Starting the build! over $5,500 going into the stereo! Follow me..

All that $$$ and time in your stereo and your driving on bald tires! and sporting a kragen battery?? Oh the perials of youth.....
Still, glad your o.k. Darwin can be a bitch sometimes

 

Damn that sucks... Sorry to hear about that!

 

I have to agree about the bald tires, that is preventable. Tires are one of the most important aspects of a safe vehicle.

 

Bald tires didn't make a difference on that gravel.
That was just too fast for that curve on the low-traction surface.

 

Yeah so on that battery, I went to a battery shop up here about a year ago when my stock one went bad and they didn't have anything that outperformed it surprisingly. It has better stats than the yellow top, red top, all the optimas, more CCA's and alot more reserve time. Unless I go with a battery made specifically for car audio, the stock battery (in this truck) was actually higher performing than any other I found at Battery Outfitter.

For the tires, yes I know. I was stupid for not having good tires on my truck but in my defence when I got my truck back together and stereo done i was going to get a leveling kit, wheels and tires for it to finish it off and get a new look. So i didnt want to invest in new tires then turn around and buy new ones again. hey also, idk if anyone can back me up on this or not but since ive owned it i noticed the tacomas like to "push" the front tires out instead of turn like most vehicles. It always been a complaint I've had with the truck in mud, gravel, wet roads especially. Idk but after what happened I now really see all those times I felt it do that kind of add up and I'm not sure what makes the truck do that but even with brand new tires it just doesn't like to stick that front end to the ground like it should. Anyone have input on this? Mines 2wd by the way

 

So whats it like being in the car when the air bag goes off? Pretty scary?

 

First of all, this was an awesome install, and you are way too modest my friend, your work is top notch and an inspiration to me not only for stereo install, but level of detail for any work on a truck.

Second, I am glad that you are OK after the wreck, it is heart breaking to think that you might loose all of the had work that you put into it. I hope that you are able to get it back up and running and continue your install.

 

Hey thanks Wishbone Runner that sure meant a lot. I'm really not that good, just really picky and don't give up till I'm happy with the final result. And the ideas are just things I think would be cool. I'm not as qualified as these big build guys but I try!
Anyway everyone, the insurance adjuster from GEICO came and looked at the truck last night. Seemed to think it was all fixable with a good shop but then saw my airbag went off and then said nope its totalled. I guess with that insurance when an airbag deploys they total it. So looks like im not going to be able to finish this one. I want another Tacoma though.
The airbag question- it happened so fast and slow at the same time I didn't realize it went off till right after it hit me that I crashed. The impact of the tree was so loud that I don't think I heard it go off. it stinks though lol and filled the cab with like a white chalky haze right after. The only injury i got actually were scratches on my forearms and sprained wrists from the airbag ripping my hands off the steering wheel

 

Damn, sorry to hear. Did the adjuster look at your relocation of the sensor that you moved? Are you able to take any of your stuff out, or will they just take the whole thing as is?

 

She was really cool about everything. She told me to take everything I want out and put it back as stock as possible. I'm looking now for a factory center console, cup holder, trim around the shifter, and bed storage pocket so I can have that go with the truck. I'm supposed to call her when its all done. And I'll probably move that airbag sensor back to the stock location. At least I know the answer to my question now about moving it lol it did it's job just fine! So I'm moving the next one too lol

 

If anyone knows where I can find or has those parts I'm looking for please message me

 

Well, I read the 1st post in this thread and thought it was gonna be lame, since I'm not into car audio. After seeing your work, I was hooked and read through the whole thread. First off, you've got some serious skills, man! Second, I'm glad to hear you walked away from that wreck. I've seen a lot worse happen with less damage than that. Lastly, that sucks so bad about all that work you put in, man! This thread is like a movie: "okay this is gonna suck....ok, it's not bad....actually, it's pretty damn good....wow, this is awesome...damn, it's over."

 

Lol well I promise when I get another Tacoma (idk when that will be) I'll continue the project and I still have a few little cool ideas I wanted to do this time. Should go faster next time too since a lot will just be repeating work lol but thanks for the compliments and post!

 

To the OP , glad yer ok & to this question above, the only person i know that has been in vehicle when bag deployed was my gf & she said it was worse than the wreck (scarry wise) Like an explosion of gas & powder...

 

to the OP glad your ok man that looked crazy!

quick question about the bed speaker. did you use marine grade or regular car audio? been thinkin about doing something similiar but was afraid of rain ruining everything.

 

The bed speakers are marine grade. They look like coaxle speakers but actually the tweeter is suspended on the grill so the main speaker is sealed. They are waterproof. I've pruposly sprayed them washing my truck while they were playing. Worked great. Actually everything in that pocket was marine grade. Also, the speakers are sealed from behind with foam cups I put a layer of fiberglass resin over so they are protected from moisture and dust from the back also.

 

Airbag went off, moving the sensor obviously did not increase any injury.
Adjuster would simply write down "Airbag deployed properly"

 

Buy it back and fix it! That would save all the hard work and time you have in it, and you wouldn't have to strip it back to stock.

Just a thought. If they are totaling it, why do they want stock interior in it? Hmmm.

 

When they total it out, they look at the market value, then they look at scrap value, then they factor in mileage and the condition of the vehicle. Anything beyond normal wear and tear (modifications) comes off of market value.
If modified parts are removed, likewise... the scrap value of the missing parts is subtracted from the payout.

Sounds like Dustin has got a good insurance company. Farmers would have just written it up as having modified interior parts and dinged him on the condition, deducting the value from scrap value. They're giving him a chance to keep the mods and replace what's missing.
Farmers dinged me for a carpet stain that was caused when a drink was spilled in the accident that totaled the vehicle.

The cost to the insurance company is the difference in the payout and scrap value. They don't just run totaled vehicles into the crusher... they brand them with a salvage title and they go to auction.
From there, they get purchased and parted out on eBay, or some less than honest shops will slap them back together, install a fraudulent VIN plate, and resell them as used cars.

 

So how did you make out on this?