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Went down this weekend

3K views 21 replies 13 participants last post by  smudgepot 
#1 ·
Long story short, I messed up this weekend, went off the road into the jing weeds and went down on the Vee. Initially it didn't look like much damage, just a few minor scuffs. I finished the trip and it felt fine. Was looking it over yesterday and saw that the luggage rack on the side it landed on looked bent in towards the exhaust. Looking even more I noticed that the rear fender is off center with the back tire. Not a lot, but enough that it is visible.

My question for anyone who has put their Vee down before, is there a common place on the rear section that bends and is it easy to straighten back out? With the seat rail being about $500 new from Suzuki and with the other minor cosmetic things I am debating on submitting it to my insurance or not. Or do you guys think it is better save than sorry and have it professionally repaired?

 
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#2 ·
Your rear fender is not lined up with the centerline of the tire. So either you were not lined up exactly behind it when you took the pic or more than the rack is out of plumb.
 
#7 ·
If you have your Insurance company look at it, whether you turn it in for payment or not, it will be listed as an "incident" on your file. I checked about having a windshield replaced a few years back on the truck, ended up buying one out of pocket but that "incident" showed up when looking for bike insurance a year later. Beware.

I figure the rear subframe is bent. Quite common. That is the steel framing that bolts to the main frame and supports the seat and tail area. Probably find a good used one from a parted out DL 1000 or you might be able to straighten that one to suit you. Inspect it for cracks, especially after straightening, and weld them up if needed.
 
#5 ·
The back end of my 04 Wee looked similar. The right side impact bent the side rack in, which pushed the muffler against the fender and made it look off center. The rack was a loss, it's gone. I straightened the muffler mounting tabs and the fender went right back to center. The passenger peg was a pretzel and bent the tabs on the subframe. Still, the subframe structure was not bent. The biggest questions regarding insurance will be do you like doing the work and what's your tolerance for it not being perfect in the end? Mine is an ugly mongrel of a motorcycle so the bar is low. Good luck.
 
#9 ·
Thanks. I am going to start taking it apart tonight. If it is something small like you are saying, I will probably fix it myself. I do like doing the work myself, I just want to make sure that there is nothing more major wrong. I like my stuff to be nice and as perfect as possible, but I like my hard earned cash too. :)
 
#8 ·
Most likely the structural integrity of your subframe is good. You can:
Leave it on the bike, strip the rear down and use comealongs between two trees to align. Not the best procedure but I've done it and it can work

Remove the subframe, construct a 4"x4" wooden jig and with bottle jacks and wood spacers, re align. I've assisted using this and it worked well.

Both the above require some forethought and can create a weak spot but your bend does not seem that severe.

You could also purchase a used subframe from a bike being parted out due to engine failure
 
#11 ·
sub-frame is bent. muff is bolted to sub-frame. no good way to fix. because ya cant bend s-frame out to exact square. good news is, s-frame is bolted on. can be replaced EZ $500..

--http://www.fuelly.com/motorcycle/suzuki/dl1000/2005/jbw/98336-----------------------------------------------
 
#15 ·
Check if the rear axle was knocked out of alignment. Does the chain still run straight off the rear sprocket?

Take a close look at everything, and continue looking closely as you strip it down. Don't assume any part is bent until you verify it by a careful look.
 
#16 ·
Took all of the racks and plastics off the rear of the bike last night. Nothing looks obviously bent, which isn't a surprise giving how little it is actually bent. Put everything back together and it looked better, maybe only off bout about 1/2 inch or so. Didn't look too bad until I rode to work this morning and put it on the side stand. Don't know if things shifted, or if it is just more noticeable on the side stand than on my swing arm stand but the fender looks way off again. I didn't get a chance to check the rear axle or the alignment of the front and rear wheels.
 
#17 ·
Same exact thing happened to me except. Left and top luggage rack bent inward and pushed left exhaust in and dented exhaust heat shield. Dealer inspection opinined that subframe (top rack attached to) was bent. I replaced racks and had no fit issues so I think subframe was not bent. Rack bends were too diifficult to bend back. Racks were snout 340. To buy. Racks, subframe buy and labor eatimate from dealer was 1500. Bought replacement heat shield on eBay for$25. Even with damage bike drove great and was only aesthetic with bent racks. Also cases fit fine on bent racks
although not straight.
 
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