CONCLUSION!!! - UPDATED: Rear Ended - Help!

Long story short a Dart of mine was very airborne and landed directly on the front bumper meeting the ground and the ground didn't move at all. 70-0 mph instantly. Sure my brain bounced off of my skull but it didn't kill me, not even close. I know it wasn't close to killing me because my brain has bounced off of my skull well over 10 times and that one wasn't even close to the worst one.

I guess if we're not discussing the real world (maybe you're referring to people that have a predisposition to dieing from their brain bouncing off of their skull or a NASCAR car traveling at 150 mph that hits a wall) sure it's possible.

Ok, I'm outta here, this is going south now.

 

Was the other driver in the country illegally or just not a citizen? Provide the other driver's information to your insurance co. They may choose to sue the other driver to recover damages.

If the insurance co. writes it off, you can buy it back for cheap at salvage value and repair the damage. The crazy rock crawler builds you see on this site (with flat bed, 1-ton axles, 40" tires, etc.) would coincidentally cut away all the damaged areas and have reinforcements welded in anyway. The repaired truck will have a salvage title. Of course, this is only feasible if you have the garage space, time, or $$$$$ to throw at an off-road fabrication shop.

 

Book time for the frame rust campaign was 40 hours, so figure $4000 labor if you're paying out of pocket. The actual bad news is nowadays it takes 6 months after ordering to receive a new frame.

 

Oh I know, we do a few at work. Poor wording in my thing, meant close to or above 10k total. There’s other stuff you may need to replace granted rust on this one should be minimal

 

Wow, thank you so much. It's great to hear advice like this; I never knew there was such a thing as a Loss of Value claim. Thank you

 

Sorry for the tough luck on this. That's a really nice looking truck, hopefully you can hang onto it one way or another!

 

Not sure his immigration status. Cop told me as much as he could. Accident happened in a sanctuary city. Good thought to see if the insurance company wants to sue. Cop basically told me small claims court would be a waste of time.

Sadly I don't have that much money to throw at it, I'm a full time PhD student The thing is, I was planning on keeping this truck for a long time. So I don't necessarily mind buying it back, fixing it, and just driving it forever without worrying about resale value.

6 months?!? Holy crap.

I read online that I'm looking at 8-15k for a frame replacement. Truck is in great shape, was basically parked in a garage the first 4 years of it's life and driven minimally. Fluid filmed the frame. I'm hoping that the damages don't reach more than 70% of it's value because I know that is a trigger to total it. But based on local postings truck is probably worth 25k, so repairs just need to be below 17.5k.

 

you may get them to put a frame under it. the body damage seems minimal..

 

If the insurance co. totals the truck and you decide to buy it back at salvage value, there's no need to replace the frame. Just find a decent off-road shop, cut out the damaged areas and weld in reinforcements. Don't go to a collision shop as they're too afraid to touch the frame. Meanwhile the off-road shops weld on sliders and do body mount relocations on a routine basis, so this will be well in their capacity.

 

if it turns out you get the frame replaced take it acton toyota. they have done many of them there and are a great dealership to work with...good luck

 

Hello all ... an update!

Took the truck to multiple body shops (6). Quotes ranged from 2500 to 3500. Insurance gave me 2500.

Body shop took it apart and is claiming the bed is "cracked" or has "bumps" due to frame damage. Has anyone heard of this? This is causing the estimate to skyrocket to $21,000 (includes frame replacement). That totals the truck . I am absolutely trying to save this truck.

Has anyone heard of the frame coming up so high that it messes up the bed at the location shown? I personally don't see any bumps.

P.S. I also have a white dog with long hair, so some of that is definitely dog fur.

 

Yes. I got rear ended in June and my frame had similar damage but until the bed is taken off, it’s hard to know if the frame deformation is just at the hitch area or additional closer towards the cab. On mine, just the downward bend of the frame and furthest rear bed bolts caused the visual bed bend and gap change where it meets the cab. Once the bed was removed it fiberglass popped back straight.

here’s mine:

 

Were they able to straighten your frame?

 

yes...you can still see a small curve in the lower horizontal just in front of the hitch but it’s straight.

I just removed and self installed a rear steel pelfreybuilt bumper and all the holes were perfectly aligned.

 

@truckdoggirl How did this turn out?

 

If you need a bed, I have one for sale.

 

So, still fighting with the insurance company. Yes, it's been THREE MONTHS. At this point they've broken the law in about ten different places. And now, they have ceased all communication with me. So very frustrated. I've called members of the Board of Directors, the CEO, the Compliance Department, President of my insurance agency, and filed complaints with the Department of Insurance, Attorney General, and Feds. Can't get anyone to listen to me.

Truck is currently in three pieces at my body shop. I'm in a bit of a pickle because insurance company won't pay to fix it, despite me negotiating my body shop down $4500 (that's right -- I did the insurance co's job for them!). And they aren't giving me enough of a total loss payout to buy a Tacoma of like kind and quality. Right now, they're devaluing my truck about $5k, and won't negotiate further.

Plan Y and Plan Z are to get my body shop down an additional $800 which will make the truck "fixable" by the insurance company's devalued standards or to bring it to another shop that offered to replace the frame in-house (current body shop wants to sublet to a Toyota dealer).

The more time I had to think about this, the more I really don't want this truck to end up with a salvage title. It seems ridiculous for this kind of damage. Not to mention all the associated work that goes with getting a salvage title, and with the pandemic I'm not sure how that'd even work. I guess that'll probably be my very last resort. I plan on keeping it forever, so it wouldn't impact me so much. I'm more just frustrated with the insurance company devaluing it, refusing to work with my body shop, breaking the law repeatedly, and engaging in steering.

They are claiming that straightening the frame is not an option because it is a "diamond frame," meaning that it is not only bent but twisted. So now the frame can only be replaced, which honestly is what I preferred anyway.

What year is it? Condition? Long Bed? The portion I would need would be just the inside bit. This part: https://parts.toyota.com/p/Toyota__/Truck-Bed-Rear-Floor--Body/63221934/6510004480.html

I've learned so much about the insurance world and MA state regulations if anyone ever needs help. Also looking for recommendations on a good insurance company that won't screw you over.

Once I get this truck back I am absolutely not waiting any longer to accessorize it. Previously, I'd put off all my dreams for it, saying "I'll do it next year." Second I get that truck back it's getting roof racks and a cargo basket.

 

The bed is fiberglass composite. The crack lines show white fiber. Happened to me earlier. Mine was a higher-speed collision (police estimated 50 mph), so the bed damage was more noticeable. I got a new 3rd gen after the ordeal.



Why are you against totaling the truck? Frame replacement means the truck is basically disassembled and put together again by Mechanic Bob. All it takes is one pinched wire or flaky connector pin (out of the ~200 that are disconnected) for you to have electrical gremlins forever. This along with cracked vacuum hoses or contaminated fuel/coolant/refrigerant lines. Example: BlueT's 4WD didn't work correctly after frame swap: https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads...thanks-toyota-for-frame-swap-problems.415761/

 

It's from a 2012 Tacoma long bed. It's scratched up a little from the previous owner. It's also a little dirty. No cracks or damage.
there are a couple holes in the rear sill that I drilled when I had my bed stiffeners installed. You could probably reuse your old sill.
https://www.tacomaworld.com/threads/complete-almost-bed-w-tailgate.657163/#post-23083789

Looking for $150.

 

Like I said, they're not giving me enough $$$ as a payout to buy a similar truck. And if I bought it back as salvage I can't straighten the frame (they claim) because three MA certified auto damage appraisers have recommended the frame be replaced. So if I straightened the frame under a salvage title and tried to put it back on the road, MA DMV would be like "heck nah" and I'd have to replace the frame anyway.

Basically it is at the point where I either take them to court to get my full payout or I try to fix the truck. NADA book value on my truck is $28,825, and despite showing them this and even guiding them through all my options, they "can't explain" (direct quote from insurance company) why they keep coming up with a "NADA" of $26,525. SMH. So they won't go any higher, not that they're even offering me close to $26k.

I don't have the kind of capital to wage a court case, and all the courts are currently closed here anyway. Taking them to court isn't a sure thing anyway -- the judge could side with them!

The real kicker is that they are valuing my less-than-2 yo Leer 180 cap that is fully accessorized at less than $500, despite me providing the original invoice of $2500 and providing examples for sale online of well over $1k. According to my policy, they are responsible for up to $1500 of accessories on the vehicle. I also have new 2018 Gen 3 TRD Off Road wheels on it, and they refuse to add to the value for them although they're also probably worth over $1k.

Incredibly frustrated with this situation, as you might be able to tell.

Anyway, I read through BlueT's post and I understand the concerns. But I have also heard of many frame replacements going smoothly. @saf023 had his done and is one of the success stories. I'd be more than happy to dog Toyota corporate if I have any issues with the replacement.