My son took my wife's all-wheel CR-V down a rough road and bent one of the suspension brackets for the central drive shaft. The car was still movable, but made grinding noises as he drove the last few miles to his destination.
Here are some pictures of the bent bracket (ignore the dented muffler; we'll deal with that later):
I'm not there, and he's about 80 miles from home. I'm considering driving there tomorrow in my own car, bending the bracket back into place, and then having him drive the CR-V home to be serviced next week. I figure the bracket, seal and bearing are toast, and driving it won't break anything else.
Does this seem like a good plan?
Additional info: I'm told he drove it about five miles between prang and destination. It made nasty sounds, and when he checked underneath he found it was hot (probably the bracket rubbing against the driveshaft). They tried to bend it back with the lug wrench to no avail, but I have some serious persuaders I could bring.
Final info: I did decide to get it flat-bedded to a local shop. My thinking was that a quick fix could probably let me drive the 80 miles home, but if something happened it would be seriously bad news. So, the shop will be replacing the whole driveshaft, as it doesn't come in separate parts. They also recommended replacing the muffler, but was fine with not doing it.
