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How Bad is this Damage?

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TheD-Man

TheD-Man

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I took a spill in Big Bend in Feb.
Fractured my Tibia Plateau but did not think my new 2019 DRZ 400S received any real damage other than scraped.
Boy was I wrong.
Tonight I was going to fit my new heavy duty skid plate (had not yet upgraded this) and was shocked to discover two big dents in the bike frame!!!!
I cannot believe I did not see this before but I was hurting pretty bad at the time and had a long rehab.

How bad is this?
Should I not ride it?
Can it be repaired?

Was planning to ride some dirt gravel roads tomorrow near Lockhart and am signed up for the TARA ride in Junction in November.

There are two dents: the deep one is at the front at the bend in the frame and the second is shallower - about three inches further under the bike.

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I guess I will contact insurance tomorrow and see where this goes. I am worried the repair will be costly and they may total it.
Only 320 miles on it. Ugh.
 
I think you are over-thinking this ... it's not the original copy of the declaration of independence.
It's a lot tougher than you may think.

I see dents in the pictures ... I don't see cracks, splits or breaks.
Ride it and watch it.
 
If the frame is dented it'll be totaled. The work to remove everything from the frame and attach it to a new one will cost more than a new DRZ. DRZ's are tough but you sure did beat this one up. Odds are it'd be ok and last you for many years to come, however, that decision is on you and whether you ride it or claim it. Best of luck either way.
 
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[QUOTE="mitchntx, post: 1714733, member: 2820"
I see dents in the pictures ... I don't see cracks, splits or breaks.
Ride it and watch it.
[/QUOTE]
+1 and keep an eye on it. If it cracks. that's when you need to be concerned.
 
Thanks for the feedback

@gixxerjasen - exactly what I was thinking. Insurance will total it.

Gosh darn it - it’s still NEW!
I am not ready to be worrying if it is cracking, if I am out somewhere remote and worrying about riding too rough terrain, etc.
Part of me wants to let em total it and get a new one but that will be costly.
Wonder what insurance would give me for it?

@Jcstratt thank for your feedback.
Exactly what I was hoping is someone would be familiar with this type of damage. So, where would one go to have a “doubler” welded on, and can that be done without disassembly?
 
Honestly if you are really worried about it, get another frame from ebay or somewhere. A good solid day of swapping will get it transferred over. This is the "I am going to keep it forever plan". If you want to retain max value, you need a frame from the same year. Plus you could sell that one with the clear title and move on. I am with Mitch, it is dented. If you can't tell the ride is affected, I would just ride it. DR-Z's are pretty indestructible. Of course, YMMV.
 
I know someone that had the frame replaced on their RoadKing. Granted that's a more expensive bike so insurance thought it worthwhile to do the swap. For less expensive bikes, that threshold is much lower.

Is that a single unit frame or does the lower cradle separate from the rest? Replacing the frame on some bikes ends up with a VIN change. That was the case with the H-D and the neck had to be sent back to the factory to officially scrap the old VIN.
 
TheD-Man said:
I am not ready to be worrying if it is cracking, if I am out somewhere remote and worrying about riding too rough terrain, etc.
Part of me wants to let em total it and get a new one but that will be costly.
Wonder what insurance would give me for it?
Click to expand...
.
I've never had a bike totaled (heck, I've only made one claim ever). But my car experience is that when something is totaled, I've gotten top dollar. As in, at the high end of KBB, which in my opinion is slightly inflated. If you're with any reputable insurance company, I'd expect it to be the same.

The only time I've ever been in a bike accident and made a claim, there was nothing wrong with my VStrom except scrapes & scratches. And Progressive paid me $2300, plus another $500 for the helmet.
 
I have totaled two bikes, kept them both after partial write off and rebuilt them better than new for less than I was paid. total it but keep it, the insurance will subtract the wreck value. you then have that bid ding patched and use the rest for upgrades.
 
Put the skid plate on it and ride. Steel is very forgiving and that is not a stress point. The way the engine is bolted into the frame adds a lot of strength. This is unlikely to ever be a problem. (If you go the claim route, you may consider the insurance claim as farkel money after buy-back, as suggested)

Also, welcome to the Fractured Tibia Plateau in Big Bend club. I did that on a DRZ400E (plated) a few years back in the National Park on Old Ore Road. :flip:And, rode out, with a little help from my friends. Thirteen screws and a stainless plate later, good to go.

Where in Big Bend did you have your fun?
 
TheD-Man said:
I guess I will contact insurance tomorrow and see where this goes. I am worried the repair will be costly and they may total it.
Only 320 miles on it. Ugh.
Click to expand...
. Has the insurance company responded yet.... I will interestEd to hear what they say.
 
mitchntx said:
I think you are over-thinking this ... it's not the original copy of the declaration of independence.
It's a lot tougher than you may think.

I see dents in the pictures ... I don't see cracks, splits or breaks.
Ride it and watch it.
Click to expand...
This! The "thinking" you need to do should be in research to find a real skid plate that actually protects the frame also. Probably several available for a popular bike like that. Good luck, hope you have healed well! :thumb:
 
Insurance guy here for a little perspective. If you have personal injury protection you may cost more to fix than the bike. Dependent on your health insurance. You can buy the bike back after a total for salvage value. Can you fix it? Good luck on the injury, I learned from breaking both elbows years ago the arthritis hurts for longer than the original fracture.



Sent from my SM-G970U using Tapatalk
 
MotoTex said:
Put the skid plate on it and ride. Steel is very forgiving and that is not a stress point. The way the engine is bolted into the frame adds a lot of strength. This is unlikely to ever be a problem. (If you go the claim route, you may consider the insurance claim as farkel money after buy-back, as suggested)

Also, welcome to the Fractured Tibia Plateau in Big Bend club. I did that on a DRZ400E (plated) a few years back in the National Park on Old Ore Road. :flip:And, rode out, with a little help from my friends. Thirteen screws and a stainless plate later, good to go.

Where in Big Bend did you have your fun?
Click to expand...

Hi @MotoTex thanks for your feedback and the surprise to hear you had the same injury, same style bike, same geographic area! Wow that is crazy.
I was in Terlingua Ranch very close to reaching “Top Of The World”. Spun out a bit and lost it on a curve ascending in very loose rock.
However, I am very lucky; mine was a “stable fracture” not spiral, etc. so no surgery - just a very long time on crutches with zero weight bearing allowed and then even longer to rehab the soft tissue and atrophy.
 
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I would be more concerned with that one where the steel is wrinkled and cracked. That is a entry for water in that tube and a new point for corrosion.

Reminds me when I cased my vstrom on the old ore road. Saved by the pan
 
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