, "idiot lights" anyway?

What is a HEPA FILTER really for?

Isn't it amazing how the replacement of a single filter can have so many good side effects. This is a special filter as its only purpose is to clean incoming cabin air. Removing dust, pollen, and sometimes little critters; I think it has a very special purpose!

Ever had a strange odor appear from out of nowhere after turning on the heat/defrost/AC in your vehicle?

Better yet; have you had the thrill of seeing a mouse looking back at you from under the dash as you were driving down the road? Both the smell and those tiny little eyes are really special experiences, but still scarier than hell when they occur. Wouldn't you agree?

Look at the castle some mice were in the middle of building...

The photo above is from just behind the glovebox.

Fresh air is drawn down into your cars' cabin fan!

New and good for another 15,000 miles!

There is nothing like knowing you are driving around in a rolling "mouse motel".

We check these filters quite often here at Johns Lake Joy ToY.

EEK! Surely..Shirley is that SMOKE!!

Calming a frightened customer; after they drive up with smoke rolling off of one of the front wheels, this takes talent.

I watched my wife Gail handle the situation with confidence in a calming/cheery manner. Once again our years of experience paid off. Shirley seemed to gain her confidence after exiting the smoking van as well. What was smoking you ask, have a look..

Flushing brake fluid once per year actually costs less than the labor to replace brake pads!

PS: This shows what hot brakes can look like..

HOW ARE YOURS?