5.4 Triton in an ‘08 Ranger FX4?

[09fx4guy]

Honestly that truck does not look that bad from the pics. If you were able to get close ones, we could perhaps give you some more advice.

Maybe a new rear driver door, pound out some of the bed to make it look decent, and maybe a new spring and axle depending how hard the hit was.

Don't just sell the truck, fixing that would be a lot easier than swapping the engine into the ranger.

Also, getting a 4.0 to replace the engine in the ranger should not be to difficult, especially if it is from the same year, hopefully it would just be plug and play.

Depending on the condition of the Ranger, with a running engine, you could have a 5 figure truck easily. Go on KBB and "get your car's value". You would be surprised how much the F150 and Ranger would be worth.

 

[Jmonsu]

08fx4guy- I agree with everything you’ve said. I’m actually waiting for the tow truck to drop off my F150 so I can get an up close look at what’s going on with the axle. My son was driving when the accident occurred yesterday, and So far I’ve only seen the photos. It looks relatively minor to me, but the ins. co. looked at the same pics and said it’s likely to be totaled.
For its age and what I use it for I don’t care if I drive with a dented door until it dies. My son told me that all 4 doors open, close, and latch properly, so I’m hoping the damage to the cab is merely cosmetic. Time will tell.
I’ll post an update after I see it for those of you who are curious.
Thanks again to all for the great input. You make a new guy feel welcome. Kudos to all of you!

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

Insurance doesn't like to fix old stuff. That back corner of the cab will be expensive to repair in their eyes.

 

[Dirtman]

Insurance doesn't like to fix old stuff. That back corner of the cab will be expensive to repair in their eyes.

That's cause the insurance company doesn't know Larry. Larry will fix anything for $40 dollars.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

That's cause the insurance company doesn't know Larry. Larry will fix anything for $40 dollars.

It is just kinda weird they will total a truck for a couple hail dings but replace the front clip and reframe a new one.

One gets a dirty title and the other one just has accident history but otherwise stays clean.

That part of the system has never made sense to me.

 

[Dirtman]

It is just kinda weird they will total a truck for a couple hail dings but replace the front clip and reframe a new one.

One gets a dirty title and the other one just has accident history but otherwise stays clean.

That part of the system has never made sense to me.

They probably get kickbacks from manafacturers so people are forced to by new vehicles. I'm sure there is way more money changing hands then we realize when it comes to insurance claims. An insurance company could total a 10 year old ford and pay out say 5 grand, ford kicks in about her 5 to make sure it's totalled even though the damage could be fixed for 3 grand but Ford now has a new customer buying a 30,000+ vehicle.

Pure conspiracy theory here but would that really surprise anyone? Plus when they total it they get to send the vehicle to auction so chance to make back money.

 

[Jmonsu]

I understand that way you think, Dirtman, but I haven’t seen a decent F150 for under $50K in a long time! I put down my $100 deposit to reserve my place in line for the new F150 Lightning when it comes out, but I never actually thought I’d go through with the purchase. But now who knows…?

 

[Jmonsu]

BTW, can someone send me Larry’s number???

 

[Roert42]

I got slammed in my 92 F150, no way it wasn't going to be totaled. I got rear ended and the engine got pushed through the grill.

They gave me $1200, even when I could prove that there was no way I could buy a truck in similar condition for less then $5K, and I handed them 10K worth of receipts for new parts in the past two years. . They said that's what it's worth, take it or leave it, a coat of paint would be more then the truck is worth.

 

[fastpakr]

I got slammed in my 92 F150, no way it wasn't going to be totaled. I got rear ended and the engine got pushed through the grill.

They gave me $1200, even when I could prove that there was no way I could buy a truck in similar condition for less then $5K, and I handed them 10K worth of receipts for new parts in the past two years. . They said that's what it's worth, take it or leave it, a coat of paint would be more then the truck is worth.

I wish I could remember the numbers involved when I dealt with USAA on my ex's 2003 Acura MDX a few years ago. We'd only had it a year or so from the original owner. It was in absolutely immaculate condition when I tackled a deer with it. They tried to do an assessment of damages from a single photo that I submitted in the initial claim process (and totally wrecked the assessment - it was comically wrong with parts clearly untouched in the list to be replaced and obviously missing pieces). Then they presented a value of the vehicle at something like $2500 and declared it totaled, providing a series of vehicles as comps to support their assessment that were pulled from a local salvage yard rather than running vehicles from local sales. It took several months and ultimately a flat out promise that the next thing I was going to do was get a lawyer involved before they even called me back. Up to that point I was repeatedly dismissed in their online system with no way to contact them directly. Once they called me, they pretty quickly got an actual accident investigator out to look at the vehicle and sorted out a legitimate repair estimate and acknowledged that it was worth dramatically more (IIRC, it went up to maybe $6k?). The whole process really soured me on USAA and the insurance system as a whole. Complete nightmare, but we did eventually get it back from a local shop that did flawless work and it's still running around like new.

 

[Blmpkn]

They probably get kickbacks from manafacturers so people are forced to by new vehicles. I'm sure there is way more money changing hands then we realize when it comes to insurance claims. An insurance company could total a 10 year old ford and pay out say 5 grand, ford kicks in about her 5 to make sure it's totalled even though the damage could be fixed for 3 grand but Ford now has a new customer buying a 30,000+ vehicle.

Pure conspiracy theory here but would that really surprise anyone? Plus when they total it they get to send the vehicle to auction so chance to make back money.

Considering the insurance industry can (more or less) write laws we all have to abide by (seat belts, fences around inground pools.. to name a couple) .. id say it's not out of the realm of possibility.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

They probably get kickbacks from manafacturers so people are forced to by new vehicles. I'm sure there is way more money changing hands then we realize when it comes to insurance claims. An insurance company could total a 10 year old ford and pay out say 5 grand, ford kicks in about her 5 to make sure it's totalled even though the damage could be fixed for 3 grand but Ford now has a new customer buying a 30,000+ vehicle.

Pure conspiracy theory here but would that really surprise anyone? Plus when they total it they get to send the vehicle to auction so chance to make back money.

It costs more to insure a newer one than an older one... how many people go older when they get a different vehicle?

 

[Jmonsu]

I expect they’ll try to screw me, but I’m not afraid to get a lawyer involved if I have to.
The truck arrived this afternoon and the most significant issue is that the left side forward leaf spring mount tore free from the frame rivets. There appears to be no frame damage, and even the shock mounts are intact. Should be an easy fix. Everything else is cosmetic including the cab corner, so we’ll see what happens. Here’s a pic of the leaf spring mount.

 

[rubydist]

I take care of this problem by having the older vehicles insured by Hagerty for a stated value that I can justify with comps or ad prices or appraisal etc. Hagerty (unlike a lot of other collector vehicle insurance) does not limit you on the number of miles per year you drive, so you can have your daily driver insured with them. I think they require 20 years + old or some collector status, but lots of us have 20+ year old vehicles that are worth way more to us than to State Farm nowadays.

 

[Dirtman]

I wonder how hard it is to start your own insurance company.

Goat?