Rear Trail Control Arm Frame Repair

R

Ryan Finnegan

New Member
Joined
Jan 21, 2018
Messages
7
Location
Haddon Heights, NJ, United States
So I bought a new Jeep, Im a first time jeep owner. Its a 97 wrangler 4x4 with the 4 cylinder engine. There are some issues with the frame on the drives side rear trail control arm. Here are a few pics

does anyone have any idea how much this would cost to repair? I looked online and it seems to be a pretty common occurrence on TJ's. I saw this thing online where you just weld this on to the existing frame (or whats left of it).
But how much would a body shop charge to do this repair? Thanks

IMG_3039.jpg
 
Last edited:
I don't see any photos either. Looks like you copied the picture links straight from Google Mail. That's not going to work because your Google mail is private and only you can see it. You have to upload the photos to the forum directly using the "Upload a File" button, right next to the "Post Reply" button.
 
Holy cow... that's bad... like really bad, to the point of being dangerous.

You need a SafeTCap to repair it correctly:
https://www.autorust.com/product-category/jeep/jeep-tj/

Either that or a new frame.

You're going to get varying costs on repairing that. Anything from $500 to $4000, honestly. I've seen people post quotes they had to repair similar issues and there is no right answer here. I wouldn't touch that for less than several thousand. In my opinion though I'd just find a clean frame and swap it in. Rust is like cancer. If it has that level of rust, you can expect that there's other areas of the frame you can't visually see that are just as bad.

That thing needs a new frame IMHO.

But to answer your question, if you want that taken care of the right way, no reputable body shop would charge less than several thousand. There's tons of work there, way more than you think.
 
You can find rust free frames for around $1000-$2500. Of course installing a new frame is a huge project, and lots of labor! That cost I gave was just the frame itself, not the labor.

Even if you bought a SafeTCap and welded it on without getting rid of the rust that's there, it wouldn't hold up. That rust is so bad that you need an entire section cut out of the frame. No one would touch that for less than $1000... Well, no one with any real skill.

I don't want to disappoint, but that's just the cold hard truth. Lots of labor there for sure.
 
Your best bet id's to find a shop that specializes in jeeps, and have them go over it. It looks pretty bad to me too. Like dangerous bad.

My uncle bought a TJ that had cracked in two under the transmission skid plate. He found two frames, and traded a local shop one of the frames for the labor of replacing his bad one with the other.

Be creative.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 05 Blue Unlimited and Chris
Get a ball peen hammer and whack the rest of the frame to see if anywhere else pops through.
Drop the skid plate to see if it rot is hiding there.

If you are a fitter/welder, that is fixable. If not. it is not a repair to learn on unless you have plenty of time.

I would not drive that in any area with other vehicles, or at speeds greater that 30.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Chris
the rest of the frame is in perfect condition. I dont think a new frame would be worth it or necessary. That is the only bad spot on the entire frame...its weird...like it was parked in a puddle but only at that one spot! when i saw that, I said "the rest of the frame has to be trashed" but then I looked and it was actually in surprisingly great condition! How much do you guys think a SafeT cap would cost if I took it to a shop?
 
Why don’t you take it by some shops and get multiple quotes? I’ll bet dollars to donuts no one will touch it for less than $1000.
 
  • Like
Reactions: EJD
Ryan Finnegan said:
the rest of the frame is in perfect condition. I dont think a new frame would be worth it or necessary. That is the only bad spot on the entire frame...its weird...like it was parked in a puddle but only at that one spot! when i saw that, I said "the rest of the frame has to be trashed" but then I looked and it was actually in surprisingly great condition! How much do you guys think a SafeT cap would cost if I took it to a shop?
Click to expand...
TJ frames rust from the inside out, it’s always much worse than it appears.

Chris said:
Why don’t you take it by some shops and get multiple quotes? I’ll bet dollars to donuts no one will touch it for less than $1000.
Click to expand...
X2, and if someone says it will only cost a couple hundred dollars you should run. It costs quite a bit to do it properly.
 
  • Like
Reactions: derekmac and Chris
James is right. Your frame might look perfect, but they rust from the inside out. I have no doubt whatsoever that if the rust is that bad in one area, that if you took a camera inside of the frame, it’s likely just as bad, but hasn’t broken through to the outside of the frame yet.

Take it to a number of local shops and get quotes. But be prepared to spend at least $1000 or more. That’s not going to be easy or cheap to fix.
 
  • Like
Reactions: derekmac and JamesAndTheSahara
Before you do anything, take a big flat head screwdriver and start vigorously poking all over the frame, or a hammer and give good hard smacks all over. These frames usually rot from the inside out, and it's common for it to look good on the outside, but not be structurally sound.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Ryan Finnegan and Chris
I poked around the frame, really jabbed it hard and it seems to be very solid. Its just that one portion of the trail arm mount that's bad. You guys think it woulnd be at least 1000 to fix?

Is it safe to drive around to a few body shops around me? or should I take pictures and show it to the technicians?
 
I don't think it would be at least $1000... I know it would be.

That's some serious repair work and labor right there, for real.

I wouldn't drive it personally. That thing looks dangerously rusted. I mean if you've been driving it like it is for a while now, then I would say yes, go ahead and drive it to some body shops. However, if you took delivery of it this way and haven't driven it at all, then I wouldn't bother, I'd just send them photos.

But yeah, you definitely need to get some quotes. You're going to find that the prices vary greatly from shop-to-shop. But like I said, anyone who charges you less than $1000, likely doesn't know what they're doing (or their time just isn't worth anything to them).
 
  • Like
Reactions: EJD, Ryan Finnegan and JamesAndTheSahara
Absolutely, that STC section alone will cost $400+ because its more than just the rear trail arm thats rusted, its more into the center skid area too. I guarantee that if you attempt to unbolt the 6 skid plate bolts all of them will spin and you will see the horror that lies beneath that plate.

Anyway you'll need to replace that whole section from the center skid with the rear trail arm attached. That plus labor is going to run you around a $G. Unless you have a welder and skills, that is what your looking at.
 
Top Bottom
Back