The death of a jeep

[Hubbazoot]

Rear ended someone today, early assessments of damage are running about $600~700 for parts alone, assuming I do all work myself. As for labor, that runs another 30 hours or so, just on my end of the vehicle. That does not include any time spent rummaging for parts at the junkyard. So, for parts + "labor," I'm looking at roughly a cost of 800 or so, and that's assuming all damage done is visible, which I know it isn't.

What happened: I was in the far right lane of wadsworth heading north about a block north of pomona dr. I was watching the car on my left whose back end was about in line with the front of my jeep (not a collision factor, just in the next lane) and was signaling, and had been for some time, to make a right turn/lane change (where I was.). After looking over at them, I looked back in front of me to see that the car in front of me had slammed on their brakes. I slammed on mine, but to no avail. I rear ended them at a collision speed of about 30mph, sending them swerving over into the next lane where they clipped the front right fender of the car that had the extended signal business, sending the car signaling into the middle of the yellow lines. Both me and the car I rear-ended were able to move off to the side of the road. Pics to come when I feel like uploading them. Really not in the mood right now.

[YELLAHEEP]

That sucks brutha. Sorry to hear it.

Yeah, a 30mph hit with that bumper you had on the front is likely to have caused damage to the unibody - probably best to let it go and get a different XJ.

Lemme know if you need anything, help, trailer/tow or whatever. Wish I had a cheap rig for ya.

[Frank Z]

Rigs can be replaced, people can't. Sorry about your rig but glad you're okay. I'll keep my eyes open down here for a cheap heep for ya.

[Jawa]

Dang... right after you got that gas tank skid on too!

[Hubbazoot]

Dang... right after you got that gas tank skid on too!
Ironically enough, putting on that front skid would have prevented a lot of this damage.......

[Hubbazoot]

Confirmed damaged parts:
Left fender
Left fog light
Left horn
Radiator
Wiring in front of radiator (forget what it's for)
Power steering pump bent
Power steering box bent
Radiator cracked
Dented wheel, bead bent back causing leak
Left wheel well
Grill cracked
Front piece above grill cracked
hood dented and scratched
Left headlight assembly
License plate receiver/plate
Tie rod sheared
Alignment

Possibly damaged parts:
Other parts along steering line

My current estimates for parts are now running about $700 in just parts alone, assuming I have seen all the damage done. Estimated time for replacing damaged components will run me approximately 30 hours labor. Any help to get this thing back up and running as soon as possible and as cheap as possible would be greatly appreciated.

http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident008.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident009.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident010.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident011.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident012.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident013.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident015.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/accident016.jpg

[YELLAHEEP]

Ouch! That sucks brutha.

Yeah, from what I can see..... It's not likely to be worth repairing. Shame, because that was a fairly clean older rig.

Wish I had a cheap rig for ya. All I have is a rusty, banged up '93 with 315K miles on it and a blown clutch slave cylinder and mis-matched doors, and a '91 with no motor, wiring harness, rear bumper or seats........ and no title.

[YELLAHEEP]

Ironically enough, putting on that front skid would have prevented a lot of this damage.......

No..... it wouldn't have. Woulda bound up your steering much worse. You gotta remember - your front bumper took the brunt of the impact. Since the bumper wasn't going to be crushing like the factory one would have - the unibody had to absorb the impact. The front skid would have simply moved backward into the tierod and drag link. I've got a front-hit '98 at my lot and all the skid plates. The front skid moved back about 2" into the steering linkages.

[Skully]

That sucks dude :eye:..........there was a guy on my route to work with a white '92 four door for sale. I will stop by and see how much he wants for it, get a number, and let you know.

browse craiglist there seems to be always somebody selling.

All I have is a rusty, banged up '93 with 315K miles on it and a blown clutch slave cylinder and mis-matched doors,

Is that one Red with blue doors? .........sounds familiar? :shhh:

[Hypoid]

Ouch! That sucks brutha.

Yeah, from what I can see..... It's not likely to be worth repairing. Shame, because that was a fairly clean older rig.

X2, you can get another jeep for that much. At least you have parts to transfer over before you get rid of this one, that's money you don't have to spend tiwce.

BTW, I might be looking for a running engine in the near future, there's some cash you can recover. ;)

[Hubbazoot]

Looks like my pops is gonna spring to have it fixed professionally. I will keep you up to date on how this goes.

Edit: we're going to do a damage assessment tues. night, then we'll go from there.

[Hubbazoot]

Update: Damage not as bad as first thought, tie rod is fine. I need a new power steering pump, p/s box, and radiator to get it running (haven't gotten an estimate for that yet.). As for the body damage, looking at about $120 to replace all those parts. I believe the wire that got pinched in the grill is responsible for the driver's side fog light and horn not working, but that should be an easy fix. As for the wheel....if I can find the same style wheel there, it should cost me about $20 to get that replaced.

As for the damaged parts essential to vehicle movement, that is another story. I know for the pump, they'll want about $125. For the box, probably about another 200, and then probably roughly the same for the radiator. total for getting it working: about $500.

Grand sum for damages as estimated so far: about $650.

[Hubbazoot]

Update: damage not as near as bad as initially thought, need a new radiator, serpentine fan (not the clutch), fender, and header. Total damage is only about $150 :D

yaaay!!

[Kittrell]

Thank you Troy for the estimate............;)

[YELLAHEEP]

Yeah, I went up to Saudi-fricken-Arvada and looked over John's XJ.

Unibody is actually just fine - guess the car he hit was soft as tin foil...... :D

Just a bunch of removal and replacement of parts and a little minor bending here and there.

I guess he's gonna do the repairs at his place, so get with John if you wanna help him strip it down and put it back together. I'm gonna try to go up there Saturday sometime...... IF he is able to find ALL the parts he needs.

Is anyone available Friday to give the poor youngun a ride to the junk yard?

[Hypoid]

Update: damage not as near as bad as initially thought, need a new radiator, serpentine fan (not the clutch), fender, and header. Total damage is only about $150 :D

yaaay!!That is a tall order for a JY item, BTDT. I could weld up one of my old ones, but I can't be there to make any adjustments. Last time I needed one in a hurry I went to my local Advance Auto and paid the price for new.

just my .02

[Kittrell]

That is a tall order for a JY item, BTDT. I could weld up one of my old ones, but I can't be there to make any adjustments. Last time I needed one in a hurry I went to my local Advance Auto and paid the price for new.

just my .02

I think he means the front header panel, or front valence Mike.............;)

[Hypoid]

header PANEL...gotcha! LOL

[Hubbazoot]

Yeah bad syntax. I was indeed talking about the header panel. As for the $150, that was the j/y price before adjusting it for the 25% off sale they'll be having this week :D

Edit: Saudi-Arvada, I like it :)

As for that ride on friday, I sure would appreciate it for helping me get parts pulled, I'll pay for gas and entry fees and such. Hell, I'll even toss in lunch.

[Kiefer316]

hey maybe you can even find a few extra parts that you may need or shute some spare parts you may need with the money you save you can get more parts with it :) just what i would do...

[Hubbazoot]

hey maybe you can even find a few extra parts that you may need or shute some spare parts you may need with the money you save you can get more parts with it :) just what i would do...
I'm thinking about poking a look around for a class III hitch, we'll see but money is tight. Anyone up for some yard diving either friday morning or saturday morning? I'll pay food, gas, etc.

[Kiefer316]

i would be down but i gotta work on friday... and depends on what yard i gotta find some wheels...

[Hubbazoot]

i would be down but i gotta work on friday... and depends on what yard i gotta find some wheels...
I'm thinking the u pull and pay near airport road and colfax. It's a way out there but I believe they have a silver renix in supply....

[Hubbazoot]

Two things: UPaP is having a BOGO sale. Yay.

Pics after having yanked all the bad parts. Also got the serpentine back on track.
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/bigrepair005.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/bigrepair006.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/bigrepair007.jpg
http://i28.photobucket.com/albums/c221/korinthan/Jeep/bigrepair008.jpg

[YELLAHEEP]

See John? It's not a big deal to fix that stuff on your own. :thumbup:

That last pic, are you showing us the loose and possibly bent bumper bracket bolt? Man, that bumper has some serious bracing. That certainly helped to distribute the impact.

You'll have that XJ back together in no time. I hope all the silver painted parts are still there for ya at the yard.

[Hubbazoot]

See John? It's not a big deal to fix that stuff on your own. :thumbup:

That last pic, are you showing us the loose and possibly bent bumper bracket bolt? Man, that bumper has some serious bracing. That certainly helped to distribute the impact.

You'll have that XJ back together in no time. I hope all the silver painted parts are still there for ya at the yard.
The bumper has a lifetime warranty not to bend (still can't find the brand!!). I am loving that bumper more and more. Still can't figure out how to get the hood off. Looks like the release latch was attached with pop rivets. That bolt is bent in that photo. I'll take those out and replace them with some grade 8 hardware, but that's a project for later down the road. Took about 3 hours to rip everything off. I was able to get that unibody piece bent straight by just pulling on it, no contraptions needed.

[YELLAHEEP]

The hood release cable bracket:

Leave it on there, just grab it and bend it down an inch or two to give you room to get at the cable end. Then use a flat blade screwdriver, place the blade against the white or black plastic fitting holding the cable to the bracket, and pop the end of the screwdriver with the palm of your hand - it'll come right out. Then just lift and twist the barrel end of the cable out of the lever.

[Hubbazoot]

The hood release cable bracket:

Leave it on there, just grab it and bend it down an inch or two to give you room to get at the cable end. Then use a flat blade screwdriver, place the blade against the white or black plastic fitting holding the cable to the bracket, and pop the end of the screwdriver with the palm of your hand - it'll come right out. Then just lift and twist the barrel end of the cable out of the lever.
Uses steel rivets to attach. I may have to do a little surgery with a grinder.

[YELLAHEEP]

Uses steel rivets to attach. I may have to do a little surgery with a grinder.


NO NO NO! DO NOT GRIND, CUT, CHISEL - NONE OF THAT!

Read my instructions junior! I said leave the bracket on the hood - just bend it down a little so you can get at the cable end.

:twak:


:D

[Hubbazoot]

Yes sir! http://i192.photobucket.com/albums/z167/jj74gt/salute-2.gif