Accident in Snow. Need help

[jagan323]

Guys... I need help. Long story short, I was being an ass, and I drove in the snow. I took a turn, and I slide, brakes didn't stop me, so I hit the curb. Good news, no exterior damage, except a bit of rim damage. Bad news, I bent some rods O_o.

After a minor check on the car, I pulled back home and I realized, I couldn't turn my steering wheel to the right fully. When I did, the steering wheel would turn counter clock wise. And then I realized my front right tire was crooked, eventhough the steering wheel was straight. I popped off both front tires to do a comparison. Below are the pictures of what damage I have found.

First pic is the left side, the undamaged side. The second pic is the damaged side. As you can see I have bent at LEAST two things. Maybe more. I am probably going to have to pay this myself, my insurance premium can't take another hit. So I was thinking maybe I can take this opportunity to buy some beefier links and rods.

So if you guys can help me out, can you tell me what those bent links and rods are called so I can find them? Also, can anyone recommend some brands? I did plan on taking this car autocrossing next year, and I think it would be a smarter choice to get an upgrade, instead of just replacing with OEM stuff. Suffice to say, I am super upset right now... It all felt so unreal.

[2SSRS@Gen5diy]

The one going L&R is "Inner tie rod Back" ( Its only $40) it gos to you Steering. the next one is you "Stabilizer link"(Its only $25.29 list) to your sway bar.

[Cam 427]

Wow... sorry to see that.
The manual calls the rod with the nut the Outer Tie Rod and the other rod is the Front Lower Control Rear Arm ,if I am seeing what I think I'm seeing in your picture. Hopefully you didn't damage your steering actuator(rack and pinion).
I always use opportunities like this to replace oem items with aftermarket ones. Don't know what's out in the aftermarket for these items.
Good luck.

[InvaderMoose]

Well, you learn from your mistakes.

The first week I had the car i ran over a curb and completely threw off the alignment

[2SSRS@Gen5diy]

here its the inner rod.

[jagan323]

Thanks a lot you guys, i always feel better when there are people backing me up. And yes, I will learn from this... I just wish it wasn't the hard way. I'll be posting more pics details from every possible angle with BETTER lighting in an hour or so.

Thanks again guys

[Viper595]

yep. tie rod end(s) and link pin. not very expensive, and easy to install. make sure you get an alignment after you replace those tie rod ends.

edit: the way that looks, i would replace both the inner and outer tie rod ends on that side, seeing as the inner is bent pretty badly. you will need a special tool (you can get it from harbor freight) it's actually called an "inner tie rod tool" that you can use with a 1/2 inch ratchet to remove the inner tie rod end. make sure you count the turns it takes to remove the outer from the inner, just so you can get it somewhat close to center and you don't wear the tire any more than it already has been worn from driving at an angle. let me know if you need any help, i'm a mechanic, and specialize in front end/steering and suspension. good luck! just remember, everything on a car can be fixed!

[Orange Krate]

THAT SUCKS!!! Sorry. Glad you are OK. Hopefully only damage you find.

[Big Brunsy]

u got off easy.....when I hit a curb I did about $7k worth of damage.

[jagan323]

Originally Posted by Viper595

yep. tie rod end(s) and link pin. not very expensive, and easy to install. make sure you get an alignment after you replace those tie rod ends.

edit: the way that looks, i would replace both the inner and outer tie rod ends on that side, seeing as the inner is bent pretty badly. you will need a special tool (you can get it from harbor freight) it's actually called an "inner tie rod tool" that you can use with a 1/2 inch ratchet to remove the inner tie rod end. make sure you count the turns it takes to remove the outer from the inner, just so you can get it somewhat close to center and you don't wear the tire any more than it already has been worn from driving at an angle. let me know if you need any help, i'm a mechanic, and specialize in front end/steering and suspension. good luck! just remember, everything on a car can be fixed!

THank you for your offer. Do you think I should just get the parts from my local GM dealer? The problem right now is, I can't get this car into the shop without a tow. I would LIKE to do this myself... but I don't want to make anything worse. I guess these things aren't worth upgrading right? I think a front trailing arm might be screwed up too.. im not sure though. Posting more pictures in a sec

Originally Posted by Orange Krate

THAT SUCKS!!! Sorry. Glad you are OK. Hopefully only damage you find.

Thank you, and yes, I hope the damage is just at that.

Originally Posted by Big Brunsy

u got off easy.....when I hit a curb I did about $7k worth of damage.

lol holy cow... that's exactly what I want to avoid... I can't spend 7 grand right now. I don't know if the damage stops there though... might be more.

[jagan323]

Okay... Update pictures. More lighting, more angles. Pardon the slow load times if there are too many images for you guys.

Also, I realized, the suspension on the damage side, seems to be higher.. like the strut caps when i open up the hood, is a bit higher.... For sure I'd need an alignment... but most likely, i need a mechanic to actually make sure everything is okay lol...


Right side, the Damaged Side










These two images are the Left Side, undamaged for comparison.

[Viper595]

ouch. yea. did a little more than the tie rods. that's a lower control arm also that will need to be replaced. these are all things you can personally do in your garage, without too much trouble. and no, you don't HAVE to get dealer parts to fix it, the only issue is the dealer may be the only people who actually STOCK the parts. make sure you call around, with your VIN in hand. try carquest, napa, factory motor parts (if you have one) and if nothing else, advanced auto parts. carquest typically carries pretty good suspension parts - be sure to ask if they are MOOG parts - it's a very reputable aftermarket brand of suspension parts. if you need to contact me outside the board, i'd be HAPPY to walk you through some of the removal/install process! just toss me a PM and i can give you my cell #

good luck!

edit: these parts (combined) shouldn't cost more than a few hundred bucks. tie rods are typically 50-100 each, and the control arm will more than likely be the more expensive of the parts. again, be sure to shop around if anyone has these parts in stock, as dealers will always be the most expensive place to find any kind of parts.

[Viper595]

also: a good way to "eyeball" if a strut is bent, or bad, try finding a place along the strut that comes close to another suspension part (that isn't bent!) and place a few fingers into the space, then repeat in the same place on the GOOD side of the vehicle, to see if the space is greater or smaller than the side you had the incident on. unfortunately, if you can't really tell, the best thing to do is get the vehicle onto an alignment rack, that will tell you for sure if your camber/caster is way out of spec, then you probably have bent parts.

edit: as for your dust cap being higher on the bent side, that could just be an effect of the bent tie rods/bent control arm. once those change angles, the whole geometry of the front end is changed. i'd fix the obviously bent parts first, THEN focus on something that may be just tweaked a little bit! again, don't be hard on yourself and don't get stressed! i've seen MUCH worse from a curb check. the best thing to do is again, realize that everything can be fixed, and you've always got friends here on the boards to help ya out!

[jagan323]

Yeah, I do have a Napa auto parts here... and a Lordco (canada only). Those are the two well known ones. So MOOG parts eh? I'll ask them about it. And thanks for the vote of confidence... I am really upset with myself.. it ALL could have been avoided... I wished i chose to do some things differently.

Do you think I should get my car towed to a reputable mechanic? or just go to the dealer? I have no problem replacing the parts myself... but I think I should get a pro to look over what looks out of place, etc.

Thanks for your help Viper. If i get stuck, for sure i'll PM you. Also, can you look at the fourth picture? That arm isn't bent, but the area that holds it, seems to be bent so that the opening is bigger than the undamaged side. At least I think so...