Deer Damage and Repair to my 85 SR5

Eric Patterson

Eric Patterson

Moderator
Staff member
So the last week of duck season when coming home a rutting buck decided to run into my truck doing a fair amount of damage. The first thing that ran through my mind as I was running over the deer was "Finding parts is going to be a bitch." I was correct. The grill took a nation-wide search but I finally turned one up in Minnesota. I tried an aftermarket one but my body shop guy couldn't make the flimsy plastic work so we had to find one from a junker. I was able to gather up the other parts as well from a mixture of OEM, junk yards, and aftermarket. Seeing as what a pain it was getting all the parts I decided not to go back with the lightweight factory bumper and instead went with something a little more substantial. This weekend, with the help of an incredibly talented welder/fabricator friend of Thomas's the bumper was completed and on the truck. I just dropped it back off at the body shop to get painted. Can't wait to have this project completed. Below are a few pics of the damage and replacement.

View attachment IMG_2727.jpg


View attachment IMG_2728.jpg

View attachment IMG_2729.jpg





View attachment IMG_2868.jpg


View attachment IMG_2877.jpg


View attachment IMG_2885.jpg



View attachment IMG_2886.jpg
 
Calling it sturdy doesn't do that bumper justice. Those towing eyes are heavy duty. Nice clean work, it looks good on your truck.
 
Eric, bumper looks good. If not too late I'd recommend full bar protection if your planning on smacking any more deer. I bounced (solid metal thud) a RI doe off mine at 4 AM while dragging the 14ftr, Wendell Avery on board to meet up with Dave Morton for one of our RI hunts. Doe got back up and took off once she reoriented. Did absolutely no damage to the Xterra, didn't even damage the aftermarket lights. Probably paid for most of the bumper with the $500 dollar deductible savings. I did increase the springs to handle the added wt of the bumper and winch and to get a bit more ground clearance.

Enjoy!
Scott
View attachment AprilFoolsr.JPG
 
The bumper looks great, and would instill fear in me were I to be driving in the opposite direction.
 

Speaking from experience, hitting large animals with my 1988 4- Runner.

I considered doing the same thing, but a experienced Toyota guy talked me out of it, with proof.

He made lotta $$$$ fixing the problems of "stronger bumpers & deer guards" in PA.


A much stronger bumper can well do lots more damage than you realize, with another "accident".

It can **** up way more parts than the original.

The folks that designed the original knew what they were doing.


The vehicles were meant to be used, abused, and still Run Strong.

How much ya wanna spend on upkeep is up to the owner..


I MUST ADMIT IT DOES LOOK GOOD!

That is one fine lookin' project vehicle.


Could be more steel (from gawd knows what country) there, than in the entire body. HHHHHHEEEEeeeHHHHeeeeeeHHHHHHHeeeeeee


Ya, I ain't right.

Most old Toyota truck guys are that way. [smile]



my 2 cents
 
If you think about it, have a few old hay fork ends welded on, so the next time one decides to mate with your Toyota, he will stick around!! Get the point?[angelic][w00t]
All's weld that ends weld!
 
Eric,
The new bumper looks good. As has been mentioned, there is a point where "overbuilding" can be detrimental to the rest of the structure. Given enough force the weak point will make itself apparent. Having a series of energy absorption points may be a better solution over just making things beefier.

Of course you could always just slow down and quit hitting any more deer. So what if your son and all his friends say you drive as slow as a little old lady on her way to church. [whistle]
 
Vince

I've heard similar arguments before. Some claim that the pushbars in a wreck will push back and do more harm than good. Beyond anecdotal evidence I don't know any hard evidence one way or another. So with that in mind, and the parts availability I've dealt with I decided beefing up the bumper was the way to go. I can tell you that when Jeff owned the truck a lady rear-ended him. The truck has a rectangular steel rear bumper welded to the frame. The lady's grill and hood were trashed, Jeff's truck was barely scratched. Had the original bumper been in place he would have needed a new one, a tailgate, and maybe even the bed. Had she hit him faster it might have bent his frame and in doing so substantial damage. Hard to say which strategy is optimal but after that 40+ mph deer collision I want more protection seeing as how I will continue to drive the truck on county roads after dark during rut.

Appreciate the perspective.

Eric
 
Your shootin eyes pretty good as you certainly centered that deer on impact from your damage pics! Your upgrade reminds me of the old time cow catchers on trains, a.k.a. the deer plow! Just don,t start chasin them down across fields to try it out.
 
Looks good Eric!
I like the look of the black grill instead of the chrome.
Hope you at least got some venison out of the deal.
Paul
 
I feel your pain! I?ve had a few deer mess up my rides. Both jeeps and toys.

However you did great with that new bumper. Definitely heavier duty and more front end protection. Very nice fix
 
Eric,

I understand your decision.

Like I wrote I wanted to do it to my 4-Runner, but to beef up everything to do it right, was way out of my income.


There are plenty of trucks of various makes up here, that do have Cow Catcher (as already posted) massive bumpers, etc. Cuz it is possible to hit a Cow, Horse, or something much worse.

There are more cows in our county than people.

Many of the trucks old and new, in yards, junk yards, and repair shops. Cuz when they hit something it is ugly, especially if they roll over.

Seeing them is enough evidence for me.

I dunno if all that steel makes the drivers feel safer, but some tend to drive faster and wilder than they should.


I like the post about you centering the deer. That takes nerve and quick thinking.

Smart move, ya did good, if not a swerve coulda been lights out.


Those old Toyota's were not meant to absorb much impact, unlike many of today's trucks and SUV's

The folks inside em do.


I wish we only had to worry about deer during the rut.

They are everywhere, except where ya want them to be, most of the time.


Enjoy yer SR5.

Vince
 
The deer was decent size and a 6 or 8 point. The road I was driving on is on the side of a hill and he was below me. I saw him at the last second and he bolted uphill right into my bumper, dead center. There was no steering on my part to square him up. That was all the deer's doing. Last I saw of him was him getting thrown to the ground on his back and side with hoofs in the air. I got out of the truck and didn't see him but it was dark and there are no lights on this road. If I'd been on the down side of the hill I doubt he would have have run into me. I pretty much figure deer survival instincts tell them to head to high ground when frightened. Think about it, how many predators can outrun a deer uphill? None that I can think of so deer instinctively move to higher ground and in my case move into my grill.

Eric
 
Dave

It was definitely a buck with a decent rack. Honesty, I hope he died a painful death for doing what he did to my truck :) If he sat still nothing would have happened.

Eric
 

Eric,

Just curious.

Do you have to pay the deductible on yer vehicle insurance in your state, when you hit a deer?

When I lived in PA we did not, it was considered "act of God".


I am told not so here in NY, the deductible must be paid.

A few years ago my wife's niece hit three deer in less than six weeks driving to work. Not good...


VP
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top