On September 13, 2020, Thumper was involved in a car crash. A Honda Civic ran a stop sign and pulled out in front of me on the highway, causing me to rear end them at approximately 90kph. I was not injured, and the other driver was not severely injured.

Unfortunately, the same can not be said for Thumper – though the damage to Thumper is significantly less severe than the civic. (see the photo album below)

My front right fender was crumpled up and pushed back, taking the inner fender with it. The radiator support was bent inwards, but luckily the body mount kept it from moving the radiator itself. The hood has been crumpled pretty badly, and the headlight door & grille have both been smashed. My right front tire was also punctured, right in the sidewall.

The bumper saved this truck’s life, and also saved mine. It was bent pretty badly, and the solenoid box for my 8274 was smashed, but the winch still spools by hand. The roller fairleads are a bit worse for wear, but after bending back their mounts, they still spin.

The contents of the engine bay thankfully did not experience any damage, and the frame is not bent. After changing the tire over to my (30 year old) spare, I was able to drive home that night, with only a missing signal light and mis-aimed headlight keeping the truck from being officially road-legal.

Luckily, the other driver’s insurance company admitted fault once I showed them the dash-cam footage I had – though it took them 3 months to come to that decision. The driver received tickets from the RCMP for their driving, and there were witnesses.

In the moment of impact, the civic was pushed towards the ditch, where it hit a road sign and continued; clearing the entire ditch before taking out the fence for the near-by property. I was able to come to a stop while staying on the road, and pulled over safely as my tire slowly deflated. The other driver got out of their car and claimed that I also had a stop sign, (I did not) and then refused to say anything else. Instead, they sat on what was left of their car, and smoked a cigarette, amongst the leaking gasoline from their car. Clearly not the brightest member of our species.

I just had my appraisal done for the repairs, and hopefully I will hear back from the adjustor soon. In the meantime I have re-aimed the headlight and replaced the signal bulb, also pulling the bumper back to (more or less) how it was. I replaced the damaged solenoids, and my winch is working yet again. The truck tracks fine on the road, and I have continued using it as my daily driver ever since.

Other than the top half of my seat-belt buckle snapping off, the interior was not damaged. I credit this truck for saving me from serious injury, and it may have even saved my life. This accident serves as a reminder for why I’m proud to drive a BJ60 every day. It may not be the fastest truck out there, or the most versatile, but there are not many vehicles that can be driven home after a 90kp/h crash.

Thank you, Thumper.