front frame is bent. any info on cost?

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taman86

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i was selling my truck to a friend under a purchase contract. he defaulted and i took it back. i guess sometime last august he somehow side swiped a curb in the front right tire. broke the wheel, lower control arm, strut mount, and bent the shock. we replaced all that and i took it into the shop for an alignment. the front right going in was at 3.4* postive camber and caster is all off. the shop maxed out the specs. its sitting at 1.8* positve while the left is sitting perfect on a 2.7" front lift on bilsteins. i filed a claim under my insurance and they are investigating into who is going to cover the cost cuz the d-bag didnt file under his own. the shop said that more then likely the frame is bent where the lower control arm mounts. my truck is 09 sport cc 4X4. does anybody have any experience with frame damage on their truck and what was the outcome? i was thinking probably 6 grand for frame repair but i read another post where it cost over 16k just for the frame replacement?

im waiting to hear back from the insurance company before moving forward with an estimate. also what would my truck be valued at before it is totaled?

doing used car estimate research my truck should be worth 21000 abouts. so i think anything above 60 percent of value it will be totaled and thats 12,600.
 
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Stevejr

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Any reputable body shop that has a frame machine can give you an estimate. Some frsme damage can be repaired and it should not cost 6k, at that point its considered a total loss. Reason why the insurance will total it, is because it will be consired unsafe vehicle to operate.

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CuylerTech

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i was selling my truck to a friend under a purchase contract. he defaulted and i took it back. i guess sometime last august he somehow side swiped a curb in the front right tire. broke the wheel, lower control arm, strut mount, and bent the shock. we replaced all that and i took it into the shop for an alignment. the front right going in was at 3.4* postive camber and caster is all off. the shop maxed out the specs. its sitting at 1.8* positve while the left is sitting perfect on a 2.7" front lift on bilsteins. i filed a claim under my insurance and they are investigating into who is going to cover the cost cuz the d-bag didnt file under his own. the shop said that more then likely the frame is bent where the lower control arm mounts. my truck is 09 sport cc 4X4. does anybody have any experience with frame damage on their truck and what was the outcome? i was thinking probably 6 grand for frame repair but i read another post where it cost over 16k just for the frame replacement?

im waiting to hear back from the insurance company before moving forward with an estimate. also what would my truck be valued at before it is totaled?

doing used car estimate research my truck should be worth 21000 abouts. so i think anything above 60 percent of value it will be totaled and thats 12,600.

Brand new frame is under $2K if it comes to that. https://parts.moparonlineparts.com/oem-parts/mopar-frame-chassis-68138170ad
 
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taman86

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so i went to a three different shops and got three different answers. they all said that there really isnt an actual estimator on a frame swap because besides the actual frame, everything is variable i.e. brackets, bolts, other damaged components, and the actual time to swap all the drivetrain, suspension, fuel tank, and body with all related components to the new frame.

the first was a dedicated body shop that is known for cutting corners and making things happen on the cheap but still getting by. been in business for years and tend to stick to insurance claims mostly. they quoted me 4 to 6 grand without looking at the truck.

second was chevy dealer and they quoted around 7 grand minimum based upon a frame swap that was done to a duramax.

third was dodge dealer where they looked up the actual cost of the frame at 2700 with mandatory braces and isolaters that need to be replaced, and then approx. 60 hours flag time at 105 an hour WITHOUT any other damaged components. so that tallies in around 9 grand.

so if anybodys interested here is a very rough estimate for a frame replacement. that is why insurance companies just total out vehicles with frame damage because the whole process is variable.
 

Andrew09HEMI

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I can't imagine the frame is bent to that extreme where they couldn't pull it out to get it real close. Depends on what your goals are for the truck but that's your most affordable option and avoid having a branded title truck
 

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