azexpat

Howdy, have a 2004 GX470, 240K miles. Recently hit a steel pole swerving in a parking lot to avoid hitting a little kid running. The pole didn't move at all, but it happened to hit the front edge of the right rear tire. Didn't notice anything at the time other than some panel scuffs, but it started having some drivability issues after. Finally looked closer and realized that the entire wheel was shifted backward about an inch in the well. This of course is making it have a toe out misalignment issue that makes it want to have rear steering, just enough so, at speed.

But the strange part is that I've put on ramps and looked and measured, and I can't see where the bend is. The only thing I can tell is that the end of the shaft seems to be axially twisted, away from the connecting rod. I can't see the twist in the metal, just noting how the shock mount goes through the end of the shock at a slight angle now, and the bump stop seems to be hitting toward the back now. But on the rear end itself, and all the mounting points, not seeing anything that would contribute to that much of a wheel shift and toe out.

My thought was to buy a used unit and replace, but just wondering if there's something else I should check. All the mount points seem intact, no movement, no bends, no cracks.

So, has anyone experienced anything similar? And is replacement pretty straightforward? (It does have the self-leveling susp.)

Thanks!