what happens when you hit a cruiser...ouch

[TLCAddict]

bought our cruiser about 2 months ago. my lady was at a complete stop when she was involved in a 3-car chain reaction , with the cruiser gettin rear-ended by the 'sandwiched' camry...two of the occupants in the camry were taken to the hospital [elderly peeps].

my gf + daughter are fine.
our cruiser doesn't look so bad, but had to be towed cuz the exhaust pipe was pushed into the tire ...visually, I can't tell how affected the suspension or tranny is.

I'm planning on taking the cruiser to TLC-Van Nuys for bodywork , do any peeps know of other L.A. mechanics/shops I can possibly consider taking our cruiser to?

thx,
jz

 

[Slim D]

Glad to hear everyone was alright!

If insurance is going to cover repairs, I would definitely take the rig to TLC! They would be my first choice.

I'm sure other's will chime in with suggestions.

Goodluck!

Doran

 

[Spike Strip]

Jon,

If you're gonna have it towed, I personally would take it to K&H imports in Canoga Park.

K&H Imports Land Cruiser Specialists


21420 Ingomar Street
Canoga Park, CA 91304

They're LC specialists and really good guys and reasonable. TLC is good, but $$$ Give K & H a call and ask for Richard.

Sorry 'bout the accident, but at least the GF and kids didn't get hurt! Yeah FJ60s !!!

 

[iaintscared1969]

Glad to hear eveeryone is OK. That is normally the outcome when you run into heavy metal bricks. Hey don't forget the upgraded bumper while she is at the shop.

 

[Spike Strip]

Hard to tell from the pic... But you might just want to squeeze as big a check from the insurance co (does your GF's neck hurt ??) as you can and buy a nice new super bumper... You've got as good an excuse as any, now... If you wanna stay stock, I have a rear bump you can have.

New tail pipe and you're set... Can't really tell about the quarter panel damage from the pic.

 

[Spook50]

Glad to hear everyone's okay. I got rear-ended the same way by a Camry (no joke) years ago on my way home after my evening college classes. Camry got plowed into by an S-10 that had its brakes fail completely (anyone surprised?) and slammed square into my bumper. Absolutely zero damage to my rig, including the stock bumper, but the Camry was totaled and the front end almost completely demolished.

Testament to Toyota's build quality though: the tow truck driver got into what was left of the Camry and drove it right up onto the bed of the truck.

 

[TLCAddict]

my gf needs to return the adjuster's call, cuz she is feelin a bit queasy...
thanks for the support. like some of you guys have said, since the ins co. is paying for it, why not take it to TLC... and yes, I've been thinkin of which aftermarket bumper I want to go for - ARB & Solid Rock Off Road are my choices.
If anybody can recommend other types, pls let me know.

jz

 

[turbeau69]

Most of us do more damage to our own trucks taking them out and getting rock damage or ..... that Camry didn't stand a chance.

I am glad you family is alright.

 

[D'Animal]

Glad to hear everybody was OK even though the other peeps were taken to the hostipital, they could have been killed.


Replace the rear bumper with a Kaymar or something stout.

 

[MANUCHAO]

Glad to hear your family is alright...
Sorry to hear about the other folks.. Hope they are ok !!!
I would take it to TLC or K&H Imports......

Yah, get a rear bumper for sure...
I just picked up a 4+ rear bumper pricey but damn it is saaaweeeet !!

Good luck to yah...

 

[TLCAddict]

Bring It On!!

we had plans to take the cruiser out for the holiday, but she's sittin in the driveway w/ a tweaked exhaust pipe & busted tie end-rod [I think]...we won't know what else has been affected from the accident until we bring it to TLC on tues.
problem is, that our adjuster is worried that the damage may be more than the friggin 'blue book' value! argh!@# so, the adjuster is preparing me for the worst case scenario...total loss.
so, I decided to do some on-line shopping for 88 FJ62s...n guess what? the market value of an FJ62 is as high as 3x the kbb value...looks like I got a fight comin w/ the other ins co.

wish me luck...

 

[FirstToy]

Man, you are just a stone's throw from Baker Paint & Body shop in Pasadena. They do excellent work, family operation for many years. I would take it there.

 

[InsanityIsBorn]

If it is a "total loss" get your money and buy it back with a salvage title. then you still have some extra cash and can fix it up! I've heard of people doing this a few times on Mud!

 

[IndianDoc]

Hard to tell from the pic... But you might just want to squeeze as big a check from the insurance co (does your GF's neck hurt ??) as you can and buy a nice new super bumper... You've got as good an excuse as any, now... If you wanna stay stock, I have a rear bump you can have.

New tail pipe and you're set... Can't really tell about the quarter panel damage from the pic.

Yea 2X on a bumper I've got a stock one laying around too. But shipping from SC would be a killer.

 

[terranceeriley]

Glad everyone's ok.
It must be something about camry drivers. The one's that dont also drive landcruisers.
they always seem to be pulling out in front of me or cutting me off.
it's shocking i say.

 

[JLH911]

That intersection is notorious for accidents....that's on Huntington Drive, isn't it?

Glad everyone is o.k.

 

[mkaustin]

TLCAddict - I know what you're going through w/ the insurance co. Make sure that the adjuster does some homework before looking at your Cruiser. Have them look at "replacing w/ like kind".
Our very clean and mechanically solid '89 was in a collision that mushed the DS front corner. NO frame damage. NO engine damage. We're talking hood DS fender and grill. The adjuster looked at it as a 17yr old vehicle and thought "scrap". He "totaled" it w/ out looking up current replacement costs.
His insurance co informed me that they were "buying" my Cruiser for something like $3200. I told them that our Cruiser was NOT for sale and they had to fix it. I insisted that they go and find me the same vehicle and condition at their cost. They saw the light and came back w/ considerably higher value. Then allowed me to submit receipts for recent work and improvements.
I could not get them to change their "totaled" assessment, but they did pay about 50% over what the estimated $5600 to fix everything. It's now sporting a new ARB Bull Bar.
Don't accept their first offer. Do you homework now and gather current sales of clean cruisers and overload their fax w/ the printouts.

 

[FirstToy]

The repair cost is determined by the shop of your choice. The insurance co can recommend shops, but it's the consumer's choice.

Take it to a good shop, get a estimate to repair & then the insurance co will look at the numbers.

I hate to sound like I'm pushing Baker auto body but when I had to repair a truck, I took it to the "recommended" shop (quick look & fat $ estimate). Then I took it to Baker, who actually took apart the panel to make sure it was not damaged underneath and wanted to really check it out.
They know the insurance game and how many shops are just turning high margins w/ superficial repairs.

They did a great job. They are also a long standing Pasadena sba so I try to recommend this gem whenever it comes up.

 

[TLCAddict]

That intersection is notorious for accidents....that's on Huntington Drive, isn't it?

Glad everyone is o.k.

JLH,
Yep...just under the railroad tracks. the camry was actually rear-ended first, then pushed into the cruiser by a thunderbird...

 

[TLCAddict]

TLCAddict - I know what you're going through w/ the insurance co. Make sure that the adjuster does some homework before looking at your Cruiser. Have them look at "replacing w/ like kind".
Our very clean and mechanically solid '89 was in a collision that mushed the DS front corner. NO frame damage. NO engine damage. We're talking hood DS fender and grill. The adjuster looked at it as a 17yr old vehicle and thought "s****". He "totaled" it w/ out looking up current replacement costs.
His insurance co informed me that they were "buying" my Cruiser for something like $3200. I told them that our Cruiser was NOT for sale and they had to fix it. I insisted that they go and find me the same vehicle and condition at their cost. They saw the light and came back w/ considerably higher value. Then allowed me to submit receipts for recent work and improvements.
I could not get them to change their "totaled" assessment, but they did pay about 50% over what the estimated $5600 to fix everything. It's now sporting a new ARB Bull Bar.
Don't accept their first offer. Do you homework now and gather current sales of clean cruisers and overload their fax w/ the printouts.

thx mk,
yeah, I'm doin my homework now, and preparing myself for battle with the ins co., so I visited autotrader, craigslist, & ebay to find the avg market value of FJ62s. and you're on target with the age issue, the adjuster is concerned that it is a '20 y.o vehicle'.