Rear ended; frame bent

It blew white stuff because it got cold out...

We used to do minor frame repair with a come-a-long, gripper and hard mounts in the shop floor, with a fuel-gas torch to keep the cold working to a minimum.

They aren't going to total the truck, nor are they going to replace your frame. This is a FENDER BENDER.

Howard

 

Thanks Howard. You and I see this differently, and I respect the input from you. I'm sure you wouldn't buy a home with foundation issues no matter how minor. Or a sick puppy for your children, no matter what the previous owners said. if the repair shop can guarantee that i wont need a frame disclosure on this truck, well then we may have a resolution, but we know that wont happen. and how do you know it was just a fender bender? That's where the problem lies with all of this, everyone sees it through their own eyes and mind. In my eyes the truck has zero value to ME, I don't care what a professional body shop says, I'm talking about the intangible issue with it. The truck now has an "incurable disease" that will follow it forever. The truck was appraised at my local Toyota dealer at around $28,000 pre bent frame. Now with that stigma, you think it's worth anywhere near that regardless of the repairs? I'll never make up the difference. You being a member on here should know that I could have probably ended up making money on this truck down the road had this not happened. It's not about getting everything paid for through the other guys insurance, they can't put a value on the loss that I took. Just my personal opinion.

 

These trucks are NOT investment grade, they make too many of the them, they are designed to be driven and used with normal wear and tear. The problem is that you have an emotional investment in your truck, the insurance company and the dealership do not. My wife had a minor front end issue with her jeep, tore up the bumper, tweaked a front mount. So we ordered a plate bumper on line and got the mount straight with a hammer.

Good luck fighting with the insurance company on this...we read too much into carfax, the idea is that it covers MAJOR damage that should not be repaired, not these minor body shop issues. There was a big article in yesterday NY Times about reselling all the damaged cars from Sandy and how it is easy to wash the titles in certain states.

Howard

 

While I agree that people put too much weight into CarFax, they do list more than just "major" repairs that should not be fixed. They list ANY repair that is made at a shop that reports to CarFax. Not all shops do this. So if the repair WERE made at a shop that was not tied in to CarFax, nobody but the owner and insurance company would know what was done. My repair shop is a CarFax member, and everything that is done here in my shop, from a head gasket down to an oil change is able to be researched on CarFax. I do agree though that a small frame repair such as you are describing should be easily done at a good shop with no problems with the structural integrity of the frame. Face it, the shop is not going to risk the liability if they felt the frame would be unsafe after their repairs were performed. I have owned and bought several vehicles that have had frame damage before, and never once did I worry. I actually owned a Pathfinder that had some reasonable frame damage repaired just before I bought it. A few years later I was rear ended in Dallas when I was at a stop and she hit be at about 30 MPH. Ruined by rear bumper and tow hitch, but no damage was done to the frame that time.

 

No Howard the problem is NOT that I have an emotional investment in the truck. And no vehicle is "investment grade". The problem is that people these days get to f$@k other people's sh!t up and not be held accountable. I didn't ask the mother$#%€+! to rear end my perfectly good vehicle and forever label it with a bent frame. Like I said, I respect your side of it, but we obviously don't agree. You don't mind taking come alongs, sledge hammers and torches to your car. I wouldn't either, HAD IT BEEN MY FAULT. Man is it that hard to understand? And maybe I will have to get it fixed, and the other guy will just get dropped from his insurance, just get some other insurance, go buy another POS car and go on with his life and ill have a repaired truck due to his stupidity. And you know something? In this day and time, and this bassackward society, I won't be a bit surprised, not a bit. People are not held liable for their actions anymore, and that's a snowball affect. Thanks again for everyone's support and comments, truly appreciated. Gonna let this lie for a bit, too much frustration.

 

Best of luck in your fight to get a new truck...let us know how it goes.

Minor mishaps is the cost of doing business, when I used to live in a large metro area, my cars would get beat up on a constant basis, just from parking in a lot. The worst are grocery stores with the carts and distracted drivers. That is why we have insurance.

If you want to your vehicle to stay "factory perfect" park it in the garage and lock the door.

 

Do not accept full payment on repairs unless it includes <Diminished Value
reimbursement>.

 

Once again....Howard, with all do respect, this is not a parking lot grocery cart door ding. THIS IS A BENT FRAME THAT I DIDN'T CAUSE. Regardless of repairs, it now has a "disease". I didn't want it, nor did I expect it to stay "factory perfect", but whatever got it to "factory IMperfection", I wanted done by my own hand, not some idiot flying down a wet residential street not paying attention.

 

And yes cc350, I have done my homework on " diminished value" I definitely will require that if its repaired. Thanks for that input, that's being heads up

 

I think everyone understands your frustrations op, and we would all feel upset to a degree if same situation were to happen, but these trucks would be uninsurable if they totaled out in the event of low speed rear enders. Also, frame behind rear wheels should be made to bend so the rest of impact does not travel through entire vehicle, so it's reasonable to expect that the frame can be repaired.
I had a ford 1 ton, rear ended at 40 miles per hour, guy had no insurance. Frame bent, rear bumper, hitch, bed destroyed, bed slammed into cab. I watched body shop repair frame, laser measure to stock tolerances, used bed, body work cab corners, looked good as new when repainted. Was the value of the truck less than before? I'd say he'll yes, but repaired is better than totaled in my opinion.
Is your truck worth less than before accident? Of course, even if frame wasn't bent, your truck has still been in an accident, and that shows up on car fax also. Any vehicle that's been in an accident is worth less than one that hasn't. I just can't imagine having to pay insurance on a vehicle that would be totaled after rear ender.

 

This is a lost cause on here, everyone is going to see it differently and that's just human nature. Thanks to all who commented, all advice was taken into consideration. I'll do what I can to plead my case and go from there. That's all I can do at this point.

 

I agree with you op... and I truly wish the best of luck to you on this...
It sucks and is not fair :/
Reminds me of an incident in high school.
I had some kids (back when I was in high school) get mad because we beet their school in a CIF basketball game. with 30sec left in the game, knowing they wouldn't win, these hoodlems went out and decided to take out their frustration on some of the cars in our parking lot. Resulted in them kicking in 6 different tail lights (one of which was mine), kicking in the tailgate of a Sequoia, and then jumping and caving in the roof of a corola.
They were eventually arrested, but never had enough money to pay back for damages. Never saw a dime, but I think, or at least hope, the Sequoia and Corola got some money..
Although it wasn't my car that wasn't damaged seriously, I knew the owner of the corola and they had the same worries as you.

 

Thanks logcabin. I'll just take it day by day. I think next time ill find a cheap 1st Gen beater so if it gets hit, no biggie

 

Ya if I my truck gets totalled, I'll probably get a first gen, have mucho extra money to do all the mods I want to do.
Day by day.

 

Sorry - I feel your pain. I got "drilled" last March, by (2) F250 Super Duties (one hit the other and they both rear ended me while I was stopped behind a school bus). Exactly the same damage as you described. The bodyshop had my truck for 12 weeks - complete frame replacement, bumper, hitch, and they transferred all my mods. The other insurance company covered everything, including the rental truck for me. Final bill: just under $21,000 for the body work + $1750.00 for the rental.
I only had a couple minor issues/adjustments after the completed work, but considering the complexity of the repair, they really did a great job.
I don't know if I had the option for "totalling" my truck, but it had less than 18,000 miles on it and I really didn't want to do all my modifications again to a new truck.
Oh, the job probably wouldn't have taken so long, but getting Toyota to release a new frame was difficult, since they are taking care of their warranty work for frame replacements as a priority.
Hope you're alright otherwise... good luck.

 

Just saw this thread. I'm sorry that it happened to someone else, and I completely feel for you. A little over a week ago, on my 50th birthday, I was sitting in a long line of traffic on a city surface street. I was the last car in line. I happened to look up and, in my mirror, saw a dark blur coming up fast. I tensed up, with my foot on the brake, and thought, 'That car isn't going to stop.' The woman hit me at least 35 mph, and I was taken to the hospital on a back board and a neck brace by ambulance. (I have a wedge fracture in my L3 lumbar vertebrea, but fortunately my neck is OK.) I have a 2002 Toyota 2x4 SR-5 X-Cab with 136,000 miles on it. I bought it brand new in '02. It too was my baby. My Dachshunds were in the truck, fortunately restrained. Two were in a crate, seat belted into the extra cab behind the passenger seat, and one was in a dog bed behind the driver seat with a harness and a teather fastened to the seatbelt. They were traumatized but otherwise seem to be unhurt.

The woman's '99 Acura hit my receiver trailer hitch and it went clear through her radiator and destroyed the front of her car. The force of the impact drove the hitch downward and pulled the bumper down at a 45 degree angle. I saw, looking between the bumper and the tailgate, that the frame is now bent in three places; on each side where the receiver hitch body bolts to the frame, and also it was accordioned on the right (passenger) side a bit. The receiver hitch unit looks like the strongman from the circus bent it around a tree. I haven't seen the insurance adjuster yet, but I'm wondering if they are going to total it, because of the mileage and that it's 13 years old. (The tailgate won't open now. There is no visable damage to the tailgate but the latch mechanism is stuck, because of the impact.)

I noticed that the bed was slammed against the back of the cab and left dents in each side. I noticed that because of the peeling paint chips. (I'm worried about other damage to the running gear as well.) I have a custom stereo and a matching Snug Top shell, both that I will have to remove if the damage is unfixable.

I looked up bluebook on my truck and it's only about $5,700. I'm just sick about this. This bimbo came up to me, after the accident, and said, "I'm sorry. I only looked down for a second.' What an idiot. I had to have her call my wife to come and get the dogs before the police sent them to animal control, because I didn't even have my phone with me! I got the police report. She was ruled at fault. I've been off work now for a week, without pay, and have been on pain killers and have to wear a back brace. According to the police report she wasn't even sited. I think she was on her phone. This nightmare seems to be just beginning...

 

I tried to read thru all of the thread......

A bent frame might not be a total loss - just depends on the extent. If there was enough force to cause the frame to 'tweak' out of square (so to speak) - then it could be totalled. If its just bent on the end....and doesn't interfere with structural integrity... then you might not have to do anything with it.

Something to think about....
Toyota has been replacing frames on these trucks for a while now. Does anyone know how much a frame replacement actually costs (labor & parts)?? For the hell of it.....I'd contact Toyota and get an estimate on a complete frame repair just to give yourself an idea of what it would cost. Keep this in your back pocket for later.

You could also take it to a frame shop and have them 'measure' and 'check' the frame for square and integrity. They'll give you a good idea of what's wrong with it (if anything). They can also recommend what to do.... Keep this in your back pocket.

Was the accident your fault or someone elses? Has an adjuster looked at it yet? The adjuster might not even notice the frame......depending on the extent of the damage he/she can see. If this WAS NOT your fault, you should insist on getting an adjuster from BOTH insurance companies. Your insurance company should be working with you to fight with the other insurance company to get you the best results.

Good Luck!!

 

This is NOT good, a broken back, a totaled truck. Time for you to hire a lawyer. Let's just hope the lady has good insurance. You have my sympathy.

Howard

 

It was NOT my fault. I was the last car in line at a stop light and this woman hit me from behind. I saw it coming at the last second. There was nowhere I could go, with traffic ahead and a median on my left. I didn't have time to get into the right lane. The adjuster hasn't seen it yet. Both the lady who hit me and myself have Geico, and they seemed to be more concerned about protecting the lady who hit me. When I called with the police report (that clearly indicated that it was HER fault because of excessive speed) Geico told me that 'she has already filed a claim and we can't tell you anything about her policy.' Hello, I'm the Victim. I just want to get this mess taken care of and start MY claim. I had to even argue with my primary doctor to see me because they said it was '3rd-party billing' and they wanted me to pay cash. After a couple of days they finally agreed to see me and bill my health insurance, because I needed to inform my work that I was trying to see my doctor and not just lolly gagging at home. They refused to see me until I had the police report because they said I had to 'prove' that it wasn't my fault. My primary doctor said to not be surprised when my health insurance (HMO) refused to pay for the doctor visit. I haven't even got the bills from the ambulance/emergency room trip yet.

My current range of motion will not allow me to bend down far enough to visually check the complete frame, but from what I can see (between the bent bumper and the tailgate) the frame is bent in three places; where the body of the receiver hitch is connected on each side as well as an accordioned section on the passenger side. The receiver hitch was forced against the spare tire and is bent. The tailgate will not open because of damage to the latch mechanism.

Even if they say they can fix the damage I'm not sure I can trust this truck again, and it will always carry an accident in its history.

I really liked my tuck because it is one of the last of the small Tacomas. I'm considering getting an attorney.

 

I had a mustang when I was younger and hit a light plot dead center at about 10 mph. Bent the frame, wasn't enough to total, body shop did a great job fixing and next owner couldn't care less. If it's not that bad it's not that bad, it won't be totaled. There will be no sign of it as rebuilt or salvaged on the title.