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I made a huge mistake today (help finding parts)

Pete1028

New Member
Joined
Aug 22, 2020
Messages
8
Hey Everyone,

Never been in this situation before but today I really messed up and hit a big cement pole while in a parking lot today. My truck was in pretty good condition before this and i'm trying to figure out the best way to go about this so I can get it back to looking good again. Any advice is appreciated, I honestly don't have much of a clue where to start. I've attached a picture of the damage.

Truckbad.jpg
 
First call your insurance if you have comprehensive and then a Body shop
 
I do have comprehensive, is this something worth making a claim for? I think I actually found a suburban door in a junk yard that would fit for $500. How troublesome do you think it would be to swap the guts from my current door to that door?
 
HArd for me to say not knowing your skills, tools and shop space, time etc.
 
If you are not confident in your skills in this regard ( I would not be), then take the door you found to a body shop and have them do the work.

I would personally leave the insurance out of a situation like this since you already found the door.

I found getting them involved with older vehicles can cause more problems than they solve.

If you can afford to pay, then that's what I would do.

But, that's just me.

Best of luck with your repairs.
 
I do have comprehensive, is this something worth making a claim for? I think I actually found a suburban door in a junk yard that would fit for $500. How troublesome do you think it would be to swap the guts from my current door to that door?
I assume you have resolved your (door) issue by now, If not I hope this helps, and gives you the confidence to do the work yourself.

"How troublesome do you think it would be to swap the guts from my current door to that door?"

I always say it all comes down to 3 things
Time, effort and money.

You can almost always spend $$$ and reduce your time and effort.. I am of the philosophy, If I can do it myself, I will and save some of the $$$, especially when it comes to these older vehicles.. One of the tasks I usually pay for (now that I'm older) is exhaust replacement..
If I do it myself, I don't save that many $$$ and I end up getting rust in my eyes.. But @ $150 / hour labor billing rate I do 95% of the other work myself.

Back to the original question I'd ask which "guts"?

As with anything now-a-days, there are YOU TUBE videos, that give much more detail than I can write here. I recommend watching a bunch of those to see if you want tackle the work, and determine if you have the correct tools.

Removing / Installing the door, not too tough with 2 people (they are heavy), remove the kick panel, unplug the wiring harnesses , remove 2 bolts on the hinges and lift it off.

Depending on age, while in there I would consider replacing the hinge pins and bushings, the kit costs about $10 / door. This takes a little work, because you need a grinder to "grind out / cut" the old ones. (the bushings wear over time, and the door will start to sag.. eventually ending up needing to lift the door to get it to close).. The "good news" is these bushings are designed to wear out, keeping the harder steel hinges intact.

To do just about any work you have to remove the interior door panel, swapping them is a piece of cake, just use care if you are removing the switch assembly, to remove all screws and to not break any plastic clips. (broken/ loose switch assemblies are annoying).

Swapping the lock cylinder (drivers door - to keep the same key) this is a chore because it is tough to reach, it is easier if you remove the door handle (maybe you are swapping this handle anyway) but can be done with simple tools

Swapping the power window regulator.. If you think you want a "better" window regulator than the junk yard one has, I'd get a new one for <$100, actually not that hard to remove the old on and install (4 bolts) . My experience is the cables on these GM regulators rust, eventually they break and it is quite a chore to get the window to stay up once this happens.. Before I bought a new regulator I had to fabricate a bracket to hold the passenger window up.

Swapping the power mirror, easy peasy, 3 nuts, and unplugging the wiring harness.

If you are swapping out the entire wiring harness wholesale, take a picture 1st, so you can make sure to run it the same way on the "replacement door". GM did a decent job of running it so there is no interference.

painting to match.. I suck at painting.. no advice from me here.
 
I do have comprehensive, is this something worth making a claim for? I think I actually found a suburban door in a junk yard that would fit for $500. How troublesome do you think it would be to swap the guts from my current door to that door?
Definitely make the claim. Probably $1500 +
 
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