Less than 3 weeks old and I got rear ended tonight. Almost had a meltdown.

Not justifiable. Unfortunately.

 

IDK , it's a new truck

or was

 

My first new Xtra cab 4x4 Toyota was rear end in 1993 when I got back from the gulf. It can be fixed. Glad you're ok. I still have back issues from it to this day.

 

OP didn't want it to escalate. His head/decision was in the right place

 

sorry to hear about your truck. insist on new oem parts tho, not aftermarket, and have the frame checked.

any person would be seeing red in this situation too. cant blame you if you had thoughts of 'where can I hide the body' as well.

 

Can you explain the highlighted text? Did you miss a word in there, or did he say he wouldn't be okay when the cops showed up? And the part after that too.

 

Glad you're OK. I know how you feel. My new 86 4Runner was 6 months old when I got rear ended. My 2015 is only 2 weeks old and I don't know if I would be that cool. +1 for that.

 

I wish it worked that way, I had a buddy I went to HS with who planted a shotgun shell in a guy's taillight after being followed to his home and a shouting match ensued. 6 years later he's outta prison and all neo-nazied out.

 

You could say he Usedthe2nd

 

what a jerk, I always leave the hitch on just in case...

 

Rape with a deadly weapon. That's a twofer.

He wasn't neo-nazi before he went in, not surprising though. If you would have taken a bet on whose going to prison after graduation, 99.999% would have said he was. Good guy but a little out there...

 

Can you take him to small claim court?

 

Oz, you crack me up. Every body knows it wouldn't have been the Castle Doctrine. It would have been Stand Your Ground.
Just kidding, really neither one. Very serious subject though. OP did well.

 

Weird OP.

It's a truck. A mid-priced one at that. And now you get a new Relentless bumper. But, yeah, good thing you didn't blast him....

 

Gents, let me clear up a few things. My original post was as much a rant as it was a story. I had just gotten home last night and I was still in shock. I kind of still am today. Many of you have said 'meh, its just a truck'...Maybe I just value the things Ive worked for more than other people. This truck was a milestone for me. My first new purchase....Im not a rich guy, so to have my brand new toy get all smashed up by someone elses stupidity just infuriates me. Its not 'just a truck' to me. It represnts a lot of hard work and progress in my life.

Secondly, this whole gun thing. My only point was that this guy got all sketchy on me when I asked him for personal information. I had a feeling that if I kept asking him for information, he was going to get agitated and confrontational. I chose to just walk away rather than allow the situation to grow. Many gun owners think they can get into a fight because they always have that 'trump card' on their hip. Many liberals think gun owners are just hot headed rednecks who are just looking for reasons to shoot people. I dispelled both myths. Again, my only point was....in the heat of the moment, with my temper on full blown meltdown, with me obviously not at any fault at all....I walked away and didnt let it get out of control. While on this subject, a few of you guys mentioned domicile laws and shooting his vehicle if he drove away. I cant tell if you are kidding or not (My senses are a little askew today). Never, at any point of this accident was there reason or justification to draw my weapon. You cant shoot someone for hitting your car, or driving away for that matter. My worry was he was going to turn it into a physical confrontation, I chose to walk away and not risk that.

So, back to my truck. I want a new aftermarket steel bumper, but I dont want to pay more than a few hundred dollars out of pocket. (Insurance is only going to cover OEM) What brands should I be looking for? All ive come across within my budget is this 'Iron Cross" brand for about 400 bucks and I dont like the looks of it. I want to stay on a budget here, but invest a little in a better bumper. Suggestions?

 

First: Good for you man for keeping this thing on track. There's always guys with "You shoulda..." or "I woulda...". At the end of the day, your ability to stay calm made sure everybody stayed safe and went home. I know what it means to work hard for something and have someone taint it for you by no fault of your own. Sure the truck isn't "ruined", but it's yours and it sucks to have some idiot take that from you.

Second: Look into some of the great vendors we have on here: Pelfreybilt, Relentless, SOS Concepts, etc... Depending on where you live, you might be able to pick up from these companies or have it shipped. A full OEM replacement bumper usually goes for upwards of $1k (ridiculous if you ask me) once paint, labor and the little parts are counted. You can get a really good steel upgrade for less than that and not have to pay anything out of pocket. Insurance companies usually do not repair a bumper and usually go full replacement for safety concerns that the original bumper is now compromised.

 

The cost for replacing an OEM should be more than enough for an aftermarket steel bumper - but not sure how insurance would want to deal with that. Your problem will probably be lead times for fab, unless one of the vendors has one already in stock.

 

When you take the truck to the body shop to get the estimate, tell them you want them to write it up with genuine Toyota parts and not aftermarket parts. You may have to go back & forth with the insurance company but they should (at least in CT) have to use genuine parts. Then you'll have more than enough to cover the aftermarket bumper. Also, push for deminished value reimburesment. Actually, being a new truck - I'd consider taking it back to the dealer for an estimate too. You should be guaranteed genuine Toyota parts from them.

 

* * Nice try, Pal

Scene Effect

@robu Maybe you can help the OP out with how your insurance worked when you hit the deer and subsequently upgraded your front bumper?

Good on you Op, @evilcorvette hope you end up with a bumper that makes up some of that "MF'r hurt my baby" feeling. Good Luck Man.

And while I'm here, THANK YOU for your service.