Well, after a drunk driver on a suspended license with only $5k in property damage insurance rear-ended me, I have come to find out that the rear of my frame on my 2000 5.4 EB is bent. Supposedly, this is a common problem with rear end collisions due to the tow hitch. The frame has "double overed" on itself in the rear.

My insurance company wants to repair the vehicle at a cost of $10.5. At first they said that the dealer will need to replace the entire frame. WTF?!!!! That's like pulling my skeleton out of my body and replacing it with a new one. IMHO, I'm not sure how well they will be able to put the truck back together as original without a lot of squeeks and other issues. I'm sure at the end of the day that the mechanic will look and say "hmmmm.... only five screws left over.... that's not bad!"

Anyway, my insurance company is that they talked to Ford and found out that they can replace just the rear of the frame and that it doesn't have to be cut and welded. They said it will be just as good as replacing the entire frame. Although, there will be no cost savings in this type of repair over replacing the full frame.

Bottome line.....what should I do? Full from or not?

Anyone with related experiences?

Should I sell the truck after the repair?

 

If the insurance company will pay for it, replace the whole frame. That way you know it is stong enough. They can lift the whole body of the truck right off the frame, put a new one under, set the body back down, and hook everything back up. As long as they replace the frame, I wouldn't sell the truck. Also, if they do end up taking to body off, replace those spark plugs while they are easy to get to.

 

Papi-

Don't sweat it - if you follow the link below, you'll see the entire process step by step.

Replacing the frame is no big deal - they just remove the body (10 body mount bolts) and some miscellaneous stuff (fuel tank fillter, etc.) and hoist the whole body off. It's so easy, that's what a lot of Ford techs do when they have to do engine repairs!

I wouldn't be surprised if they could get the work done in 2-3 days (after the new frame arrives, of course)

Check out this link:

http://flatratetech.com/images/nav_how_to.htm

Your truck will be good as new - don't worry about it!

Keep us posted, and take some pics if you can!

XXL

 

No biggie. Better a completely new frame than a poorly-repaired old one. Just make sure that they replace all the old rubber body/frame insulators with new ones, not reusing the old. New ones will ensure that everything remains quiet.

 

Thanks everyone for your insight. I feel a little better about it now! The entire process is suppose to take 6 weeks though. I think they dedicated about 70 hours for the frame replacement. I know they have to remove the engine and tranny.

I will let everyone know how it goes and take some pics! I might ask for "deminished value" compensation since my frame replacement will show up on car fax.

 

That's the spirit. Not to rain on your parade, but unless you plan on trading the Expy in fairly soon, their value tends to diminish considerably (I think the trade in on mine is around $10,000, and they'd sell it for about $15,000 or so).

I wouldn't be the least bit worried about the frame job.

Make sure you take some pics - it'll make for a great story!

XXL

 

While a new frame sounds all fine and dandy, I'd be a little leery about doing it. Think about how many nuts, bolts, suspension parts, driveline parts, etc. have to be transferred over to the new frame. I think your "five screws left over" assessment is way low. I'd bet on buckets. Now if they were replacing the whole rolling chasis, I'd feel a little better.

 

I think Jim's got a point. It's not like rolling out the old one, and rolling in the new, and just swapping the wheels and license plates here. We're talking serious swappage of everything attached to that frame!
The good news is, you're not paying for it!

 

MY BUDDY WAS REAR ENDED AND HAD HIS EB IN THE SHOP FOR 2 MONTHS FOR FULL FRAME REPLC. THAT WAS 4 YRS AGO. I GOT HIT IN THE FRONT WHEEL WITH MY EB 2 YRS AGO. INITIALLY FORD BODY SHOP ESTIMATED DAMAGE AT $5700. A DAY LATER THEY CALLED ME AND TOLD ME THE INSURANCE CO. A AS TOTALING THE TRUCK DUE TO A SMALL DENT IN THE FRAME. THE DENT COULD NOT EVEN BE SEEN AND YOU HAD TO FEEL WITH YOUR HAND. THE FORCE OF IMPACT ON THE TIRE MADE IT HIT THE FRAME. TRUCK WAS TOTALED AND I GOT A NEW ONE. LOST A T