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OMFG! My Mom Backed Into My Truck

cervelo15

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Lets just say, yesterday sucked. I found out I needed a root canal, and after parking at my parents house to pick them up with my daughter for a nice night out, my mom backed into my truck!!!!!

It took every shred of me to keep cool.

I have questions now:
1. Would there be any damage to the frame, like warping or anything? She basically backed up, and hit the bumper part and pushed it in on the passenger side. If I had to guess, the hit was along the lines of <5mph. I think the hitch receiver took some Of the blow and from what I could see, the bumper itself bent back, not so much the bumper mounts to the frame.
2. Trying to decide if I should go through insurance or if it’s just easier and cheaper to fix it on my own. Do they sell the entire bumper assembly? Does it come pre-painted in the granite Crystal color? The trIm pieces are all warped on the passenger side and when I was rooting around under there, a black plastic piece that looks like it snapped off fell out. So I think I need the entire assembly.
3. Or should I just bag the OEM route and look for an aftermarket, HD bumper? Any good options for that?

The only interference I see is when closing the tailgate is it catches the top of my license plate. I guess I can’t be mad, it was a mistake. But hoping to get it fixed as soon as possible.
 

JerryBsizzle

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My thoughts,

1. No, something like a fender bender in the parking lot isn't going to bend the frame. I had a 2013 that had the frame bent by a 1990 Suburban doing 30 mph quartering into me. A 5mph hit is nothing.
2. Start pricing it and you will quickly realize that deductible isn't so bad. I had some shingles fly off and hit my other truck, put some scratches in the rear pillar and a couple of chips and scratched the windshield. Estimates were $1700-$3000. That involded just paint and windshield replacement!
3. Now is the time to do it if you are going to make the swap.
 

c3k

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First thing to remember, is that woman sacrificed her body to bear you inside of her. Then, she went through a bit of discomfort to bring you into this world. We'll gloss over all the other bits and end with the part where she accidentally bent some painted sheet metal to which you're emotionally attached.

Struggle to keep cool? How about laugh, give her a hug, and ask if that makes you guys even with one another?

Perspective...

Now, sure, I won't be happy when my truck gets dinged. Nope.

For your damage, if you've got any skill with wrenching, it's pretty easy. No pix, so can only guess at the damage. I would not go through insurance. Get to a pay and pull yard and grab a bumper. If you have ANY desire to swap an aftermarket bumper on, well, this should be all the impetus you need to do it now.

Then, thank your Mom for all she's done for you.
 

cervelo15

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First thing to remember, is that woman sacrificed her body to bear you inside of her. Then, she went through a bit of discomfort to bring you into this world. We'll gloss over all the other bits and end with the part where she accidentally bent some painted sheet metal to which you're emotionally attached.

Struggle to keep cool? How about laugh, give her a hug, and ask if that makes you guys even with one another?

Perspective...

Now, sure, I won't be happy when my truck gets dinged. Nope.

For your damage, if you've got any skill with wrenching, it's pretty easy. No pix, so can only guess at the damage. I would not go through insurance. Get to a pay and pull yard and grab a bumper. If you have ANY desire to swap an aftermarket bumper on, well, this should be all the impetus you need to do it now.

Then, thank your Mom for all she's done for you.
I totally agree with you and we actually had a great time afterwards. I appreciate you putting it into perspective for me. In hindsight, I was probably too hasty saying I was in a situation to keep my cool. Mistakes happen and I'm chalking this up to that. I apologize for coming across as crass.

Just called the dealer and for the bumper assy in the correct color with the step pad would run $876 total. Bumper would be next day and he'd have to make some calls to get the step pad faster because its on 40 day backorder.

I did do some light research and I'm liking the looks of the HD bumpers, so I may just upgrade to that. I found this one, which has built in recovery points (good to have in case i need them someday). ANyone have experience with this?:


So the price for replacement of OEM vs aftermarket is about even. I've never done anything like this, are HD/off-road bumper legal? Would I run into legal/inspection issues if I decided to go this route?
 

70runner

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Another consideration, when/if you get around to selling/trading, the insurance claim for the minor bumper bender will show up on carfax as an accident. That can be a negotiating benefit for the buyer. DAMHIK.

Make sure the aftermarket bumper will accommodate any sensors in the OE bumper.

As to frame damage, likely not, but I'd be tempted to run it through a frame shop for peace of mind.
 

Camelot

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My advice,
Its a truck / transportation so I would not loose any sleep over it. (at least that is how I feel about any four wheel transportation)

No frame damage from that slow hit.

I would just pay for it out of pocket and have the dealer fix it.
 

mikeru82

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I totally agree with you and we actually had a great time afterwards. I appreciate you putting it into perspective for me. In hindsight, I was probably too hasty saying I was in a situation to keep my cool. Mistakes happen and I'm chalking this up to that. I apologize for coming across as crass.

Just called the dealer and for the bumper assy in the correct color with the step pad would run $876 total. Bumper would be next day and he'd have to make some calls to get the step pad faster because its on 40 day backorder.

I did do some light research and I'm liking the looks of the HD bumpers, so I may just upgrade to that. I found this one, which has built in recovery points (good to have in case i need them someday). ANyone have experience with this?:


So the price for replacement of OEM vs aftermarket is about even. I've never done anything like this, are HD/off-road bumper legal? Would I run into legal/inspection issues if I decided to go this route?
I'm probably in the minority but other than the corner steps I'm not a fan of that bumper. Too many severe angles means it doesn't flow well with the lines of the truck. I'm sure it's very functional, and will work just fine though. What matters is whether or not you like it though. I might have a different opinion if it had an aftermarket front bumper as well. Might also have a different opinion if it was going on a Rebel.
 

cervelo15

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All good info which I appreciate, which is why I love this forum and post this stuff on here. I've settled on not going the insurance route, since the replacement parts (OEM/AFTERMARKET/SCRAP YARD) look to be under $1000.

@mikeru82 I was never a fan of these bumpers in my career of owning trucks because I never understood them. But for some reason, they've grown on me a little bit. I think part of it is the increased durability. Another part is I've done some mods on my truck already, so this would just be another thing to add to the resume. I read in another post the overwhelming flimsiness of the OEM bumper, which explains why it gave so easy.

I took some pics this morning and in the one pic, I marked up in blue the areas the are showing damage. If you focus on the license plate, you'll see its ****ed slightly to the left. The blue lines at the top of the step plate are contributing to the interference with the bottom of the tailgate at close (makes a god awful crack from catching the license plate):
truck1.jpg

Here's where the separation of the step plate was from the bumper.
truck2.jpg

Note the bend in the bottom of the bumper near the hitch receiver:
truck3.jpg
 
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c3k

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Best looking fix: get the dealer to order it. (Your paint looks great, and fresh. That'll match it.) If they'll do the fix, that's great, but that'll also be the highest cost.

2nd best: dealer provides a new, painted, bumper. You have a different shop (or yourself) swap it.

Long shot: A truck just like yours, same color too, is totalled in a yard and the rear bumper is undamaged and waiting for you to buy it for $50. ;)

Otherwise, a good body shop can swap on any bumper and match the paint very well. (Since the bumper "floats" (not touching any other body panels), any slight paint mismatch will be unnoticeable. Modern computerized paint matching systems are VERY good.)
 

Mountain Whiskey

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Yup. Frame is trashed. Truck is totaled. Done. Toast. Since you are a forum member I'll do you a solid. I have a buddy that runs a wrecker service. I'll send him by tomorrow, just sign his waiver and he'll pick it up for you. Free of charge. Because you're a member here and he's a good friend of mine. Don't you worry about a thing. We'll get rid of that junk for you.
 

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