Looking for anyone who has been hit from behind

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MikeW

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2002 Tahoe. Had some jackwad in a 200X Hyundai Elantra hit be from behind doing about 10 mph (stop and go traffic). I was stopped. Both vehicles were drivable though it looked like he had significantly more damage thanks to my 3 inch life and trailer hitch. My rear bumper was pushed down about 10-15 degrees. Both insurance companies don't want to fix it because they say there is some frame damage. and could exceed the value fo the Tahoe! Company at fault gave me $900 for repairs. Just wondering if anyone out here had a similar incident and what did you do? Thanks in advance!
 

Doubeleive

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just buy a aftermarket rear bumper kit off ebay then run about $250 for the complete kit, bumper, pad, brackets, bolts, etc
put it on yourself and pocket $650
it's 20 years old, not like it's a gold mine that you can get $15k for still
 

DougAMiller

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The only time my '05 Tahoe was rear-ended it only broke the plastic cover on the trailer connector. So, no experience there, but I have straightened out damage like that on other vehicles using a jack. You might try doing it yourself with a jack and if you can get it satisfactory, pocket the insurance money for your trouble. If the jack is only lifting the truck and not pushing the bumper back where it belongs, you might see if you could load some weight in the back to apply a bit more force with the jack. Also, a chain attached to the bumper and some other substantial object might give you the force that you need to pull it out.
 

iamdub

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2002 Tahoe. Had some jackwad in a 200X Hyundai Elantra hit be from behind doing about 10 mph (stop and go traffic). I was stopped. Both vehicles were drivable though it looked like he had significantly more damage thanks to my 3 inch life and trailer hitch. My rear bumper was pushed down about 10-15 degrees. Both insurance companies don't want to fix it because they say there is some frame damage. and could exceed the value fo the Tahoe! Company at fault gave me $900 for repairs. Just wondering if anyone out here had a similar incident and what did you do? Thanks in advance!

They say there might be frame damage yet only offer $900 for repairs? It's definitely the at-fault insurance's responsibility and you shouldn't have to make a claim with yours unless they agree to pay you with no penalties and then they'll seek reimbursement from the at-fault with their legal power.

Even if there was some frame damage, it'd have to be very light and a shop could quickly pull it out. Or, if $900 is all you're gonna get and you accept it (by cashing the check), you could chain your Tahoe to a large tree and bump it back into shape, then slap a new bumper on it. I like @Doubeleive's idea of upgrading the bumper.
 

Doubeleive

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They say there might be frame damage yet only offer $900 for repairs? It's definitely the at-fault insurance's responsibility and you shouldn't have to make a claim with yours unless they agree to pay you with no penalties and then they'll seek reimbursement from the at-fault with their legal power.

Even if there was some frame damage, it'd have to be very light and a shop could quickly pull it out. Or, if $900 is all you're gonna get and you accept it (by cashing the check), you could chain your Tahoe to a large tree and bump it back into shape, then slap a new bumper on it. I like @Doubeleive's idea of upgrading the bumper.
I've fixed front and back that way, my wife rear ended someone and wrinkled up the front end I fixed it myself, pulled the bumper off and pulled the radiator support back, took a crow bar and straightened up the front frame mounts for the bumper, bought a used hood same color, bought a used hood release, bought a used bumper and replaced the windshield fluid tank with a dorman, bought a used drivers airbag and a used srs module good to go. you couldn't even tell unless you looked up behind the the bumper and saw the mounts were slightly misshaped but everything went on straight. then she backed into a pole and bent the back bumper up and busted a tail light I just bought the kit as mentioned above off ebay and some new led brake lights and she's golden, fixed a few other vehicles in similar fashion before over the year as well. as long as the frame is not totally ***** you can do it with simple hand tools. If the frame is bent there are shops that have frame straighteners, pretty crafty tool it's like a flatbed tow truck bed
frame11.JPG
 

iamdub

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I've fixed front and back that way, my wife rear ended someone and wrinkled up the front end I fixed it myself, pulled the bumper off and pulled the radiator support back, took a crow bar and straightened up the front frame mounts for the bumper, bought a used hood same color, bought a used hood release, bought a used bumper and replaced the windshield fluid tank with a dorman, bought a used drivers airbag and a used srs module good to go. you couldn't even tell unless you looked up behind the the bumper and saw the mounts were slightly misshaped but everything went on straight. then she backed into a pole and bent the back bumper up and busted a tail light I just bought the kit as mentioned above off ebay and some new led brake lights and she's golden, fixed a few other vehicles in similar fashion before over the year as well. as long as the frame is not totally ***** you can do it with simple hand tools. If the frame is bent there are shops that have frame straighteners, pretty crafty tool it's like a flatbed tow truck bed
View attachment 370994

Same here! Pulled the front of my mom's Geo Prizm (Toyota Corolla) by backing away from a tree. It had a manual trans so it was easy to pop the clutch to get it rolling then release the clutch so the car's inertia would do the yanking. It'd kinda spring and roll forward between each tug. I just kept it in reverse and tugged it a few times from various angles by working the clutch.

Fixed the front of a '99 Buick Century at a past job by lightly snatching it with a forklift. Mounting brackets of the radiator, headlights, etc. all fell into place and the hood and fender gaps were perfect!

In my early 20s, I had a girl hit me semi head-on, but at an angle in my '93 Civic. The front was racked sideways a little, so I had a body shop tug it on their pull table for $150 and I pocketed the remaining $1,350 I got from her insurance.

I put a 2014+ Silverado bumper on my friend's '08 Sierra and found one side was bent in after bolting it on. Threw some choker straps around it and used a come-along on a tree to straighten it.

I think the most recent was with Jenn's old car. It was in a very minor front hit and the PO just patched it over with zip-ties and drywall screws. I stripped it down to the core support and used a come-along on my Tahoe's hitch to tug it back out. I just had to reposition the Tahoe a few times to give me the proper pull angle.

It's actually kinda fun!
 

89Suburban

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I used a set of chains, a CDL B truck and some bollards at work to yank a bent frame out of one of my trucks.
 

89Suburban

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2002 Tahoe. Had some jackwad in a 200X Hyundai Elantra hit be from behind doing about 10 mph (stop and go traffic). I was stopped. Both vehicles were drivable though it looked like he had significantly more damage thanks to my 3 inch life and trailer hitch. My rear bumper was pushed down about 10-15 degrees. Both insurance companies don't want to fix it because they say there is some frame damage. and could exceed the value fo the Tahoe! Company at fault gave me $900 for repairs. Just wondering if anyone out here had a similar incident and what did you do? Thanks in advance!


Got my 6" drop hitch hanging out the *** of the tahoe just for that.
 

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