I want to attest to the safety of an 80

[loquito]

I just got back from the hospital where my wife and I were treated, She's now asleep and I can't sit still. She broke her tail bone and we both have noticable seat belt related bruising. My son whom was in the cruiser also, was not hurt at all, sitting in a booster seat in the middle space on the middle seat. Thank God

My Cruiser is Dead.(wifes cruiser)

In June I broke my ankle playing basketball with the kids, therefore religated to the passenger seat I spotted the 91, we bought her, I became familure with the FSM, and I Love Dan. I fixed the , well everthing. All that was left was the E brake and PM on the birfs. Everthing worked, nothing leaked, and it was the fancyest truck my wife or I ever owned. The 91 died on the way to my two oldest kids cross country track meet. I contend that sports are bad, I never injured anything sitting on the couch.

We were completely stoped with our left turn signal on, waiting for the truck in the oncoming lane to pass so that we could turn. The oncoming truck moved over into our lane some ways back. He was sitting upright, his head was held up, I was watching him, looking into his face waiting for him to go Opps and pull back into his own lane. He told the police he was asleep, I don't know.

Well he never turned back, the road is a 55 mph so I figure he was going that fast or so when he hit us. He drove perfectly straight while he was in my lane. Our trucks hit perfectly square head to head in My lane. We were pushed backwards almost half way to the previous streets intersection, I don;t know mesurments but we sailed backwards.

The front end is dust. After I saw that my family was alright, All I could think of was Kicking the other guys ass and started getting out of the car. Walking down the side of the cruiser twards his truck they were still touching, the two trucks, I got stopped still by the sight of all the radiator fluid on the ground.

That sort of pushed me over the edge and if a good samarital had not stepped in it wouldn't have been just his door I slammed open.

Well back to the topic WE are all okay, sore as hell and alittle mad, but everone in the cruiser walked away, no cuts or shattered windshield, no intrusion into the passenger compartment from the crash, one safe truck.

Thanks everyone for all the advise, all the time I got to spend reading the differant ideas and opinions you all have. Thank you Dan you made my hobby possible. Well I no longer have a figurative baseball glove, so I guess I really don't belong playing on your field anymore. Maybe after we save again I'll get that perfect truck You know with lockers, Though I realy did love that 3fe.

So thanks again and see you all some other day.

I wish that I had been around long enough for Junk to like me and call me a
S

 

[LandCruiserPhil]

Glad to hear every one OK.

What was the other guy driving that hit you and did your Cruiser have an aftermarket bumper? Do you have any pics?

 

[RavenTai]

Ouch, sorry to hear about your wife’s tailbone but it is minor compared to what could have happened, was the other driver named at fault? The way I see it the insurance company owes you the cost of a replacement 80


Thanks for sharing that info so far I have not seen a pic of an 80 that has had major cab intrusion, I am sure it is possible and has happened, but not common

Was the other truck a full size domestic or something else?

 

[thorvald]

glad everyones allright.

ditto on the insurance replacing your 80, the other drivers insurance should be buying you a new vehicle. check kelly blue book, n.a.d.a, and any other value book you can find- any adds for 80's selling higher than blue would be helpful also. print it all out and bring it with you, if they offer less, bring it all out, more put it away

main thing is you and your family is ok. good luck

 

[Asiarider]

I am so sorry for you and your family !!!!!

Glad that no one was injured too much. Such accidents happen all the times here in Thailand. Less safe roads, tired drivers, long working hours, etc. Unfortunately most cases end up pretty bad. I am glad that I have such a big tank as a car.

Get straight away a new LC with the insurance money. Put some extra money for lockers and forget this accident.

GOOD LUCK !

Mike

 

[mot]

WOW!

Pretty graphic account of what happened. I am so glad that you and your loved ones are OK. As Raven put it it could have been a lot worse, if it were off-centered or if you got broad-sided or something.

I sure hope you would be able to resume your normal life (although it would be pretty hard to wipe it away from your mind for quite some time) relatively quickly.

I hope the other guy had good insurance.

Mot

 

[concretejungle]

Thanks for sharing the story with us. Its terrible to hear that the cruiser is dead, but great to hear that it helped save your family's lives.

I probably would have been mad as you mentioned and wanted to rip more than that guys door open also. Would not have been a good thing.

Get the insurance money and get another one. After all, now it has been proven to you and the wife that this truck saves lives.

 

[MrZumma]

Loq,

It is wonderful to hear that you and your family walked away from this accident.

Concretejungle is spot on.. This truck saved your lives.. I would seriously consider replacing it with another 80 after you collect the insurance payment. If not for anything else, do it out of respect for the dearly departed 80, knowing she served you well...

 

[reffug]

Really happy to hear that you and the family are ok. Sorry to hear about your wife though thats gotta smart. Anyway Landcruisers save lives they are very safe trucks and this just further illustrates that fact. Don't stay of the board though keep us all posted on the outcome and start looking for that 'perfect truck' cause its out there.

 

[ginericLC]

WOW! I hope you and your wife and child have a speedy recovery. I've actually been wanting to get a smaller car to help with the mpgs. With a fleet of LCs, the almost $2.00/gallon has been killing our budget. Safety isn't something you want to put a price tag on. I sure would like to see pictures. Most of the wrecked 80s I've seen have been in a rollover. So I'm sort of used to see that sort of accident results. I've never seen a head on at that sort of speed. If there is anything I can do to help you through this situation, shoot me PM. Whether it be sending ads from our newspaper with Land Cruiser prices or anything else.

 

[Doc]

I've always knew that there was a reason I felt so safe behind the wheel of my LC's.

I'm glad to be proven correct, but saddened to hear that your truck was mortally wounded.

Here's to a speedy recovery-

 

[cruiserdan]

That absolutely sucks! I am so glad to hear all survived. What a traumatic event to have to go through. I hope that the person that hit you was insured and that you will be able to find another 80 in your area to replace it with. I am also pleased that you did not do what you would have liked to to the asshat in the other driver's seat. I applaud your composure.

Don't go away just because you lost your Cruiser. Please hang around.


D-


Oh, the real bitch is one of the first things to go was the NEW RADIATOR..

 

[Brentbba]

Wow! Happy to hear you all escaped with relatively speaking minor injuries, especially w/o airbags in your '91 from what sounds like a horrible front end collision. Kudos to you and the good samaritan for saving you from an assault charge (we are way to PC these days). It's all been said - hopefully the guy was insured. Get all the RETAIL info you can on your year. You may also want to gather all the receipts for any 'new' items you put on the truck. Your labor won't count, nor any regular fluid etc. type maintenance, but my point is you can try to get some money back from any documented improvements to the truck. Worth a try.

Also curious as to what type of truck hit you??????

I wish you all a very speedy recovery.

 

[flintknapper]

glad everyones allright.

ditto on the insurance replacing your 80, the other drivers insurance should be buying you a new vehicle. check kelly blue book, n.a.d.a, and any other value book you can find- any adds for 80's selling higher than blue would be helpful also. print it all out and bring it with you, if they offer less, bring it all out, more put it away

main thing is you and your family is ok. good luck

If you don't get exactly what you want from the other guys insurance.....then tell them that your back and neck are starting to hurt! See what they say then.
Glad you guys are O.K. Don't leave IH8MUD, and get another Cruiser.

 

[ginericLC]

1995 Toyota Land Cruiser
Description — $13,975, Black 4-door 4X4 SUV, 130249 miles, AUTO 4SPD W/OD, 4.5L I6. Stock# 9863.

GET MORE DETAILS Hawkes Motors
Boise ID

Contact seller

Call 888-832-7208

This is all we have for 80 series. The reason I post this is that our 80s in Idaho are made of gold and the prices are really high. High advertised prices could help you when you go to adjustments with the insurance company. I'll keep watching for 91/92 prices.

 

[NovaFZJ80]

good to hear that the sustained injuries werent' life threatening...think also the full head on impact helped as well as having the LC..vs an angled/off to one side impact, think either you or the passenger would have taken most of the energy from the collision if that happened...

perhaps buy the LC back for parts if you decide to purchase another one?? after hearing this, makes me feel better with mine and no airbags...if the guy's insurance is not enough to cover blue book or nada, can always take him to civil court for pain and suffering, etch.. nowadays,

well in VA, min coverage for insurance is
bodily injury $25k each person, $50k each occurrence

Property damage $25k each occurrence..

so should be plenty to cover in civil courts or out of court....

 

[loquito]

I got a call earlyer from a friend from this forum, he said there had been some posts so I decided to log on for a minute. The only person hurt is my wife. My son and I are fine if you dismiss the bruising from the seat belt. We have an appointment for her tomarow , she is complaining of shooting pain down her leg.

If I sound light hearted I am! Everyone walked away! no torn spleens, ruptured kidnes or liver, etc etc. If her back checks out okay well then much better her tailbone than one of her vertibre. I'm trying to count the blessings and stay upbeat for the kids and her, Thanks everyone for your warm thoughts. You would not beleive how many friends came from everywhere to help, they got the kids from the meet, phone calls, friends wanting to bring over food, it really has helped, my local friends and those I have not met yet, in keeping my spirits light hearted, all things considered we are trully blessed.

Hey Mot you don't know how much I went back and forth wanting hinges for the rear seat while you were here. I had to spend on a radiator and stuff. But if I ever get another and you come back. I hope you enjoyed your ride with everyone.

Asia rider I could not agree with you more about the roads, it sure took getting used to driving on the wrong side when I was in Pattaya and had rented a motorcycle, thank you again.

Generic fj80 I have read alot of your posts thank you for your support, I just started the insurance process so I would love to have someone to check prices if I have to fight.

To answer alot of your questions, the other driver is charged as being at fault, no insurance, no license, driving a friends truck(?) unsure of the insurance on the truck for the friend, it does not look good! Since we were at a complete stop, and after being thrown backwards we both ended up still in the middle of MY lane, and the 20 some odd witnesses,( everyone was showing up for the district cross county meet) he doesn't have a chance. The police took his blood and stated to me he was sure the guy was on something, I work in a relatively small town and the trooper remembered me as he brings people to my jail regularly. so there will also probubly be dui and assault 3 charges if the blood comes back tainted.

My insurance is stepping up to the plate so far and I am a pleased customer so far, though I do belive they will total the truck. I have full coverage so they will probuble try to just pay off the loan. I did save reciepts, everyone, Between Dan and my local dealer whom I was dealing with before Dan I'd say I have about 1600 in reciepts, Like I said earlyer everything worked, not a dent, not even a scratch or rust or grease on the underside, she was perfect. The lack of grease should have been enough to get me called a

I went to visit the truck at the junk yard after my wife fell back to sleep this morning, The tow truck driver was in the office when I asked to get my personals so they sent him to escort me, he's a retired Wasilla police so we know alot of mutual friends, He had some interesting things to say about the crash sceen.

He stated to me that if you put the two trucks side by side that I would never believe they had been in the same accident! The other Guys Ford f150 purple even went to another junk yard so I did not see it. He stated that the ford had crushed back into the passenger compartment, Shattered the windshield, and crumpled the door frames, I remember the door kept yanking itself back closed when I was trying to get at him, and when I put all my 275 behind pushing it it folded back twards the front. I was told that his truck was completly demolished. He even had an air bag, but when I went to hit him he was drooling profusly and only kind of aware, he must have seen something in my face becouse he maoned loudly and tried moving away from me.

You know cruiser Dan, your right about not hitting him, the nurse in the Er pushed me back into the room and held me there when I saw him making a hasty retreat from the hospital. If I did hit him all the attention would be on me. Isn't it a shame though that if he was drugged up and poor the state will provide him with an atterny, thousands to protect his rights, but that is for another area.

My cruiser is a tank, he( the other driver) never even got back far enough to hit the radiator. The support bracket that the front plastic grill attached to folded back and punctured the radiator the trany oil cooler looked okay, the hood was crumpled up in the front, It had a manik brush guard in the front, I don't know if that came stock( I beleive that by the way the brush guards main supports were smashed of twards the outside, that the brush guard did help to obsorb some of the force.) but it would not let me open the hood as it bent back over the lip of the hood.the fenders are crinkled back the the doors, but from the driver/passenger doors front edge back she is still perfect.

Off cource all the lights and grill etc are demolished. The support bracket on top that the radiator sitts against was bent upwards on the side the radiator contacts, my new battery hold down is bent all up, but at least we were not dealing with a loose flying around battery. My fan shroud looks untouched, Keep in mind this is looking through the small opening that the hood produced so I think maybe the force never even got back as far as my cooling fan. I don't know if the engine is still in her mounts but from what I could see it looks like the force stopped at the radiators front side.

What does make me think that they will total her is the damage on the underside. Right under the front of the oil pan there is a cross brace, I think like the radiator sits on it and the protective plate attaches to it, I Think? It was the only area I realy had under the oil pan when I fixed the gasket, way twards the front of the pan.

Well that was bent so that the front of the brace is pushed skyward, the metal from one of the mounting holes to the front/back is ripped, and there is a V shaped cut going about 2 or 3 inches into the metal on the front edge of the cross brace, Does anybody know if the front brace is bolt on, I don't think so but?

His damage(ford f150) entered into the passenger compartment and the cruiser took the punch and stoped the force before it even got to the engine, I think?, let alone all the way into the passenger area. maybe they will straighten the frame who knows?

Thank you all for your consern and advise, it really helps, it does! I'll try to take and post pics, I'll probubly need help posting pics, learning new stuff all the time from this forum.

I guess I'll either get our truck back fixed, or saving and looking for that perfect one, untill then I'll be lurking around, this is one of my favorite places!

S

 

[RavenTai]

loquito, if you get some pics e-mail them to me raventai@yahoo.com I will host them on my local machine, just got a static IP

Hopfully your wife will get relief from her pain and starts healing, I assume if you had full coverage that you also have uninsured driver coverage?

the damage does not sound as bad as I originally envisioned, you may be on the cusp of totaled as the value of an 80 is high,

 

[mot]

Hey,

I left the hinges in Utah and they are yours if you want them WHEN (not if) you get another 80

I had a blast wheelin' with Safado and the gang, even though I was in a, cough, Pathfinder

Good luck with it all!!!

Mot

 

[Romer]

loquito - Your attitude says a lot about what kind of husband and father you are. I don't know you yet I already respect you. I am going out to the garage and rub the belly of my cruiser and wish you good cruiser karma.

You might also look at the LX450. Its the same as an 80 with better leather, better sound system and was about $2K cheaper when I was looking because everyone is searching for an 80. I got mine with lockers and used friends from this board to check it out in another state.

You have to get another one! Look what its done for you already.

I iwsh you and your family well. If you find one in the Denver area, I would be happy to look at it or help in anyway I can.

Ken Romer