I've damaged my girl!

[Nelsonmd]

Spun out on the highway and hit the guardrail. Fortunately there was a big snowbank, so I rode up the snowbank and came to rest on top of the guardrail. I backed down the snowbank, and continued driving to work.

Did a bit of damage to the front bumper. Broke off the pass. wheel flare front piece.

broke the bumper in a couple places, and now the front section doesn't fit quite flush anymore.

Here's a couple of the breaks

It also broke the lower bumper mounts, and pushed in the passenger side fog light. I will have to get under there and fix some of this once it warms up a bit.

The flare piece I lost costs about $45, and I might be able to replace the broken bumper mounts with a fiberglass kit once it warms up, but I am kind of thinking about taking the opportunity to get an aftermarket bumper.

I seem to remember people talking about insurance implications of getting an aftermarket bumper, but I can't find that thread anymore. Anyone know if it could cause me problems?

 

[Satter]

I'm just glad you're okay, MD. Could've been much worse. Doesn't look that bad. Flare and brackets should be easy to replace. Are you going to do it yourself?

 

[rajuncajun]

That's a kick in the teeth, but definitely could be much worse.

Important thing is nobody was hurt.

 

[JohnsD90]

I said it in a recent thread but i read it in other threads, the most compliant bumper with airbags and insurance would be the ARB, because they develop their bumpers to have crumple points and that the airbag will deploy at the right time, but the bumper was made for a Tacoma so you have to alter your frame rails to fit it, so even the ARB might not be compliant, but i would ask your insurer their opinion, and if they say you can do it, get it in writing for if you have a crash and they wanna back down.

 

[Kmvreter]

... so I rode up the snowbank and came to rest on top of the guardrail. I backed down the snowbank, and continued driving to work...

Glad to see the T4R can take a hit. Can't answer your bumper question.

Aside from the body work I would make getting the alignment checked a priority. It's obviously driveable but why risk ruining a set of tires due to bad wear after an impact like that.

 

[Nelsonmd]

That's a kick in the teeth, but definitely could be much worse.

Important thing is nobody was hurt.

Yeah, I probably should have been a bit more shaken up than I was, cause it very easily could have been alot worse. I got lucky and there was very little traffic.

I definitely learned a lesson though. If it is at all slick out, put it in 4WD and stay below 50. I got caught because the road was plowed nicely, and traffic was moving, but then the plows exited and I hit some slick stuff immediately.

Yeah, I am not going buy a new bumper for sure, unless I get an aftermarket. This thing will get hit again, so there is no point paying for new. I will do what I can on my own, then just live with what I can't, but I don't expect this to be too hard.

 

[KellyJ]

That sucks. Luckily there was a big snow bank in between you and the guard rail. I was the person considering the ARB but couldn't decide whether or not to get it because of what my insurance said, but i found out that the ARB is made with (At least) the Tacoma's frame in mind, which is similar to that of a 4Runner, which is why it'll work on the 4R. Now, does this mean the ARB might make the 4R's airbags deploy at a time other than what has been set by the factory? I dunno, but I don't wanna find out. Once my ARB is on I'm not planning on slamming it up into much stuff really, since it probably has made the front a lot more sensitive to the sensor. Airbag sensors track how quickly you go from moving to stopped, and you're gonna stop a lot faster with a quote, un-quote, "solid" ARB bumper than you would with a quote, un-quote, "soft" bumper, (i.e., the stock plastic one).

So will it throw off the sensors that deploy your air bags? Yes , most likely , but when you modify your truck from anything other than 100% factory, you are putting the years of designing the 3rd gen. on the back burner and "prioritizing" what you think is the best / what you want for your 4R. It's a crap shoot either way but if you have the funds / need for the ARB, go ahead and get it for yourself! I ended up just saying "F it" , and caved for the ARB after screwing up my front end as you have.

:roadkill:

 

[Nelsonmd]

That sucks. Luckily there was a big snow bank in between you and the guard rail. I was the person considering the ARB but couldn't decide whether or not to get it because of what my insurance said, but i found out that the ARB is made with (At least) the Tacoma's frame in mind, which is similar to that of a 4Runner, which is why it'll work on the 4R. Now, does this mean the ARB might make the 4R's airbags deploy at a time other than what has been set by the factory? I dunno, but I don't wanna find out. Once my ARB is on I'm not planning on slamming it up into much stuff really, since it probably has made the front a lot more sensitive to the sensor. Airbag sensors track how quickly you go from moving to stopped, and you're gonna stop a lot faster with a quote, un-quote, "solid" ARB bumper than you would with a quote, un-quote, "soft" bumper, (i.e., the stock plastic one).

So will it throw off the sensors that deploy your air bags? Yes , most likely , but when you modify your truck from anything other than 100% factory, you are putting the years of designing the 3rd gen. on the back burner and "prioritizing" what you think is the best / what you want for your 4R. It's a crap shoot either way but if you have the funds / need for the ARB, go ahead and get it for yourself! I ended up just saying "F it" , and caved for the ARB after screwing up my front end as you have.

:roadkill:

Yeah, I understand the airbag thing, and the decreased energy dissipation of the aftermarket bumpers, but my main concern is really just the money. Will insurance not cover fender benders, will it cost me more each month, that kind if thing. I guess I will just have to ask them.

 

[theizzardking]

dude that sucks nelson, i'm sorry man, as other are saying at least you are ok and the damage is minimal when all things are considered.
Just sucks that's it's more money to fix something you weren't really even interested in, in the first place. lol
oh well at least now you can get an OL or arb bumper and have a good reason for it, that's kind of a bonus right?!?!?! lol, anyways, hope it all goes well and glad everyone is ok!
cheers!

 

[Hepar]

Oh man. Sorry to hear that, but definitely glad you're ok. Could have been a lot worse.

If you're still interested in that thread, here is is:
http://www.toyota-4runner.org/3rd-g...bumper-best-way-get-aftermarket-lieu-oem.html

 

[SkidPalace]

That sucks Matt, Glad to hear you are safe and sound.
When did that happen? It must have been Friday morning? Insurance will not consider you at fault if the road conditions were poor, i.e. the day of a storm. But if not, then reporting the crash will crank your rates way up and keep them there for 7 years. It's a real gamble.
Keep in mind if you do go the aftermarket bumper route, you may need stiffer springs on the front end to offset the extra weight.
FYI, make sure you are on Toyota of Watertown's mailing list. I just got an alignment for $29.95.

 

[rjaudi]

I just got insurance at State Farm and she looked at my 4runner. All she asked me was how much the bumper was because they have to cover 1000 in mods automatically. The agent never said the bumper would be a problem.

 

[Nelsonmd]

That sucks Matt, Glad to hear you are safe and sound.
When did that happen? It must have been Friday morning? Insurance will not consider you at fault if the road conditions were poor, i.e. the day of a storm. But if not, then reporting the crash will crank your rates way up and keep them there for 7 years. It's a real gamble.
Keep in mind if you do go the aftermarket bumper route, you may need stiffer springs on the front end to offset the extra weight.
FYI, make sure you are on Toyota of Watertown's mailing list. I just got an alignment for $29.95.

Serious? I will definitely have to sign up. Is that alignment deal over?

 

[cordrayj1]

That sucks Matt, Glad to hear you are safe and sound.
When did that happen? It must have been Friday morning? Insurance will not consider you at fault if the road conditions were poor, i.e. the day of a storm. But if not, then reporting the crash will crank your rates way up and keep them there for 7 years. It's a real gamble.
Keep in mind if you do go the aftermarket bumper route, you may need stiffer springs on the front end to offset the extra weight.
FYI, make sure you are on Toyota of Watertown's mailing list. I just got an alignment for $29.95.

sure about that?

they might not consider at-fault. but usually a collision claim has a surcharge that tags along with it. and rest assured, they will let you know who paid the majority of the repair costs when you get your renewal.

 

[SkidPalace]

Serious? I will definitely have to sign up. Is that alignment deal over?

The deal I used expired end of January, but I get coupons from them fairly regularly. Boch was doing alignments for $39 a couple of months ago.

 

[SkidPalace]

The deal I used expired end of January, but I get coupons from them fairly regularly. Boch was doing alignments for $39 a couple of months ago.

Correction: Coupon ended 12/31.

 

[spongerx]

Sounds like it could have been way worse. Glad no one was hurt.

 

[SkidPalace]

sure about that?

they might not consider at-fault. but usually a collision claim has a surcharge that tags along with it. and rest assured, they will let you know who paid the majority of the repair costs when you get your renewal.

Definitely. You are either MORE THAN 50% at fault or not. They apparently automatically consider snowy/icy roads to be 50% at fault for the accident. I lost control of my rig in a snowstorm in Vermont and slammed into the side of a big highway plow truck doing $8000 damage to my front end. No surcharges and my insurance company towed it 200 miles home and paid the entire claim. Took damn near two months for the repairs.

I don't know what criteria they use to determine the road conditions to be at fault or not.
I have used Amica insurance for the past 8 years or so, BTW. I highly recommend them.
The real reason for my accident was believing that Michelin Cross Terrain SUVs were good all-season tires. I can't even begin to describe how much better my Dueler A/Ts bite the snow.