I bought a car that had been in an accident where it hit a tree and bent a rear wheel to where it was not able to turn any more.

My question is...what effect on the drivetrain would it probably have had that this car had run off the road and was moving when it hit the tree and sustained the bent rim?

Since this rim can no longer turn and the front wheels were still turning would it ruin the transfer case or gear box etc?

WADAD

 

You could have damaged the rear differential, rear axles, wheel bearing, transfer case (less likely, but possible). Instead of internet diagnoses you should just start tearing things down and eliminating items from the list. It'll be very easy to determine if you damaged the rear axles or wheel bearings. The rear diff shouldn't be too tough to diagnose either.

-Paul

 

Thanks for the reply...

I'm just wondering what are the possibilities. The engine is solid but I wanted to swap the engine/gearbox assembly etc out and yes once I get it on a good lift to view it I will check it out. Internally however was wondering what are the possibilities.

WADAD

 

Hello,

The rear differential may have been knocked out of alignment, the wheel bearing may be bent, or the axle might be broken. If I were you, I'd put a spare or another EVO wheel on (same size as what you have on the other corners), and figure out what's bad/broken from there. If you get the new wheel on there, and it won't spin, then you can figure you have at least a bad wheel bearing. If you can spin it partially around (not 360 degrees), then you can get a bit further in your diagnosis.

jerry