Today I was in my first accident, not of my fault. I was making a left turn into my neighborhood the same time someone was making a left from a stop light. I had the right of way and he hit my in my driver's door/bed/rear wheel.

The driver's door closes, but the bottom part of the cab was bent upward so I have to slam it to get it closed. I can probably bang it down with a hammer and fix it myself, but I'd rather it be fixed professionally.

The dent in the bed I I can probably just bend back into the basic shape. But I'm more concerned about the rear wheel. The rim was hit and looks a little dented, but the wheel rolls fine. I'm worried the wheel bearing might have been damaged.

What's the typical cost of replacing the wheel bearing and pulling a few dents? The dent in the door area is only about the size of a dollar bill and the dent in the bed is about the size of a basketball. Do you guys think the insurance company will "total" the truck? If so, what should I expect for a payment?

What else might have been damaged with someone hitting the front half of my rear wheel? Should I worry about uneven tire wear?

 

I think Your looking around 250 at most shops for a wheel bearing.... You could do it in a few hours if your have the tools...

Id be suprised if they totaled the truck for that kinda minor damage.. But again, anything is possible. U could find a shop to fix it up for around 500 bucks I would Imagine...

 

The wheel bearing I'll definitely do myself. And I'll be looking for new rims too. So those will all be thrown together over a weekend. I'll just need to wait for insurance money to pay for this.

In the meantime, should I worry about a bad bearing and my tire wobbling and causing uneven wear? I didnt see any blatant wobble of the wheel when I drove, so I'd guess it's fine. The guy only hit my at maybe 10 mph. He just nudged me.

 

jack it up and (it would be ideal if you had a dial indicator and magnetic base...but Ill assume you dont) tape a pencil to the top of a jackstand....you want the pencil to touch the rim, and as you rotate the wheel...watch the tip of the pencil in relation to the wheel and check for run out.

 

I wouldnt drive for very long with it the way it is, but I woudnt worry to mcuh for acouple weeks of light to moderate driviing..

 

That's about all I'll do. No major driving until I can get it fixed.

If the wheel is off center/off base, what would cause that? The bearing? Or are there other parts I need to worry about?

 

Something is up with the exhaust system too, even though that area was untouched. I think the sudden jarring of the truck caused something to break loose. It's ticking really loud, almost like an exhaust leak.