Stan's Jeep Cherokee - 23 August 2011

 Stan is a 77 year old retired engineer friend of mine. He called today saying he'd
been in an accident in Seattle.  The pictures below show the damage to his Jeep Cherokee.
It is unclear who was at fault.  Stan was attempting to pull to the shoulder after missing
a turn and was rear ended by a truck.  Their is a police report and Stan's got a friend
looking after that matter.

I've known Stan for over 20 years and went over his house to look at the damage and offer
some suggestions.  My son and I looked it over.  The running gear and suspension appear
to be undamaged, however, the way the body is buckled the rear axle may not track true, but
may have the left rear wheel a little forward of original.  The vehicle will move under its
own power right now.  The driver's door will NOT open... that side is compressed tightly.

To make the vehicle "functional" it would need an outside mirror, a left rear taillight,
a new right front tire, the driver's seat bent back upright or replaced and the rear license
lamp secured and made functional.  There is no damage to transmission cross member, drivershafts,
exhaust system, or fuel system, and no visible damage to the rear brakes.   No fuel could be
smelled, nor were there any leaking fluids.

The driver's door will not open as the body is compressed on that side.  The passenger side
appears to have an increased gap behind the rear door, indicating that the rear of the vehicle
was moved to the left as well as pushed forward.

Is the vehicle safe to drive?  IF it can be made to track straight and the frame checked between
the spring mounts on the driver's side, quite possibly. The sheet metal on top is still intact
and capable of supporting the vehicle, biggest question is will it go straight.  And if it can
be made to go straight, will the support between the spring mounts be there?  My guess is could
be but why go through the expense and trouble?  Parting it out makes more sense considering all the 
damage.

However, once the lights and mirrors are replaced it would meet Washington State requirements for on road use.  
The driver would have to climb over the passenger seat to gain entry.   Not exactly an ideal commuter vehicle.

The vehicle will likely pull slightly to the left as is, making it unsafe without a four wheel alignment, if
that will be enough to correct the anticipated crab action.  If it can't be aligned then it would only
be suitable for off-road use. But even if it could be aligned, that section between the springs is weakened
and will likely have issues over time.  Not worth the trouble to fix safely.

Would I drive this vehicle?  I would off road.  I would at speeds under 50 mph in snow.  I would
if I didn't have any other vehicle and I could make it go down the road straight.  But I wouldn't
take this thing on the freeway or across the country.  

I don't think Stan will drive this Jeep again. He's looking for a small truck. 

If you live in the Puget Sound area and are interested in buying this from Stan for PARTS get in touch 
with john at johnmeister.com/jeep/sj.  The engine and drive train have about 181,000 miles on them, 5 speed manual transmission, 
a 4.0L HO engine.  Three of the tires are quite good.  The only broken glass is the rear hatch.

These are sturdy little vehicles and from what I can tell there was no damage to the uniframe
except for a small buckle not far from the left rear shackle mount. 



JM7_2990_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2990ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2991_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2991ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2992_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2992ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2993_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2993ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2994_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2994ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2995_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2995ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2996_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2996ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2997_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2997ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2998_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2998ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2999_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_2999ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3000_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3000ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3001_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3001ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3002_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3002ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3003_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3003ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3004_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3004ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3005_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3007_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3008_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3009_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3009ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3010_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3010ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3011_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3011ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3012_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3012ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3013_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3013ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3014_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3014ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3015_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3015ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3016_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3016ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3017_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3017ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3018_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3018ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3019_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3020_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3020ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3021_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3021ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3023_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3023ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3024_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3025_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3025ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3026_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3026ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3027_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3027ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3028_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3029_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3029ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3030_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3031_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3032_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3032ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3033_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3034_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3034ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3035_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3035ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3036_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3036ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3037_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3037ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3038_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3038ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3039_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3039ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3040_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3040ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3041_2011-08-23.jpg


JM7_3041ce-stans-cherokee_2011-08-23.jpg