Just was rearended... 1975 Jimmy RIP

[4x4orbust]

just saw this thread, and that really stinks.   glad you are ok after that hit!!    i hate to see this truck in such bad shape,   it was one of my personal favorites!   i have loved this truck since i saw your first posts on it, it is basically my childhood dream truck...
  i hope you get the insurance money you deserve, and that you can keep the truck!!   good luck with everything!

[Mike Phillips]

Get all the insurance money and fix it. If it were me the guy that hit me would be suing me after I was done with him. What was he doing? Texting?

I don't want a bent Jimmy...

One of the reasons I really like this Jimmy was it was straight and rust-free, two things I never had in my other 3 full convertible Blazers.

The Alstate Adjuster came out to look at it today and agreed to Total it and then told me he has to take his accessment and pass it off to the person in charge of dealing with "Totals".

I like your go-get-um attittude but I wanted to pass this down to my son in 5 years and I want to pass down a nice Jimmy, not an un-bent Jimmy.

I really worked hard on this truck and EVERYWHERE I drive it I always have car guys come over and check it out and give me the High-Five.

Last month I pulled into a Cirlce K and had 3 Sherrifs checking it out and they were all car guys and really like it.  So I'm a skosh down over it because I've spent almost 2 years since when I first brought it home getting it to the condition it was in and it was far from perfect but it was straight and rust-free.

I always called it

A good start


And it was...

 

[joesgarage71]

 Man that stinks! Glad your alright, but don't your neck hurt?

[Mike Phillips]

 Man that stinks! Glad your alright, but don't your neck hurt?

I'm more sore today than I was yesterday.

Meant to call a personal lawyer today and just didn't get to it...

[Lt.Del]

You won't get any real money unless you go to your doctor and tell him you are sore.

Do you know if the driver was cited?  Do you know if he had insurance?

pull up every receipt you ever paid on that truck...wheels/tires/engine/engine parts/trans/upholostery/ etc.

[choptop]

We had to have extra insurance for the wifes show truck to cover all the add-ons we put on it, otherwise, it would just be covered for book value. Your truck shows a high retail of $14900. In my opinion, it should qualify for High reatil due to the condition it was in. Average is $9246. Yours was no where near average. Hopefully they will be honorable, and give you what the truck was worth.
 Maybe you can find another, here's one for thought, its not as good as yours, but may be worth a look.
http://www.autotraderclassics.com/find/vehicle/vehicleDetail.xhtml;jsessionid=3FE907C78E235E1A2C119D6ED3B70BDF?adId=198787&actionMethod=find%2Fvehicle%2FvehicleSearchResults.xhtml%3AuShipController.init&conversationId=344509

[joesgarage71]

 Wow that be nice, and then buy it back for the drivetrain

[choptop]

Actually, that was based off of a 75 Chevy Blazer, the GMCs are considerably higher. Look it up on NADA, and see for yourself. That way you have some ammo if they decide to short you.

[joesgarage71]

Actually, that was based off of a 75 Chevy Blazer, the GMCs are considerably higher. Look it up on NADA, and see for yourself. That way you have some ammo if they decide to short you.

 Yea but the injury lawyer will more than make up for it. better get one of those neck braces too

[Mike Phillips]

Went out and snapped some pictures of the accident scene for posterity. Right or wrong I've sent the link to this thread to the first Allstate Adjuster that looked at and evaluated my truck. I'm going to send it to the guy in charge of their department for totals.
 
 
This is looking from the point of view of the guy that hit me.

 

 
 
I've walked forward towards where the impact took place

 
This is the point of impact. The tire marks going to the right of the white line is where his truck started going into the ditch and swinging around 180 degrees. The tire marks curving around to the left are my tire marks as the impact forced my truck to swing around 180 degrees.

 

 
These are my tire tracks are crossing the divider line and this is right after a car in oncoming traffic passed by me. Had he hit me a few seconds sooner it would have forced my truck into the driver's side of the oncoming car.

 

 
 
These are the impact imprints in the soil to the right side of the road by the truck that hit me.

 
 
This again is the impact point, my Bogger Tread is clearly visible being forced over the pavement as I had my brakes on at the point of impact. (4-wheel disc brakes). The tire marks going to the right are some version of Swampers the kid driving the truck that hit me said. He said they had swapped in a Dana 44 Frontend into the 1996 Ford Truck and when they did this it altered the ABS brake system. I remember him saying something about pumping the brakes and not being able to slow the truck down fast enough to avoid hitting me.

 
 
 
This point of view is looking the direction oncoming traffic would see. Down the road a ways there's a traffic signal. I was coming from the side road on the left and then turning right at the light. Before I turned, I looked to my left to see what was coming down the road from the Circle K down at the end of this road at the next intersection and when I turned there were no lights for any vehicles coming from that direction.  That's why I think this kid was speeding because not only did he hit me like a missile, he came out of nowhere.

 
 
Same point of view as above only from the other side of the road.



I need to go find a replacement lens for the passenger side brake light so I don't get hit again since I only have one rear light right now.  I think the truck has a new vibration when I'm driving it, hard to say with 35" Boggers but I'm pretty sensitive to my own truck and just like a lot of you guys, when something's wrong you naturally key in on it.

[Mike Phillips]

Actually, that was based off of a 75 Chevy Blazer, the GMCs are considerably higher. Look it up on NADA, and see for yourself. That way you have some ammo if they decide to short you.

I'll do this.  I'm also putting together as many receipts as I can for the truck.  Most of them are back at my house in California and the reality is if I want them I'll have to fly back there and get them.  That's okay though as I have to go back for other reasons but I probably won't go back till after Christmas.

I've been looking online and in the Trader type magazines for a similar replacement and there's basically two groups, really nice Blazers and Jimmy's over $8000.00+ and basic to stock units, most with rust, small blocks and the stock 1/2 ton running gear.

Except for adding a new dash pad and upgrading the interior I was used to the idea that I was mostly done with this project.


Ugh....

[Lt.Del]

He said they had swapped in a Dana 44 Frontend into the 1996 Ford Truck and when they did this it altered the ABS brake system. I remember him saying something about pumping the brakes and not being able to slow the truck down fast enough to avoid hitting me.

Oh my, my, my

He admitted to tampering with the stock version of driveline and therefore hendering the safety equipment, which, in addition to speed, which looks to be excessive, contributed to the accident.    Pumping brakes?  Altered ABS?   When wheels are locked up from brakes, your control of the vehicle goes down to nill. With wheels pulsating, he could've steered to the right of you much easier.  

Can you say punitive damages?  He should've been cited for defective equipment.

[choptop]

Pumping the brakes and not being able to stop. Sounds like an excuse as to why he's an idiot. I didnt thing ABS had anything to do with the front brakes in 96 (not sure someone help me), I also thought that if something in the system was wrong, it would revert to regular brakes, and all would lockup (once again, someone tell me if Im wrong, thats how Ive learned) Regaurdless, if he knew it messed with the brake system and still drove it, wouldnt that be operation of an unsafe motor vehicle on public highways, and wreckless endangerment. If you modify a truck, and it substailly makes it hazardous, you did it wrong.
 In short, if it is true his brakes failed, he was driving too fast, his vehicle was unsafe, and I dont thinh he was paying attention. Like someone else said, he was on the phone texting.

[VileZambonie]

Again, at least you're not dead or severely injured but I get so mad seeing this. If someone did this to my 74 I'd paint the town red with blood!  It's totally his fault so don't let the insurance company jip you.

[Lt.Del]

i am with Vile, mad as heck after all that sweat and time, it's junk.

Take how long you've had it, how many hours spent by your own sweat working on it.  It seems you have put hundreds of hours working on it.  Say, conservatively $40 an hour working on it, times 200 hours, you have $8k right there.

DON'T SETTLE ON ANYTHING WITH THE OTHER INSUR. COMPANY 'TIL YOU'VE SPOKEN WITH AN ATTY.  THEN CLAIM ATTY FEES AT COURT.  YOU WILL WIN, OBVIOUSLY!