ZUKIWORLD Online | Suzuki 4x4 Editorial and Forum
ZUKIWORLD Discussion Forum => Suzuki 4x4 Forum => Topic started by: Veritas on July 19, 2005, 05:16:12 PM
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Help me....
I flipped my 97 Sidekick Sport 4dr when I swerved to miss the ditch driving on the highway on the 15th. My truck landed on the drivers side and scraped along the highway. I did not have collision insurance and the body shops say it'll be expensive like 5000 or 6000 to fix. Mechanically the vehicle is still fine, it is just missing some glass, the roof is bent pretty bad, and the drivers side panneling would need to be replaced.
I live in Alberta, Canada, and I am just wondering if anyone has any suggestions as to getting it fixed, if anyone has any parts, or if anyone needs to buy any parts.
Post or drop me an email if you can help at all.
Thanks,
Matt
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Post some pics, that's the best way to see
what you are talking about.
Questions
is it paid for ?
is it modified? (yes I know it's a sport)
Point is it might be time to build a wheeler,
or a buggy or whatever, worst case is you
replace the broken bent stuff and drive it
Wild
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I'll get some pics up in a bit.
It is all paid for.
It was pretty much stock, I bought it less than a year ago
The frame looks like it should be ok, but the major thing is the left side of the roof and the drivers side panel are pretty smushed.
I am also not the most mechanically abled person.
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I have a 97 sport and it was recently involved in a accident. Not as bad as the extent of yours but enough to cause 3500 in damage. THe only thing in my accident involved was the hood fender bumper and grill head light ect. I also paid extra and had them paint the whole thing while i was at it. The point being is they had one hell of a time finding any replacement parts new or used. I ended up even getting a escudo grill off a 98 i think it looks better. So good look on any sport parts they are rare apprantly because the hoood and fender are longer then a stock sidekick and the skirt kit is rare to.
(http://www.omghi2.us/april05/ suzuki wreck.jpg)
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(http://www.omghi2.us/april05/suzuki wreck.jpg)
here is what my sidekick looked like wrecked
IMG TAG: (http://www.omghi2.us/april05/ss1.jpg)
and the one on left is after is got done
they wanted to total it out at 3500 but i fought them and got the guys at the body shop to pull some strings. IT took like a month to get all the part though
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Get a hold of me at the shop.......
I am in Edmonton, if you want to fix it I might be able to help with parts and contacts, if you want to sell it I might be interested in it for my business.
780-453-1118
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You could probably find a tracker w/ some dead or missing drivetrain parts for like 500-1000 depending on the model, appearance and whats wrong w/ it. the extra parts sold from what is leftover would even help pay it. How confident are you in your ability to swap drivetrain parts? Oh, and just an added note, try to find the same year and model (or at least generation) as your tracker so you can save a ton of time by not having to swap wiring harnesses.
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[url]http://www.rolloverlawyer.com/suzuki_samurai.htm[/url]
;)
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I swerved to miss the ditch driving on the highway
You just gotta hate it when the ditches drive on the highway. ;)
Down in this southerly country, we try to keep our ditches along the side of the highway. ;D
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buy a good condition high mileage vehicle, change the body around, then change the vin and odometer around. it's illegal, but a bodyshop could do it for you legally
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Sorry.........
You cannot change a VIN
Zag
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He would have to find a sport to swap in straight over other wise his engine transmission ect is going to be custom swap. he has a 1.8 engine and a hyrdalic clutch. pluse different computer dash ect.
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Post some pics so we can see whats up with this.
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Hey
Here is some pics of my wreck. :'(
Hah and ya I hate it when ditches get in the way too.
I spose that didn't make a whole lot of sense, but my sidekick swerved to the right from a wind gust or rut in the road or something and I steered to the left to avoid going into the ditch, then swerved back right to avoid driving into oncoming traffic. I guess that gave it enough wobble to flip onto the drivers side where it slid along the highway at 110 km/h until coming to a stop facing the complete opposite direction on the other side of the highway. It was a party!
Luckily no one was hurt and no other vehicles ran into me.
Anyways I appreciate the feedback as far as what can be done with this beast.
Thanks
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Here is some more
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OUCH
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That one hurts........
- Hood
- upper cowl corner sheet metal panel
- Windshield
- Front Door
- Rear Door, major repair...probly replace is better
- Rear 1/4 glass
- Major 1/4 panel work..probly reskin would be better
- Roof with posts
- Major time on frame machine to get upper body straight enough to do roof switch
- Fill, finish, prep and paint......
And thats just what I can see!
You know the estimates you are getting are most likely pretty close....in Alberta an insurance company would write it off.
Sorry....
Zag
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wow, when I saw the fotos I thought it wasn't as bad... But if zaggy says so :-\
By the way, about the VIN, isn't that on the frame? If you change the body, the VIN isn't changed is it?
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VIN's
In Canada the VIN is normally....
- On the firewall
- Drivers Door post
- Dash
- Frame
Selected vehicles also have it...
- In the factory glass
- On the original engine
- On the original trans
- On the original diff
But thats only select high line stuff to reduce theft
Zag
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Make a Toy out of it, and go wheeling,
or sell it for running parts, or as a whole
unit, you have a good running gear, you
really just need to find a body that is straight
Lots of work tho, and the VIN will not match
as it will be a new body
Wild
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OUCH
OUCH is right. :o
and it wasn't even lifted :-\
Glad ya weren't hurt but you got your work cut out out for ya.
Just buggie the thing now
(a.k.a. RockStar) ;)
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It would probably be cheaper to do a body(shell) swap. You could do most/all of it yourself. If it was mine, I would. I'd get a good shell from a salvage yard, swap in all your interior, and exterior clading, then a fresh coat of paint.
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Actually, for sliding to a stop from 110 KMh on your side, I'd say it held up pretty good! Bang it out with a hammer, and drive it, I say! ;)
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Bang it out with a hammer, and drive it, I say! ;)
That's the spirit! ;D
And zaggy is right, the VIN is on the firewall too... ::)
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Yep, stamped into the sheet metal,
it's also on the frame, Cami #s are in front of
the right front tire, Japaneese #s are behind
on the same side, and might be in more than
one place too.
Wild
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Hey guys
The big damage on that rig is the roof and posts. If you look at the roof and posts it's swayed to the passenger side, but the worst is the drivers cowl corner. The windshield post is pushed down and looks like the cowl (firewall) corner may be pushed down.
That's not irrepairable, just alot of frame time and cutting and welding. From what the owner told me on the phone it was a pretty good unit and the pics confirm it.
Up here undamaged a unit like that is worth about $6500.00, but with the damage estimates running $5000-$6000 it's over. The owner is pretty clear that he doesn't have the time or the mechanical experience to do this kind of repair. I might have a line on a Sport that had a engine bay/dash fire for him but I won't know for a bit. Thats not to bad a swap for someone with limited experience...just time consuming.
Zag
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Am I the only one here that see's a perfvect starting point for a tubed out rock buggy??? yank the whole body and buy a S---load of DOM tube. I bet a 4x4 shop would build a build a tube chassis off your frame for less than the cost of the bodywork
On the more practical side, just find a sidekick sport w/ a dead engine or trans and use what you need off yours for the swap
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Thanks for all the feedback so far guys.
It'd be great to find a sport body with a dead engine, but sports are few and far between. I haven't found a wrecker with suzuki parts or any desire to really have any suzuki parts as of yet.
The wreckers I've talked to aren't looking at paying much more than $500 for it, it's crazy that a vehicle can still drive and run great but be worth nothing lol. :S
Would it be possible to turn it into a convertible and get some sort of canvas roof made? That'd suck in the winter but I wonder if it's a possibility. If anyone nearby wants to buy it as a fun little project let me know hah.
Veritas
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You could build it into a convertible...
- Windshield frame from 2 dr
- Custom roll cage to return strength
- Custom top
Neat DIY....
Zag
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Hey Veritas
When it comes to Auto Wreckers in Alberta
- My company handles every Suzuki I can get!
- Your unit in Alberta isn't worth a big buck because it is a "Sport" and there are very very
 few up here so demand for parts sucks and very little mechanical swaps with non-Sports
 (if it was a 1.6/16v or even an 8v it would be worth more...more parts demand)
- The damage is severe enough it's not economical to repair so I'd be surprised if someone
  bought it to repair...but you might get lucky over time.
- Not repairable, very few around, low parts demand or interchange all drops the salvage
  value in Alberta....it would likely be worth a lot more in BC or the USA where there is a
  demand, but in your case the cost of shipping toilets that.
   I know it's a tough spot to be in but sometimes having an unusual vehicle puts you in a s*&% spot. If and when I hear from the guy who had the Sport with a dash fire I will put the two of you together.
Zag
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Zag,
Ya lucky me lol. Well I did enjoy the fact that had a more unique vehicle, but that's not exactly a bonus now.
Do you have any estimation on cost for turning it into a convertible?
And if I could get the vehicle up to you would that be a job you would be interested in working on at all?
And keep me posted on that dash fire one.
Thanks
Veritas
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Hey
The convertible thing is something you should check into doing as a Do It Yerself, labor costs would kill the project...too much custom work, a lot of labor. I'm also not set up to do that kind of work, just parts.
It's a shame to be caught in your bind, if George ever comes by like he promised I will put you 2 together and maybe you can make a deal....Example of the diff in Salvage prices...
- His is a 98 with a dash and engine bay fire, from the outside you couldn't tell
- Repair est was over 7000.00, insurance wrote it off and he bought it for a project, easy fix.
- He paid over 1800.00 for the unit...remember easy fix.
- Two years later he still hasn't found parts...cause it's a Sport, different wiring & dash
- Has had 3 harnesses sent up from USA, all were 1.6/16v in spite f him specifying "SPORT"
His easy fix has turned into a 2 year project...still hasn't found the right parts, won't order in any more he's waiting to find it himself....he's in this one to make money, not this time.
Zag
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The convertable isn't a good idea, did it to an S-10 ( all steel removable top I built my self) over 100 hrs later I had a top that was ready for paint.
I'm in Red Deer for work every day, I could look at it for you. Been doing autobody since 1990 and have a few connections in town eg... frame shop, parts & paint booths.
Or I'd be interested if you want to sell it, bought the wife a KIA and still hearing about it ( no AC or 4x4) : ::) ::)
PM me, I'll give or get #'s
Steve
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I think zag should buy it and try playing with the 1.8 and let me know how to increase the horsepower ;D OR put a supercharger on then let me know how you did it or sell me the parts. Just kidding but really that would make a great engine swap for someone wanting more power over there 1.6 l. 120 beats even a souped up 90 anyday. If you were closer i would buy the engine for my sandrail. 8)
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Oh yeah just what I need right now
Another project...I'm gonna finish what I got first...then
Hey did you check out the Camden super charger site...and why super....turbo is my favorite.
Zag
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Yes, Turbo really costs nothing in HP
losses, other than back pressure in the
exhaust, where a SuperCharger has a
drag penalty, all the time, more in times
of boost, and less in times of idle, but it's
always there.
On the other hand, a Turbo requires lots
of cooling oil, like a liter per min or more,
and a SuperCharger can run on CCs per
hour and be fine, starve a Turbo at 140,000
RPM and see how long it's "fine" for
Wild
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You need a hammer, a welder, some lead, 10 gallons of body filler, and many cans of spray paint ;D ;D
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Well... I've been looking at my options, and I would prefer to fix up the vehicle if I could do it affordably.
I'm kinda interested in how it would all work out if I chopped off the top, put in a tubular rollcage and made a canvas soft top for it.
Has anybody else ever done this? Have any suggestions on doing it? Anyone had any problems with the authorities after major modding like such?
Lemme know, I'm ready to get creative!