Shop Talk
Welcome to the Gold Coast Auto Body “Answer Blog,” where we periodically post news updates, technical articles, and other items of interest to our customers and friends in the luxury car community.
Category: Repairs
Saving Money vs. Saving Lives
The case for OEM parts and procedures in auto body repair just keeps growing and growing. The latest comes from this report on a series of crash tests conducted as a follow-up to last-year’s historic $42 million jury award against a Texas body shop for their liability in a horrific crash involving a 2010 Honda Fit.
GCAB was among the financial supporters of the tests, which compared new, OEM-repaired, aftermarket-repaired and improperly repaired Honda Fits. The results bore-out what we’ve long believed: that inferior quality parts and repairs can be downright dangerous.
“When there is a 400-800 percent difference in the results, it’s staggering. This could be the difference between broken bones, permanent injuries, life or death,” said Jerry McNee, a New Jersey-based shop owner who also helped finance the tests. Of course, most repair professionals already knew that, he said; he just wishes insurance companies would catch on.
“They make comments like, ‘It’s just a fender,’ ‘It’s in their policy’ and ‘LKQ parts are the same,’” he said. “They’re dictating what they’re paying for to unjustly enrich themselves, but numbers and test results don’t lie.”
“The biggest takeaway of this presentation is that we’re beginning to define what ‘like kind and quality’ means,” said Burl Richards, President of the Auto Body Association of Texas (ABAT) and another test supporter. “We now have scientific proof that shows vehicles are safer when they’re repaired using OEM parts and OEM procedures.”
Scanning Myths Debunked
Are scanning and recalibration the same thing? Does no dash light guarantee no electronic or mechanical problems?
The fact is, there are a lot of myths and misconceptions about onboard diagnostics in today’s cars, particularly the high-end vehicles GCAB services. The short video included here tackles a few of the most prevalent scanning myths and offers tips on what to do – and what not to – to avoid potentially costly problems. For more in-depth information, read Mitch Becker’s recent cover article on scanning for Body Shop Business.
Onboard Diagnostics 101: Scanning vs. Recalibration
Since the integration of computer technology into cars began in the 1970s, onboard diagnostic equipment and procedures have played an ever-increasing role in every kind of automotive service, including body repair. Depending on the vehicle’s make and model as well as the type and extent of damage, a given repair job may require a pre-repair scan, post-repair scan and/or recalibration of affected systems.
The key word is may. Not every job requires all three procedures; in fact, some may not need any of them. To understand why, you must first understand the difference between scanning and recalibration on one hand, and pre- and post-repair scans on the other. The short video included here will give you the basics. For more in-depth information, read the following article from Body Shop Business.
Our Customers Weigh In
We take great pride in the work we do here at Gold Coast Auto Body, and we’re not the only ones. Read a few of the recent endorsements we’ve received from thousands of satisfied customers who know first-hand the quality and commitment we bring to every job we do.
