2007 Suzuki Vinson 500 Accident

[Tazman6789]

My brother wrecked my 07 vinson 500 yesterday tore up the front suspension pretty good, rim cracked tire slashed, tie rod bent into a u shape, and the front suspension pushed back about 2-3 inches towards the back of the atv. Im trying to find parts cheap as possible does anybody know if parts off a 02 vinson 500 will fit my 07? its the front right that has the damage, i found on ebay the front upper and lower arms with bearing for $60 if they will fit mine it would be great... also does anybody know where i can find a possible used rim and tire and tie rod, everything i find is super expensive, i searched ebay they only have like racing tie rods

Edited August 16, 2010 by Tazman6789

[Ajmboy]

That stinks, sorry to hear that. Either check with the dealer parts counter or maybe check a site like www.bikebandit.com and see if both years use the same part numbers.

* Added full year and model to your thread title.

[Stoopidbot1]

INSPECT your frame.... you may have bent that too

[DirtDemon]

The arms have different part #'s, but are similar in design. The shock part #'s are also different. The only thing that is the same is the a-arm bushings. They may fit, the differences may be little to none, but the part #'s are different. I am also inclined to agree with Stoopidbot, check your frame for damage, if it is messed up, it won't be as simple as just bolting new parts on. I have first hand experience with that one. I messed up an a-arm and had to re-fabricate the mounts to just to compensate for the slightest frame damage.

[Tazman6789]

frame is def bent a lil bit. its rideable the way it is tried attaching tow strap to control arm and other side to tree and backing quickly, did a bunch of nothing. lesson learned dont let anybody touch your atv but you.

[DirtDemon]

Wow, that sucks, it looks like the frame is just as much if not more damaged than the a-arms. I can't even tell if the a-arms are damaged at all from the pic, I can tell that the quad is messed up though. What are your plans? The frame will be very hard to straighten, you probably need to replace it to fix it, and that is alot of work, but still cheaper than a new ATV.

[Tazman6789]

i already replaced the a arms i though thats where they were damaged cause the paint was freshly chipped off a few welds on the arms, those are the new arms in the picture. for now im going to ride it as is until i can get my hands on a friends welder and see what kind of magic we can work, im thinking about cutting out the one cross support or both, hammering it back out and welding the crosses back in. we shall see. def sucks its an 07 but i bought it brand new off the dealer floor end of 09 only has like 300 miles on it

[Tazman6789]

im thinking cut on the red push the yellow out a couple inches and weld the red back together probably take some heavy sheet metal wrap around both braces for extra hold power what do you guys think? any better ideas?

[DirtDemon]

I think that the frame is already bent in the direction that you are thinking of pushing it. I think both sides need to be pushed back the other way, the left (damaged) side more so. I also think that there is more than just the frame rails that need fixing, the a-arm mounts themselves don't seem to be in the right place anymore. That could be from the frame being twisted as well as bent, or the mounts themseslves have been bent. I think the best thing to do would be to remove as much as you can from the frame, suspension and the front diff, and get a real good look at how it was damaged. I am willing to bet there is more damage than what you can see now. That thing is bent pretty good, especially considering that you have already replaced the a-arms, so they are straight, that is all frame distortion there. As far as riding the thing like that, I wouldn't go fast enough to hurt yourself if you crash, there could be cracked welds you don't see, and I am sure that allignment will make for a pretty scary ride at higher speeds. Also, how are your tie rods and the rest of the steering parts?

[Tazman6789]

tie rod was bent into a u shape but that was replaced already also, the point of impact was the right tire the one thats pushed down it looks like the lower a arm mount in the pic is pushed in and the top is pushed out, the handlebars are just a lil off when im driving straight they are pointing to the left about an inch its pretty well jacked up and my brother is beginning to be a jerk about it when i told him the frame is $900 not including the week i would have to put into crossing parts over

[DirtDemon]

Maybe your brother needs a kick in the nuts.

[Tazman6789]

the gap between the wheel well and tire is 2 inches on the damage side, 4 inches on the other

and the yellow arrow is the direction i want to push it back out to bring that lower arm mount out and bringing the tire up

Edited August 30, 2010 by Tazman6789

[DirtDemon]

I think I understand what you are saying better now, at first I was picturing the frame just being bent in that direction. Now I realize that you mean to move the whole thing straight to the left, maybe pushing the lower side out more and keeping the very top front end of the frame more or less where it is. While I get the concept, I would still take everything out of the front end and try to determine where the twists and bends are in the frame and try to correct them. If you have to, cut the a-arm mount off and move it back around to where it is supposed to be. I think that just pushing that side out is going to fix one problem, but lead to others.

[Tazman6789]

well she survived the weekend, took it easy on her at first but by the end of the weekend she got her normal wear and beating, performed like a champ just like it always has. only complaint is that the front end is pulling slightly to the left but cant expect perfection until i get the frame taken care of. so now i have to get the rim repaired permanently instead of just the tube i threw in it for the weekend, and have to figure out a plan of attack for this frame

[DirtDemon]

Good luck, I know from experience how difficult it can be to repair frame damage.