How to Replace a Damaged Truck Bed

Trucks aren't like most cars; if a car gets damaged, most times parts have to be cut, welded and repainted before the car is back to normal. A truck comes in sections; so if the bed gets damaged in an accident, most times it can simply be removed then replaced with a new one. You can usually find one in a junkyard that's the same color so you don't even have to do any paint work before installation. The process is not technically difficult to do but does involve some heavy lifting so make sure you have some help to get it done.

Instructions

1

Open the gas door and use the Phillips head screwdriver to unscrew the door from the bed side. Reach underneath the vehicle and pull the gas filler neck out of the gas door and down under the bed. Open the tailgate and use the Phillips head screwdriver to remove the taillights from the bed sides. Pull out the lenses and unplug the wiring from the light. Pull any wiring still in the bed side down to the ground through the taillight hole.

2

Unbolt the bed from the frame using a 1/2-inch ratchet, extension and socket. There are at least four bolts securing the bed to the frame, and it may be difficult to access them depending on the damage caused to the bed.

3

Space your assistant or assistants evenly with you around the bed so that you can distribute the weight of the bed amongst you. Lift the bed off of the truck using your legs for strength, then pull the bed back away from the cab and place it to the side out of the way.

4

Space your assistant or assistants evenly with you around the replacement bed and lift it up, using your legs for strength. Walk the bed over to the frame of the truck and set it onto the frame slowly. Crawl underneath the bed, close to the cab, and hand-thread in one of the bolts to the bed, just enough to line up the threads. You may have to have an assistant push or pull the bed in line with the holes to get it threaded.

5

Crawl underneath the bed at the rear by the tailgate on the opposite corner as the bolt you just threaded in. Pull and push the bed to align the hole in the frame with the threaded hole on the bed, then loosely bolt the bed into place.

6

Thread the rest of the bolts in by hand, then tighten them all into place using the 1/2-inch ratchet, extension and socket. Once the bed is secured, reinstall the gas filler neck and the taillights in the reverse order of disassembly.