I got rear-ended about two weeks ago and the damage was relatively severe but not too bad. They replaced my rear bumper, tail gate, badges, and hitch. Any who, I got her back from the shop today and I was looking over the work and it seems that my new bumper sits down lower. Its showing a lot of the frame and the spare tire is now visible. Before there was just a tiny gap if I recall correctly. I'm hoping that this doesn't mean my back end or the bumper mounts are some how bent?? All of the work was done at the local dealership and I can take it back. I'll post up some pics later. Any opinions guys? If you have any pictures of your rear bumper can you please post. Thanks as always. I'll get those pics up as soon as the camera is done charging.

 

I would take it back, there is only a small visable space on mine. '06 XLT 4x4

 

If the dealer is going to fix your truck, the sooner you bring it back, the better your chances are. There has got to be lots of comparables at the dealer's lot. Take a ruler and camera with you.

 

If the bumper is sitting down lower, wouldn't you see less of the spare tire and frame? Or are you saying you can see more of the spare and frame through the gap between the bottom of the bed and top of the bumper?

 

The bumper is sitting down lower from the tail gate resulting in more of the spare tire showing and frame. I am concerned that the actual bumper mounts on the left side(the impact side) are bent. I am taking it back today. I have picture I am about to up load to show you. Its hard to see with the camera but definitly noticible in person.

 

Mine was the same way after the accident. I took it back and they did a crappy job, so I just loosened the bolts and adjusted myself. That is if the frame is not bent. Either way, I would take it back first.

 

Sounds like my wreck. How much did you end up getting for it?

It's amazing how much body shops make off of those.

 

The total repair cost was a little over 2k. I am just praying that the rear mounts arent bent because I can't do with out my truck right now and cant drive the rental because im not 25. So i'm stuck either driven my dads tahoe or my sisters escape.. God i hate that escape

 

Take it back and keep taking it back until you are satisfied with the repairs. You didn't ask to have your truck damaged and you shouldn't settle for anything less then the condition it was in prior to the accident.

 

As long as you have rental coverage the insurance company HAS to give you a rental. They can't just say oh you can't get a rental even though you're paying for it... that would be illegal...

 

Jwool don't stress it. I took my own bumper off and put it back on my self. It is easily adjusted. It is a helluva lot easier if you have someone help you of course, but you can do it in your driveway. Just get under there and take a look at the bolts. It really isn't that difficult to figure out. Beware the difficult locking clips on the bolts that go through the side of the rear frame. The bolts won't tighten back up right if your not careful. But, it is easy enough to do yourself. I recommend making the body shop do it, but if they don't want to play nice, just do it yourself and forget about it. Good luck bro and sorry to hear about the fender bender.

 

Alright Guys we are back up and runnin. I took it back and they fixed it but it still seems unlevel. Now it seems as if its pointing upwards I hope professional mechanics would atleast know how to mount a bumper correctly. Im gonna check it out tomorrow and see what kind of damage I can do to hopefully level her out.

 

Just a FYI, If you have the factory hitch, the bumper is just a cover that is bolted to the hitch. The hitch is actually the strength of the bumper. If you crawl under the truck and look at where the hitch mounts, you will see 6 bolts hold the entire assembly in place. There are 2 on each side going from the front to the rear then there is one on each side a little lower on the brackets. If you loosen all the bolts the bumper will actually be able to be moved up or down about 3/4". I had my hitch replaced at the dealer and they put it back on really crooked. I fixed it myself in less than 15 min in the garage. I loosened all the bolts and got out the tape measure. I lined the bottom of the bumper up with the lines in the bed. It comes out to 3/4" space between the tailgate and the top of the bumper. I then torqued all the bolts back down and all was good. When I first picked up the truck the drivers side was sitting at 3/8" and the passenger side was sitting at 1". It looked like the springs on the passenger side of the truck were broken. You won't even have to drop the spare to align it!