Doh! Rear-ended on the freeway

[calrockx]

Oh, California drivers in the rain. Just when I start to give 'em some hope, they crash that notion real quick. Or my truck.

I was driving south on the 14 today when I saw a guy in a little white car off right side of the road stuck in some bushes. Pretty clear the guy hydroplaned off the freeway into that predicament. I don't know why, but a feeling of good-samaritanism struck me, so I pulled over to help the guy out. Way over, as far as I could off the highway - safety first and all. I ask if he needs help (he confirms the obvious) then I park behind him and pull out the ol winch. I've got the guy hooked up, pulling him back to the pavement when..

oh noes!

I glance into the rear view mirror and see pretty much the last thing I wanted to see - a car careening out of control toward me. "ooh sh*tfu*ck." The guy hits me, felt a pretty good jolt. I was pretty convinced the body wouldn't be all purty anymore, but it held up like a champ. Why? fuc*kin' steel bumper, yay! Haha, that thing definitely took a lot of the impact, but only had a bit of damage. The other guy's car tho...some little sedan thing...well, didn't make it out so well. A highway patrol stopped, saw the situation, asked if we wanted a report taken - I was good without it, the other guy wanted one. Of course by this point we had exchanged insurance info.

My truck appeared good to go, so I drove off. Then I noticed the problem. I was going straight, but my steering wheel was pointed way off the the side. And I heard scraping/rattling sound from the rear driver side. I pulled off at the next exit and saw the rear axle sure wasn't straight on the truck, and the rear control arm on that side bent. Funny, in all my offroading trips I managed to barely scratch the rear lower control arms, but then it gets tweaked on-road. That noise was the tire rubbing up against the front of the wheel well.

I go home, take off the bent arm, run down to Bruce's and he used his press to straighten the sucker out . Hooray for him helping out and that fancy press, those things are handy. I wasn't exactly sure how I'd get it back on (positioning the arm/axle and such, but he explained a nifty ratcheting strap method and I went to it, got the arm back on after wrestling with it a bit.

The problem now is that the rear axle still is not straight. Distance from front of wheel to body on pass side - four fingers. Driver side = two fingers. Like those scientific measurements?

So I dunno...bent frame maybe. I didn't see any other damage, but I'll get it checked out tomorrow.


Oh hey, how about some pics.


the other guy

http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/01.jpg

http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/02.jpg


after the accident

tire getting all up in the fender's grill
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/03.jpg

wee bend in the bumper
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/04.jpg

something's not right here
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/05.jpg


repair begins

thanks buddy
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/06.jpg

almost finished re-installing the control arm
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/08.jpg


better, but still def something wrong
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/09.jpg

the guy left me some souvenirs? light fragments atop the spare
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/10.jpg

scrape scrape scraped
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/11.jpg

you wouldn't know it, but some damage was done indeed
http://calrockx.com/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/12.jpg


so yeah, definitely could have been worse.
if i hadn't been there, the guy would hit the car i was trying to help. who knows what'd have happened then, given he was close to a downhill slope. he said he was going about 40. not sure how fast it was when he hit me, but at least he got to brake a little.

the bright side of all this?
maybe a fancy rental car while it's being fixed up in a shop?
maaaybe some bling new control arms?

[Good Times]

holy moly! good to see the bumper held up nicely. Do a quick check on the top and bottom arms (rear). Also check the mounts to make sure they're not tweaked. eh just check everything!

you alright? no whiplashes? just make sure you're 100% ok man. Last thing you want to deal with are aches and pains later on.

rest up and don't worry about the 4runner. it'll look sexy again in no time.

[BruceTS]

I was wondering how long it would be before someone ran into the back of one..... I guess we know the outcome .....

Hopefully the axle isn't bent, looks like when he hit, the front end went under and struck the wheel, bending the lower control arm.

[Tanto]

Good thing you had that bumper. Not good for the guy that slammed into you but hey, it was his mistake, right.

On the other hand you probably won't be having thoughts of being a good samaritan anytime soon.

[calrockx]

i'm definitely alright, so that's good. as fun as it'd be to claim fake injury, i'll pass.

aye, yeah...everything else on the truck looked okay, but i'll go over it again in the morning.
i had wondered how the bumper would hold up in a wreck. now i know.

yeah haha, screw helping people.

[Good Times]

well fake injury would be a big NO NO but rather the aches and pains usually come the following day (after a good night rest) so make sure you get yourself checked if you experience any pains tomorrow morning. Last thing we want to hear from ya are u b****ing and moaning hehe!

[Tanto]

How happy was Bruce when he saw your bumper after the wreck??? Everyone who has one of his bumpers and sees this thread must be pretty happy right now.

[xonetruthcrewx]

Gnar dude, gnar. Hopefully everything turns out alright. Trashed the front end of that little car pretty good though. Haha. SoCal drivers are out of hand anytime there is inclement weather, its as if they completely forget how to drive. Fuc*in' A dude.

[slosurfer]

Bummer Dude! That's :gay: :gay: Have you checked your upper control arm or your upper control arm mount?

[habanero]

Kudos for helping a stranger out. Not good about the truck but like you said, if it hadn't been there then who knows what would have happened to the other guy.

*putting rear bumper higher up the mod when I've got the dough list, that tin foil stocker, oy.*

[bamachem]

$10 says you have a bent upper link. if the lower bent that bad, then the upper one on that side more than likely looks like /\.

also, make sure to check for a warped axle housing, bent axle shaft, damaged outer axle seal, as well as a slight frame tweak since the impact appears to be fairly substantial and isolated to a single frame rail.

also, careful trusting this lower link. the end is bent if you look closely, which means that the weld has been weakened. those things aren't all that strong to begin with, and they put up with tremendous forces during acceleration, braking, and turning, not to mention any trail stresses.


look at the bottom eye of the link in this pic - BeNt
http://server14.kproxy.com/servlet/redirect.srv/sruj/sgunaezps/p1/etc/pics/forums/ultimateyota/accident/06.jpg

[Lee]

wow hope it works out for ya charles... keep us posted.

if you want some tips for making new lower arms with DOM tubing, i can help ya out :)

[MTL_4runner]

I had an old Chevy Blazer many moons ago with a dropped tow hitch and someone rear ended me on the highway in a stretch where traffic had become a parking lot. The damage to the other vehicle was about the same except for a giant trench through the center of the engine compartment which ripped the intake right off the car's engine. My bumper was a little bent and the trailer hitch and mount were toast but other than that, nothing. Truck was a POS anyway so I wasn't to worried about it and at least I was able to drive home from the situation.

Anyway, glad no one was hurt and you should get a little spending money out of the deal.

[ecchamberlin]

Wow. This is especially ironic for me because this morning on my commute with the 4Runner I was thinking about how the Bruce bumper would hold up in a crash as an Eclipse slid in under mine but never actually touched it. Then yesterday a lady in a beautiful white Escalade (lady was pretty beautiful to I may add) rubbed the rear bumper at the SD Airport as she pulled out of her parking spot.

Seems they hold up quite nicely indeed. Good on you for stopping to help out another motorist also Charles. F' the watch your own butt attitude. That crap is a virus and not what being an American is about.

You know Steve at Sonoran has some real nice lower links these days. I like that he is using OEM bushings now. 01 and 02's already use these same bushings but the tubes are way beefier. I am ordering a set here soon from him.

Cool that you are not hurt from this.

[BruceTS]

turns out the upper link is slightly bent, but the real problem is either the axle housing, axle or both are bent as well. The bumper still is align with the body and no body damage, so I doubt the frame is bent.

[calrockx]

update...

well the rear bumper looks perfectly straight on the body, so i'm pretty sure the frame is okay.

i took it on my street for a little test drive,i hear a scraping sound with every tire revolution. so...probably bend axle/axle housing. also, the upper control arm on that side is slightly bent.

that's what happens when a little car slides under your bumper and hits the wheel i guess. aye, just a pain to deal with all the repairs, even if it's on his dime.
ha, get this...after i was hit, that front stuck guy insisted i still help him get unstuck. i was like "uhhh..you're gonna have to call for help now, i don't want this to get any worse." geez.

taking it to the insurance shop today, hoping to get this resolved asap. so i guess replace those parts, hopefully some beefy new spidertrax control arms or the like and i'll be good to go.

[surf4runner]

ha, get this...after i was hit, that front stuck guy insisted i still help him get unstuck.
no good deed goes unpunished.

glad to hear you were OK.

[Seanz0rz]

check the upper control arm?

[Seanz0rz]

ok i suck at reading apparently....


i always keep my tow ball in while driving around, even though i dont tow anything. i figure that way it will take out whatever rearends me before they take out something of mine.

one time at the carwash, they didnt pull mine fast enough, and the car behind me hit me. i threw a huge fit, got 10 free car washes out of it. all it did was chip the paint on the hitch. the other car on the other hand..... needed at least a new hood. that lady was PISSED!!!!

[expatoz]

Bummer Charles. Hope it all gets sorted quickly. Glad your ok.

[Bob98SR5]

Chuck,

Hey, wow, im late to the news. sorry to hear that. you know, it couldve been worse. my cop friend says that this kind of sh#t happens all the time. what happens is that stupid looky loo's start to stare at an accident and their car starts to drift in the direction they are looking in. often times, they panic b/c they stray into someone's lane and overcorrect. in anycase, good thing you werent at your rear bumper.

hope you get the problem resolved soon

[SD4runner]

Its amazing how you try to help someone out and end up getting it in the ass, err rear... in the end.

:(

[BruceTS]

The section of the 14 freeway where the accident occured is quite dangerous. In the rain it gets quite slick, what's decieving about it is, it's a straight run, but crest over the top of a hill. I always slow down when comming to this section and have seen on a few occasions when someone speeding past me loses control and spins out. When the road is wet it literally becomes like ice for a short stretch and at speed you'll easily hydroplane.

[Lee]

any updates?

[04 Rocko Taco]

Also curious what else has come of this...

[BruceTS]

His truck is in the shop.... funny thing is the insurance claims they won't cover the rear bumper, since it's aftermarket????? I told Charles, that's BS it was the other guys fault, his insurance has to cover damages to the bumper. LOL just a few scratches.....

Ironically they both have the same insurance company.....

[neliconcept]

His truck is in the shop.... funny thing is the insurance claims they won't cover the rear bumper, since it's aftermarket????? I told Charles, that's BS it was the other guys fault, his insurance has to cover damages to the bumper. LOL just a few scratches.....

Ironically they both have the same insurance company.....


insurance will pay for it, one way or another you will have to make them. Imo, take as much as you can.

[Seanz0rz]

last i checked, aftermarket stuff cost money too...

[calrockx]

yeah, the mercury ins guy is gonna call me a bout that today, i want some $$$ for the bumper. should be a couple weeks in the shop. lame, but eh...

[Bob98SR5]

if you dont declare anything aftermarket to your insurance company (i.e. stereo equipment), you will get the standard replacement rate of the stock equipment. trust me, this is from experience

[neliconcept]

yeah, the mercury ins guy is gonna call me a bout that today, i want some $$$ for the bumper. should be a couple weeks in the shop. lame, but eh...


make bruce make up a receipt for you, cost of bumper build time, hell if he wants a company name, design his name put it on the receipt and show that to the insurance company

[calrockx]

if you dont declare anything aftermarket to your insurance company (i.e. stereo equipment), you will get the standard replacement rate of the stock equipment. trust me, this is from experience


yep. the remanufactured oem rate.

[Bob98SR5]

yeah, the mercury ins guy is gonna call me a bout that today, i want some $$$ for the bumper. should be a couple weeks in the shop. lame, but eh...


make bruce make up a receipt for you, cost of bumper build time, hell if he wants a company name, design his name put it on the receipt and show that to the insurance company


thats what you do if you want it covered, not post-accident. your rates will go up (by how much, it all depends)

[BruceTS]

Bob I agree, but it's the other guys insurance that has to pay, it just so happens they both have the same company. Eveything in this instance should be covered.....aftermarket or not.

[Bob98SR5]

it will be interesting to see if they cover it or not b/c of the same company, but my guess is it won't be covered as they go by the same rules book

[neliconcept]

it will be interesting to see if they cover it or not b/c of the same company, but my guess is it won't be covered as they go by the same rules book


they have to cover it, doesnt matter if its offroad equipment, its not offroad when this happened, was the other drivers fault (edit to make a damn bit of sense because i suck at that), its equipment regardless, as long as you have receipt for the product, its covered, or Charles can sue them. easy as that.

[Seanz0rz]

it was damaged as a result of the other driver's inability to properly control his/her vehicle.

[ecchamberlin]

I wonder how much the OEM parts and labor are worth. I am always blown away by the cost of OEM stuff. Would not be surprised if the full replacement cost w/ labor is about the same as Bruce charged for his bumper.

[neliconcept]

I wonder how much the OEM parts and labor are worth. I am always blown away by the cost of OEM stuff. Would not be surprised if the full replacement cost w/ labor is about the same as Bruce charged for his bumper.


rear bumper is probablly more then what Bruce charges. if i remember right its around 1050 to 1100 for a new rear bumper.

dont forget each running board is 400 from the dealer.

front bumper is about the same as well.


either way you may get more if you say i need a new OEM rear bumper, and OEM hitch or something, they send you a check, and all this other crap, and now you have enough for a diamond axle housing and what not. SAS that damn thing :) (jk)

[Bob98SR5]

they have to cover it, doesnt matter if its offroad equipment, its not offroad when this happened, was the other drivers fault (edit to make a damn bit of sense because i suck at that), its equipment regardless, as long as you have receipt for the product, its covered, or Charles can sue them. easy as that.


not quite. insurance companies routinely ask as part of your initial coverage interview if you have aftermarket equipment that you'd like to cover. if you dont declare it, you get the standard replacement coverage. so for example, lets say you have a 10k system in your truck and it gets stolen. do you have a reasonable claim to your insurance company if it does? the answer is no. so why is it differnt in chuck's case?

when i rear ended someone on the freeway this year, i got the replacement value on the stock bumper. when my brother got his kenwood radio stolen, he got the replacement value (which actually, was more than the kenwood).

[BruceTS]

not quite. insurance companies routinely ask as part of your initial coverage interview if you have aftermarket equipment that you'd like to cover. if you dont declare it, you get the standard replacement coverage. so for example, lets say you have a 10k system in your truck and it gets stolen. do you have a reasonable claim to your insurance company if it does? the answer is no. so why is it differnt in chuck's case?

when i rear ended someone on the freeway this year, i got the replacement value on the stock bumper. when my brother got his kenwood radio stolen, he got the replacement value (which actually, was more than the kenwood).


Both those cases cited, your assuming your insurance company is gonna pay the claim. This is not so, It's the other guys insurance company that has to pay, how the heck are they supposed to know what if any mods have been done?

[neliconcept]

they have to cover it, doesnt matter if its offroad equipment, its not offroad when this happened, was the other drivers fault (edit to make a damn bit of sense because i suck at that), its equipment regardless, as long as you have receipt for the product, its covered, or Charles can sue them. easy as that.


not quite. insurance companies routinely ask as part of your initial coverage interview if you have aftermarket equipment that you'd like to cover. if you dont declare it, you get the standard replacement coverage. so for example, lets say you have a 10k system in your truck and it gets stolen. do you have a reasonable claim to your insurance company if it does? the answer is no. so why is it differnt in chuck's case?

when i rear ended someone on the freeway this year, i got the replacement value on the stock bumper. when my brother got his kenwood radio stolen, he got the replacement value (which actually, was more than the kenwood).



but the thing is, hes not at fault, so its not his problem to worry about getting underminded with a quota. now in his case, stock equip is actually more money from a dealership anyways.

regardless, if you have receipt of product, they have to cover it. Now if it was his fault? thats a different story and i wouldnt fight it as it would just raise your rates even more, but since it isnt, then a need to fight or get the most out of the situation is high on the list.

[Bob98SR5]

not quite. insurance companies routinely ask as part of your initial coverage interview if you have aftermarket equipment that you'd like to cover. if you dont declare it, you get the standard replacement coverage. so for example, lets say you have a 10k system in your truck and it gets stolen. do you have a reasonable claim to your insurance company if it does? the answer is no. so why is it differnt in chuck's case?

when i rear ended someone on the freeway this year, i got the replacement value on the stock bumper. when my brother got his kenwood radio stolen, he got the replacement value (which actually, was more than the kenwood).


Both those cases cited, your assuming your insurance company is gonna pay the claim. This is not so, It's the other guys insurance company that has to pay, how the heck are they supposed to know what if any mods have been done?



good point, bruce. but again, what it comes down to is what insurance companies want to pay as a replacement fee vs what is considered "fair". what makes chuck's case more intriguing is that the insurance companies are the same and knowing a little about getting shafted by insurance companies, they will pay the minimum to replace whatever is damaged.

anyways, let's see what happens. my feeling is that chuck will probably be offered the oem replacement value

[ecchamberlin]

IMO I don't think the insurance co's are automatically obligated to cover all the stuff we bolt or weld to the vehicle. They are in the business of making money and they need to be aware within reason of what they are covering as far as property.

I may call my insurance co and ask them about this. I am constantly aware that I am in a Socal area where vehicles are stolen every day. What would be my replacement value with the full coverage considering my mods also? I am going to find out.

I do think though that Charles should do fine as long as they give him a check for OEM replacement values/labor. Should easily cover the cost of repairs and then some because I highly doubt that any real damage was done to the bumper other than the slight cosmetic bend on the top that is a super easy fix.

I would be much more concerned with the rear axle being fixed if it is bent.

Will be interesting to see how this turns out in any case.

[calrockx]

i'm getting manufactured oem value for the rear bumper, and also the value for the rear lower link. already picked up some new ones from sonoran steel.

[slosurfer]

Wasn't your upper link bent as well? What about your axle housing?

[calrockx]

yep, upper too, as well as some other things. axle housing is supposedly okay.

[4RunAmok]

Sorry to hear about that Charles. Your's is one of the best looking 4runners I've ever seen, glad there was no body damage.

[calrockx]

got my truck back a couple days ago. the rear axle housing as been all cleaned up and painted, looks new.
the SS lower links are nice.

and now my rear bumper is like new too after taking out the bends and a fresh coat of black paint.