Hit and Run Damage Assessment

Calling all arm-chair assessors and mechanics.

I got a call mid-day telling me that my truck had been hit and run-ed. No camera footage of who did it (i've got some dark blue hyundai bumper pieces and a nifty baseball cap), and I only carry liability insurance on my truck. in wisconsin, we have to have uninsured motorist insurance as well, but that seems to only cover bodily harm from the other motorist (if you can find them), not vehicle damage. given that the the person messed up their car and dashed, the assumptions are almost certainly that they aren't insured and don't have the money to pay for any damage anyway, and there's a good chance that the vehicle itself was stolen. ...all this adds up to anything that happens is out of pocket expense for me. i am also probably on my own for investigating any further than "we checked, there's no video".

so, taco is in the hospital. pictures attached. from what i could see, my LCA is busted. the bolts from the BLJ seem to have torn away from the end. there's quarter panel/fender damage, grille damage, bumper damage etc. I'm a little worried that the back end got popped up onto that curb. it didn't roll up there...it slid up sideways.

no fluids on the ground, the frame seems to be ok (but missing a little rust now).

I already have an aftermarket bumper waiting to go on. I was planning on doing retrofits sooner rather than later. My plan is to get the body shop it's at now to get it to be drivable (it's not with the LCA issue...and maybe the steering rack if that got plowed too). They are ok with me providing my own parts (cool). anything else will be done in by buddies garage with my own wrenches, sweat, and beer.

has anyone experienced similar damage, and if so...can you tell me about the rebuilding experience? any other advice?

 

This makes me so mad. My buddy got his car stolen last week. The thief drove it until the gas was empty, left a bunch of stuff in the car including his apartment parking pass. The cop told him to throw it away because they won't find the guy.

Hope it doesn't cost you too much. Good luck!

 

So sorry to hear and see about this. People have no moral compass anymore. Truck doesn't look too bad, and hopefully it won't be too hard of a fix.
Hope you get it back on the road soon.

 

Sorry about that man, that just sucks. I don't have anything to offer but I hope its fixable to get that nice rig back on the road. Looks expensive, any frame damage you can see? He hit you pretty fucking hard to jolt you onto the curb. Any skid marks?

We 1st Gen Ext Cabs need to stick together.

I'd be cruising around looking for a Blue POS Hyundai. And looks to be some buildings in the background that might have video? Any video from around the area would be good to see if you can manage a timeframe regardless of seeing the actual hit. You know its color and make (I guess), a basic timeframe and may get something before and/or after the accident a few blocks away. Worth an ask or three?

Good Luck man and keep us posted.

 

WTF. Sucks. Hope your taco gets fixed and back on the road.

 

The only way to really know if the back is okay would be to drive it once the front is fixed. If it doesn't drive straight anymore the suspension bolts in the back or leafs are probably bent.

 

Yeah, it looks like he/she was dragging a tire by the time the bounced out of there. Down the way there's a one way street that leads to inner city oblivion. If they were dumb and went another block they drove past a hospital with cameras. I've got a call in there.

I'll pursue my leads, but I believe I'll end up getting stuck with all the bills.

If I can, I'm keeping the truck from the grave yard.

You'll find me in the first gen buy/sell/trade section scooping up front end bits

 

best of luck catching the scumbag who did this. Glad you yourself were not injured, thats the only bright side. Can't help on assessment, just here to offer my condolences.