Just got rear-ended. How bad is this damage?

Tigerman

Tigerman

TJ Enthusiast
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Aug 31, 2018
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Location
North Hills, CA
Hey Guys and Gals,

I just got rear-ended on the freeway going to work. It was a pretty strong blow. The girl was probably texting since she was coming in hard at me when I and all the lanes were already at a full stop and not just stopped... but that is for the insurance companies to talk about. I took a couple of pictures of the damage to my TJ. Take a look and tell me what you think. It drove OK after the impact, though I now have what it sounds like control arm bushing noise from the back or maybe the sway bar links in the back...not sure.
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Thanks
 
That's not terrible. You'll need a new tailgate and a little bit of work on the rear frame, but it's not bad.

A body shop should be able to fix that pretty easily.
 
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Looks like you need a new tailgate, bumper, and some rear frame work. In terms of frame work, make sure you go to the absolute best body shop you can. When it comes to frame straightening, you definitely don't want some joker yanking on your frame with no prior experience.

Before you do anything, make sure the frame is straight. If it is diamonded or tweaked, you need to make sure that is fixable before you do anything else.
 
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I know very little about this stuff, but I have to ask, if there's some kind of noise like control arms since the accident, is it possible the frame bent and broke a control arm mount or something?
 
cliffish said:
That is a pretty hard hit, how bad was her car? How are the gaps around the doors now?
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I have not checked the gaps :(. Did not cross my mind. Will do that a bit later. Her car was a 2011 Ford Explorer. The front bumper was hanging down, the hood was crumbled and the radiator started leaking. She was an 18 year old that broke into tears and I have a soft heart. All I was doing was trying to calm her down, even forgot to take a picture of her car...
 
Make your you have a shop check the tolerances on the frame before repairing anything. That thing you want is to find out down the road it was twisted.
 
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Liberated said:
I know very little about this stuff, but I have to ask, if there's some kind of noise like control arms since the accident, is it possible the frame bent and broke a control arm mount or something?
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I looked under to check the control arms and they are not broken, but did not inspect very well, perhaps one of them is dislocated or bent a bit. Gotta check.
 
Yes, there could be more damage than you can see. This is why it's important to have a body shop put it up on a rack and check it out. That will reveal things that you and I might not notice otherwise! Hopefully the other guy had insurance.
 
Chris said:
Yes, there could be more damage than you can see. This is why it's important to have a body shop put it up on a rack and check it out. That will reveal things that you and I might not notice otherwise! Hopefully the other guy had insurance.
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Absolutely, I will ask around for a good body shop. Believe it or not, I have never dealt with body shops before. I had one accident before this in my 2011 FJ Cruiser but that one was totaled. Man I miss that truck...

Anyone form the LA area and can recommend a good place?
 
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Tigerman said:
Hey Guys and Gals,

I just got rear-ended on the freeway going to work. It was a pretty strong blow. The girl was probably texting since she was coming in hard at me when I and all the lanes were already at a full stop and not just stopped... but that is for the insurance companies to talk about. I took a couple of pictures of the damage to my TJ. Take a look and tell me what you think. It drove OK after the impact, though I now have what it sounds like control arm bushing noise from the back or maybe the sway bar links in the back...not sure.
View attachment 57522 View attachment 57523 View attachment 57524

Thanks
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First and for most im glad you and the other driver are ok. Its easier to fix a jeep then a human.


OPINION*******I highly doubt that the side rails of the frame are bent. The rear frame cap will need to be replaced along with the rear gate. And possibly the rear tire hanger. And some paint.

FACTS***** use the body shop YOU want. Insurance companies CANNOT make you use their preferred shops.
Let the body shop tell you the damage. That is their job.
Tell them you want the alignment checked. They should already be doing it. But not always.
All you are going to get from here is opinions and suggestions. But we are good at that.
 
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Boinked said:
First and for most im glad you and the other driver are ok. Its easier to fix a jeep then a human.


OPINION*******I highly doubt that the side rails of the frame are bent. The rear frame cap will need to be replaced along with the rear gate. And possibly the rear tire hanger. And some paint.

FACTS***** use the body shop YOU want. Insurance companies CANNOT make you use their preferred shops.
Let the body shop tell you the damage. That is their job.
Tell them you want the alignment checked. They should already be doing it. But not always.
All you are going to get from here is opinions and suggestions. But we are good at that.
Click to expand...

The opinions and the suggestions is what I am after :)! That is why I love the forum. People with experience helping others, such as myself with little or no experience.
 
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Tigerman said:
Absolutely, I will ask around for a good body shop. Believe it or not, I have never dealt with body shops before. I had one accident before this in my 2011 FJ Cruiser but that one was totaled. Man I miss that truck...

Anyone form the LA area and can recommend a good place?
Click to expand...

Call around to the local 4x4 shops and you can ask them their suggestion for a body shop. I would try to stick with jeep heavy shops.

EDIT..... you can not go wrong with the dealer (opinion)
 
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Tigerman said:
The opinions and the suggestions is what I am after :)! That is why I love the forum. People with experience helping others, such as myself with little or no experience.
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Yea, the people on this forum are awesome.

Probably a good reminder for everyone here too: Double check your insurance coverage if you haven't done so in a while.

I used to be an insurance agent and a lot of people don't take the time they should to really make sure they have the right coverage, especially since so many people get their coverage at the same time they buy a car. And if you're considering changing insurance companies, talk over your coverage with your current insurance agent or customer service department before switching. Sales agents can all too easily get caught up in closing a deal and may not get you all the coverage you really need.

Shopping around is also often a good way to save money. Many people assume that their coverage should go down over time from being a good driver, but there's a lot of factors that underwriters take into account, so it's not always in your best interests to stick with one company. Also, if you like having a local agent, just realize that you'll probably end up paying more for coverage with a company that has that as an option.
 
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Sorry that my comment is completely unrelated.....I just couldn’t help but notice how clean and bubble-free your tailgate hinges are! Rare sight here in NJ. Like spotting an illusive bird in the wild lol


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@Tigerman

One thing i forgot. If this the first accident for that jeep. You HAVE lost value. You can no longer sell that jeep for the same amount of money as a no accident jeep. You will have to pressure the insurance company and make them pay for the depreciation of value that accident caused you.

The amount of money you will get is negotiable. I highly recommend you do your research on this.

Remember you are the victim. It should not cost you money in any form because someone else hit you.
 
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