Back to square one - LC totaled. (1 Viewer)

[ryanCA]

No pictures as of now. Truck is still in their shop and I didn’t take any because it was dark out. Hit the deer at 1:00 am, did the claim online waiting for the tow truck, which took it directly to the shop. I’ve had questions about the shop since then. The lady there handling my case claimed to be unable to find or source a replacement bumper. I sent her direct links to the bumper in both the ARB site and to Slee, who actually installed it. She was like “are you sure you got it from them?” Um…yes, I’m sure.

Keep in mind, I probably own the only Landcruiser in Duluth, MN. It’s a truck you don’t see much of anywhere else, but even less so up here. In the almost-five years I’ve owned it, the only time I’ve seen another is down in Minneapolis.

The body shop said they sent their estimate to USAA, but USAA doesn’t have it yet. I thought it strange that it took two weeks to get the estimate done to begin with. I asked them for a copy as well, it don’t have it yet.

I left a message with USAA regarding getting a second opinion at the other body shop. We’ll see where that goes.

almost sounds like you have a terrrible shop who has no clue on what they are doing.. and trying to press the easy button on a total.

 

[rexington14]

The pedestrian will come after you regardless. The insurance company's duty is to indemnify you against the loss. They do this when you're speeding, when you're drunk, and when you're texting on your phone. It's what they do. It would be no different than putting a bike rack on the back of your truck and hitting a pedestrian. There was no wilful intent to cause harm.

That said, I do believe the insurance industry is in need of reform. You won't find a bumper clause in your policy. When I asked my agent the answer was some nonsense about actual coverage is determined with the specifics of each event. The state insurance regulators should require any exclusions be on a single one-page list written in 8th grade language.

Which, again, is why I'd rather not have any of these modifications to begin with. (Besides the fact I just don't -need- them) It just avoids any possible gray areas with insurance and/or possible litigation that may or may not ever result.

Not to mention what an aftermarket 200lb steel bumper modification like this does to the overall crash safety of the vehicle. (Which may not be a popular question to on an off-roading forum)

My vehicle was crash tested to government specifications in it's ---stock--- form.

 

[doru]

There is clear truth in the statement that an aftermarket off road bumper has less protection for the other "party" than the OEM one. The OEM bumper is designed to lessen the impact through both shape and absorption (materials and deformation). None of that is carried over to the off-road bumpers.
Basically, we are talking about two bumper implementations with different requirements.
As for first party protection things are more debatable depending on the type of collision, angles, etc. In some cases, the OEM is still better while in many the aftermarket is better.
There is also the discussion of what happens at the limit. Would the bumper sacrifice itself or the truck would have to take on some of the damage.
As for the legal outcomes, the water is very muddy, and I don't even want to speculate what is going to happen in court.
If the bumpers would be illegal, then we will not see so many vehicles with highly modified front and rear bumpers from the autos to big semi and everything in between. Some even have vices installed on the rear bumpers (working trucks).
To be honest it amazes me that there are stringent standards for automakers but then everyone can install whatever they want in front and rear of their vehicles completely negating the previously mentioned standards.

 

[Fisher23]

Without the ARB that deer (based on description) would have slid across the hood and through the windshield.
They would have totaled the car for that for sure. People get decapitated by deer.
You were way way safer with the ARB, the bar is there for that reason.

The ARB likely bent the front tip of the frame. I good fabrication shop can fix that frame, but not your average shop.
Myself I would go that route, having frame building experience.

If you go buy the same make and model then you could swap the parts. A different make/model you have research to do.

If you didn't list $xxxx dollars in add-on's to your vehicle, then insurance they are not going to pay for them.

Also if you keep the vehicle as salvage and fix it, likely it will have salvage title and re-sale will not be so good.
Be better having insurance pay for the frame fix IMHO without totaling the vehicle.

Totaling the vehicle is the simplest way.. but if you go there get some like vehicle purchase quotes before your insurance meeting.

 

[RandyDaytona]

Frame repair is nothing new or unheard off. It was much more common in the past. It is a safe repair, and Toyota has parts for that purpose. In other part of the word such a damage will be considered just another body work and just fixed no problems. Here in the US because of the insurance companies, a frame damage results in totaling the vehicle. Again, it is not about safety but about insurance practices. Hell, they total cars for far less than frame damage. Vehicles are becoming appliances here.
It looks like you are not against fixing what you have. That makes sense if:
1. you are Ok with the title - looks like you are
2. you can find a good shop that will take on the work - in some areas it's almost impossible to find one, most want easy paint jobs for thousands of dollars
3. the financial math works in your favor - if you are not happy with the insurance offer using an appraisal company is good idea.
Good luck!

Yup. I never planned on selling it, anyway

 

[Fisher23]

....... So you hit an animal and it looks bad - but it's soft-er stuff, and maybe it's repairable.
...

I can tell you've never hit a deer or moose.

 

[rexington14]

I can tell you've never hit a deer or moose.

I can tell you have an ARB bumper on your truck

 

[RandyDaytona]

@RandyDaytona did the airbags deploy? I don't see this mentioned. If not, I'm wondering if a second opinion isn't due. To bend a 200 series frame from a frontal impact and not have airbags deploy seems suspicious.

Could just be that the frame horns are bent backwards and the shop isn't willing to do any type of frame repair. I'd definitely do a deeper dive to figure out what exactly they're seeing.

Airbags did not deploy. Ironically, I have yet to find a place (that I have time to travel to) that can settle the airbag + new Scheel-Mann seats issue.

That said, I wasn’t driving that fast. Maybe 45 on a 60 mph road. I tend to drive like a grandmother, especially when it’s snowy and windy. This area is also known for deer/wolf/critter crossing. I never even had a chance to touch the brake. The road in front was clear…and suddenly it wasn’t. But I also didn’t “feel” a major impact, wasn’t thrown against my seat belt like when braking suddenly, or anything like that.

Just my opinion, but I might have had more of a chance if my factory fogs could reach out further than 15 feet, but that’s speculation on my part. Needless to say, I will be upgrading fogs in the future.

 

[OregonLC]

Glad you're okay. My guess is that it's just the frame horns that were bent back was the bumper twisted. This should be an easy fix. Pulling the frame would be like cracking your sternum to remove a mole.

Personally, I'd take this as a gracious second chance to evaluate your seat selection when it comes to occupant safety...

 

[bloc]

Just my opinion, but I might have had more of a chance if my factory fogs could reach out further than 15 feet, but that’s speculation on my part. Needless to say, I will be upgrading fogs in the future.

My LC went from stock to kings and back to stock again, as my needs changed. Other than keeping the skids and sliders the one mod I have invested in is great lighting.. 30" rigid light bar in the grille, upgraded HID bulbs, Philips HIR in the high beam spots, and Diode Dynamics fogs in the stock location. Objective is get ample, appropriately colored light where it's useful while absolutely not blinding oncoming traffic.

I'm really happy with each of those lighting choices.

 

[RandyDaytona]

I can tell you've never hit a deer or moose.

I have hit a LOT of deer. I was the one federal game warden covering all of northern MN and northern WI, always traveling, especially at night. But only a couple times with enough damage to write home about. I alway had full-size pickups with a big Westin brush guard. I find it hard to believe that that can outperform a full winch bumper like ARB makes, but every incident is different.

By the way, it takes 3-5 rounds of .40 to dispatch a deer. Ask me how I know .

 

[OregonLC]

Without the ARB that deer (based on description) would have slid across the hood and through the windshield.
They would have totaled the car for that for sure. People get decapitated by deer.
You were way way safer with the ARB, the bar is there for that reason.

You make a great point. I've always had a hoop on my front bumpers and have been considering going with the 'Sahara' style for Leonard, keeping it a bit more subdued. But I cross the Cascades 50-60x per year and it's just a matter of time before I make contact. Thinking now the hoop would be a wise choice.

 

[Fisher23]

I have hit a LOT of deer. I was the one federal game warden covering all of northern MN and northern WI, always traveling, especially at night. But only a couple times with enough damage to write home about. I alway had full-size pickups with a big Westin brush guard. I find it hard to believe that that can outperform a full winch bumper like ARB makes, but every incident is different.

By the way, it takes 3-5 rounds of .40 to dispatch a deer. Ask me how I know .

Different frames. I've clocked several deer with my 2500 diesel and they just bounced. Also was with 2" chromoly 120 wall brush guard with lateral gussets. ARB doesn't gusset their guard.
40 is a great caliper.

 

[RandyDaytona]

I was just now looking at the estimate/repair “timeline” under my claim on the USAA app. It’s only a generic one. But it states “allow 30-45 minutes for your estimate to be completed…”

Seriously? They had it for two weeks. What were they doing?

I sent a lengthy message to my estimator today. Also just requested to have it towed to a shop of my choosing.

I truly appreciate all the feedback. Really. Shooting, hiking and sarcasm are my strong points. Vehicle repairs, mods, etc. are (obviously) not, so many thanks to all of you!

 

[RandyDaytona]

You make a great point. I've always had a hoop on my front bumpers and have been considering going with the 'Sahara' style for Leonard, keeping it a bit more subdued. But I cross the Cascades 50-60x per year and it's just a matter of time before I make contact. Thinking now the hoop would be a wise choice.

I was worried about that: about the ARB with the hoops being too big. But to my relief, it wasn’t that big or obnoxious as I expected. The pics on ARB’s website made it look huge to me, but I wanted the hoops.

 

[ryanCA]

To be honest it amazes me that there are stringent standards for automakers but then everyone can install whatever they want in front and rear of their vehicles completely negating the previously mentioned standards.

true in the hill billy usa - not everywhere in the world

 

[mobi-arc]

My understanding is if the repair exceeds 50% of the value of the vehicle, it gets totaled. Unsure if that's accurate, but that's what I've been told.

 

[Fisher23]

it works like this and varies by state:

When Is a Car Considered Totaled? Total Loss Thresholds by State in 2024 | SoFi

After an accident, if repairing a damaged car will cost close to its actual cash value (say, 75%), then the insurer may consider the car totaled. Read more.

www.sofi.com

 

[kcjaz]

If you didn't list $xxxx dollars in add-on's to your vehicle, then insurance they are not going to pay for them.

This is logical but not necessarily true. The insurance policy on my massively modified 200 was written when it was bone stock. When I totaled it, I had more money in mods than the value of the stock truck. The initial valuation was for the stock truck but I argued and gave them an itemized list of all the mods and PDFs of all invoices. They sent that to CCC and they revised the market value to include the mods. It wasn’t what paid for the mods but was about half.

I think they gave me credit for the mods because of how the KS insurance statutes define fair market value. Or I just got lucky.

 

[OregonLC]

My understanding is if the repair exceeds 50% of the value of the vehicle, it gets totaled. Unsure if that's accurate, but that's what I've been told.

Totaled is when: estimate + salvage value + allowance for unforeseens > market value. Because the 200 has a very high salvage value it can total will relatively low damage estimates.