Jim Lane

My Ram rammed by 2 rice burners.
Well I finally got my new springs on the front last week and it was finally riding good. Today I was on the freeway going around 70 miles an hour when for no reason the traffic came to a dead stop ahead of me. I slowed down real fast and came to a stop. I look into my rearwiew mirror and yelled to my wife and daughter "HOLD ON HE'S NOT GOING TO MAKE IT".. He didn't.. Slammed into the rear of my truck running my military pintle hook into the front end of his. Then a second later we both got slammed by another Nissan. By then the traffic was upto speed again and it another mile to pull over. My truck was still running ok. We finally all got off the freeway to check the damage. The truck that hit me was totaled and the one that hit him was also totaled. Both of the guys were pretty shaken up, the one that hit me said he was going aroung 60 miles an hour just before he hit me. I was a few feet from the car ahead of me and I did NOT MOVE. I checked the truck when I got home and I find that the right front of the bed is about 3/4" higher from where it used to be (following body lines)and the bumper is a bit bent. Can't see anything bent on the frame or box. Any ideas what the problem might be? Also the truck rides rough at freeway speed. This morning I am going to take it to the body shop and get it checked, do you think it is possible it might have bent the frame a bit? also do you think the impact might have done anything to the driveline like maybe bend the driveshaft. He had Gieco and I am sure my insurance will have to take care of it but I just want it to be right when it is done and not find the trans. case is cracked or spring hanger broken. Can these frames be straightened? My last truck was totaled by a drunk driver in 1999. Jim.
P.S. I hate it when everytime you get your truck running just fine, somebody wrecks it, never fails.

Shovelhead

"I'd rather be a hammer than a nail"

The added mass of a heavy truck is definately an asset.
Glad to hear your family is OK.
I'm sure a 60 MPH impact rearranged a bit of sheet metal in the rear of your truck.
They'll probably need to pull the bed off and check the frame on a jig to be sure it didn't get tweaked.
Normally you'll get a period of time (I believe it's one year) to discover additonal damage after a claim.

welder27

Your driveshaft could very well be tweaked. It doesn't take much at all to be able to feel a vibration at highway speed. My driveshaft was .030" out right at the counterbalance ring and I could easily feel it from 45 mph-70mph.

Crimedog

I was recently in a similar boat. Last month I got hit by drunk. I was stopped, she was doing about 60-65. All she hit was the wheel, but it bent my axle, tweaked my frame, cracked the housing onthe T case, as well as broke my wheel and ripped my tire. DEFINITELY take it to a shop that specializes in frame repair. My corner of the box was sitting down about an inch and it was because of a bent frame. It took 6 hours of straightening. And, definitely take it to at least 3 different shops, I took mine to two body shops and a frame shop. My first estimate was for $475. The total by the time I got done was about $4,400. The funny part is that my driveshaft isn't out of the norm, no vibrations at all, but yet it transfered all the impact to the T case. If you are worried about the case, it is worth your time to pull the driveshaft yourself, and take the rearmost tailhousing of the T case off. Take a look at the snap ring that rides in front of the bearing, if it is warped the speedo housing may be cracked. Mine had one crack on the outside, but was all busted up onthe inside. Hope this helps.... good luck