stray Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 hi all, i'm new here and wanted to get some advice. just bought a 93 legacy in mint condition (under 150K miles). unfortunately, i was hit by a drunk driver in the driver's side front fender. i was doing 25 mph and she was going about 15 mph, enough for the insurance co. to total the car. there doesn't appear to be any damageto the frame or suspension/driveline, however the "inner structure" where the fender is attached is mangled pretty well, about 10" in front of where the strut mounts. i've found a replacement hood, fender, headlights, etc. but was wondering how i would replace this inner structure? the firewall and passenger side are fine, front is slightly bent, but could probably be pulled straight. could i cut the driver's side/front out of a donor car & weld it in? or would i need to pull the motor/tranny & replace the entire thing? my other option is to part the car out, but i'd hate to, cause it's perfect everywhere else. any opinions/advice are appreciated...thx! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 if you can't repair that inner fender well and have to replace it - then yes, cutting and welding in a new (used) one is the way to go. someone has a great thread on here where they did it to an entire front end (both sides basically) of a wagon. neat thread. parting out that thing is going to take as much time as fixing it and the parts aren't all that valuable so fixing might be a good solution for you if it's in that good of condition. it's getting rather easy to find decent subaru's of that vintage for $1,000 so if you start approaching that price tag you might consider just getting another one. i'd want their insurance to buy me another car if i were hit and it wasn't my fault. why should you have to work and give up your time and effort for free to fix this thing? i'm not sue crazy and try to avoid courts/lawyers, and have so far - but i don't want to pay for someone else's mistake either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stray Posted March 12, 2008 Author Share Posted March 12, 2008 if you can't repair that inner fender well and have to replace it - then yes, cutting and welding in a new (used) one is the way to go. someone has a great thread on here where they did it to an entire front end (both sides basically) of a wagon. neat thread. thanks gary, i've searched for a little over an hour, but can't seem to find that post.:-\ any more info on how i may go about searching for it? i'd want their insurance to buy me another car if i were hit and it wasn't my fault. why should you have to work and give up your time and effort for free to fix this thing? i'm not sue crazy and try to avoid courts/lawyers, and have so far - but i don't want to pay for someone else's mistake either. yeah, i'm in the middle of that process right now. after a bit of haggling, they've agreed on a fair price, and i've negotiated to buy the salvage back for next to nothing. problem is, i had to apply for the salvage certificate and the DMV is taking forever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idosubaru Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 ah that sucks - sometimes you can essentially "buy it back" and not even deal with the salvage title thing. they just incorporate it into the deal and the title never really gets transfered to anyone...just stays with you. too bad you couldn't have pulled that off. nah, i don't have a clue where that thread would be. it's only a year..."mabye" two old, seems like it was last summer? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subyrally Posted March 12, 2008 Share Posted March 12, 2008 if you decide to part it out, let me know, i might have a buyer for the ej engine and trans. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stray Posted March 12, 2008 Author Share Posted March 12, 2008 if you decide to part it out, let me know, i might have a buyer for the ej engine and trans. will do. although, after wrenching on it a little today, i'm definitely leaning towards repairing it. time to start looking for a willing donor...zzz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subyrally Posted March 13, 2008 Share Posted March 13, 2008 good luck either way you go, i personally hope you get it back on the road.i hate to see a good car put down in the prime of its life, but if it has to go that way, there is no reason that the parts shouldnt live on somehow,. will do. although, after wrenching on it a little today, i'm definitely leaning towards repairing it. time to start looking for a willing donor...zzz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stray Posted March 13, 2008 Author Share Posted March 13, 2008 good luck either way you go, i personally hope you get it back on the road.i hate to see a good car put down in the prime of its life, but if it has to go that way, there is no reason that the parts shouldnt live on somehow,. thanks, and i agree completely (guess that's why my driver's license says ORGAN DONOR at the bottom - LOL). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subyrally Posted March 13, 2008 Share Posted March 13, 2008 thanks, and i agree completely (guess that's why my driver's license says ORGAN DONOR at the bottom - LOL). i would donate, but i dont think they want contaminated squishybits. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaru360 Posted March 13, 2008 Share Posted March 13, 2008 That looks fixable to me. Cut the inner structure from a junkyard car. Drill out the spotwelds, weld in what's needed, some used lights hood and fender and you're back on the road. I don't know if it's worth it thought, you could probably buy another one just like it for less than $1000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stray Posted March 13, 2008 Author Share Posted March 13, 2008 That looks fixable to me. Cut the inner structure from a junkyard car. Drill out the spotwelds, weld in what's needed, some used lights hood and fender and you're back on the road. I don't know if it's worth it thought, you could probably buy another one just like it for less than $1000. i pulled everything out of the way today & i think you're right on track! it's not as bad as i originally thought. looks like i need to replace the inner apron from about a few inches in front of the strut tower to about 6" past the hood latch. the parts you mentioned, some more stuff under the hood and an airbag - then i'll be good2go. thanks for the replies, fellas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
subaru360 Posted March 14, 2008 Share Posted March 14, 2008 i pulled everything out of the way today & i think you're right on track! it's not as bad as i originally thought. looks like i need to replace the inner apron from about a few inches in front of the strut tower to about 6" past the hood latch. the parts you mentioned, some more stuff under the hood and an airbag - then i'll be good2go. thanks for the replies, fellas. What I usually do for a hit like that is repair the innner fender in front of the strut tower as best as possible by pulling and hammer and dolly work. Then I drill out all the spot welds and replace the core support or possibly looking at your pic just the upper bar of the core support. It looks like that hit was above the frame rail so it should be an easy fix. Being an older car, you don't have to do show quality work on the inner structure either, just get it straight enough to bolt on the fender. Good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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