Frame damage

[mit]

My GTS was in an accident. The frame near the rear control arm was bent. Can it be replaced or straightened or is the car totalled? Right now, the wheel well on the right side is 2 inches higher than the wheel well on the left. The Dodge dealer says the frame is gone. When I meet my insurance adjuster tomorrow, he is going to try everything imaginable to repair it. Where does the truth lie?

 

[Finally got it !]

Totaled....... I would not even bother. Get Jon B involved he will be a great asset when battling the insurance giant.....

 

[99 R/T 10]

It can be fixed, but it must be done by a competent, Viper knowledgeable individual. A new frame is about $13K.

 

[PhoenixGTS]

Call "Fat" Albert Box at (602) 402-7692. He is a frame repair guru and set you on the right path.

http://www.fatalbertsmotorsports.com/

BTW, Albert thinks the Viper frame is such junk (he has seen them bent from hitting *** holes) that he regularly replaces front and rear sections on cars with no damage (usually whiel turning them into race cars). That would require an interesting explanation upon resale.

 

[CANTDRIVE55]

Hi,

Archer Racing (Tommy Archer) has a complete frame listed for about $8500...just an FYI if nothing else is damaged.

 

[got one]

Ya...might be cheaper for the insurance to total it?

 

[hemibeep]

can be repaired. by the RIGHT person. The comment about the viper frames being junk is pretty accurate. VERY thin. however the rear frame section is thicker by design than the front. I actually bought the entire front frame for GTS from firewall forward for $3K.

If you try to pull it alot it would probably just tear.(too thin)

It can be repaired. Keep in mind that the repair will show up on carfax more than likely....so if you are worried about resale, keep that in mind.
GOOD LUCK!

P.S. the place I bought the frame was X2collision, they usually have items listed on EBAY.

 

[GTS Bruce]

Cut out the bent parts.weld in straight pieces. GTS Bruce

 

[AviP]

It's very fixable. But have the insurance company total it. Buy back the car from the insurance company for the 20% or whatever and fix it yourself from a reputed local shop (not from a dealer). You will have end up with a car that is perfect automotively (expect in your mind) and will also have at least 10K to spend on mods. Viper frames are very thin and crush easily. They can also be repaired very easily and you will not see the difference.

 

[Camfab]

I wouldn't exactly say they are junk because they are thin walled. It is thin walled by design for weight, and it's still probably one of the stiffest chassis's out there. The car was not designed to take severe impact without damage, this is also why the driver does not absorb as much energy from an impact. I'm sure you guys already know this. Besides who wants a heavier car?

 

[AviP]

Call "Fat" Albert Box at (602) 402-7692. He is a frame repair guru and set you on the right path.

http://www.fatalbertsmotorsports.com/

BTW, Albert thinks the Viper frame is such junk (he has seen them bent from hitting *** holes) that he regularly replaces front and rear sections on cars with no damage (usually whiel turning them into race cars). That would require an interesting explanation upon resale.

I think Albert needs a new nickname. How about "Stupid" Albert? No! "Fat and Stupid" Albert sounds better.

As Camfab stated, the Viper frame is one of the stiffest frames out there. Yes it is thin to save weight. But that's how it is able to provide that acceleration and lateral Gs of over 1.0. That's why the same frame is used on the coupe and convertible. The Gen III convertible pulls 1.05 lateral Gs. Even Ferrari doesn't do that. They stiffen the convertible chassis and charge so much more for it.

 

[joe117]

"Buy back the car from the insurance company"

I wouldn't do that. There is no gain in getting involved in a Viper with major damage.

He probably wouldn't buy some other wreck and get it repaired.
Why would he buy his own wreck and get it repaired?

 

[AviP]

"Buy back the car from the insurance company"

I wouldn't do that. There is no gain in getting involved in a Viper with major damage.

Frame damage is major damage only in the eyes of the ignorant. From what "mit" stated, it seems to be very minor.

He probably wouldn't buy some other wreck and get it repaired.
Why would he buy his own wreck and get it repaired?

Because he will stand to gain upwards of 10K (maybe even 20K). Plus he'll have a perfectly working car. This is how:

A 2001 GTS's market value is 50+K. Let's say 51K. Deductible, let's say 1K. Insurance check 50K. Nice. Now let's say "mit" decides to buyback the totalled vehicle. Let's assume buyback is 20%. That's 10K. So he get's a check for 40K. Now the damage doesn't look like it will cost more than 10K to fix, to be safe let's say 20K. So he now is up 20K. Even if buyback is set at actual parts value, it should not exceed 20K. So he's still up 10K. Got it!

The only thing that "mit" would have to live with is the lingering thought that the car is not "perfect" even though automotively speaking, it is.

 

[PhoenixGTS]

I think Albert needs a new nickname. How about "Stupid" Albert? No! "Fat and Stupid" Albert sounds better.

As Camfab stated, the Viper frame is one of the stiffest frames out there. Yes it is thin to save weight. But that's how it is able to provide that acceleration and lateral Gs of over 1.0. That's why the same frame is used on the coupe and convertible. The Gen III convertible pulls 1.05 lateral Gs. Even Ferrari doesn't do that. They stiffen the convertible chassis and charge so much more for it.

He never claimed the Viper is not a stiff chassis, only that the front and rear frame sections are very weak and cannot take any punishment at all. Until I replace/repair 100 or so Viper frames I will not question him. He loves Vipers and other than owning a 67 El Camino with a 502 in it, he has Viper blood running through his veins. No need to talk smack. The weakness of the frame sections is not an indictment of the capabilities of the car as a package, only the frame sections themselves.

 

[joe117]

AviP,
What's so special about him buying HIS wreck back from the insurance company?


If there is money to be made, rebuilding totaled Vipers, I say go do it.

I think you will find that there isn't much to be made.

His car would not be worth more than about $35k as a salvage rebuild.

The repairs would cost more than the $10k you claim. THere is not only frame damage but body damage.
How about at least $5k for a paint job alone.

If he buys it back and fixes it up, he may come out $10k to $20k ahead and own a Viper with a salvage title worth $15k less than the one he started with.

Anyone who owns a 2000 Viper worth $50k can sell it and buy a salvage 2000 Viper and put $15k in their pocket.

Why wait for your car to be wrecked? Do it now. Cash out that good Viper and start driving that salvage Viper you always wanted.

 

[AviP]

AviP,
What's so special about him buying HIS wreck back from the insurance company?

Who said it's special? Just that he can make at least 10K while getting his car back to perfect running condition.

If there is money to be made, rebuilding totaled Vipers, I say go do it.

I think you will find that there isn't much to be made.

His car would not be worth more than about $35k as a salvage rebuild.

I never said this was going to become the next American dream come true.

The repairs would cost more than the $10k you claim. There is not only frame damage but body damage.
How about at least $5k for a paint job alone.

That's what it would cost to paint the whole car. He never said that.

If he buys it back and fixes it up, he may come out $10k to $20k ahead and own a Viper with a salvage title worth $15k less than the one he started with.

Anyone who owns a 2000 Viper worth $50k can sell it and buy a salvage 2000 Viper and put $15k in their pocket.

When you buy a salvaged vehicle you may not know the complete history of the vehicle. But if it's your own, that's different.

Why wait for your car to be wrecked? Do it now. Cash out that good Viper and start driving that salvage Viper you always wanted.

Now you are sounding really ridiculous.

 

[AviP]

I think Albert needs a new nickname. How about "Stupid" Albert? No! "Fat and Stupid" Albert sounds better.

As Camfab stated, the Viper frame is one of the stiffest frames out there. Yes it is thin to save weight. But that's how it is able to provide that acceleration and lateral Gs of over 1.0. That's why the same frame is used on the coupe and convertible. The Gen III convertible pulls 1.05 lateral Gs. Even Ferrari doesn't do that. They stiffen the convertible chassis and charge so much more for it.

He never claimed the Viper is not a stiff chassis, only that the front and rear frame sections are very weak and cannot take any punishment at all. Until I replace/repair 100 or so Viper frames I will not question him. He loves Vipers and other than owning a 67 El Camino with a 502 in it, he has Viper blood running through his veins. No need to talk smack. The weakness of the frame sections is not an indictment of the capabilities of the car as a package, only the frame sections themselves.

Well that's different from calling it junk. But "stiff" and "weak" still are opposites. Can they be used in a sentence? How about, "The Viper chassis is very stiff and weak".

Talk is weak, I'm stiff. Honey, come here.

 

[Bonkers]

If you're handy with a wrench you can make money on a wrecked viper, but not the tens of thousands some claim. If the frame is damaged, and you have some serious time & space on your hands, tear it down and fix it yourself. If you have to pay someone... anyone... to do the work you'll lose your shirt in labor - frames on these cars have a ?1 mil? tolerance.

I say force the InsCo to total it, buy it back, and sell it on ebay as an EZFix - there are suckers on that site 24/7 who'll pay $35k for a wrecked viper.

 

[JUCD VPR]

Sorry for your loss. Its a shame whenever one of these beautiful cars get wrecked. I say do whatever floats your boat!