My 2002 Dakota took a lightning strike from a nearby tree that got a direct hit. My headlights came on even though the switch was off, had to disconnect battery. Car doesn't start but cranks. Smells like burnt wires inside. No other damage except rear view mirror came off. I called my insurance company and they think the car may be totaled, they are sending someone to pick it up so they can examine it.
Do you think there could be enough damage to the wiring to total the truck? It's got a edmunds value around 5-6K.

 

I don't know electrical systems like some guys on here so I'll let them make the decision but I wouldn't think so. My initial guess would be the computer is fried. I'm guessing since it cranks some things work obviously but does the fuel pump prime when you turn the key on? I guess that's where I would start. That may help you figure out if you are getting fuel, maybe just not getting spark. I don't see $4,000 or more of damage due to electrical problems, but you never know.

 

Well, when you consider the "average" lightning bolt carries about 1 billion volts, at somewhere between 10,000 to 200,000 amps of current, and your truck is only a 12.6 volt system when it is not running and about a 14 volt system at about 100 amps of current when it is running, I would say chances are pretty good there was some very extensive damage done.. Whether the damage was enough to total it out depends on the insurance adjuster. Usually if the damage and repairs are over 80% of the book value, the truck is considered totaled. If you owe money on the truck, your insurance may pay it off and if there is anything left over, you may get the difference. Then the insurance takes the truck and sells it to a junk yard and makes back some of what they paid off on it to the bank. This is how insurance companies screw you over, big time. A lot of the time the adjuster is in bed with the body shop too. I hate insurance companies. They don't care at all about you or your truck, they only care about their own profit and bottom line.

If you have extensive damage to the wire harness in the truck just a new harness alone costs somewhere around probably $1,500.00, maybe more depending on what engine and model truck you have. Labor to replace the harness is not cheap either. A new PCM can be found on ebay or other online parts sites for a few hundred bucks, but the body shop will jack the price up. I don't care too much for body shops either. They are also in it for the money. Although I did find a good one here locally that was honest and did a great job re-painting the roof of my truck at a fair price.

I knew a guy back in the day who worked in a junk yard. They had a Ford Explorer come in that had been hit by lightning. There was a spot of paint flaked off where it was struck, it was about the size of a half-dollar and had just a small dent in the center. That was the only obvious sign of any damage but the lightning fried the wire harness and destroyed every single electrical component in the truck.

It is your decision but if it were me I would not want the truck fixed. It is very hard to "completely" repair extensive electrical damage like that. Even if you think it is fixed, you could still have serious electrical issues later on. I guess it depends on whether you owe anything on it and what kind of offer you get from the insurance adjuster.

Just my 2 cents. Good luck.

Jimmy

 

Normally the tires does not allow a ground; I guess it must have been a pouring to create the circuit.

Glad no one was hurt and good luck.

 

Yeah, glad you are not hurt. My truck was totaled do to in-cabin fire. The whole inside
was toast. Got 7 grand. Bought it back for a grand from the ins. co. Found the same interior on e-bay for 3 hundred. Truck is good as new. Electrical and fire, (almost no matter how small will total a car out. Insurance companies are deathly afraid of long-term come-backs on those types of claims.

 

The initial estimate to repair was $4600.+, replacing all the electrical componants, but the insurance company totaled the truck & I got $8600.+ before my deductable. Time for a new truck.....