Bent frame '99 Tacoma 4x4 (1 Viewer)

[Dazza]

I was rear ended and a truck hit my trailer hitch, bending the passengers side frame near the rear of the truck and making the rear axle a little crooked. I have a quote from a frame shop here in San Francisco to straighten it 'under the table' for almost $3,000. I am wondering if anyone has feedback on this, maybe a referral to someone they trust, or ideas of how to make this a fun project truck with a flatbed for the same amount of cash... Thanks in advance for your help, been a long time since I was on here with my FJ60

Here's my tacoma with the bent frame.

A truck hit my trailer hitch, and bent the frame. I'd suggest removing the hitch when not in use, so this doesn't happen to you too.

This is where the bed of the truck impacted the cab and dented it. i need to touch up that paint before it rusts any more.

you can see the bent C channel of the frame from below and from the rear of the truck.

Heres the bend in the frame from behind the rear passengers side wheel.

 

[jynx]

Looks like a good lick. Glad you are ok. Have you confirmed that this is the only damage to the frame? $3k seems a little high to just straighten that out. I would be curious if there isn't more damage than just that. If that is truly all the damage you have, I would think you could pull the bed and just cut the frame rails off and use some rectangular tubing to build a new rear frame section and then either build a custom flatbed or rebuild the mounts and reattach the bed.

 

[Dazza]

I believe there is more damage. If I remember correctly the frame shop put the frame on a laser measuring device and said that the entire frame is slightly out of alignment. I thought about simply cutting it off and making something new with tube but I don't know enough about how much the rest of the frame is bent. Ill be talking to him tomorrow and will try and get a better sense of it all.

 

[KLF]

Didn't the truck that hit you have insurance? Seems like it's their problem to figure out how to make you whole.

 

[Dazza]

Not enough insurance... he only had basic liability split between the three cars he hit, and I didnt have collision or under insured coverage. Im only getting a couple grand from insurance. Ive written a letter of demands and will be taking him to small claims court.

 

[jynx]

Seems like a load of bull! I agree with KLF, I wouldn't think it would matter if he hit 10 cars, they should fix them all. Most liability policies I have seen cover the other party(s) and leave the owner to fix his own...

I guess the laws vary from state to state, but that seems shady

 

[GOT@TACO]

Are they smoking crack over there...I know a guy will do it for $400.00!!!! That's all he work on is frames...cash talks over here!!

 

[Dazza]

Seems like a load of bull! I agree with KLF, I wouldn't think it would matter if he hit 10 cars, they should fix them all. Most liability policies I have seen cover the other party(s) and leave the owner to fix his own...

I guess the laws vary from state to state, but that seems shady

the property damage limit for basic liability is $5,000 total in CA, in this case split between three vehicles.One more reason this state sucks. I now have collision coverage so this won't happen again. Live and learn...

 

[KLF]

I can't figure out how they can "split" the coverage across several vehicles. That makes no sense. It's not like you can drive all of them at the same time. And $5000 liability is ridiculously low. I think I have $100K on all my vehicles, each.

Take the dude to court, make him pay for it.

 

[Wile E Coyote]

The $5k is split between the 3 other vehicles the driver damaged, not between whatever other vehicles the driver insures.

 

[jynx]

To jump off topic a bit: so in Kalifornia the minimum liability actually has a minimum amount that must be covered? Wow, that seems insane to me, especially if the amount is only $5k! That would barely cover fixing one car, let alone multiple cars or medical expenses. Something is better than nothing, but it doesn't make it right....

Anyway, have you got anymore info on the actual damage to the frame?

 

[ken_79-fj40]

3 grand seems pretty high to me. A couple years back I bought a 96 Tacoma 4x4 V6/auto extended cab for $3500. Had high miles but it looked/drove great. I can see 3 grand if they are doing all the bodywork and replacing the bumper/hitch too. But just for straightening the frame that's as nutty as the insurance regulations in your state. Pretty sure my minimum is $100k per person. Of course here technically you don't even need insurance. A friend of mine found out the hard way how bad of an idea that was though. Took him years to pay off 10K worth of damage to a new buick he did with his lifted 86 Pickup. Didn't even scratch his truck.

 

[Dazza]

To jump off topic a bit: so in Kalifornia the minimum liability actually has a minimum amount that must be covered? Wow, that seems insane to me, especially if the amount is only $5k! That would barely cover fixing one car, let alone multiple cars or medical expenses. Something is better than nothing, but it doesn't make it right....

Anyway, have you got anymore info on the actual damage to the frame?

The frame is now somewhat diamond shaped and has an upward and sideways bend where you can see it in the photo bent. I can't get away with chopping the rear end and welding on a new tube frame and having a straight front end.

I might take my mechanics other suggestion, just chain the rear hitch to a tree and give it one good yank, then just drive it. As is.

The car that hit me was a rental car, and the driver has no additional insurance, and waived all additional insurance except the california bare min of $5k property damage coverage.

 

[SteveH]

Find a different shop. I just had a '97 Camry straightened with significant crunching on the front and rear, and it was $400. I had an FJ45 pickup frame straightened 8 years ago for $250, and it was bent in multiple axes - rear was down and front was too the side.

$3000 is 30 hours at $100/hr - and that math doesn't even work in Calif.

 

[Dazza]

And Update, i sold the truck for $6000 cash. The guy didn't care about the bent frame, he's taking it to Meckyville.

 

[pkt1213]

Had it just been sitting for a year?

Also that is a s*** load of money a broke truck. I would have sued the rental company because they should cover it and then been responsible for collecting from the driver.

 

[Living in the Past]

Also that is a **** load of money a broke truck.

I agree that's a lot of money. My son-inlaw bought a 99 Xtra cab, four cylinder, five speed, rear locker with 230K miles and paid $8K about a year ago. Truck was rode hard and pretty rough shape but was the combo he wanted. Paid $4.2K for my 99 V6 4X4 4Runner with 155K miles, no locker but in great shape. Not sure why he wanted that combo I personally like the 3.4 V6. It's a mystery to me why the Tacomas sell for so much more. For the difference I can buy a trailer with life time tags and still come out costing much less.

 

[Dazza]

Nah, pkt1213 I drove the s*** out of it for a year. The dude said it was gonna be a farm truck in Mexico. I could care less what he is actually doing with it.

 

[Dazza]

The rental company covered all of their liability. I am still thinking of taking the drunk who hit me to small claims for a few grand, so far I've recovered a total of almost $9000 of the $15,000 total I put into that truck.

 

[Dazza]

After the frame bent I started riding it harder than ever. That thing is a donut machine. Honestly I could hardly tell it was damaged. The guy who bought it thought he couldn't tell, but I had another virtually identical truck I bought to replace it... So I could tell it pulled a little differently.