CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

I did something incredibly stupid last week. I jacked my car up and put a jack stand under a portion of the car that I thought was the right place, but as it turns out, DEFINITELY wasn't. It was up on the jack stand for about an hour, and now the frame is bent upward and there's a big bulge in the floor where the LH rear passenger would rest his/her feet. I assume that the length of the LH of the car was changed slightly, causing the alignment and suspension to be slightly incorrect.

So how do I reverse the damage? Can it be done easily at home or is this a bodyshop-only repair. After I did it i hear what sounds to be lots of "clacking and settling" any time I take a turn that involves more than a tiny amount of suspension travel. It may be the stuff in my trunk, but I'm not sure.

Greeny

iTrader: (43)

Pull the carpet back on that side,then use a large hammer to beat the effected section back down...

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

that was my first thought. I just hope that I can fix all of it. It bent upward a good 2-3 inches. in your opinion would this have messed up the alignment of the car overall? should i get it 4-wheel aligned as soon as i fix the floor?

Greeny

iTrader: (43)

Well,if it did actually effect your alignment,than if you are able to bend the effected section back down level,than your alignment should return to normal...

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

just smack it back down with the hammer and take it to an alignment shop for a check. there's no point in sweating it that much. the amount that it MIGHT be off is fractions of a degree, which is easily adjustable on the alignment rack.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

OK, sounds good. I may wait to do alignment until after I get rear discs but that depends on how long that takes. I don't want to do 5 things to my car and have to pay for a realignment 5 times, you know?

jonmandude

iTrader: (1)

I also have a dent in my floorpan in the rear passenger foot space. I clipped a rock that bounced along under my car. I thought I could clear it but it just caught my Blehmco Stage 2 FLTB. Oops!! I don't think that a dented floorpan will effect alignment at all. It is after all a floorpan, not an actual frame rail. If it didn't change your door gaps it didn't effect alignment. Just beat it back down.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

well i did bend the frame rail too. those two long metal rails that run from the front suspension to just in front of the radius arm mount.. i bent that. i'll get you a pic tomorrow.. i mean.. today. That's why i'm all about it, is because that big honkin' rail isn't as easy to beat down as a floorpan alone. I'll look at my door gaps...

jonmandude

iTrader: (1)

That sucks. In that case I am with the other guys, get an alignment shop to check it.

Wolf-Strong

I had my car fall ~12" while trying to lift it up to pull the jack stands out...and one was still under there with the jack!

Luckily it fell to its side, knocking the jack stand on its side and put it RIGHT at the highest point on the bottom of the car and same went for the jack, causing no damage (thank God).

+1

Get an alignment done and break out the ol hammer....essential for all mechanical repairs!

redwood_usa

iTrader: (4)

Firestone, usally runs specials on lifetime allignment. I have bought it for both my cars and used it every year. Best deal you can get.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

http://s164.photobucket.com/albums/u...rame%20damage/

there it is. driver side just in front of rear wheel.

Alex_V

my parts car fell over and punctured the passenger floor. I was glad it happened after it tried to kill me. (d side front tire fell off).

My current max isnt that bad. Im going to bent it straight again and reinforce the frame rails. To stiffen the car and have a easy jacking point...

~Alex

Black92GXE

iTrader: (3)

doesn't sound like you bent the frame at all, that is just sheet metal - there arne't frame rails there(under the rear footboard).... (unibody cars have rear rails in the trunk area)

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

so where are the frame rails on there? farther toward the outside? you did see the pictures, i assume.. if not you can look and check to be sure that those aren't frame rails.

James92SE

iTrader: (31)

That is the frame rail, but I dont think you really want to jack it in the middle. The middle must be substantially weaker. I know the 4 corners of those are plenty strong enough.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

ya I found that out the hard way.

to MyGreenMax94: is pulling the carpet absolutely necessary or can I just pound the carpet with a cloth over it? I know that i'll get the better results by removing the carpet (so i can see the metal itself, not just a gisted idea) but just curious.

Greeny

iTrader: (43)

You are going to have a larger hammer to get that back down level,i doubt a 2 lb claw hammer will have much effect on it...

A large hammer may damage the carpet...

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

I've got a somewhat heavy sledge hammer around here somewhere. *runs off, grabs said hammer and camera*

http://s164.photobucket.com/albums/u...t=IMG_2053.jpg
http://s164.photobucket.com/albums/u...t=IMG_2054.jpg

that big enough?

Greeny

iTrader: (43)

You stole my hammer!


That should do it..

Matt93SE

iTrader: (44)

that should be big enough if you've got beefy arms.

pull up the carpet, then lay a 2x4 over the top of the dent. start pounding away.
and wear earplugs...

Michael

iTrader: (21)

seems someone in this thread knows about this particular type of dent it was with a jackstand iirc though wasn't it?

Will

iTrader: (2)

Oh my.

Just pound away at it and hope for the best. I hate jacking up my car in general, considering its age and weak frame. For the back, I always put the jackstands on the sides of the rear axle, and jack it up from that metal protrusion in the middle.

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

I got the hammer and pounded away today. Unforseen consequences, in the pics. That sound deadener thing chipped all to hell, and doesn't sit right anymore; I ducktaped it together to keep it all in one spot. 'Twas a pain to stuff the carpet back into the tight spot between floorpan and rear seat cushion. I will look at the job later because all the pounding (I had to pound on the carpet itself, as an attempt to save that crumbling mess from really getting messed up) warped the carpet so i have to wait for it to return to normal shape. The frame rail does not appear greatly changed., but I think some of the bulge has been reduced in the floorpan.

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...e/IMG_2055.jpg
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...e/IMG_2056.jpg
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...e/IMG_2060.jpg
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u...e/IMG_2061.jpg

Alex_V

You don't need that crap any way. It doesn't make that much of a difference as far as NVH (noise vibration harshness) goes. And if you do want to damp more NVH there are better/lighter methods to use then that thick padding.

Hows the under side of the car?

~Alex

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

basically unchanged as AFAICT. I'm going to take another pic or two and let you guys compare.

Black92GXE

iTrader: (3)

those techincally aren't the "frame rails" but a part of the floor assembly - the Rails are in the front of the car and go back to your strut towers and then in the rear of the car back approximatly where the trunk/back seat area is...

those 4 corners that James is talking about are call torq boxes and are generally the stronger points for jacking a unibody car.

know of any body shops with a frame machine that can pull the floor back down??? shouldn't take a few minutes of pulling once they get the car set up or at least anchored down...

CapedCadaver

iTrader: (8)

the front end of that .. maybe-rail-maybe-not bar thing looked fine. It held up the weight of the car just fine in the front, with no deformation whatsoever. However the very same piece, just at the back, is apparently not as strong. It tapers toward the back, and the front half is much bulkier. I guess I should just put the stands under the radius arm mounts since there's already a few scrapes from where someone's done it before but they still look fine.

What's this torq box he talked about? I've never heard that term.