Well it happened, every beater’s nightmare, somebody ran into me and caused more body damage than my XJ is officially “worth.” So they’re going to total it and I’m gonna buy it back and so I get a few hundred bucks and then I need to get it fixed.
My question is, what kind of real mechanical damage am I probably looking at (I don’t care about the body, I can live with bolting on different color salvage body parts). Also, can somebody give me some hints on what to look for on each possible problem so I can do a quick eval when I’m negotiating with the insurance guy in the next couple of days.
The other car hit me square on the right rear corner. I was stopped, waiting to turn, and he hit me at about 40 MPH. (The a-hole actually swerved around two other cars that were stopped behind me so he could hit me – how’s that for luck?) He broke my right-rear wheel, bent it up and broke off pieces, and destroyed the bumper area and bent up the bottom of the hatch.
Obviously, first thing is the frame’s probably tweaked, but the doors still open and shut (with difficulty – they used to be so smooth). Any axle or drive train damage? How would I know from a quick look? At a minimum all the brake parts are probably screwed up and unusable. I have a trailer hitch installed, could some of the support for that be messed up? Gas tank dented? Not much else in that right rear area, right?
Any suggestions on things that might be damaged and what to look for would be appreciated. Also advice on how best to repair it, if you have special knowledge or have done it before. I’ve got the FSM and other manuals for my year.
My question is, what kind of real mechanical damage am I probably looking at (I don’t care about the body, I can live with bolting on different color salvage body parts). Also, can somebody give me some hints on what to look for on each possible problem so I can do a quick eval when I’m negotiating with the insurance guy in the next couple of days.
The other car hit me square on the right rear corner. I was stopped, waiting to turn, and he hit me at about 40 MPH. (The a-hole actually swerved around two other cars that were stopped behind me so he could hit me – how’s that for luck?) He broke my right-rear wheel, bent it up and broke off pieces, and destroyed the bumper area and bent up the bottom of the hatch.
Obviously, first thing is the frame’s probably tweaked, but the doors still open and shut (with difficulty – they used to be so smooth). Any axle or drive train damage? How would I know from a quick look? At a minimum all the brake parts are probably screwed up and unusable. I have a trailer hitch installed, could some of the support for that be messed up? Gas tank dented? Not much else in that right rear area, right?
Any suggestions on things that might be damaged and what to look for would be appreciated. Also advice on how best to repair it, if you have special knowledge or have done it before. I’ve got the FSM and other manuals for my year.