Say I were to try to take everything off of the truck, from the windshield forward. I know the fenders come off, but what about that "sub fender" thing? Does that have to be welded?
I have two body mounts in the front completely broken off, and I'd like to take it all off and make sure everything is structurally sound while I'm in there.
Inner fenders are welded to the cab corners and the radiator support is welded to the inner fenders. I would NOT remove these parts if you didn't have to. You can take all the cab mounts loose and lift the cab if you need clearance for repairing the mounts. Here is mine mid-rebuild (bought it totaled), you can see where the inner fender welds to the cab.
Mine has been wrecked at one time too. Where you have it seperated in that picture, was it hard to weld back?? I'm no welder, but I could tack it in there just fine... It was hit from the driver front, and I don't know how much damage was done...
Notice how the headlight is pushed to the passenger side?
I drilled the new part and replaced the factory spot welds with a MIG. Had a not-at-fault accident a year later and a few of the welds near the upper pillar popped because they didn't get hot enough, drilled them out and made sure I got good penetration that time.
I got under my truck and looked more today... Looks like the same damage was done on both of out trucks. My bumper mount has even been cut off and rewelded...
Did you just find a frame repair shop or something??
I really wouldn't remove the front clip unless you absolutely have to. I would remove the radiator support from the inner fenders before removing the inner fenders from the cab. Nothing was overlapped in my repair, old panels were removed by drilling the spot welds and new panels were welded in place. The frame I had straightened and then welded new flanges on the end, you can buy the flanges new from Ford.
I really wouldn't remove the front clip unless you absolutely have to. I would remove the radiator support from the inner fenders before removing the inner fenders from the cab. Nothing was overlapped in my repair, old panels were removed by drilling the spot welds and new panels were welded in place. The frame I had straightened and then welded new flanges on the end, you can buy the flanges new from Ford.
Do you mean that's ALL you would remove?? Because if so, that's why I'm removing the whole thing, the guys that "fixed" it before decided that they could just do the radiator support and the "corner" where the headlights meet the inner fenders and weld it all back together... They suck. And everything's crooked... Is it really THAT big of a PITA to do??
There are a lot of spot welds... The radiator support is the entire front piece that the headlights also mount to, so if your headlights are crooked, but the height of the front of the fenders is correct, then you only need to replace the radiator support part. It welds to the inner fenders at the very corner, outside the headlight mounts.
I'll consider pulling the worst fender this weekend. The fender mounts closest to the door are ripping themselves from the body, I'm assuming from the weight of the front sagging. I'll take pictures of what I can today.
Please do, Jaret... Sucks to hear you're having all this trouble. How long ago was the accident? Did you own the truck then? Do you remember who did the work? Sorry for all the questions, but I've been in the body repair/insurance field for a bit, and will help ya figure out if you might have a warranty/ins claim that would help you out. You are welcome to PM me that info if you'd rather, as well. It sounds like someone just threw the truck back together, and really didnt do a complete job.
With that said, it's a big job to cut all those spot welds and try and weld it all back together. In my opinion, unless you are a good welder, I'd leave it to the professionals. Getting 1/16" or even a 32nd of an inch off will result in crooked parts on the other end, if you arent careful. I've cut all those spot welds, and it Blows. A competent frame shop should be able to repair any frame damage you might have, and then you can have a body shop do the other repairs you need, then get your panels all lined back up, hopefully with little to no extra paint needed on your end. You could also get the '05 stuff painted at the same time if ya wanted to.
This is just my $.02 - it's doable, but far from easy... If you have an option to claim it on a warranty, or able to get your insurance to pay for faulty body work, then I'd most definitely go that direction if I could, or pay the appropriate shops outright, and have them do it. It's up to you - I'll do what I can to help.
Thanks Michael. I doubt I'll have any way to claim it. I've had the truck for 5 years and I bought it like this... Looks like I'll be getting some work done before long. I can't stand it, but I don't want to sell the truck either...
Yeah, you'd do well to get it checked out and repaired as soon as you can. Sucks dude, but on the other end it'll be better than ever once you get it fixed :ford:
Id check with your insurance company to see what shops they recommend, or other folks/friends/relatives that might know someone. Make sure they will guarantee their work, and try and keep up with the progress when it is in the shop. You might even be able to find someone through asking a few folks from your area on here. Sure wouldnt hurt to ask.
keep me posted, and I'll help anyway I can. I'll be down that way in a few weeks...
Check your front body mounts. I think this is a BIG part of my problems, but the headlight being crooked is something else... I've got more pictures uploading.
Wow, whoever rebuilt yours did really shotty work. I rebuilt mine and replaced EVERYTHING that was damaged. A good shop can straighten a lot, but as you can see from the body mount, they didn't do a good job.
OK. So, SlickFreak has a full front section for me. So it looks like I'm about to take a crash course in this crap... Hopefully I get it right the first time... :doh:
That reminds me... I GOT to re-do my tail lights... :doh:
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