Unibody Fix

[SUSlegacy]

So I let a friend drive my legacy and he wrecked it into a guard rail. The front end unibody has been bent but the car still runs and drives. I dont want to junk the car because the miles are fairly low and it has alot of new parts so I took the front end apart and I definitly think the car is fixable. I was wondering if it was possible to unbolt the entire front end unibody and replace it with one from a similar model. The car is a 95 legacy sedan ; so if I bought a parts car with a good front end would I be able to swap the unibodies?

[impreza_GC8]

No, as far as I know the front part of the car must be cut off and a new one would have to be welded on. Therefore you cannot just put another front section on. This is why when you buy a "front clip" from a Japanese importer you will get the whole front of the car, they literally take a sawzall to the portion in front of the dashboard. Sometimes you can get clips where they cut off after the dashboard but this is more rare. If you're rad support is smashed to hell you are going to have a hard time fixing it cheaply. I hit a tree in a diagonal blow with my Outback at about 25mph and I was able to strip the whole front, bend the rad support back into shape and the car is fine however I only had a very small crease in the rad support. Very small. I would assume you are in worse shape than I was.
This is what the damage looked like:
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v668/WildKard51/mime-attachment2.jpg

This is the front stripped off:
https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2009/01/mimeattachment-1.jpg

Bending the rad support up by a block and tackle from the ceiling:
https://sl-i.net/FORUM/images/imported/2009/01/_MG_2017-1.jpg

Now you can't even tell except the bumper sits a little lower, there's a gap under the headlights.
I think a new bumper beam would fix that.
https://sl-i.net/FORUM/

[97legacygt]

Did he bend the radiator support or actually one of the rails? Pics would help. If the radiator support is bent beyond repair, it is most likely spot welded in and you could drill the spot welds out and put a new one in. Or you could maybe cut out the bent section of the support and weld the new one in. Not technically the way it is supposed to be done, but it works. If the rail is bent, you will have a harder time pulling it out. But you could do it with chains and a come-along. If the rail is bent beyond repair, it probably isn't worth fixing because you would need to swap a new rail in and that takes a lot of time.

And you could get a front clip from almost any junkyard, as long as they have a legacy in their yard. Most of the clips I have seen from local junkyards were cut at the A-pillar and on the floor in front of the passenger seats. The Japanese importers probably cut before the dash to save weight.

[Okin DaVanh]

Did he bend the radiator support or actually one of the rails? Pics would help. If the radiator support is bent beyond repair, it is most likely spot welded in and you could drill the spot welds out and put a new one in. Or you could maybe cut out the bent section of the support and weld the new one in. Not technically the way it is supposed to be done, but it works. If the rail is bent, you will have a harder time pulling it out. But you could do it with chains and a come-along. If the rail is bent beyond repair, it probably isn't worth fixing because you would need to swap a new rail in and that takes a lot of time.

And you could get a front clip from almost any junkyard, as long as they have a legacy in their yard. Most of the clips I have seen from local junkyards were cut at the A-pillar and on the floor in front of the passenger seats. The Japanese importers probably cut before the dash to save weight.

We think alike. :smt023 This is just what I was gonna type in.


Pics definately would help. Preferably with the hood open (if possible)


If the damage is in the frame rails, It would be better repaired by professionals. As a frame machine would be required to not only hold the car together (long story) but also alow a true straight repair as well.