What would you charge for a steering gear and spring pack replacement?

[Fatalid]

Ok, long story short - Last night I was involved in a front-end collision. Everybody is fine, no injuries. It was the other guy's fault, so I will be working with their insurance to get everything fixed up.

The impact was directly to my driver's front wheel. The only thing I can see for sure is that he sheared off my steering gear shaft, and bent a couple of the u-bolts holding my spring pack together. What would you say is the cost to get a new steering gear and spring pack and have them replaced?

They probably aren't going to do the work, and instead will offer me a check for what it should cost. I just need to make sure it's a fair price.








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[cattlerepairman]

Glad you are ok and nobody got hurt. That's probably the most important part.

As for the steel soldier combat casualty:

What you do not see, yet, without disassembly is what else took a hit. Steering knuckle? Pitman arm? Front axle shaft on this side (if the axle shaft got knocked, is the differential ok?)? Wheel bearings? King pins/bushings? Tie rod? Rim bent?

How much effort and time is sourcing the parts going to be? On whose dime? What will need to be disassembled at the very least to inspect and make sure it's ok? That's an add-on to the labour for replacing defective parts!
Are you ok with "good, used" parts? Will it be all new, if even available?

If one spring pack is toast, I would insist on replacing both sides to ensure they are matched and the front axle sits correctly. A tractor trailer suspension shop may be able to rebuild the spring packs to like new.

Steering gear has to be replaced as one unit with steering shaft into the cab. The engine should be jacked up for that.

Labour...the TMs will give good coverage to explain what is all involved in replacing the components found defective. While the work packages do not give time requirements per se, they support the thought process. In my head I am seeing the hours adding up quite quickly. Parts cost is probably small-ish compared to the hours of work needed.

Maybe some with a shop used to estimating can chime in; my worry would be to under-estimate because not all damage has been found before disassembly and inspection.


My shameless plug is that this would be a great time to upgrade to power steering...rather than putting the same old steering box assembly back in!

 

[glcaines]

How much was your truck worth? You may be better off finding another truck and totaling yours. Finding the parts won't be hard, but finding them locally might be. As Cattlerepairman said, the labor is the main concern and could be significant. If you do go the repair route, don't accept anything until you are absolutely certain there is no hidden damage. I'm glad there were no injuries.

 

[simp5782]

You can contact Memphis equipment or boyce and ask for a written estimate to replace the parts that broke with nos parts.

This includes their shop labor cost

 

[cattlerepairman]

Please keep us updated on how this plays out. Fortunately, MV accidents are rare and it helps other members to see what happens when it happens.

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[V8srfun]

happy that everyone is ok. Please keep us updated on what happens. I know that you can get the ins company to pay for additional damages found after the initial inspection but it is not always easy. Patients and persistence will be necessary as the ins company’s goal is to spend as little as possible.

 

[Fatalid]

Ok, quick update...

Insurance company has claimed 100% liability, so that's good.

Now the next step - they have no clue how to value the damages because it's considered a "specialty" vehicle. They want me to try and get some estimates to repair, or draft up a parts and price list myself and submit it.

I've spoken to a couple mechanics who are willing to work on it, but because it's not operational at the time, I don't want to tow it around town to a bunch of different mechanics.

I'm trying to see if there are any mobile diesel mechanics / heavy equipment guys who would be willing to come to me, check it out and give me a quote.


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[V8srfun]

If I was you I would submit my own list and see if you could get a shop to give you a labor estimate. I would also pad the labor estimate because you don’t want to get stuck paying for the extra labor to deal with any rust or corrosion (torch time). If in doubt put it on the list and see how they respond. And don’t forget to ask questions like what happens if I find something broken after you approve the initial repair. Can I submit a supplemental repair or is the initial the only thing that will be approved.

 

[Fatalid]

Final update and wrap-up

This whole ordeal was a NIGHTMARE! From the other driver originally lying and telling their insurance that it was my fault, to the insurance company telling me that a snapped sector shaft is a "wear and tear" item, to actually finding someone who was willing to look at the truck and write up an estimate for me, to finally purchasing and getting around to replacing all the broken stuff... Over 9 months later and I FINALLY took her out on the road for the first time since the accident.

A few things I learned that might help someone else if they ever get in an accident:

1. Call the police. Even if there aren't any injuries, don't just "swap information." People are jerks and will lie to there insurance... A police report will always be helpful.
2. Get names and numbers of eye witnesses. This saved my bacon! If I didn't have eye witnesses that were willing to talk to the insurance company, I would have been stuck with the repair bill.
3. Since we drive "specialty vehicles," the insurance company won't know how to price out the damage. This is good and bad-- bad news is that you have to do all the leg work yourself to find someone who is willing to quote out the repairs. The good news is they won't argue the price because they have nothing to compare it to.
4. They will give you an option to write up repairs and estimate costs yourself. Don't do this... Just put in the time to find a professional to write it up. I took this route originally because it was proving very difficult to find someone to write it up, but this is when the insurance company originally denied any repairs and told me a sector shaft is designed to wear out and snap. What a joke. I had to petition to have my claim re-opened and submit a repair estimate from a professional anyway.
5. The entire process will take FOREVER!


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[cattlerepairman]

Glad to see you are back on the road. The ordeal is behind you.