Was in accident, front end messed up... PLZ help (1994 I4)

[DrewThib]

So I was in an accident a few days ago and my front end was tore up...

I was wondering, my radiator support beam was messed up, but I found a replacement support for the car (a 1994 Camry I4). Has anyone ever replaced this and if so, can you instruct me as to how to go about it?

Also, can anyone point me in the direction of good cheap (well not BAD cheap, just the kind that doesn't kill your wallet) replacement parts for the front (headlights, passenger side fender, maybe hood) I already have a new front bumper.

If needed, I will throw up a few pics of the damaged area for a more "expert" assessment by you guys.

[Fiox789]

I'm with you I was in a wreck and messed up my driver side fender, Hood Door mirror. So I'm in the same boat.

[Eye8Pussies]

you need to remove the fenders to cut off/grind off the remainder of the rad support where its welded on to the rest of the frame

and then weld on your new one....and make sure you weld it well. If in doubt, find an experienced welder to do it. from the sound of it, you should probably be finding somebody else to do it...better safe than sorry.


for the rest of the parts, go to a junkyard and pull them yourself. the only piece that really needs to be welded is the rad support

[DrewThib]

Thanks, yeah as I am only 16, I can do most of the repairs myself but the welding is outta my skill set as of now (I hope to eventually change that) But does anyone know how much it would cost to have somr erld me a new one on there? I could pull the fenders and the bumper and all the bumper reinforcements myself if that'd save a lil cash.

Either way, thanks for the input, I admire your vast knowledge of the Camry.

[Eye8Pussies]

well, it sounds like you're off to a pretty good start for somebody who's 16

as for how much it would cost....it would really just come down to who you know. I don't know of any mechanics specifically would come to your house just to weld something for you. In fact, a lot of mechanics don't even have welders at all it seems sometimes.

Unfortunately, the only real chacne that you have is of finding somebody who has a welder who can come ovrer to your place to weld it in for you. A body shop won't touch anything unless you allow them to fix everything, which would cost at least a couple grand plus paint at this point.

[DrewThib]

Is that beam totally a structural part of the car? If it is only mildly bent, is it even worth it to replace? I just dont want my front end to cave in or anything while I am driving along the freeway.

[Eye8Pussies]

is it hard to get dents out of a hood- yes, yes, it is very hard to do it properly since it is one big piece of sheet metal....but are we talking dents, or it's bent? if it's bent....then no...its structural supports inside are already crumpled and you'll need a new one. otherwise, a paint-less dent removing service could probably pop dents out for you

as for the rad support- yes...it is a structural and integral part of the front of the car....if it's got a slight ding, then you can probably hammer it out or pull it out

but if it's twisted or pushed in a good bit, then you'll have to replace it.

Why don't you post some pictures of the damage?

[DrewThib]

I'll try to get some pics tomorrow, but the damage I am talking about is not too great... I just noticed that it looks like the welds on the sides of the rad support are not very strong anymore, I.E., they seem to have come apart or are in the process of it.

I just thought that if that were the case, I would go ahead and replace that beam since it has been in two wrecks (one not me, previous owner) and has dents and minor dings in it. I figured that I would have a new one welded in instead of reusing that one.

I'll take pics of the welds as well as the collision damage in question and see if you can point me in the right direction from here.

As for the hood, I am going to hope that it holds, it is a little bashed up but it is holding up so I am not too worried about it right now.

Does anyone know why the mount that the grille mounts to on the headlight would be too far back? I can't mount my grille in because of the hole problem, I will take a pic of this as well for your amazing input.

I want to do as much of this repair as possible by myself, I see it as opportunity for learning.

[nevanerviss]

^^^ Holy Huge Picture, Batman!!!

[ghettosled]

drewthib - most, if not all of your parts can be purchased at a local junk yard. even sections of a radiator support. though if the damage insnt too severe to the support, you can always try to message it back into place with a BFH (big fukkin hammer).

[Eye8Pussies]

the scratch you can fix for sure

the dent will be a bit harder, but since I can barely see it- the worst it'll probably be is you going to a dent removal place for cheap


got pics of the damage to the rad support though?

[DrewThib]

Alright, yesterday we had those bad storms roll in so I couldn't get out to take pics so here they go...


It doesn't look bad once its on a pic but here it is...





Here are the welds I am talking about, that made me nervous when I saw it... The other side looks the same.





To get the headlight to line up with the bumper, I had to adjust it so that it actually came seperated from the headlight bracket assembly, is my bumper too far froward or is the rad support too far back? It seems to line up on the side that attaches to the fender.





Here's my grille problem, I can't figure out why that won't line up (it is lined up where the grille and the headlight meet in the front).





That bow looks the worst and there is a crease in the metal right where it goes from being angled to straight.





Any ideas how to get the hood to line back up here?





This is the other side of the grille, it wont line up in the front and screw into the mount on the headlight either.





Unrelated, but any ideas how to get this lined up?

[Eye8Pussies]

it looks like a big ding....and on the cusp of where you could just leave it....BUT after seeing hte pics of welds coming apart....you must have pushed hte entire support back, so it looks okay, but the entire thing is probably a couple inches pushed in


as for the welding...find a good welder....welding the rad support has nothing to do with bodywork. you just need some good solid welds

[DrewThib]

Thanks, so the opinion is to go for the new one when I can afford it, or to just not worry about it at all?

Any ideas on the other odd and end things? like the Grille, hood gap, rear trunk panel?

Also, any ideas on why I can't open my hood unless I hold the hood release lever and have a second person stand at the front of my car and pull the hood up? Basically even checking my oil has become a 2 person job

[DrewThib]

Anyone?