The story behind my bent frame and broken coilovers

In that case..looks like I will just have to stay home..
TW mod positions must pay well!

 

It should with all the bullshit they see and are tasked to deal with.

 

damn bro i was just texting you about electrical stuff and just came across this thread. next mod is definitely boxing the frame

 

Bro, for what you paid to get her back and reinforced...I would say this was an accidental upgrade. I wonder if looking into some rear hydros might not be a bad investment for the long haul, but damn man I expected the bill to easily be closer to 2500 than what you got it fixed for. NICE!

 

glad to see you got it fixed back up man!

 

Well i should probably update this thread. Not sure what i already covered so ill just throw it all out there.

Frame was straightened and partially boxed.

Bumpers lifted back to straight and also reinforced the mounts including hitch.

Axle has been straightened. Although the frame shop said they guaged it at 0° camber on both sides, a digital alignmet reveals -0.5° driver side and -0.2° passenger side. I dont know which one is more accurate as the alignment tech was an idiot. Although i am no longer seeing abnormal tire wear in the rear.

Icon upper control arm unibals were found to be damaged and one was even partially pulled out. Those have been replaced by myself for about $150 using Icon unibals.

Driver side outter tie rod was shot and had excessive play. Driver side inner tie rod was actually loose and barely hanging on. Both side inner and outters were replaced today with Moog parts under warranty. Unknown if this was caused by or related to accident. Cost was free since i did the work myself.

I have more thoroughly inspectes the truck for frame damage. Motor mounts, trans mounts, lca arm attachment points, coil buckets, etc all appear to be great. I do have excessive play and wear in front body mounts and will be replacing those in the coming weeks. Unknown if caused by normal aging or the accident.

I am still chasing a clunk/knock. I thought it was my tie rods but it still exists after the replacement of tie rods. It happens only at very low speeds, when turning the wheel or going over a bump. It is felt in the steering wheel. I am hoping its the body mounts but im afraid its the rack and pinion or wheel bearings. More diagnosis coming.

Today my fuel level sensor went out. Guage reads accurate until about 1/16 tank is left then the guage stops going down and wont trigger the fuel light. Searching determined this is common for older trucks. Cost is about $80-100 in parts and a few hours dropping the tank to replace. Not bad but also not critical to repair at this time. Unknow. If related to uncident or just coincidence that all this shit is breaking shortly after the accident.

Im chasing problems left and right. Tires were cupping really bad which seems to have been resolved after uniball replacement. Hoping to find and fix this clunk then it should be good. Good news is it looks straight, drives straight, and runs great.

 

Didnt consider this one since it was holding alignment, but now that you mention it, i wouldnt be surprised if they werent. Im pretty sure it was the previous alignment job that caused my inner tie rod to loosen. That guy was a disaster. But im scheduling time with my trusted alignment guy this week now that the tie rods have been replaced. My steering wheel is way off so alignment is critical. So that'll be addressed this week. I plan on doing alignemt and front body mounts and go from there. Narrow stuff down from cheapest to most expensive lol

 

Looks like you may have called it. Left my house this morning, slowly went over a speed bump and CLUNK!!

Suddenly I notice a huge change in my alignment and when braking my truck pulls hard right.

Pulled over to investigate and who woulda thought, dipshit left the LCA loose. Cam tab moved at least 1/4" and the nut was holding on by 3 threads. I could almost twist by hand. Luckly i had tools with nw and tightened it up.

Have alignment scheduled for Thursday now

 

Didn't have a problem with the ABS and brake light intermittently coming on? What was the outcome of that?

 

This thread/story is a good example of why buying used is always a shot in the dark. That being said, I'll continue to buy used... although I'll probably get 10 more good years out of my 2010

 

It just happened right now. I tightened it down as much as i could and ill have the whole front end torqued up this week. No lights oddly enough

 

Well the clunk wasn't the alignment. Had my alignment done and lca bolts torqued to 155 ft lbs. Also torqued the rack and pinion to the frame it was tight. Inner and outer tie rods are all 1 week old and no change after replacement. Seems to be coming from driver side or towards the center. It does not make any clunk above 10mph no matter how hard I drive it or what bumps I hit its solid when I'm driving. When I am going 0-10 mph it'll clunk when changing directions forward or reverse, when going over speed bumps or any imperfections in the road, or when at compete stop and I turn the wheel either direction.

When stopped and I slowly and gently turn the wheel, the steering wheel will "skip" like 1/2" during the clunk like it's binding up. It's only does it once when you first start turning the wheel then won't do it again. It's worse turning right but still does it turning left. Doesn't matter what position the steering wheel is in either.

Every indication points to an issue with the steering component but when I replaced tie rods the rack feels solid with no play, leaks or signs of damage. Unless it's an internal failure of a bushing. I could also suspect lower uniball, as my upper uniball are also brand new just replaced and it didn't change. Also wheel bearing or body mounts. But all of these things would or should show symptoms during driving also. That's my key is finding what has enough force during driving that would supress the issue completly. I don't know how the internal of a steering rack work... could there be a change when the car isn't moving?

 

there could be the slightest possibility that there is damage to the worm gear inside the rack and pinion.

 

Thanks for this. Need to get down there with a second person to help pinpoint the source I think

 

I think I have narrowed it down to lower uniball which would make sense if the uppers over extended I'm sure the lowers did as well. Will order some replacement FK uniballs and replace soon

 

You sure?

 

fak, that looks bad