Bent Rear Axle

[cornercanyon]

Not unusual to encounter large rocks in the road where I live.

Is there video of that guy with the shovel clearing the road?

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[tehfrr]

Joking aside for a min. If you haven't already, I would have someone who knows what they are doing examine that front end. That's a pretty good hit.

Yeah its been parked at a collision shop for the past week, they have been going over it and expect to have a full report for me by the end of this week. This isnt a fix Id have my buddies or the cheapest guy around do. When all the work is finally done, Ill likely have another shop or the dealership give it a thorough inspection to confirm everything.

 

[tehfrr]

Did this rock jump out on the road? Or were you texting and driving? We gotta know the whole story

Cant definitively pinpoint one thing; a combination of a rural highway that sees more large truck traffic than it was designed for so now there are patterns/dips/bumps that toss you around, around freezing temp, strong gusting side winds, and poor response from being overly fatigued. Police didn't say much aside from giving me a ticket for having my rig off the roadway.

No injuries thankfully. Probably one of the scariest parts was seeing a milk crate with tire chains weighing ~50lbs come flying up into the passenger seat like it was a spitball. Im considering load bars or similar to secure my cargo once I get it back. If I had a passenger this would have had a different outcome.

 

[Rubycon50]

This thread is getting ridiculous. I'm kind of curious what the conspiracy folks think The Real Story is.
I intentionally didn't get into the details of the accident because my post wasn't about that. It was more of "This is my issue what can I realistically expect".

In absence of information, people fill in the gaps with mostly incorrect assumptions. Like a huge rock was in the middle of the street. Or that the Jeep (with me driving) hit said rock perpendicular square on. FYI the other area with major damage aside from the rear axle is the front passenger wheel/tire.

You might ask some questions of the repair shop about the condition of the front axle as well. It's possible it could be bent too. My jeep front bumper was hit by a pick up going about the same speed as you were while the jeep was sitting at a T intersection. It was hard to see but it did bend the axle housing. There was no fixing it as plenty of folks on here have mentioned. At that time I was able to find inventory online and replaced it and also changed the gearing (4.88) at the same time. Your should also ask questions about the condition of the frame (chassis). Mine was bent.
Best of luck.

 

[tehfrr]

You might ask some questions of the repair shop about the condition of the front axle as well. It's possible it could be bent too. My jeep front bumper was hit by a pick up going about the same speed as you were while the jeep was sitting at a T intersection. It was hard to see but it did bend the axle housing. There was no fixing it as plenty of folks on here have mentioned. At that time I was able to find inventory online and replaced it and also changed the gearing (4.88) at the same time. Your should also ask questions about the condition of the frame (chassis). Mine was bent.
Best of luck.

Thanks for the advice, I will be sure to ask when they eventually get back to me with the estimate.

Im expecting it will be repaired vs totaled since there was hardly any body damage. According to the internet anyways body work and paint job supposedly drive the cost up more than anything else. Well see.

 

[mwilk012]

It’s pretty shocking to me that they don’t have a full repair estimate for you yet. It’s been over a week. It should have been put on an alignment rack by now at least.

 

[tehfrr]

It’s pretty shocking to me that they don’t have a full repair estimate for you yet. It’s been over a week. It should have been put on an alignment rack by now at least.

The latest is by this Thursday (1/6) but no promises. Its been with them since 12/22. When I went in person yesterday to ask it was blah blah blah its suspension related those take extra time and we want to be thorough. I called my insurance and asked if this was normal. They called the shop and was told its moving slow because there are a lot more accidents than normal due to the snow and they are slammed.

If they would have just told me that I would have not liked it but accepted it. Not clear why they needed to talk in circles saying a lot of words yet telling me nothing. It just made them seem incompetent or shady.

 

[mwilk012]

I suppose it has been the holidays and such.

 

[falcon241073]

Update??

 

[tehfrr]

Update??

Finally got a quote from the collision shop on 1/13. The quote is for ~3 grand, the work is primarily around replacing the front bumper, bumper brackets, and fog lights. The steel bumper and brackets are apparently bent down. Seems odd the bumper is bent since the only thing Im aware it hit after the rock was a thin metal post that held up barb wire for cows. Anyway, the claims department with my insurance agreed the number looks very low for how hard of a hit it took.

Tires and wheels were already taken care of, I paid to have them replaced right after the accident so I could get it home easier. Whats missing is anything about the rear axle and smashed e brake. It just states there is suspension damage present and will be transported to another shop to assess and repair.

Estimate states 30 days to repair but they told me no promises on that based on availability of the parts. At this point Im looking at least 2 months without the Jeep, probably longer. My insurance has been cool but the collision shop is frustrating.

 

[mwilk012]

Body shops are so bad. I swear their people are huffing paint all day.

A real repair shop needs to fix it. That estimate is too high for bumper replacement anyway.

 

[gsbrockman]

A real repair shop needs to fix it. That estimate is too high for bumper replacement anyway.

Ever hear the term “sublet” ?

 

[mwilk012]

Ever hear the term “sublet” ?

Hear? I’m the ”outside labor” all the time. The body shop makes bank while doing 5% of the work. Insurance is a corrupt racket.

 

[tehfrr]

Update on this one:

After having my Jeep since December, the collision shop calls me on 3/15 to pick it up. I get there, the bumper looks nice, the scratches on the fender are fixed, the interior trip that was scratched up looks good. I look underneath and see the e brake is still smashed.

I asked why the shop they subcontracted it out to didnt fix the e brake. I was told they refused to touch it since the suspension was upgraded and too complex. I ask why wasnt the e brake fixed at least? Them: well the e brake is connected to the suspension somehow and they wont do it, they only work on stock vehicles. Me: So is it roadworthy then? Them: IDK.

I hop in, see the gas gauge lower then ive ever seen it before, limp over to the gas station and then back to my place with it. I start calling other shops, Im hearing places tell me they could look at it early June. This is my daily driver, so I decided to sleep on it and try more the next day.

Next day, I figured Id call the place the collision shop was supposed to send it to. Without telling them all the history, I ask if they are willing and able to work on a Wrangler with an aftermarket lift kit installed that may have an issue with the rear axle. Shop said yeah no problem, just be able to provide part numbers for the lift kit if anything on that needs to be replaced. Bring it by next Monday.

Few days later I go to drive it to the shop. I get maybe 1/3 of the way there and I'm thinking hell no, this isnt safe. I park it, call the shop, have them pick it up on a flatbed, take an uber home.

Followed up with the shop last week, they are waiting for an OK to proceed from insurance. Im told it will need a new rear axle housing, front axle housing, drive shaft, e brake, and a few other misc parts. Estimate came in around $10,000. (in addition to the ~$5,000 already paid to the collision shop).

Called the claims dept with my insurance. They told me they will approve, and they haven't come close to needing to run the numbers for possibly totaling it. The shop told me they can swap an axle in about 3 hours, so I guess Ill find out. No clue how long the parts will take to arrive.

Who knows when Ill see my Jeep again, not me..

 

[mwilk012]

Update on this one:

After having my Jeep since December, the collision shop calls me on 3/15 to pick it up. I get there, the bumper looks nice, the scratches on the fender are fixed, the interior trip that was scratched up looks good. I look underneath and see the e brake is still smashed.

I asked why the shop they subcontracted it out to didnt fix the e brake. I was told they refused to touch it since the suspension was upgraded and too complex. I ask why wasnt the e brake fixed at least? Them: well the e brake is connected to the suspension somehow and they wont do it, they only work on stock vehicles. Me: So is it roadworthy then? Them: IDK.

I hop in, see the gas gauge lower then ive ever seen it before, limp over to the gas station and then back to my place with it. I start calling other shops, Im hearing places tell me they could look at it early June. This is my daily driver, so I decided to sleep on it and try more the next day.

Next day, I figured Id call the place the collision shop was supposed to send it to. Without telling them all the history, I ask if they are willing and able to work on a Wrangler with an aftermarket lift kit installed that may have an issue with the rear axle. Shop said yeah no problem, just be able to provide part numbers for the lift kit if anything on that needs to be replaced. Bring it by next Monday.

Few days later I go to drive it to the shop. I get maybe 1/3 of the way there and I'm thinking hell no, this isnt safe. I park it, call the shop, have them pick it up on a flatbed, take an uber home.

Followed up with the shop last week, they are waiting for an OK to proceed from insurance. Im told it will need a new rear axle housing, front axle housing, drive shaft, e brake, and a few other misc parts. Estimate came in around $10,000. (in addition to the ~$5,000 already paid to the collision shop).

Called the claims dept with my insurance. They told me they will approve, and they haven't come close to needing to run the numbers for possibly totaling it. The shop told me they can swap an axle in about 3 hours, so I guess Ill find out. No clue how long the parts will take to arrive.

Who knows when Ill see my Jeep again, not me..

Did your originally approved insurance estimate not cover any of the drivetrain components? Was it strictly body and paint, wheels, etc?

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