I've been working with a buddy who bought an '03 Dodge Durango for $950 CDN. The catch was, the frame is severely damaged. The previous owner had lent it out to a friend, who ended up driving it drunk and put it into a ditch. The truck didn't roll or anything, but it did bend the front crossmember (where the power steering rack bolts down) pretty bad, and pushed the power steering rack up into the oil pan. To get the body ready to be removed, we took out the front and rear driveshafts, the front diff, the front fenders, the front bumper, the hood, unbolted the tie rod ends, dropped the fuel tank, dropped the transfer case, pulled the motor and trans, and loosened all the body bolts off, and put 4 back in hand tight. The drivetrain is a 4.7L v8, 4x4 automatic with 223,xxx KM Here are pics:

The front of the truck with the hood, bumper and front fenders off:


The front passenger side missing the front diff and axles:


The broken lower control arm on the driver side:


A view of the driver side of the motor with no fenders on:


The bent up front crossmember:


The rear diff missing the driveshaft:


The empty space where the driveshaft and fuel tank should be:


The empty space where the transfer case belongs:


The back of the transmission:


The transmission out and sitting on the floor:


The motor on the motor stand:


The empty engine bay:


Now, he has bought a second Durango that has front end damage, but no frame damage, so we are gunna do this all over again to the second Durango as well. I will post pics of the tear down of that one when we get to it, but we still have to pick that one up. We started this tear down on Thursday, and finished on Sunday, and we didn't even work on it yesterday. We are basically building 1 good truck outta 2 smashed ones. I will also be sure to post pics of the reassemble, and the finished product. Might be a while before I update again tho, not sure when we are getting the second truck..

 

I hope you plan on rebuilding the motor and trans while you have it out!

 

He doesn't have the money for that right now, and we are shooting to have the truck on the road quick. The truck moved under its own power when the motor and trans was in, just not too easily because both the front wheels were pointed inward. /---\ <--- like that. The tranny fluid isn't burnt or anything either. only thing we are hugely concerned about is the oil pump, as the pan got crushed. But short of that, the engine had no abnormal knocks or ticks, not even on start up. The motor surprisingly purred!

 

We all like our projects but two wrecked Durangos in parts equal one good one on the road. Here in NV You can pick one up low milage for less than 5k. If its cosmetic damage change clip. Frames dont always line up. Remember is the hiden damage thats hard to find. I had electrical parts that the dealership had to research and some are junkyard only. Ever see a driveshaft shoved into a trans?

 

Cant say I ever have. My buddy is gunna be into this truck for around 3 grand, including cost of purchasing the 2 trucks. When all is said and done, and this truck is on the road, it will be worth 8 grand. Spend 3 grand to make something worth 8 grand is a pretty good deal to me!

 

Ever seen a drive line turned into a literal pretzel shape from shear torque, I have because I've done it.........

 

damn showoffs

 

He he he

Man I tell ya what, when it happened it scared the **** out of me cause I was racing. I ended up having a custom solid drive line made after that, and those things are heavy and go through U-joints about every 3 months.

 

Where is the $8000 coming from? I wouldn't pay that for an 03 with a rebuilt frame and 200k on the motor. You should sell the motors, diffs, transfer cases and trannys to get your money back then scrap the rest at a profit. Then take the cash to buy one in good shape already.

 

Salvage Title? The lots are full of clean Durangos for less than 5000 with clean carfax and titles. The price dived after the 2nd gen came out, now with the new gen? Good luck though. I prefer the 98-99 for steering box that makes for easy SAS. I bought mine for half original price and is worth half what I paid even with lift and add-ons. If you get 8k I drop mine off and let you sell it.