Last night my wife and I were on the interstate doing around 70 MPH on our way to my neice's wedding when out of nowhere a suicide deer darted in front of our beloved 93 EB AWD. The front passenger side was pretty much destroyed. The hood was broken, and the right front quarter panel is mangled pretty bad. The radiator was pushed back far enough to get into the fan.

The good thing is that the van protected us from any injuries except for a good dusting when the air bag deployed. I'm guessing that the it will be totalled by the insurance adjuster. With 270K on it, I'm sure that there ist enough value in it to have it repaired.

This has been by far the best vehicle we have ever owned. I was hoping to keep it for a few more years. Any time that I memtioned getting a new vehicle to replace the van, my wife wouldn't hear if it. She started crying when I told her that I thought it would be totaled. There was only one spot of rust on the whole van, otherwise, it was in great shape. With the help of this forum, it never failed us.

I don't know about you all, but I'm not too impressed with the new cars these days. Except for the bells and whistles, there is a lot of hard plastic, and thin metal. I'm not sure what we're going to get next, but I don't think it will ever measure up to the Aerostar.

 

Hi B2trausch,

Sorry to hear about your mishap with the deer. Did you get to eat it as a matter of revenge?

Anyhow, you and your wife are safe and that's all that really matters.

Take care and Happy New Year.

 

Sad story. It may be repairable, just that the insurance company prefers to pay the lower amount for the value of an old van. I am suprised you have collilsion insurance on it as the payout would be pretty small on a 14 year old van. Don't let them total it. Should be able to get it repaired. Guy I work with had a Dodge Dakota rear ended and the bed turned into an accordian. Insurance wanted to total it and he argued with them and finally got them to pay for the repairs. If they won't fix your Aerostar, should at least pay the market value and let you keep the van so you can still get it fixed.

Also, if it really is too badly damaged, there should be a few good Aerostars still out there.

BTW, my neighbor across the street had an Aerostar, got cut off on the freeway and ended up rolling it a couple times. She couldn't have afforded to fix it if she wanted to, so it's gone.

 

Sorry to hear about the accident. At least both of you are ok, and the Aero gave it's life for you.


I would say it is up to you, repair if you wish, but it will not be the same (from personal experience.) Or find a similiar Aero with lower millage. There are still a ton of them out there.

 

b2trausch, I like your name. Is it possibly in reference to the B-2 Stealth Bomber at Whiteman Air Force BAse? Yes?---I thought so. No?--Well then maybe you are of the civilian variety and have to deal with it flying over your house North of the base and making to much noise. I can then understand since it is pretty load. I lived on base just south of you from 1997 to 2003. I worked at the Propulsion shop there.

My first Aerostar was purchased wrecked from Lexington (about 20 miles north of you). It was a 1990 extended 3.0. It had taken on an direct hit from an last years doe at the drivers-side headlight area. It pushed back the radiator support, but the fan wasn't touching (lucky there). It cracked the hood, tore apart the bumper skin.

I bought it for 500 bucks. BUCKS? Get it?---sorry---. A little rudolph the red nosed reindeer humor. The thing of it is that the owner was a little old lady. She took out the deer and her son in law spent the next 4 months starting it and letting it run to keep the battery charged. What the fellow didn't know is that he coul dhave over heated the motor because there wasn't anything left in the busted radiator. I was lucky I guess because all that was keeping the motor cool was what it had in the block.

Technically I purchased the replacement radiator from a fellow parting out his Aero for $20. I was so happy to make the purchase. I showed up at the old woman's house with all of my hand tools. It took my about an hour and a half, but in that time I loosened up the support area, straightened up the mounting area, installed the replacement radiator, topped it off with the right 50/50 level of antifreeze and water, topped off the automatic trans. and tied the hood down. I was so happy to have it in my possesion. It had one head light glowing on th eevening drive home, but I felt like I was in the possesion of a new corvette. We drove it home the first weekend back to the St. Louis Misouri area where were from (200 plus miles). The gray Aero never skipped a beat. I could look into my rearview mirrow and see my son stretched out in the first (middle bench seat). My daughter in the rear bench seat and our full grown golden retriever hunched down in the sliding door valley. "GREAT!" You see, up to that point we were overly crowded in our old 1977 chevy Malibu. This mini van fit the bill. It blew my mind. Great gas mileage, room for family, it was the extended so I never had to again strap items up onto the roof since there was plenty of room in the back. We got to our mother in laws house that evening (4 hr. drive). The next morning I went to a pick n pull in Granit eCity Illinois off of HWY 203. I managed to find the gray painted bumper and hood off of a matching color gray aero. "HURRAY!" I bought everything I needed for repairing my wreck for $80. I got back to her hoise and used a comalong puller I had bought for $20 from Wally world. Her mothers car was a 1995 Chevy Corsica. Guess what? I parked my van behind her car, I attached one end of the comalong to her rear axle, and then strategically attached the other end to any area that had damage and slowly pulled it back into place. Guess how I knew what to do? I trial fitted the bumper skin ea. time until the bolts fit then installe dthe bumper. I pulled on the radiator support until the replacement pieces aligned and then finished there as well. When I replaced the hood and the grill and head light you could honestly look it over and not even know it was in any kind of collision. The van had 120 grand on it when I aquired it. When we let go of her she had 180 grand on her. As far as I know it is still be driven by the single mother we gave the van to for free. Drive to the Taco Bell in Warrensburg Missouri. Ask for Diane. See for yourself the van that started the whole revolution for MY SICKNESS! This concludes another chapter in the life and times of BOZ. "THE AEROSTAR JUNKY!" Don't cha know that I'm down with the sickness!"---Bye

 

I used to repare my aero after accidents. I guess my advices can help you.



Ok. Front end of aero is made with bolted on body parts easy to replace.

First of all remove all damadged parts. If crossmember and suspention parts are not damadged consider your aero lucky.

Prepare to visit some junkyards in new year to find good used parts of your aero color. I dont like to repaint, so I think it is better to find part of same color.

Get 8mm, 10mm, 1/2", 17mm sockets, torx wrenches,philips screw driver and ratchet.

Remove bumper, headlight, hood, bar under the hood with hood lock, its cabel, damaged fenders. Radiator is usually forsed inside with bent bar. Just install good bar and radiator will move back.

Be sure radiator does not leak coolant and coolant is not mixed with ATF.

Be sure, body is not bent in headlight area and bunper enforsement is not moved too. If you see it is bent weld rings (chaines) for hooks on it to pull it back. It is funny but I used to tie towing cabel to tree and carefully drive back. Be sure tree is big enought and it will not fall down on your van.

But usually this procedure is ruther easy to do. Bodyshops like to do it when owner does not see how they do it. Customer must not know what is easy what is not. Theirs business...... :-)

Periodically check is all repared well trying to install good parts. When work will be done you will see.


OK, post me some photos and I will tell you how to repare it the cheappest way.

 

That stinks that you got hit by a deer. Hope you end up being able to get it fixed!!!

 

My aero got a hit of suicide car. It was Scoda Octavia (enlarged VW Jetta).

 

WOW this almost happened to me last night on the way to work... the stupid blue headlight bulbs that i had in there were so dim that i didn't see the deer till it was almost on my hood. lucky for me i had good brakes... after work i rushed over to the auto parts store and bought high wattage (still rockin 80/100w) CLEAR headlights that should actualy show up.

but yeah, your aero should be repairable... my dad had to pull his bumper support back out when he ran into a light poll cement block while doing some work.

 

Hey DCRB,

How did your dad do this:

> my dad had to pull his bumper support back out when he ran into a light poll cement block while doing some work.

 

Thanks everyone for the kind and encouraging words. You all are great. I finally got a chance to take a look at the van during the daytime. I would say that it still will be totalled, it would be repairable...but an extensive repair. I would post a picture, but I don't have the proper permission.

The worst of the damage is to the structure behind the head light socket, and the bumper. The upper crossmember was shoved back far enough to to break the air filter plenum. Both the radiator and the A/C evaporator (replaced this summer) were damaged. One thing that concerns me is that my wife reports that she could feel that the floor board was pushed up and back. It will take some creative metal work to get the framework back into shape.

Yes BOZ, the b2 is for the B-2 Stealth Bomber, but is also due to the fact that I have a twin brother that also has a "B" name, and I was second born. I've been working on the B-2 for almost 18 years. Propulsion shop huh? I've done a few engine and tailpipe changes on the B-2 in my days at Edwards AFB, Palmdale, and Whiteman AFB. Not exactly a piece of cake job is it? The repair of this Aero looks to be exactly what you described. I'm just not sure that it would be worth the effort. The van has the original drive train less the transfer case (recall replacement). It would just be my luck, I'd get it put back together, and I would have something major go down.

Thanks again everyone, I'll keep you posted on what happens.

b2

PS: Tung, I already had deer sausage in the freezer. Maybe it was deer revenge

 

The worst of the damage is to the structure behind the head light socket, and the bumper. The upper crossmember was shoved back far enough to to break the air filter plenum. Both the radiator and the A/C evaporator (replaced this summer) were damaged. One thing that concerns me is that my wife reports that she could feel that the floor board was pushed up and back. It will take some creative metal work to get the framework back into shape.
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Bumper substructure is easy to repare. To pull structure in headlight area is more difficult, but belive me, the average DIYer does it in 2 hours. All other part is easy to replace. No reason to try to fix. There are many parts on junkyards.

 

My dad went to the hardware store and found some strong bolts that matched the thread size, screwed them into the bumper mount nuts, with large washers that were larger than chain link holes. then he rapped the cable around a poll at a random store and backed the aero up quickly till it was bent back into shape.

 

Well we finally found out that the van is being totalled. It took a while as the adjuster has been kept quite busy with all the storms we've had here in Missouri. They are giving us $2700 for it. That is more than I expected. Even though it is fixable, I'm going to have to let it go. I'm told that I'm getting a job offer in California soon, and if I decide to accept it, I won't have the time to put it back on the road. A friend at work is considering buying it from me. Hopefully it will take to the road again someday!

Thanks for all the responses. This forum has been absoulutely invaluable in keeping this "star" on the road this long. Keep up the good work.

b2

 

They are totalling it and giving the "body" to you? Farmers isn't that easy. They sell them to a salvage yard to recoup costs . I had to give them my 280Z when I was rear-ended.