Bent axle?

[Germyjimmy]

So I had a side swipe on the freeway today, and the driver on my right pushed me into the left lane into a big rig. The truck that pushed me was a Nissan frontier. He sustained some damage from my 37’s lol. But I seem to have come out scot free except my steering wheel is a couple degrees to the right now when driving straight. I figure I can make the adjustment to fix that, I want to avoid involving insurance but I want to be sure my axle wasn’t bent when I got sandwiched, before I decided to avoid the insurance hassle altogether. Is there any way I can check if it’s bent without having to go to a shop? I have a fair amount of tools but unsure how to check. The Jeep seems to be driving straight but it was hard to tell cause I didn’t get above 35 mph on the remainder of the drive home. I attached pic of the damage to the other guy. My Jeep only has a slight scuff on the front passenger rim

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[Germyjimmy]

I want to avoid insurance if possible but if my axle is bent I’d like to. Check before I go that route. He seemed to not involve insurance either

 

[Gregj]

I want to avoid insurance if possible but if my axle is bent I’d like to. Check before I go that route. He seemed to not involve insurance either

I hope there is a police report, they always change their mind about insurance after leaving the scene of the accident.
Gregj

 

[Germyjimmy]

No no report but I think it was equal part fault tbh

 

[Gregj]

That’s not how they will describe it. Sorry to be a downer but that’s how it happens.
Gregj

 

[nsfw_andy]

I'm no expert, but the first and easiest things I would do (besides a visual check) are:
* Check for bent control arms and brackets
* Jack the axle up and spin the wheels to see if tires wobble.
* Take measurements of both outer Cs to see if they are in spec of each other to see if one of them got bent.

 

[Germyjimmy]

Measuring the outer c’s am I measuring vertically to see if they are similar measurements?

 

[Gregj]

It is not unusual for the wheel to be off a few degrees after an impact like that. Pretty easy to straighten, just loosen the bolt on the collar on the drag link and turn the adjuster till the wheel is straight ahead. Have an alignment shop put it on the rack and they can tell you if it is bent.
Gregj

 

[Germyjimmy]

Cool! I’ll check and report back thanks !!!

 

[DonH63]

Chances are tie rods and other components would bend before the axle, and a bent axle would IME (don't ask) create a horrendous shimmy/wobble/grinding instability when driving.

 

[Old Jeeper]

So I had a side swipe on the freeway today, and the driver on my right pushed me into the left lane into a big rig. The truck that pushed me was a Nissan frontier. He sustained some damage from my 37’s lol. But I seem to have come out scot free except my steering wheel is a couple degrees to the right now when driving straight. I figure I can make the adjustment to fix that, I want to avoid involving insurance but I want to be sure my axle wasn’t bent when I got sandwiched, before I decided to avoid the insurance hassle altogether. Is there any way I can check if it’s bent without having to go to a shop? I have a fair amount of tools but unsure how to check. The Jeep seems to be driving straight but it was hard to tell cause I didn’t get above 35 mph on the remainder of the drive home. I attached pic of the damage to the other guy. My Jeep only has a slight scuff on the front passenger rim

I doubt you have a bent axle. Easy to check:

By yourself: Jack up wheel(s), spin it look for wobble

Got a friend: Drive on flat surface, look for the wobble.

More likely your Pittman arm needs to be adjusted.

Turn the Steering wheel to the exact center. Lock it. Get under the steering box and look at the position of the Pittman arm and then adjust the drag link.

Let us know if this solves your issue...

 

[Germyjimmy]

So finally have an update, sorry for the slow response. The axle is still straight !? and the accident was deemed to be the other drivers fault!!! I haven’t had time to make the pitman arm adjustment. But I did Jack it up and there is no wobble. Had my wife drive it and I followed behind and the tires have no wobble either so hooray! Thanks y’all for your input. Curious if anybody has a dash cam suggestion that isn’t crazy expensive

 

[Mudduck]

So finally have an update, sorry for the slow response. The axle is still straight !? and the accident was deemed to be the other drivers fault!!! I haven’t had time to make the pitman arm adjustment. But I did Jack it up and there is no wobble. Had my wife drive it and I followed behind and the tires have no wobble either so hooray! Thanks y’all for your input. Curious if anybody has a dash cam suggestion that isn’t crazy expensive

I have 4 Garmin Minis. They all Bluetooth to each other. Small, out of the way and the App works well. I think the Gen 1 runs about $90. there's also a hardwire cable/Box for $25 and it records motion and impact while parked.

 

[Germyjimmy]

Vid quality good at night?

 

[Mudduck]

Vid quality good at night?

Its not 4K, but its decent. I can make out a LP from 60-75' away.

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