June 2012 Southeast Edition

Summit Software’s Presidentand Head Sherpa Frank Terleptalks with Autobody News aboutthe state of Digital Media forthe Collision Industry

by Melanie Andersonsee p. 18

State Farm’s forced implementationof its PartsTrader e-bidding processwithin its Select Service Programshops has ignited a firestorm of criti-cism from the industry, not just fromits own DRPs.

Usage of the PartsTrader soft-ware, developed in New Zealand, hasbeen required by the insurer in severaltest markets nationwide, includingTucson, AZ, and Birmingham, AL,however several sources have re-ported shops dropping the SelectService Program as a result, up to40% in some markets.

The Alliance of AutomotiveService Providers (AASP), the Soci-ety for Collision Repair Specialists(SCRS), and the Automotive ServiceAssociation (ASA) and numerous in-dependent industry observers havecome out with strong statements cau-tioning their members against StateFarm’s bidding process for parts pro-curement.

AASP called it “an unprece-dented and uninvited intrusion intothe business of collision repair.” TheAASP released the following state-ment, which reads in part:

“Despite posturing from thelargest national insurance carrier onwhat it believes to be positive attrib-utes of the program, collision repairfacilities, parts suppliers, parts man-ufacturers and interested partiesaround the country have been consis-tent in their perception that this typeof activity will ultimately harm their

businesses and the customers theyserve.

“Collision repairers are in thebusiness of selling parts, labor andmaterials at a retail level. Each ofthese revenue sources contributes tothe overall success of the roughly35,000 small businesses across thenation, allowing the business to pro-vide employment opportunities to in-dividuals within their communityand invest in the necessary equip-ment and training needed to providecustomers with safe, quality repairs.As is the case with all types of busi-ness—including the business of in-surance—the pursuit of a return oninvestment (profit) is a core princi-ple, and one that collision repairersshould neither apologize for nor re-linquish to the influence of other par-ties.

“Insurers are in the business ofinsuring risk and then settling lossesat market value when those lossesoccur. As the payer of claims, insurersshould not be “market makers” forpricing of individual products andservices that are components of finalinvoices. To date, insurance pressureand influence over collision repairmarket pricing has driven averageprofit margins to low single-digit fig-ures, despite the fact that the businessof collision repair has a high cost ofentry and requires ongoing capital in-vestments to keep pace with automo-tive technologies.

See Parts Trader, Page 6

State Farm’s PartsTrader Program EncountersSignificant Opposition, Not Just From its DRPs

by Melanie Anderson

In tornado season in Okla-homa you don’t have to besuperstitious to think badthings could happen on anygiven day, never mind Fridaythe thirteenth. But for Nor-man shop owner Philip De-Fatta, this Friday, April 13,could have been a day out ofthe movies. At about 4:00p.m., a tornado hit the heartof Norman, Oklahoma andcut roughly an eight-mile swaththrough the town, especially thesouthwest portion.

According to local reports, thetornado hop-scotched through thecenter of town, tossing telephonepoles, shredding trees and ripping offroofs. At least 10 people were taken tothe hospital with minor injuries.

“I didn’t wake up that morningthinking anything bad was going to

happen. I call that ‘stuperstitious,’”joked DeFatta, 43, owner of LeonPierce Body Repair at 521 N. PorterAvenue.

However, that afternoon he wasdashing inside his shop to take coveras the tornado hit. DeFatta heard thebuilding next door literally explode,and debris from that building flewinto his shop through the large garage

Norman, Oklahoma Body Shop NarrowlyEscapes Next Door Tornado Devastation

See Friday 13th, Page 35

Leon Pierce Body Repair at 521 N. Porter Ave. in Norman, OKnarrowly escaped a tornado that ripped through the town onApril 13. The building next door is being demolished aftersustaining considerable damage. Photos courtesy of PhilipDeFatta, owner of Leon Pierce Body Repair.

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2 JUNE 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

REGIONALABRA Opens 20th Body Shop Location

in Macon, GA. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Alabama Students Compete in SkillsUSA

Welding Competition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Georgia’s Blue Bird Corporation Wins

Environmental Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Gunder Presents at GCIA Legal Seminar

in June . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Hit and Run Driver with 42 tickets lets

Mother Take the Rap . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Hundreds of Never Used Miami-Dade

Vehicles ‘Found’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10New Maaco Opens Near Closed Shop in

Cape Coral, FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Newest Body Shop Boy, Matt Ng, Shines

in Rumble . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Norman, Oklahoma Body Shop Narrowly

Escapes Next Door Tornado Devastation . 1Save The Dates for Golf . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Service King Acquires Arizona’s Auto

Body World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3Williamson’s Paint & Body in Cairo, GA,

Adds U-Haul Rentals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Wiregrass Tech College Offers Low Cost

I-CAR Platinum Rank . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

COLUMNISTSI-CAR - Bonding and Rivet Bonding

Technology on Steel BMW Vehicle Parts. 42Insurance Insider - Is the State Farm Elephant

in the Room a Bad Elephant? . . . . . . . . 40Nigro - Domenico Nigro’s Q&A with Chuck

Gosney of Collision Billing . . . . . . . . . . 41Sisk - Larry Montanez Talks OEM

Procedures and Repair Standards . . . . . 4Sisk - Pompano Beach’s Auto Tech and

Body: Community and Customer . . . . . 12Weaver - Comparing Automotive Parts:

Is it Apples to Apples? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Yoswick - Shops and Insurers Discuss

Indemnification in DRP Contracts . . . . . 39

NATIONAL“V2V” Communications a Hit . . . . . . . . . . 46AkzoNobel Announces 2012’s Most

Influential Women . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37ASA Says it is ‘Fact Finding’ on State

Farm’s PartsTrader . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6ASAA to ‘Educate’ Legislators on

Aftermarket Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Audi A3 Development with Master Jigs

and Color Matching . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43Bill to End Fossil Fuel Subsidies Introduced

to Congress. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37BMW Recalling Diesel Vehicles or Fuses . 26BMW Replaces Toyota as Most Valuable

Automotive Brand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Carfax Study Shows Consumer Threatened

by Ignoring Recalls . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Carroll Shelby—Race Driver, Designer,

Industrialist—Dead at 89 . . . . . . . . . . . 17Chrysler Recalls 68,000 Jeep Wranglers

for Fire Concerns . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Chrysler to Recall 127K Dodge Chargers

and 300’s for Fuses. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Collision Repair Education Foundation to

Award Two $50K Grants . . . . . . . . . . . 10Collision Section Secures Exhibit Space

at SEMA Show. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Distracted Driving No. 1 Killer, Especially

of Texting Teens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Enterprise Introduces Customer Repair

Notification Tool . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46Female Technician Leads New Reality

Series for TV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23Ford Blocks JAC from Selling Blatant

F-150 Knock Off . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Ford Recalls 10.500 Vehicles for

Transmission Sensor Issues . . . . . . . . 26Ford Starts Shipping its first EV, the

Focus Electric, to Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . 45Ford Tweaks GM and Doubles Down on

Facebook Advertising. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35Forgetting to Use Blinkers Caused

2 Million Accidents . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47GM to Stop $40M in Facebook Advertising

—“it’s ineffective” . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35Google’s Driverless Car . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Leading Edge Receives BASF Automotive

Refinish Distributor of the Year Award. . 23Major Physical Damage Indicators Up For

6 Quarters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Nissan Recalling Certain 2012 Titan

Pickups for Mislabeling . . . . . . . . . . . . 26OSHA Fines San Antonio Parts Supplier

Due to Fatal Accident . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45Romney Claims Credit in Auto Industry

Turnaround . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16Shop Owner Arrested in ‘False Auto Theft’

Allegation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47Six Found Guilty in $800,000 Auto

Loan Scheme . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17State Farm’s PartsTrader Program

Encounters Significant Opposition,Not Just From its DRPs . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Taiwanese Auto Parts Makers EyeRecovering US Market . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47

Web-Est Adds No-Cost Paint Codes toEstimating Platform . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Why Your Body Shop Can’t IgnoreSocial or Digital Media . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Will Driving Become Too Safe for BodyShops and Insurers? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Women’s Industry Network 6th AnnualMay Conference Hosts 200 Women. . . 22

PAINT SPECIALAuto Painting USA Collision Specializes in

Cosmetic Repair . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Custom Painter Jim Hetzler Started Out at

Age 13 with a Model Car . . . . . . . . . . . 34DuPont™ Cromax® Pro is the Ultimate

Upgrade for Your Refinish Painting Process. 22House of Kolor® Colors Automotive World

for 56 Years. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 38Leading Edge Receives BASF Automotive

Refinish Distributor of the Year Award. . 23Legendary “Crazy” Painter Mitch Kelly Cites

his Top 5 Projects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32Top Hot Rod Shines ‘Brilliant Red’ Bright

with Glasurit® Paint . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Contents

Southeast

Publisher & Editor: Jeremy HayhurstGeneral Manager: Barbara DaviesAssistant Editor: Melanie AndersonContributing Writers: Tom Franklin, Stefan Gesterkamp, John Yoswick, Lee Amaradio,Toby Chess, Mike Causey, Dan Espersen, Tom McGee, Jeff Webster, Rich Evans,Ed Attanasio, Chasidy SiskAdvertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Jay Lukes (800) 699-8251Sales Assistant: Kristy NavarroArt Director: Rodolfo Garcia

Serving Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and adjacent metro areas, Autobody Newsis a monthly publication for the auto body industry. Permission to reproduce in any form thematerial published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher.©2012 Adamantine Media LLC.

Autobody NewsBox 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018; (800) 699-8251 (760) 721-0253 Faxwww.autobodynews.com Email: [email protected]

BASF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 41Chief Automotive. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47CSS USA, Inc.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Delray Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37Don Reid Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Ford Wholesale Parts DealersFL, GA, AL, MS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21

Garmat USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10Global Imports MINI . . . . . . . . . . . . 12Gray-Daniels Auto Family . . . . . . . . . 5Gus Machado Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . 27Hendrick Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33Honda-Acura Wholesale PartsDealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24-25

Hyundai of Orange Park . . . . . . . . . 32Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 37Jerry Ulm Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge. 14-15Kendall Mitsubishi. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers. 29Mazda Wholesale Parts . . . . . . . . . 35Mercedes-Benz Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46

MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 45Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers. 33MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 23Nalley BMW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31Nissan Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 41Palmers Toyota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31PCL Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 38PPG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2Preval . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48Safety Regulation Strategies . . . . . 22Sam Galloway Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . 13SATA Spray Equipment . . . . . . . . . 19SCA Appraisal Company . . . . . . . . 30Serra Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18Serra Automotive Group. . . . . . . . . 11Solution Finish . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42Southtowne Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . 35Subaru of Gwinnett . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 43Tameron Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 40Volkswagen Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 44

Inde

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www.autobodynews.com | JUNE 2012 AUTOBODY NEWS 3

Service King Acquires Arizona’s Auto Body WorldTexas-based, Service King CollisionRepair is partnering with Auto BodyWorld, Inc., with nine large scale, highvolume locations throughout metroPhoenix and Casa Grande. Terms of theagreement were not disclosed.

The transaction is expected toclose in July 2012. By joining ServiceKing, Auto Body World will become apart of the third largest collision repaircompany in North America with 48Texas locations throughout the Dallas,Ft. Worth, Houston, San Antonio, andAustin areas.

Service King’s expansion acrossTexas over the last three years hastaken Service King from the 6th to the3rd largest collision repair company inNorth America, doubling revenue andlocation count.

“We welcome our new teammatesin Arizona to the Service King family,”said Service King’s President, ChrisAbraham. “We’re excited about theopportunity here. Arizona is special be-cause it’s our first venture outside ofTexas, but it’s not our last.”

“Service King is committed tocontinuing Auto Body World’s longtradition of excellent customer serviceand quality repairs with good relation-ships in the insurance industry. We lookforward to adding Auto Body World’s

talented teammates and skilled techni-cians to our base of nearly 1,400 Serv-ice King teammates throughout Texas,”added Abraham.

“We are very excited about AutoBody World joining the Service KingTeam,” stated Mark Turner, AutoBody World’s President. “Both compa-nies believe that we’re a great matchfor each other, in that we share verycommon cultures, and while ServiceKing brings national insurance rela-tionships and financial strength, AutoBody World brings dominance in a newmarket, with a strong operations teamand platform for rapid growth.”Cathy Bonner, CEO of Service

King stated, “In DFW and Houston,Service King has been recognized asone of the “best places to work” by theDallas and Houston Business Journals,and we plan to bring our same level ofhealth, retirement, and career benefitsto all new teammates in Arizona.”

Said Eddie Lennox, “ServiceKing is one of the fastest growing USbased collision repair companies is be-cause of the team we have in place. Thepeople in this company focus on what’smost important and take pride in pro-viding the best service and quality col-lision repairs, while caring for ourcustomers.”

After listening to Larry Montanez IIIof P & L Consultants discuss OEMprocedures and repair standards atAASP NORTHEAST™ in March thisyear, I wanted to know more abouthim and his company.

First, a little personal history. As ateenager, Montanez was all but obses-sive about cars, both in real life and onTV. Enamored with the Batmobile, heremembers that fast American musclecars were—then and now—“where it’sat.” It’s became a lifelong fascination.

As an adult, he became involved inthe auto body industry as a fabricatorand welder focused on customizationsand restorations. Around 2000, Mon-tanez became an I-CAR instructor, andabout six months later, he and his men-tor, Peter Pratti, decided to begin aconsulting business aimed at teachingboth sides of the business to both sidesof the business, auto body shops andinsurance agencies, in an effort toprove that everyone should be able toget along and to work together to figureout how things should be done. Mon-tanez and Pratti strive to teach the samematerial in the same exact way, regard-less of their audience.

Montanez and Pratti began byteaching classes on estimating as wellas the triaging/blueprinting process,providing two aspects of the same sub-ject. Additionally, they offer classes ondamage analysis, welding, structuralrepair, airbag knowledge and safety in-formation. P & L Consultants currentlyoffers a dozen classes, six of whichhave been approved for the Rhode Is-land Training Certification program.

OEM ProceduresIn discussing OEM procedures, Mon-tanez reasons that they exist to provideOEMs with liability protection and be-cause of component failure as supportedby testing, in addition to the pressurefrom government regulations, consumeradvocates, IIHS crash testing andNHTSA investigations, lawsuits andcourt decisions and defects attributed todesign flaws. OEM position statementswere created for the purposes of or be-cause of OEM liability protection, com-ponents failures supported by casestudies, lawsuits and court decisions, re-engineering design flaws, ensuring safe

repairs and product, copyright andtrademark protection.

Repair StandardsThe desire for repair standards resultsfrom the influence of outside entities,or according to Montanez, “repairstandards are made up by people whoare trying to appease a different groupof people who have no business beinginvolved in collision repair, who arelooking to save money on it.”

Montanez notes that collision re-pairers want repair standards becausethey are untrained and are reluctant tosearch for them on OEM websites.MLO shop owners want them to makeinsurance “partners” happy since in-surers desire repair standards becausethey want to save money. Aftermarketsuppliers are also driven by greed andthe desire to make sales, while manyindustry associations are influencedby insurers. Still, Montanez does notbelieve that the idea of creating repairstandards is not completely wrong; heis just not comfortable with the partiesinvolved as their reasons for wantingrepair standards create a biased view.

If repair standards are created, Mon-tanez insists that it should begin with theformation of an independent group com-prised of OEM representatives, collisionrepairers, engineers, physicists, metal-lurgists, industry experts and I-Car TechCenter’s Jason Bartanen and SteveMarks. Additionally, repair standardsshould only be created where none cur-rently exist and only after a request letterto the OEM has failed. They should alsobe supported by crash testing and com-puter animated drawings, and theyshould be reviewable every six months.Montanez points out that this processshould not include insurance companiesbecause “no one cares what the insur-ance companies think.”

Specifically, both OEM and after-market parts should be tested to provethat the aftermarket parts work just aswell as OEM parts before their use isencouraged.

Montanez lists the pros of creat-ing repair standards as follows: moreavailable procedures, lower insurercosts, lower severity, fewer totaled ve-hicles, more repaired vehicles, betterinsurer relations, more use of used

parts, more sectioning procedures andmore parts options.

He also notes the following cons:more improper repairs, more liabilityexposure, more fatalities, more in-juries, more diminished value law-suits, more shop lawsuits, dangerousto motorists and more bad businessdecisions. The use of damaged com-ponents or inferior parts can lead tomore injuries in collision because thevehicle will not react the way itshould, and this can lead to cata-strophic separation which becomes ahazard to the general driving public.

In the case of improper repairs,even if due to the parts requested by theinsurance company, liability falls onthe repair facility, the shop owner per-sonally, the technician (in some states)and sublet jobbers. The supplier canalso be sued, but the insurer will neverbe called to the courtroom for an im-proper repair. Because the shop is po-

tentially liable, shops should inform thecustomer or the insurance company ifthey cannot repair cars that way toavoid liability issues. In the instance ofliability, safety factors are important, soonly the OEM guidelines matter.

Because so much time, money andeffort goes in to creating OEM proce-dures, these should always be adheredto. The goal behind their multiple en-gineering principles is to keep the oc-cupants safe, therefore it is veryimportant not to change the parametersof OEM guidelines. In order for repairstandards to be made, a comparableamount of time, money and effortshould be utilized. When OEM proce-dures are not available, a panel needsto collaborate to create repair stan-dards to form a consensus that en-hances the safety of collision repairsfor all drivers and protects collision re-pair facilities from issues of liability.


Larry Montanez Talks OEM Procedures and Repair Standards

with Rick WhiteShop Management

with Stefan GesterkampPaint Management

with Gonzo WeaverGonzo’s Toolbox

with Richard ArnoldJobber Journal

Mainstream Media

with Dale DelmegeAsk Dale

Mainstream Media

Automakers’ Actions and Analysisby Autobody News Staff

Shop Showcaseby Autobody News Staff

with Ed AttanasioShop and Product Showcase

with Ed AttanasioConsumer Callout

with Walter DanalevichShop Strategies for Savings

with The Insurance InsiderInside Insurance

with Ed AttanasioCustom Corner

with Chasidy Rae SiskCompany Connections

with Chasidy Rae SiskNortheast News

with Chasidy Rae SiskShop Showcase

with Erica SchroederShop Showcase

with Erica SchroederShop Snapshot

Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware, whowrites on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family of NASCAR fans.She can be contacted at [email protected].

See Larry Montanez, Page 31


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“Feedback from other marketsoutside the U.S. familiar with insurer-mandated bidding platforms indicatesthat the State Farm parts bidding pro-gram is a win-lose scenario, with re-pairers losing both profit and controlof their business. Furthermore, thenegative impact of this parts programhas the very real potential to quicklyspread beyond parts to other areas,such as paint, and beyond the bound-aries of voluntary direct-repair pro-gram (DRP) agreements to theindustry at large. If State Farm con-tends that this parts program is indeedgood for the collision industry, surelythe industry would embrace the pro-gram on a voluntary basis – assumingthe benefits of the program did indeedextend to more participants than justthe carrier.

“The collision repair industry hasgradually transitioned from a proudtrade of hard-working owners and em-ployees to a service provider that sub-contracts to the insurance industry,working on net margins that it no

longer controls and that jeopardize itsability to invest in its business and at-tract and train qualified employees toensure safe and quality repairs. AASPhas grave concerns for its members’ fu-ture welfare if giant insurance corpora-tions are permitted to trample on thefree market philosophies that support aculture of small business success.”John Shoemaker, of JSE Con-

sulting, released the following state-ment;

“The collision industry has weath-ered situations like this as in the Safe-lite Glass Program and Greenleafsalvaged parts program. Both these in-surance company directed programswhittled away the shop owner’s abilityto make a business decision that bene-fited the shop. All shop owners de-velop an expectation on how theirbusiness should operate as well as es-tablishing the profit margins necessaryto ensure survivability. They have de-veloped business partnerships withlocal businesses to ensure that theirprofit margins are maintained. In-turnthe local business have relocated storesto become more convenient, stockedmore parts and negotiated with shopowners to maintain an edge on their

market. The State Farm Parts Programnegates these partnerships forcing shopowner’s to purchase parts from an un-known outside their market. As in-surance companies move farther awayfrom insuring vehicles and go deeperinto the repair process shop owners willsee further erosion of their ability to runtheir business. First it was glass, nowit is parts, tomorrow it could be paint.

“Another issue I have with theState Farm Parts Program is the dis-traction it has caused in the collisionindustry. Every blog I read, everymagazine I open up and every shopowner I talk to has the State FarmParts Program on top of their mind.Everybody is up-in-arms about it andnot paying attention to the immediatetasks on hand. If you look around youwill see that this program has causeddistractions far beyond parts!

“My last thought on this is thatshops are dropping State Farm as aDRP, up to 40% in some markets andState Farm does not care. They arecontacting shops that were previouslydropped from the DRP program formultiple reasons and signing themback up if they agree to the parts pro-gram. Does that mean that you can be

a poor performer and as long as youaccept their parts program you aregood again?”

See additional reaction atwww.autobodynews.com, includingSCRS’ statement and Scott Biggs’blog: “State Farm – Parts Trader: It’sabout losing profit, control, and yourvery survival” which can be read atScottBiggs.com.


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ASA Says it is ‘Fact Finding’ on State Farm’s PartsTraderThe Automotive Service Association(ASA) is conducting a multi-seg-mented fact-finding mission on StateFarm's new electronic parts procure-ment program “to ensure the infor-mation collected and provided to theASA membership and the broader in-dustry is as accurate and thorough aspossible.”

An ASA Collision Division teamconsisting of operations committeemembers and staff recently inter-viewed George Avery, State Farm’sclaims consultant, regarding the pilotprogram. ASA has since posed somefollow-up questions and will issuefurther statements as conversationscontinue.

Several additional interviews arebeing set up with other industry par-ties involved in the program. ASAsays that as each exchange is fact-checked for clarity, updates will beshared with ASA members and the in-dustry at large.

“State Farm’s pilot program hasa potential to have a tremendous im-pact on the collision repair industryand the motoring public,” said DeniseCaspersen, ASA Collision Divisionmanager. “It is vital for ASA to ap-proach this situation methodicallywith an emphasis on facts to ensurethat the results of the pilot are in thebest interest of the collision repairer.

ASA has an obligation to provide ourmembership, and the industry, asmuch factual information as possible– just as State Farm has an obligationto answer the community’s concerns.ASA also has a responsibility to ad-dress issues directly with the partiesinvolved to provide recommenda-tions and solutions benefitting repair-ers, consumers and the industry.”

Several of ASA’s volunteer lead-ers representing the collision repairmembership also spoke with RobCooper, CEO of PartsTrader LLC.ASA’s questions focused on imple-mentation plans, supplier qualifica-tions, data extraction and qualitychecks on recommended parts. ASAis also following up with Cooper withadditional questions and comments.

“This pilot program, whichreaches beyond the insurer/repairerrelationship, is at a pivotal point topotentially allow adjustments to theprogram as a result of industry inputand analysis,” said Caspersen.

“If this tool is to go forward andbenefit the entire industry, it requirestransparency, mutual understandingand collaboration. ASA is committedto a collaborative process that pro-duces the best possible outcome forthe collision repairer. ASA says thekey questions are the financial impactof the program on body shops.

Continued from Cover

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A college student from Paoli, ChesterCounty, is in a coma more than 1,000miles from home after a hit-and-rundriver plowed into Eliza Gresh inMiami, authorities say. The teen wascrossing the street on April 27 whenpolice say a hit and run driver plowedinto Gresh. Police were looking forthe car, a Mercedes Benz, and thedriver, Luis Moya, 24.

The car showed up at an autobody shop a week later, but not withLuis. Behind the wheel was Moya’smom, Zoila. She told the shop ownershe had gotten into an accident, butthe shop owner recognized the carfrom police descriptions and calledinvestigators.

Police took Zoila into custodyand got in touch with Luis Moyathrough his mother and told him ifhe did not turn himself in, theywould arrest his mother andcharge her with filing false andfraudulent insurance claims. Moyatold them to go ahead and arresther.

Luis Moya has received 42traffic tickets in the last five years,including tickets for reckless andcareless driving.

Hit and Run Driver with 42 tick-ets lets Mother Take the Rap

Wiregrass Georgia Technical Collegewith campuses in Valdosta, Fitzgerald,Douglas and Sparks, is a host site forI-CAR training classes for collisionshop technicians, owners, and man-agers, as well as insurance adjusters.

I-CAR training currently in-cludes seven different classificationsfor training: Estimator, Steel Struc-tural Technician, Aluminum StructuralTechnician, Non-Structural Techni-cian, Electrical/Mechanical Techni-cian, Refinish Technician and AutoPhysical Damage Appraiser. Eachclassification contains several trainingclasses that range from four hours totwo days.

A technician must have tenclasses to reach Platinum and musttake two classes per year to maintainthe Platinum status. Wiregrass Tech-nical College is in the I-CAR Alliancewhich enables students to achievePlatinum status before graduating at alower cost than they would at work.

Formed in 1978 by the collisionindustry, I-CAR is an internationalnon-profit training organization. Theirfocus revolves around helping the in-dustry achieve a high level of techni-cal training.

Wiregrass Tech College OffersLow Cost I-CAR Platinum Rank

New Maaco Opens Near Closed Shop in Cape Coral, FLLess than a year after the Maaco Col-lision Repair and Auto Painting Cen-ter in Cape Coral closed its doors,another has opened.

Collision Center Company'snew franchisee, Jonathan Washer,opened a new repair shop in CapeCoral in late May, just a few blocksaway from the old location.

Although the last Maaco closedin July 2011, conditions were right toopen his business, said Washer.

“I’m very motivated and drivenand what happened with them didn’tconcern me, didn’t affect me,” hesaid. “I’m pretty determined to suc-ceed.”Todd Jenkins, who had owned

a different Maaco center in CapeCoral for about five years, said hisbusiness sunk when the economytanked in mid-2007.

“The economy just kind ofpushed me out the door,” he said.

Jenkins had fewer jobs cominginto the shop, despite having the cor-porate support and recognition of anational brand, and had trouble keep-ing up with operational costs andfranchise royalty fees, he said.

Now he’s beating the pavementlooking for work, he said.

Still, hundreds of franchiseesacross the country weathered the re-cession and Maaco had dramaticsales increases in 2010 and 2011,said Dave Schaefers, senior vicepresident of franchise developmentfor Driven Brands, the parent com-pany of MAACO Franchising Inc.and other automotive aftermarket re-tailers.

Opening a franchise isn’t a deci-sion that comes lightly on either side.

To become a Maaco franchisee,owners must show a net worth ofroughly $300,000 with $90,000 avail-able as liquid cash, Schaefers said.

Washer, a retired Lee Countysheriff’s economic crimes investiga-tor, started the process of opening hisMaaco center years ago and paid thedown payment on his franchise in Oc-tober 2010. He secured a Small Busi-ness Administration loan and investedhundreds of thousands of dollars, pur-chasing the industrial building wherethe shop is, and investing in top notchequipment to paint, repair and refin-ish vehicles, he said.

He’s installed a new paint mix-ing room, a paint booth and a sepa-rate oven in the 11,000-square-footshop.


Alabama Students Compete in SkillsUSA Welding CompetitionStudents from different schools in Al-abama recently participated in a weld-ing competition at Gardendale HighSchool in Jefferson County.

The 2012 SkillsUSA weldingcontest was held with 20 students andinstructors from 12 districts compet-ing for the state championship. Thestate championship will eventuallylead to a national championship.

The contest took place inside awelding and auto-body facility thatstands next to the school. Tables wereset with slabs of scrap metal thatserved as different substrates forwelding.

Among the procedures were TIG(tungsten inert gas), SMAW (shieldedmetal arc), GMAW (gas metal arc),flux core and others.

In addition to Garden dale, otherstudents came from Minor, ShadesValley, Wenonah, Cullman, Elmore,Randolph/Roanoake, Talladega,Walker County Center of Technology,W.A. Lecroy Career Tech Center andBessemer Center for Technology.

The student from Gardendalewas Justin Foshee, who worked withthe GMAW procedure. Tim Turner isthe welding instructor at GardendaleHigh.

“A student that takes the programseriously can come in and get certifiedand they can work here in the UnitedStates,” said Turner on opportunitiesfor students who are interested inwelding. “The welding industry ishuge.”

The competition at Gardendalewas one of several that took place.Alabama SkillsUSA held contestsfor colleges at Wallace State Com-munity College in Hanceville onApril 20, and at United AssociationLocal 572 in Tuscaloosa on April25.

The judges were Bart Maddoxof Bridge, Struct ural, Ornamentaland Rein forcing Iron Workers Local92, David McMahan of Lincoln Elec-tric, Bradley Baugher of Plumbersand Steam fitters and Tommy Cox, awelding inspector.Stevan Cornelison of the

Earnest Pruett Center of Technologywas announced as the winner.

SkillsUSA is not just for weld-ing, but hosts competitions for a vari-ety of skills, including fire fighting,masonry, advertising design and pho-tography.

The national championship willtake place next June in Kentucky.

A vacant former car dealership innorth Bibb County is becoming a newbody shop. Minnesota-based ABRAAuto Body & Glass bought the 20,129square-foot former BMW dealershipat 111 Riverside Parkway in Macon,GA, and spent nearly four monthsrenovating the building, said DavidKulkis, regional business develop-ment director in Atlanta.

“We believe it’s an excellentmarket for our business model,”Kulkis said. “And the research we didindicates we should be very success-ful there. It fits the profile and whatwe look for size, cost to renovate it,visibility from the road, proximity inthe city and where the growth is (lo-cated).” The store is expected to openwith about seven employees “but willgrow rapidly,” he said. “We will even-tually have about 30 people.”

This will be ABRA’s 123rd loca-tion in the country and the 20th inGeorgia, Kulkis said.

Since the company has been “very,very successful in Atlanta,” it wantedanother location in this area, he said.

ABRA opened a location on CarlVinson Parkway in Warner Robins inJanuary.

ABRA Opens 20th Body ShopLocation in Macon, GA

Stacy Williamson, the owner ofWilliamson’s Paint & Body, located at900 1st Ave. NE, in Cairo, GA, recentlyadded U-Haul truck and trailer rentalsto the company’s auto service business.Williamson’s Paint & Body offers itscustomers a variety of moving equip-ment and supplies designed specificallyfor moving household furnishings, in-cluding moving vans, open trailers,closed trailers, furniture pads, appliancedollies, furniture dollies, tow dolliesand auto transports. Williamson’s Paint& Body also will offer sales items toprotect their customers’ belongings andmake moving easier, such as heavy-duty boxes, which are made of up to 90percent recycled content and are avail-able in a variety of sizes.

“U-Haul is proud to be partneringwith a quality independent businesssuch as Williamson’s Paint & Body,”said Tony Fretwell, president, U-HaulCompany of Southern Georgia. “Stacyis a great example of the type of suc-cessful business relationship U-Haulhas used to establish a network ofmore than 15,000 independent dealersacross North America.”

For more information: U-HaulPublic Relations (602) 263-6194.

Williamson’s Paint & Body inCairo, GA, Adds U-Haul Rentals


Ray Gunder will present a legal sem-inar, “Learn How to Stay Legal inYour Shop,” to the Georgia CollisionIndustry Association in late June.Gunder will address basic legal issuesrelating to operating a successful col-lision repair shop.

The intent of this seminar is toprovide information on legal basics in-cluding “Power of Attorney” and “As-signment of Proceeds” (akaAssignment of Benefits). Answers toattendee’s individual questions as tohow it may benefit them, their busi-ness and their customers, will be avail-able along with other topics such as:Understanding the Repairer’s LegalResponsibilities, Understanding theCustomer’s Legal Responsibilities.

Understanding the Insurer’sLegal Responsibilities, RecognizingLegal Liabilities and How to AvoidThem, How to Turn Potential Liabil-ities into Significant Profits, Makingyour Repair Authorizations LegallyIron-Clad and Profitable, The Impor-tance of Knowing and Understandingyour State’s Laws and Regulations asthey relate to your business.

For more information and dateof seminar, see the GCIA website.

Gunder Presents at GCIALegal Seminar in June

Georgia’s Blue Bird Corporation Wins Environmental AwardBus manufacturer Blue Bird Corpo-ration received the Extra Mile Awardfrom the Middle Georgia Clean AirCoalition for their commitment andsuccess in bringing alternative-fueledschool bus transportation to the mar-ket. The award recognizes organiza-tions that improve Georgia’s airquality while advancing economic,environmental and energy security.

“Blue Bird was chosen becausethey have gone the extra mile in of-fering and providing a safe, attractiveand viable alternative fuel choice fortheir buses amidst rising diesel fuelprices,” said Charise Stephens, ex-ecutive director of the Middle Geor-gia Clean Air Coalition, speakingabout Blue Bird’s Propane-PoweredVision and Propane-Powered MicroBird. “Blue Bird is a local hero that issupplying cleaner-burning busesthroughout the nation. They’ve putMiddle Georgia on the map as a hubfor clean technology.”

Blue Bird has manufacturedbuses using alternative fuels since1991. Their current product line in-cludes two different size school busesfueled by propane autogas and one bycompressed natural gas. Now in its85th year, Blue Bird employs 1,500employees from about 45 counties

across Georgia. More than 500,000school buses have been manufacturedin the Peach State and delivered tocommunities throughout the UnitedStates and across the world.

“At Blue Bird, we are committedto providing innovative, reliable andefficient green solutions that our cus-tomers want and value,” said PhilHorlock, president and CEO of BlueBird Corporation. “I am honored toaccept this award on behalf of all ouremployees.”

Georgia’s Hall County Schoolsrecently purchased 20 buses, becom-ing the first school district in the stateto fuel with domestically produced,economical propane autogas. Vehiclesfueled by propane autogas emit fewergreenhouse gases and hydrocarbonsthan diesel-powered vehicles.

“We hope and expect to havemany more counties in Middle Geor-gia using clean, domestic propane au-togas,” Stephens said.

“Blue Bird is proud to be an im-portant part of the Middle Georgiacommunity,” said Horlock. “We willcontinue our commitment as a schoolbus industry innovator, leading theway in finding smart and affordablesolutions that benefit the environmentand our communities.”

Collision Repair Education Foundation to Award Two $50K GrantsThe Collision Repair EducationFoundation’s 2012 Ultimate CollisionEducation Makeover $50,000 schoolgrant application is now available on-line and two grants (one secondary,one post-secondary) will be awardedthis year. The winning schools will beannounced during SEMA 2012. Aspart of the Makeover grant applica-tion, schools provide their own item-ized wish list, which can include anytools, supplies and equipment that areneeded by the collision program.Each of the winning schools willhave their $50,000 wish list fulfilledthrough the Collision Repair Educa-tion Foundation and through industrydonors/supporters. The application isavailable at the Education Founda-tion’s website (www.CollisionEduca-tionFoundation.org), and must becompleted by August 31, 2012. In-structors are advised to begin the ap-plication process early and industryprofessionals are encouraged to getinvolved with the Makeover grant byworking with their local schools’ col-lision instructors to help them apply.

The GCIA encourages all itsmember shops to get in touch withtheir local schools and help the in-structor apply for the grant. Part ofthe application requests schools to in-clude their personalized $50,000 wishlist of needed tools, equipment, and

supplies. Those lists (even if theydon’t win the Makeover grant) aredistributed, asking for donations forthe schools. If a school doesn’t apply,their wish lists can’t be fulfilled.

The goal of the Ultimate Colli-sion Education Makeover grant is tohonor a school that has been doing anoutstanding job in educating studentsin collision repair, but needs some fi-nancial assistance to improve theirprogram’s teaching materials andequipment. With strained school budg-ets, the Education Foundation and in-dustry supporters have the opportunityto bridge the program’s financial gapand to make a difference in the lives ofthe students studying collision repair.

Have you ever bought a brand newcar only to forget where you put it?How about 300 of them? Probablynot—unless you’re Miami-DadeCounty, which was recently reunitedwith 298 vehicles it bought brandnew between 2006 and 2007. Most ofthe misplaced motorcade is made upof Toyota Prius hybrids whose war-ranties either expired with very fewmiles on the odometer or will verysoon.

Looking to save some face, thecounty has rushed at least 123 of thehybrids into service. The Toyota war-ranty covered the hybrid bits for eightyears or 100,000 miles. It is unsure ifthe warrangy covers cars parked forfive of those eight years.

The county is looking into howit lost so many cars. The leadingtheory is that they might be part ofCarlos Alvarez’s time as mayor.He was the mayor during the periodthe Toyotas were purchased, but a2011 recall election successfully re-moved him from office. Apparentlythe voters “felt, among other rea-sons, that he had been behind mul-tiple acts of misappropriation offunds.”

Hundreds of Never UsedMiami-Dade Vehicles ‘Found’

Save The Dates for GolfThe Collision Repair EducationFoundation Golf Tournament isJuly 19 at The Palmer Course in SanAntonio. For more information, call847-463-5244 or email Brandon.Eck-enrode @ed-foundation.org.

The GCIA 16th Annual Golf Tourna-ment is October 10, 2012 11 a.m. at Tro-phy Club of Atlanta, 15135 HopewellRoad. Contact GCIA Executive DirectorHoward Batchelor to learn more aboutsponsoring or reserving your playerspots. Email Howard@ GCIA.org.


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At Auto Tech and Body in PompanoBeach, FL, customer service is a toppriority, as is dedication to the com-munity. The reason behind this is

founder Jay Ghanem’s philosophythat “We want to work for a companythat contributes to and is part of thecommunity, where personal valuesand the passion to repair cars are in-terconnected with the vision of beingof service to our customers and thecommunity as a whole.”

Auto Tech and Body demon-strates their interest in and devotion

to their community in multipleways. The shop includes an in-housecommunity center that is donated totheir community for use by the Ki-wanis Club, the Rotary Club, theKey Club and others. They holdmultiple car wash fundrais-ers for different charitiesand host a blood drive threetimes a year.

Additionally, they areinvolved with the RotaryClub, the Kiwanis Club, theExchange Club and theSoroptimist Club. They alsodonate time and money tonon-profit organizations,such as the Boys & GirlsClub, the Dynamos Club, theKey Club and Toys for Tots. Theshop also is involved with businessorganizations such as BNI, the

Chamber of Commerce and Leader-ship North Broward.

On an individual level, JayGhanem is President of Pompano

Beach’s Rotary Club and is aboard member for the Boys &Girls Club of Fort Laud-erdale. He also is co-chair forthe West CRA for the city ofPompano Beach. ChadiaMeroueh, Vice President ofAuto Tech and Body, is on theExecutive Board and the

Board of Directors for the PompanoBeach Chamber of Commerce, andshe also sits on the board of the Boys& Girls Club in Pompano Beach, andis an active member of the KiwanisClub. Other members of the shop’steam participate yearly in the CancerSociety’s Relay for Life, sponsored bythe shop.

Auto Tech and Body was foundedby Ghanem in 1999. After ob-taining a Master’s Degree inEngineering, Ghanem beganhis professional career at anational dealership where hewas responsible for openingnew dealerships all overAmerica and training thetechnicians and service advi-sors. After a few years, he de-cided to venture out on hisown, opening a small shopwith three technicians. His

mission statement reads: “Auto Techand Body is committed to being thestandard in the automotive industry inSouth Florida by servicing our cus-tomers with the highest level of in-tegrity and service in an

environmentally friendly facility.”The shop’s goal is to cater to their cus-tomers as individuals.

Customer service is Auto Techand Body’s first priority. They specifythat they work for the consumer, notthe insurance company. The have ahigh customer satisfaction index levelwhich is maintained according to sur-

veys conducted on a daily basis by anin-house employee, as well asmonthly reviews conducted by an in-dependent customer research firm.Thanks to their lauded service, many

customers are repeat customers orcustomers who were referred by pre-vious customers.

The shop has received multiplerewards from BASF, 3M, the GreaterPompano Beach Chamber of Com-

merce, and BNI, in additionto being chosen as SmallBusiness of the Year in 2006.They are also listed as a su-perior service provider onangieslist.com. The shop ishome to an in-house trainingfacility, also used by the com-munity, where OHSA, 3M,BNI, the National SafetyCouncil and Computer Diag-nostics have trained employ-ees and the technicians in

surrounding dealerships and repair fa-cilities, as well as the technicians atAuto Tech and Body. Their techni-cians receive ongoing training in all ofthe latest technology.


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Chasidy Rae Sisk is a freelance technical writer from Wilmington, Delaware, whowrites on a variety of fields and subjects, and grew up in a family of NASCAR fans.She can be contacted at [email protected].


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The 22,000-square-foot facility isstaffed by four mechanics, two bodytechnicians, two painters, two estima-tors and two detailers, in addition tofour administrative and customer serv-ice reps. Auto Tech and Body repairsan average of 50 cars monthly usingfairly standard equipment which in-cludes three USI Down-Draft paintbooths, a Glasurit Diamond/BASFpaint mixing system, Hunter Wheelalignment machines and balance ma-chines, as well as two frame machines,

a Chief Drive-on 3 post 360 degreeand a QS 2000 frame machine. Mer-oueh said the USI Italia paint booth“has been a great investment becauseit cures the paint in a shorter period of

time, uses less energy and is 100%dust free.”

The shop uses BASF paints for themixture of vehicles they receive. Theywill work on any car, regardless ofmake, model or age. They have twoASE certified painters who work alongJay Ghanem to resolve any paintmatching challenges, assisted by theirhigh-tech computer matching system.Additionally, the shop increases theirrevenue through towing, storage,paintless dent repair, mechanical main-

tenance, window tinting,computer diagnostics and ex-tended warranty sales. To ac-commodate customers, theyalso work with Enterprise,Budget and Hertz to offer in-house rentals.

In regards to environmen-tal concerns, Auto Tech andBody focuses on four keycomponents, according toMeroueh: awareness of haz-ardous materials via MSDS;

use of protective equipment such asgloves, safety glasses, paint suits andrespirators when necessary; the use ofLED lighting and reclaimed water toreduce pollution and energy use; and a

recycling program for paint thinners,air filters, oil filters, and other items.

The shop participates in several DRPswith insurance companies that includeAAA Insurance, Granada, CaliforniaCasualty, Assurance America andCanada Insurance.

When discussing current problemsthat the shop has experienced lately,Meroueh said, “Insurance companieshave been very aggressive in convinc-ing customers to go to their preferredshops. This makes it challenging for usto keep our customers from going towhere the insurance agents sendthem.”

In regards to current trends in theindustry, Meroueh noted that con-

sumers are keeping vehicles for alonger period of time, due to the re-

cession, which increases thedemand for repairs andmaintenances. Additionally,the green movement is ex-panding to produce more en-vironmentally-friendly andfuel-efficient vehicles whichwill lead to a demand forbusinesses that cater to thesespecific vehicles.

For the future of the indus-try, Meroueh said that manyshops are competing with

dealerships that offer maintenance andbody work. “We will see more consol-idations, and for smaller repair facili-ties to survive, they will need to eitherspecialize, diversify or market better sothat they can have a share of the mar-ket with the larger companies,” shesaid.

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ASAA to ‘Educate’ Legislators on Aftermarket PartsThe Alliance of State Automotive Af-termarket Associations (ASAAA) re-cently launched a national LegislatorEducation and Awareness programmeant to increase recognition amongstate policymakers about the positiveeconomic and consumer benefits gen-erated by the automotive aftermarketparts and service industry.

The ASAAA said it is becomingcritical for new and returning law-makers to be educated about the ben-efits of alternative aftermarketreplacement parts and services as pol-icymakers in U.S. states are address-ing aftermarket parts issues on manylegislative fronts.

The ASAAA said its LegislatorEducation and Awareness program isdesigned to promote the importance,quality, value and availability of af-termarket replacement parts and serv-ices. The ASAAA developed ablueprint to help state associationsand industry companies send unifiedindustry messages and implement ed-ucational processes to inform statepolicymakers about the significanceof the aftermarket parts industry tohelp ensure consistency and fairnessin the government affairs process,and to eliminate misconceptions

about the value that aftermarket re-placement parts play in the Americaneconomy.

“In state Capitols nationwide,industry advocates are faced with thechallenge of educating legislativebodies about the value and impor-tance that aftermarket replacementparts and service contribute to the na-tion’s economy and the motoringpublic,” said Barbara Crest, presidentof ASAAA. “However, when de-scribing aftermarket replacementparts and service, words like ‘imita-tion,’ ‘inferior’ and ‘not of like kindand quality’ are used by our opposi-tion to confuse policymakers and dis-credit our industry.”

The ASAAA said its campaignwas developed and financed by ateam of industry experts, includingrepresentatives from the AutomotiveAftermarket Industry Association(AAIA), Automotive Warehouse Dis-tributors Association (AWDA), Auto-motive Aftermarket SuppliersAssociation (AASA), AutoZone,LKQ Corp., General Parts Inc.—CARQUEST, Genuine Parts Co.—NAPA, Advance Auto Parts, RobertBosch Corp. and Remy Power Prod-ucts.

Romney Claims Credit in Auto Industry TurnaroundMitt Romney argued against the bailoutof the U.S. auto industry in 2008, in anarticle entitled “Let Detroit Go Bank-rupt,” notes Chris Isidore, writing forCNN.

Now three years after the Bush,then Obama administration, bailed outGeneral Motors and Chrysler Group,and with U.S. auto industry sales, prof-its and hiring all rising, Romney be-lieves he deserves credit for thatturnaround.

“I'll take a lot of credit for the factthat this industry's come back,” he toldan Ohio television station, May 7. “Myown view is that the auto companiesneeded to go through bankruptcy beforegovernment help. And frankly, that's fi-nally what the president did. He finallytook them through bankruptcy.”

Romney is right that the 2009bankruptcy reorganizations at GM andChrysler played a major role in the turn-arounds at those automakers. It allowedthem to shed billions in debt, along withplants, workers, brands and dealershipsthey could no longer afford.

And he's correct that the automak-ers and the United Auto Workers unionwere initially opposed to the bankruptcyprocess, uncertain that the companieswould survive what they expected couldbe months if not years in bankruptcycourt.

But the billions of dollars from thefederal bailout helped the bankruptcyprocess get done in about two months,much faster than anyone thought waspossible, said Van Conway, CEO ofConway MacKenzie, a restructuringfirm in Detroit.And Conway said theidea of a managed bankruptcy was notunique at the time. “Romney might verywell have had the idea, but it's not an

idea no one else had on their own,”Conway said.

Other supporters of the bailouts,and even some critics of them, say thatRomney deserves no credit for the turn-around, given that he opposed the fed-eral bailout that kept the companiesalive during the bankruptcy process.Without that $81 billion in funding, thecompanies would have been forced togo out of business and liquidate, ac-cording to those experts.

“There was no way they could getfinancing,” said Conway. “They wereburning money so fast, with no end insite, that no one but the government wasgoing to give them money.”

Steve Rattner, who served as thecar czar for the Obama administration,has repeatedly said that the governmentwas the only source of financing to keepthe automakers alive through bank-ruptcy. Rattner said in a recent NewYork Times opinion piece that he“spoke diligently to all conceivableproviders of funds, and not one had theslightest interest in financing those com-panies on any terms.”

“If Mr. Romney disagrees, heshould come forward with specificnames of willing investors in place ofempty rhetoric,” he added. “I predictthat he won't be able to, because therearen't any.”

While Rattner is a long-time Dem-ocratic supporter, his view is echoed bysome conservative executives in theauto industry, among them Bob Lutz,who was then vice chairman of GM.

“He thinks we didn't try to borrowmoney from the banks,” Lutz told theDetroit Free Press in February. “Thebanks were even more broke than wewere. Who had the money?”

Major Physical Damage Indicators Up For 6 QuartersAccording to the latest available datafrom the Independent Statistical Serv-ice Inc. (ISS), Insurance Services Of-fice, Inc. (ISO), and the NationalIndependent Statistical Service(NISS), the frequency of private pas-senger collision claims has now beenon a gradual rising trend for six con-secutive quarters. Having been in anear-constant down trend since thefirst quarter of 2008, data through thefourth quarter 2011 shows that colli-sion claims frequency has risen to5.66 claims per 100 earned car years.That represents an increase of 1.92percent from the recent low of 5.56claims per 100 earned car yearsreached in the second quarter of 2010.

Paid losses for private passengercollision claims have been on the riseas well. The data shows over $16.4billion in physical damage losses paidfor the year ending with the fourth

quarter of 2011. That is the sixth con-secutive quarterly rise in paid losses.The average paid loss once againbroke above the $3,000 mark to endthe fourth quarter at $3,029 comparedto $2,946 a year earlier.

The average paid loss, while ris-ing recently, has held pretty steadythrough the recent recession years.The average paid loss reached a recenthigh of $3,027 in the first quarter of2008 and declined fairly steadilythrough the first quarter of 2010,reaching a low of $2,922. It has beengradually rising ever since.

However, even while claims fre-quency and paid losses have been onthe increase in recent quarters, it hasnot necessarily meant a return of busi-ness for the collision repairer. That'sbecause, according to ISO, the num-ber of claims paid is still below the re-cent highs set in early 2008.

Carroll Shelby International, Inc., an-nounced that Carroll Hall Shelby, aman whose vision for performancetransformed the automobile industry,died at age 89. Mr. Shelby passedaway at Baylor Hospital in Dallas.The cause of death was not disclosed.

Born on Jan. 11, 1923, CarrollShelby was one ofAmerica’s greatest suc-cess stories. Champi-onship-winning racecardriver, “flying sergeant”wartime pilot, philan-thropist, entrepreneur,car manufacturer andracing team owner, heembodied the ingenuity,tenacity and grit toovercome any obstacle.He is perhaps the onlyperson to have workedat a visible level with allthree major Americanautomobile manufactur-ers.

Carroll Shelby founded CarrollShelby International, a publicly heldcorporation involved in many indus-

tries. His licensing arm has agreementswith industry giants, such as Mattel,Sony, Ford Motor Company and Elec-tronic Arts. His car company, ShelbyAmerican, has a thriving parts businessas well as a line of muscle cars includ-ing the Shelby GT500 Super Snake,Shelby GT350 and Shelby GTS. The

Las Vegas-based com-pany also manufac-tures a limited numberof the 1960s Shelby289 “street,” 289 FIA,427 S/C and DaytonaCoupe Cobras.

Shelby consideredhis greatest achieve-ment to be the estab-lishment of the CarrollShelby Foundation™.Created in 1992 whileShelby was waitingfor a heart transplant,the charity is dedi-cated to providing

medical assistance for those in need,including children, educational oppor-tunities for young people through au-tomotive and other training programs

and benefitting the Carroll Shelby Au-tomotive Foundation.

Shelby remained active in themanagement of each of his companiesand the Foundation until his death,even though he endured both heartand kidney transplants in the last twodecades of his life.

“We are all deeply saddened,and feel a tremendous sense of lossfor Carroll’s family, ourselves andthe entire automotive industry,” saidJoe Conway, president of CarrollShelby International, Inc. and boardmember. “There has been no one likeCarroll Shelby and never will be.However, we promised Carroll wewould carry on, and he put the team,the products and the vision in placeto do just that.”

Shelby is survived by his threechildren Patrick, Michael and Sharon,his sister, Anne Shelby Ellison of FortWorth, and his wife Cleo.

Donations to the Carroll ShelbyFoundation are encouraged in lieu offlowers. Information about the CarrollShelby Foundation is available atwww.carrollshelbyfoundation.org.


Six people including two MountPleasant, SC men were sentenced infederal court for their roles in an autoloan scheme involving more than$800,000.

A judge sentenced WilliamBrian Toadvine, 34, and DonaldToadvine, 58, to two years in prisonto be followed by five years of super-vised release after both were foundguilty of conspiracy to commit bankfraud.

According to U.S. AttorneyWilliam N. Nettles, the Toadvinesalong with four other people wereconvicted for their roles in a schemeto fraudulently obtain auto loans byproviding false documents to morethan 16 different banks and creditunions. Nettles says the defendantsobtained more than $800,000 fromthe banks and at times used the fundsfrom one loan to pay off others in anattempt to keep the scheme running.

Daniel Kosmer Jr. of Greenville,Joyce Pozniko of Hanahan and Eliz-abeth Donnelly of Beaufort were alsosentenced to three years of probationor supervised release after beingfound guilty of providing false state-ments on a loan application.

Six Found Guilty in $800,000Auto Loan Scheme

Carroll Shelby—Race Driver, Designer, Industrialist—Dead at 89

“Social Media is Word of Mouth onSteroids” —Frank Terlep

by Melanie Anderson

There’s no escape. Nearly everyoneand their grandmother is using socialor digital media. Is your shop up tospeed with the age we live in?

According to Frank Terlep, CEOof Summit Software and MarketingSolutions, more than 112 million gen-eration X and Y consumers, 60 millionbaby boomers and 20 million seniorsare on the Internet, emailing, texting orusing social media. And these numbersdon’t even reflect the younger genera-tion, those between 18–34 who com-prise an outsized proportion ofconsumers who watch online videos,visit social networking sites and blogs,own a tablet and use a smart phone.

“In today’s world, every shopneeds a website and social media pres-ence to attract consumers to theirbrand and business,” said Terlep.“Getting involved with digital and so-cial media is not a matter of ‘if’ - it’sa matter of ‘when’ - because shopswill end up doing it anyway and theymay as well do it now and be a winnerinstead of a loser. Waiting to join the

social media world is losing an op-portunity to increase your business.”

To connect with, market to, serv-ice or retain today’s ‘digital consumer,’a shop must consider several digitalmarketing tools, techniques and strate-gies, such as digital databases, email,

text messaging, social media, mobileand location-based marketing, smartphones, phone apps, micro sites, searchengine optimization, pay per click ad-vertising, digital ads, promotions, e-coupons, videos and more, said Terlep.

A digital consumer is an individ-ual who uses smart phones, text mes-

saging, email, Facebook, LinkedIn,Twitter, Google, YouTube and otherdigital or social media technologies toperform their jobs, communicate withbusiness associates, friends and familyor to educate and entertain themselves.

According to Terlep, the three

most critical steps repair and collisionshops should take regarding social ordigital media are:#1. Know how their website is per-forming

#2. Continue communication with ex-isting or previous customers#3. Participate in social media

Your Website“The shop’s website is the hub of theshop’s whole digital marketing strat-egy,” Terlep said. “A shop’s website istheir online lobby.” Knowing howwell their website is performingshould be a priority for every shop.“Shops need to make sure their con-sumers can find their website fromanywhere, whether it is a local searchor from a variety of search engines,”Terlep said. “A website is performingwell if your shop ends up on the firstpage of engine search. Less than twopercent of customers will go to thesecond page of a search.”

Your CustomersStaying in touch with previous or exist-ing customers is an important market-ing strategy that many shops overlook.Terlep believes that most shops don’tmarket to previous or existing cus-tomers. “It’s easier to get business fromold customers than it is to find new cus-


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Why Your Body Shop Can’t Ignore Social or Digital Media

Sherwin-Williams’ Digital Marketing SeminarSherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes A-Plus University (a value-added program

for Sherwin-Williams body shop customers) is partnering with Summit Software

and Marketing Solutions to offer a digital marketing advanced business class

specifically for collision repair facilities. The program is launching in multiple lo-

cations this year throughout the country.

A recent workshop was held April 26 in a skybox media suite at Petco Park,

the home of the San Diego Padres, and concluded with a catered dinner and pre-

mium seat viewing of the night's game.

The four-hour workshop was designed for shop owners and managers to

help them meet the challenges body shops face in today’s rapidly changing digital

and information age.

Troy Neuerburg, Sherwin Williams Automotive Finishes' Marketing Manager,

Business Services, led the meeting, with input from Chris Lynch, Falls Communi-

cations. Frank Terlep, CEO of Summit Software and Marketing Solutions, pre-

sented the program. Terlep's rapid-fire style covered a huge menu of topics

touching on shop-consumer communications via social media, smartphone

apps, and digital marketing for the busy shop. The digital and social media strate-

gies covered included: What digital marketing means; Why digital marketing is re-

quired for success in today’s world; What a shop’s potential digital marketing

audience is; The benefits shops can expect to receive from digital marketing; The

importance of a digital marketing database; and Digital marketing tools that are

available. For more information, visit www.sherwin-automotive.com.

Frank Terlep uses ‘personal media’ to engage a group of shop owners invited by Sherwin-Williamsto San Diego’s Petco Park for a talk and a baseball game on April 26

tomers,” Terlep said. “Shops think,‘Why should we keep in touch withprevious customers if, on average, con-sumers only use a body repair shop onlyseven to 10 years?’ Car accidents are abad experience and most customerswant to forget about it as soon as possi-ble, and that means they forget aboutthe shop too. After a couple years, peo-ple tend to forget where they even hadtheir car repaired.”

Getting customers back in the dooris important to the success of a bodyshop, and the way to do that is to offeradditional appearance-related services,such as detailing, glass repair, headlightrestoration, mechanical repair services,or any other type of non-collision re-pairs. “There is a huge opportunity tomarket to existing or previous cus-tomers and many shops aren’t doingthis,” Terlep said. Social and digitalmedia are successful ways to stay intouch with your customers to get themback in the door for other services.

Your ‘Friends’One of the biggest reasons why a bodyshop should be on social media is be-cause their customers are already there.Terlep suggests a shop focus on one of

the ‘Big 5’ —Facebook, YouTube,Twitter, LinkedIn or Google Plus. Post-ing items that are educational and en-tertaining and offering exclusive dealswill get more attention than randomfacts.

Shops should participate in socialmedia for two important reasons: ithelps shops stay in touch with theircustomers, and it gives them the abil-ity to position themselves to be onlineexperts in their field with an online au-dience within their community. “Ashop should want their customers toknow them as an expert so their cus-tomers can tell their friends, and beingon social media is the best way to dothat. Social media is word of mouth onsteroids,” Terlep said.

Email MarketingWith all that said and despite the frenzyover social media, Terlep said the bestdigital marketing is still email because“80% of consumers still prefer emailover Facebook or Twitter to get theirinformation.” Customers are comfort-able getting surveys, e-newsletters, e-coupons and other promotions byemail. Terlep said shops are movingaway from phone-based customer sur-

veys because electronic surveys garnerbetter and more honest feedback, aswell as improved tracking.

Another good reason to switchover to digital marketing is it is muchless expensive than traditional market-ing. E-newsletters cost only about $50 amonth compared to thousands of dollarsit costs to print and mail print versions ofnewsletters. And social media is free!

Phone AppsAnother digital marketing tool forshops to consider is a phone app fortheir business. According to Terlep,more than 50% of the U.S. populationwho own a cell phone use a smartphone, and that percentage will in-crease as the older cell phones becomeobsolete. He recommends an Apple orAndroid app as those two platformshave the majority of the smart phonemarket. The benefit of a body shophaving an app is that it will allow aconsumer who has just been in an ac-cident to be able to push the app ontheir phone without having to remem-ber the location, phone, name or emailaddress of the body shop. An app al-lows the customer to take photos, filea report and send information to the

body shop, insurance and police. “Abody shop who has their own appowns a piece of real estate of the con-sumer’s smart phone,” Terlep said.

Goodbye TV?The three most prevalent screenstoday are, in order: the TV, PC andthen the smart phone, tablet or mobiledevice. In the next five years, thatorder will reverse as the smart phonewill become the No. 1 screen peoplewill look at the most, becoming morepopular than the television or com-puter screen.

So, why aren’t shops up-to-date inthe electronic world we live in? It’s timeand expertise, Terlep said. Most shopsdon’t have time during their daily oper-ation to properly market their businessdigitally. And many just don’t have theexpertise. “They don’t know what theydon’t know,” Terlep lamented.

“Social media and digital mar-keting is not a passing fad. It’s here tostay. Body shops will end up usingdigital marketing at some point, andthose who don’t wait will benefit themost,” Terlep said. For more informa-tion visit their website at www.emar-ketingsherpas.com.


Collision repairers are rightly con-cerned about collision avoidance tech-nology reducing business in the futurebut may be suprised to learn that in-surance companies are just as worried.What would happen to the auto insur-ance industry if automobile safety im-proves to the point that vehiclecollisions become relics of the past?

That’s the question explored byglobal consulting and research firm,Celent, in a new report that envisionsa future of increasing emphasis onsafety in the automobile industry andamong government entities that leadsto a massive drop off in auto insurancepremium for U.S. property/casualtyinsurance companies.

In its own introductory words, “AScenario: The End of Auto Insur-ance—What Happens When ThereAre (Almost) No Accidents,” by Ce-lent Senior Analyst Robert Light,“describes a provocative, but plausi-ble, scenario for the not distant futureof the US property/casualty market,and explores that scenario’s implica-tions.

“In that scenario, technology iswidely deployed that radically reducesthe frequency and severity of motorvehicle accidents. Consequently, theneed for automobile insurance is sub-stantially reduced — and insurers see alarge reduction in their revenue as au-tomobile insurance premiums drop.”

Private passenger and commercialauto premiums accounted for 39 per-cent of the total premium for U.S.property/casualty insurers in 2011, ac-cording to the report.

In the scenario proposed by Ce-lent—and the authors make it clearthat it is only a scenario that could orcould not happen—the auto insuranceportion of total P/C premium over thenext decade would drop from 39 per-cent to just 13 percent.

Techno TrendsThe report examines four technologi-cal trends that are expected to have asignificant impact on both the auto in-dustry and the auto insurance industryduring the next 10 years: telematics;collision avoidance; automated traffic

law enforcement; and, to a lesser ex-tent, robot cars.

Three of those technologies—telematics, collision avoidance andautomated traffic law enforcement—are available, though not necessarilywidely used, today.

The report describes telematics asthe “creation and use of data regard-ing driving behavior that is stored inan onboard device and made availableto insurance companies and other en-tities.”

Collision avoidance technologiesinclude “a broad set of capabilitiesbuilt into vehicles that warn the driverof dangerous situations and in somecases take active control of the vehi-cle to avoid a collision.”

Among the law enforcement tech-nologies currently in use to varyingdegrees are red-light cameras andspeeding violation cameras that takephotographs of driver infractions andare able to produce and send a viola-tion ticket to the vehicle’s registeredowner.

While robot cars are in the proto-type stage—Google’s driverless carmay be the most well-known example(see sidebar)—they are vehicles“equipped with [their] own sensingdevices, processors, data sets (e.g.,Google Street View), and control sys-tems.” The technologies allow therobot car to operate autonomously “inactual street and traffic conditions,”the report says.

In the Celent scenario, if all ofthese technologies are utilized to theirfullest extent:

The insurance industry would seea decline in auto liability premiumfrom 25 percent of the 2012 total to 20percent of total 2012 industry pre-mium over the first five years. Auto li-ability would then drop by another 10percent of 2012 industry premiumover the next following five years.Auto physical damage would dropfrom 14 percent of total 2012 industrypremium to 10 percent by the end ofthe first five years and then to 3 per-cent in the second half of the decade.

Between 2013 and 2017, total P/Cindustry premium would drop by 9

percent and by 26 percent from 2018to 2022.

The four functional units of autoinsurers that would see the greatestimpact are: marketing, sales and dis-tribution, policy service and claims.

A scenario of reduced auto colli-sions resulting in a decrease in autopremiums over the next decade, whilenot assured, is plausible because theimpacting technologies already exist.

Whether or not such a scenarioplays out depends on political and eco-nomic decisions, according to the report.

Technologies such as telematics,collision avoidance and, to some ex-tent, robot cars are market-driven. Ifauto manufacturers believe consumersare willing to pay for such upgradesthen the technologies will likely beimproved upon and deployed.

In the political realm, federal andlocal governments will have to decidewhether to mandate and deploy lawenforcement “technologies given theirvery significant impact on how citi-zens and voters use motor vehicles,”the report concludes.


Will Driving Become Too Safe for Body Shops and Insurers?

Google’s Driverless CarGoogle’s self-driving car got its li-cense as the state of Nevada becamethe first in the nation to license thecompany’s vehicles. More than30,000 people are killed each year incrashes despite huge advances in autosafety. The overwhelming majority ofthose crashes are caused by human-driver error. Computer driven carscould reduce traffic deaths by a verysignificant degree, said DavidChampion, head of auto testing atConsumer Reports, but only if all carsare computer-driven.

“I think if all the cars were self-driving, it would be a benefit,” hesaid. “I think a mixture would be a bitchaotic.”

That’s because humans are betterat predicting the behavior of other hu-mans than computers could ever be,he said.

“When I’m approaching an inter-section, I look to see if the otherdriver is looking at me,” said Cham-pion. “If he’s looking somewhere elseand inching forward, I’m going to liftoff the gas.”

For the foreseeable future, human“drivers” will continue to bear the ulti-mate responsibility, even in Google’sself-driving cars. This means youwon’t be able to lounge in the back seatand check email on your way to work.You’ll still have to sit in the driver’sseat and pay attention.

Self-driving cars, like Google’s,use sensors to watch cars, pedestriansand other obstacles. They combine anumber of technologies that are al-ready available on cars today, includ-ing GPS tracking, wheel motionsensors and radar, with additionaltechnology and sophisticated soft-ware that allow the car to read streetsigns and signals and actually driveitself through traffic.

Google’s cars, modified ToyotaPriuses, are still in the testing stagesand aren’t available to the public. Butsome so-called “driver assistance”technologies are already helping tolower traffic deaths in cars you can

buy now.Electronic Stability Control,

which uses computers to help driversmaintain control during abrupt ma-neuvers, has been shown to reducefatal crashes by as much as a third.ESC is now required on all new carsbut was first used, on a wide scale, onSUVs. Statistics show top-heavySUVs to be less prone to roll over inreal-world crashes than regular cars.

Beyond that, there are variousother “driver assistance” technolo-gies.

Blind spot alerts warn drivers ofcars in adjacent lanes and forwardcollision alerts sound an alarm whena driver is closing in too quickly on acar ahead.

“We’ll start seeing more featuresthat will migrate from just these alertsand warnings to taking a little morecontrol,” said John Capp, director ofactive safety technology at GeneralMotors.

GM’s new Cadillac XTS, for in-stance, will brake automatically if adriver fails to respond to an imminentcollision. Nissan’s Infiniti division hasa several models that provide slightbraking to nudge a vehicle back intoits lane if it begins to drift out.

Many luxury cars are now alsoavailable with “active cruise control”that allows a car driving at highwaycruising speeds to automaticallymaintain a safe following distance be-hind the car ahead. In some models,these systems can work even in stop-and-go city traffic.

Systems like these could be help-ful, said Champion, but also presentthe possibility of over-reliance orabuse.

“It all comes down to the personbehind the wheel using the system,”he said.

Sometimes these systems cancause confusion. For instance, somereports of unintended acceleration inToyota cars were triggered by driversfailing to understand how an “activecruise control” system [email protected]

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The sixth annual Women’s IndustryNetwork Conference kicked off in At-lanta with over 200 women from allsegments of the collision repair indus-try. The first day included a keynote ad-dress on “Extreme Change: Adapt,Overcome & WIN as One” by RobynBenincasa, World Champion Adven-ture Racer, San Diego City Firefighterand Founder of World Class Teams andProject Athena Foundation. Dr. LindaGravett of Gravett and Associates in-spired conference attendees with herstrategies for managing stress andmaintaining inner peace utilizing exer-cises borrowed from Tai Chi, Yoga andTae Kwon Do. The afternoon sessionincluded an update on vehicle designand collision avoidance technology andits impact on the industry presented byKim Hazelbaker, Senior Vice Presi-dent, Highway Loss Data Institute.

Included in the day was recogni-tion of the nine conference scholar-ship winners including six students:Nicolette Cole, Le’Trina Ervin,Tiffany Owen, Leslie Mendoza, Jen-nifer Watkins, Kinsey Simmons;one instructor, Greg Brink; and two

collision repair facility employees:Deborah O’Kean and Jessica Gau-thier.Margaret Knell was awarded

this year’s Cornerstone Award, giveneach year to a board member that ex-emplifies the values and ideals ofWIN. Also recognized were WIN’s2012 Corporate Sponsors: AkzoNobel;DuPont; Allstate; ASE; BASF; Enter-prise Rent-a-Car; State Farm Insur-ance; Hertz; 3M; LKQ; SterlingAutobody Centers; Geico; Fix Auto;Carstar; PPG; ABRA Auto Body &Glass; CAPA; Finishmaster; Sym-phony Advisors; Sherwin Williams;Mitchell; CCC Information Services;Insurance Auto Auctions; Audatex andCar-Part.com.

“We want to thank every one ofour sponsors for their support of WIN.Their commitments are essential toachieving our mission of engagingwomen in the collision repair industry,”said Victoria Jankowski, WIN’s chair.

Day two at the WIN conferencestarted off with the Annual ScholarshipWalk Presented by Fix Auto wheremore than 100 women laced up their

sneakers and trekked through Atlanta’sBuckhead district. Over $1700 wasraised through individual donations.The funds will be directed towardWIN’s various scholarship programs.

Following the walk, WIN’s sec-ond keynote speaker, Cathy Bonner,CEO, Service King Collision RepairCenters, shared the top performingskills that she has learned throughforty years of professional and per-sonal success. Cathy had a uniquemessage that has been built on yearsof teaching leadership through theprograms she developed called Lead-ership America and Power Pipelineand her own management experiencesin both the public and the private sec-tors of America.Susanna Gotsch, Director In-

dustry Analyst, CCC InformationServices, gave an industry update ti-tled “The Latest Trends, Market Dy-namics & Business Drivers ImpactingOur Industry.” Ms. Gotsch exploredthe ways economic and demographicchanges have impacted the automo-tive claims and repair industries.

The afternoon continued with

three breakout sessions: “Why WomenShould Do Business with You” pre-sented by Lori Johnson, Owner ofLadies, Start Your Engines!®; “QualityControl: Are you Looking CloselyEnough and at the Right Time?” pre-sented by Shawn Collins, a SeniorTechnical Service Engineer at 3M; and“Customer Service…Back to Basics”presented by Dianne Young, Founderand Master Instructor for PropelTraining and Development.

After two exciting, fast-paceddays spent networking and learningfrom dynamic speakers, the confer-ence wrapped up with the closing ses-sion “Take Control…Be the Change.”Michelle DeMaris, WIN member andconference attendee, said, “I’velearned we have to take charge ofchanging the perception of females inthe industry and own that concept.”Linda Sommerhauser, a long timeWIN member, added her thoughts, “Ifeel energized and invigorated to goback and work more with our schoolsand advisory boards and to advocatefor shops to sponsor internships withintheir facilities.”


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BASF Automotive Refinish presentedits Distributor of the Year Award toLeading Edge Auto Refinishers, Inc.,

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tomer service and support, as well ascommitment to waterborne conver-sions, Leading Edge is a true partnerwith BASF,” said Denise Kingstrom,BASF’s Strategic Accounts Manager.

Leading Edge has been familyowned and operated since 1993.

“We are very proud to receive thisaward on behalf of the entire team atLeading Edge. It would be hard toimagine operating Leading Edge with-out all the talented people in the organ-ization,” said Matt Johnson, co-ownerof Leading Edge. “We would also liketo thank BASF for supporting our busi-ness initiatives. Without BASF’s single-line ColorSource PREMIER program,much of what we have accomplished inArizona would have not been possible.BASF is vital to our success. It’s aunique partnership because we all suc-ceed together.”

ColorSource PREMIER is a pro-gram designed by BASF exclusivelyfor single line distributors of BASFrefinish paints and coatings. Color-Source PREMIER distributors are keystrategic partners with BASF.

To learn more about becoming aColorSource PREMIER distributor,please contact Denise Kingstrom [email protected], or 248-632-2420, or visit www.basfrefin-ish.com.


Leading Edge Receives BASF Automotive Refinish Distributor of the Year Award

Chuck Soeder, far left, Vice President, Automotive Refinish and Industrial Coatings Solutions forBASF; and Denise Kingstrom, far right, Strategic Accounts Manager, Automotive Refinish forBASF present the business’s Distributor of the Year Award to the Leading Edge team. From leftare: Soeder; Travis Leybeck, Paul Derdich, Mike Priest, John Rang, Matt Johnson, DavidBrannon, Troy Schooley, Steve Balsley, and Vaughn Lindberg of Leading Edge; and Kingstrom

Pam Oakes and the employees ofPam’s Motor City in Fort Myers, Fla.,are starring in a new reality series,“Car E.R.” Sponsored by AC Delco,“Car E.R.” follows Oakes, Peter (herlong time fiancé) and the rest of thegang at Pam’s Motor City as theydeal with tricky automotive repairs,esoteric customers and serious atti-tudes within the shop. Of course, noteverything’s a problem, and there’s alot of fun and good times, too. Pam'sMotor City was named a Motor AgeTop Shop in 2008.

Unique to this series is thatOakes owns and operates the repairshop, day in and day out. Not manywomen dare to venture into thishighly male-oriented field of work,but she follows in her father’s foot-steps, and gives the boys a run fortheir money. The series is slated forfirst-run distribution via the Internet,with future television broadcasts onthe horizon. To see the first fewshows, click www.car-ershowcomand connect with the show on Twit-ter @CarERShow and Facebook.Pam is also the author of Car Care forthe Clueless: Successful Used CarBuying 101.

Female Technician LeadsNew Reality Series for TV


WILL YOUR SHOP QUALIFY?


WILL YOUR SHOP QUALIFY?

Autoway HondaClearwater

888-205-2564727-530-1173

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 8-5; Sun [email protected]

Braman Hondaof Palm Beach

Greenacres888-479-0695561-966-5185

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 8-4:[email protected]

Classic HondaOr lando

888-893-4984407-521-1115

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat [email protected]

Coggin Deland HondaDeland

800-758-0007386-626-1811

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat [email protected]

Delray HondaDelray Beach877-392-1150561-526-5351


Ed Morse HondaRiv iera Beach800-232-1098561-844-8089

Dept. Hours: M-F 7:30-6; Sat 7:[email protected]

Hendrick Honda DaytonaDaytona Beach800-953-4402386-252-2301


Maroone Hondaof Hollywood

Hol lywood800-542-8121954-964-8300


Rick Case HondaDavie

877-544-2249Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-4

[email protected]

South Motors HondaMiami

888-418-3513305-256-2240Dept. Hours: M-F 8-7

[email protected]

Carey Paul HondaSnel lv i l le

770-985-1444Dept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat [email protected]

Ed Voyles HondaMariet ta

800-334-3719770-933-5870 DirectDept. Hours: M-F 7-7; Sat [email protected]

Gerald Jones HondaAugusta

800-733-2210706-228-7040


Gwinnett Place HondaDuluth

800-277-8836678-957-5151


Honda Mall of GeorgiaBuford/Gwinnet t678-318-3155


Milton Martin HondaGainesv i l le

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Nalley HondaUnion C i ty

866-362-8034770-306-4646


Southern Motors HondaSavannah

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Brannon HondaBirmingham

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Jerry Damson HondaHuntsv i l le

800-264-1739256-382-3759

Dept. Hours: M-F 7-5:30; Sat [email protected]

Serra HondaBirmingham

800-987-0819205-949-5460


Patty Peck HondaRidgeland

800-748-8676601-957-3400


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Jackson AcuraRoswel l

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Southern Motors AcuraSavannah

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Jerry Damson AcuraHuntsv i l le

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Autobody News June 2012FLORIDA • GEORGIA • ALABAMA • MISSISSIPPI


Chrysler Group will voluntarily recall127,346 2011 and 2012 DodgeCharger and Chrysler 300 sedans inthe United States and Canada to fix afuse problem that could disrupt thevehicles’ antilock brakes and elec-tronic stability control systems. Aplastic insert surrounding a fuse inthe vehicles may become distortedbecause of thermal expansion andcontraction, Chrysler said in a state-ment today. The problem could affectvehicle control and increase the riskof a crash. Drivers are alerted to theproblem by the vehicle ABS/ESCwarning lamp, the statement said,noting that despite the failure, driverswill retain basic brake function. Therecall affects all 2011 and 2012 unitsbuilt before Dec. 20, 2011. The recallincludes 119,072 vehicles in theUnited States and 8,274 in Canada.According to documents submitted tothe NHTSA, the affected system issupplied by Global Automotive Sys-tems of suburban Detroit, a unit ofDura Automotive Systems. The de-fective part is in the vehicle’s powerdistribution center. Chrysler said itwas unaware of any accidents or in-juries related to the recalled vehicles.

Chrysler to Recall 127K DodgeChargers and 300’s for Fuses

Nissan Motor Co. is recalling certainTitan pickup trucks from the 2012model year because they have im-proper seating-capacity labels thatcould lead owners to overload the ve-hicles and increase the risk of a crash.

The recall reflects tight safetyregulations in the auto industry andthe fact that manufacturers cannot de-pend on the common sense of driversto insure vehicles are operated in asafe manner. Customers may contactNissan at 615-725-1000.

Nissan Recalling Certain 2012Titan Pickups for Mislabeling

A new study from Carfax shows thatchoosing to ignore auto recalls threat-ens the safety of consumers every-where. In 2011, over 2.7 million usedcars were for sale online with safetyrecalls that were never fixed. Carowners and sellers can help improvepublic safety by actively checking foropen recalls and having them fixedby franchise dealers. There’s no ex-cuse—recall repairs are free and find-ing cars with open recalls is easy.

“We’re making a lot of progress,but there are still too many open re-calls out there,” said Larry Gamache,communications director at Carfax.“Many of these cars change handswithout the buyer ever knowing a re-call exists, increasing the safety risksboth to passengers in the car and oth-ers on the road. We all need to do ourpart to make sure these cars are iden-tified and fixed—buyers, sellers andowners alike. A simple online checkfor open recalls is all it takes to helpmake our roads safer.”

California, Florida and Texaslead the nation with the most usedcars for sale with open recalls, eachhaving well over 100,000 last year.More about recall campaigns is avail-able at www.safercar.gov.

Carfax Study Shows ConsumerThreatened by Ignoring Recalls

BMW is recalling 24,340 vehiclesequipped with diesel engines fromthe 2009-11 model years that may failto meet U.S. and California emissioncontrol requirements.

About 2,740 2011 and 2012model year X5 xDrive 50i and X6xDrive 50i vehicles, and 21,600 3-se-ries diesel models, will be recalled,the automaker said. The recalls werescheduled for May 9, with a customerletter to follow, BMW North Amer-ica spokesman Dirk Arnold said.

The vehicles were manufacturedat factories in Spartanburg, S.C., andGermany.

BMW said certain emissionscomponents, including the SCR cata-lyst, the DEF mixer and the EGRvalve, may improperly overstate ve-hicle mileage, causing emissionsstandards to be exceeded and the il-lumination of the “Service EngineSoon” light.

BMW said the repair will re-quire the inspection and replacementof one or more of the emissions com-ponents and the reprogramming ofthe vehicle’s engine control unit.

BMW Recalling Diesel Vehiclesor Fuses

Chrysler is recalling about 68,000Jeep Wranglers manufactured in2010 due to the chance of a vehiclefire resulting from debris collectingin the transmission. The automakersaid in a filing with the NationalHighway Traffic Association that thepullback of 67,872 Jeeps with an au-tomatic transmission reflects con-cerns that the transmission skid plate,which is close to the catalytic con-verter, can collect debris and ignitewithout warning. The company saidit will notify owners, and dealers willreplace the skid plate free of charge. The move comes after the NHTSAbegan investigation complaints aboutfires in 2010 Wranglers earlier thisyear.

Chrysler Recalls 68,000 JeepWranglers for Fire Concerns

The Chinese-made JAC 4R3 is a fac-simile of Ford’s F-150, right down tothe blue oval on the hood, and Fordhas blocked the Chinese companyfrom selling it. “Not going to hap-pen,” said Bill Coughlin, presidentand CEO of Ford Global Technolo-gies in an interview. In the past, othercar companies have found it difficultto protect their designs from Chinesecopiers, but Ford is not among them.“We can protect ourselves in China,it’s not easy, but you can do it. Is itexpensive? Not really.”

The Chinese government re-quires foreign OEMs to partner withtheir own domestics but Ford andJAC are not partners. It remains to beseen whether JAC will respect the de-cision, or build its knock off F-150anyway.

Ford Blocks JAC from SellingBlatant F-150 Knock Off

BMW has overtaken Toyota as theworld’s most valuable automotivebrand, an annual ranking of theworld’s top brands shows. Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen and Audi im-proved their brand value, accordingto the BrandZ Top 100 Most ValuableGlobal Brands study released by mar-ket research company MillwardBrown. The world’s most valuablecar brands in $ billion1. BMW $24.62. Toyota $21.83. Mercedes $16.14. Honda $12.75. Nissan $9.96. VW $8.57. Ford $7.08. Audi $4.79. Hyundai $3.610. Lexus $3.4

BMW Replaces Toyota as MostValuable Automotive Brand

Ford is recalling 10,500 vehicles, in-cluding the 2012-’13 Ford Mustang,2012 Ford Expedition, 2011-’12 FordF-150 and 2012 Lincoln Navigator,due to transmission and light calibra-tion problems. “These vehicles mayhave a transmission range sensor(TRS) that was calibrated out of spec-ification for reverse gear,” saidNHTSA. “If this condition exists, thetransmission may not go into reverseor when the driver pushes the shiftlever in the reverse “R” position andthe vehicle’s transmission does go inreverse, the “R” may not illuminate onthe dashboard of the F-150, Expeditionor Navigator models and/or the back-up lamp on the rear of the F-150, Ex-pedition, Navigator or Mustangvehicles may not illuminate. The recallis expected to begin on June 25. Own-ers can contact Ford at 1-866-436-7332.

Ford Recalls 10.500 Vehicles forTransmission Sensor Issues

The National Highway Traffic SafetyAdministration reports that distracteddriving is the number-one killer ofAmerican teens. Five seconds is theaverage time a driver’s eyes are offthe road when texting. When travel-ing at 55 mph, that’s enough time tocover the length of a football field.According to a national survey re-leased by the Ad Council, 60 percentof young adult drivers (16–24) saidthey have texted while driving. In2010, more than 3,000 people werekilled and an additional 416,000 wereinjured due to distracted driving,which includes texting while driving.

Distracted Driving No. 1 Killer,Especially of Texting Teens


Alternators, starters, voltage regula-tors, window motor assemblies, lightbulbs, serpentine belts… the list goeson and on of the various cheaplymade replacement parts available.Being able to distinguish what partsare good or bad is part of being a pro-fessional in this crazy world of auto-motive repair.

When a customer calls wantingprices on a certain job, more thanlikely this isn’t the first phone callthey’ve made today. The way I cantell this is how they answer certainquestions I ask to narrow down theoptions on that particular part or job.“What’s the motor size? Two- or four-door? Automatic or manual?” If thesequestions aren’t a hit and miss an-swer, chances are they’ve beenthrough this before, and have a prettygood idea what the cost is, or at leastwhat they’ve found out from the autoparts cheapo depot.

“Yes, I need a price on an alter-nator for my car,” the caller asks. Igive them a price for the brands I sell,and before I’m even finished they’lltell me how much the last guy wouldsell the part for. That’s fine, I knoweveryone is looking for a bargain, andshopping around for prices is all partof it. However, let’s compare applesto apples — not just prices to prices.

A perfect example is the com-mon external regulator for a Fordproduct. The prices will range from afew bucks to as much as $30. The dif-ference is quality, of course. You cantell the difference for yourself by justpicking one up. The cheap regulatorfeels like a feather compared to themore expensive one. The question is… do they both work? Yes they do,but there’s no doubt the cheaper onewill not take any abuse, or a fluctuat-ing signal, or load variations as wellas the better made part. No doubt the

cheaper one will need to be replacedsooner than you think.

From the professional side, ittakes just as long to diagnose a prob-lem and make the repair with a well-manufactured part as it does to put onone of those bottom-of-the-barrelparts. The big difference is you onlyhave to do the job once, rather thanrepeatedly. That eats up diagnostictime, shop time, and doesn’t make fora very happy customer.

Over the years, the number oftimes I’ve had someone bring in a carand tell me they have put five or sixalternators on the car, and it still does-n’t work, is beyond comprehension.The unsuspecting customer will al-most certainly have the same reactionon the phone or at the service counter.

“There has to be something elec-trically wrong with the car,” they’llsay.

Even though I haven’t checkedthe car out yet, I’ll still ask them,“Where are you buying your parts?”

Nine chances out of ten they arebuying the cheap knock-off brandsbecause of the cost, and under certainapplications, these knock-off brandsfail constantly.

By the time I get the car in theshop and run the needed tests, I’m al-ready stretching their pocket bookjust to give them the answer I alreadyassumed it would be.

“It’s a cheap part that’s causingthe problem,” I’ll tell them, and whenI give them the price of the “quality”part I know I’m in for an argument.

“It shouldn’t cost that much. I’lljust go get another one myself,” thenow irate customer will tell me. Itcould be they really wanted me tofind something else wrong with it, be-cause they know it can’t be the part.Then again, it could be because theydon’t want to change it again.Whichever the case may be, I’m thelucky guy taking the brunt of the cus-tomer’s meltdown at the frontcounter.

Why is it that the second largestpurchase most people make in theirlifetime is left to using cheap discountparts as a way to keep their familytruckster on the road? You know, if

the original manufacturer used someof these discount parts, most of thosecars wouldn’t make it from the man-ufacturer to the show room floorwithout breaking down.

One morning when I arrived atthe shop, a customer was waiting forme with a rear main seal for me tosee. I had just replaced the seal in hiscar a few weeks earlier. There wasn’ta problem with the car, his problemwas that he believed that I overcharged him for the seal. While hewas at one of those discount partsstores, he purchased a rear seal him-self, and after having some time tothink about it, he figured I shouldknow just how ticked off he was.Needless to say, now he’s thinkingevery bit of the labor cost must havebeen exaggerated as well.

There was only one way to solvethis problem. I called my supplier andhad them send down another seal justlike the original one I had purchased.With the customer standing in front ofme, we took both of the seals out oftheir boxes and laid them on thecounter.

“You see, they are actually thesame,” the aggravated customer tellsme, “They’re the same color, samedesign and obviously are identical.You overcharged me!”

I’ll admit they looked the same,and I was getting a little worried thatI wouldn’t find a difference betweenthe two of them. I wanted to prove mypoint that not all parts are createdequal, but how? As this anger man-agement class dropout got even moresteamed, he started to make his pointknown how he felt about mechanicsin general, parts stores, and the worldat large. I picked up the two sealswhile he was standing on his soap boxproudly putting down anyone whohad anything to do with the car busi-ness. When I gently snapped the ac-tual seal area that touches the crankshaft back and forth, I had the answerand the difference was obvious.

“Sir, if you’ll calm down aminute, I’ll show you the difference.The one you brought from the dis-count part store has fewer coils on the

Comparing Automotive Parts: Is it Apples to Apples?

See Apples to Apples, Page 31





Mainstream Media


Mainstream Media













This is a new story by Scott “Gonzo” Weaver as posted on his website, www.gonzostoolbox.com.Gonzo has been serving the Tulsa area at Superior Auto Electric for over 27 years. See his book“Hey Look! I Found The Loose Nut”, which provides a Good Laugh for Mechanics of Any Age.The book is available at amazon.com. Contact Gonzo at [email protected].

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The transition to waterborne paint iswell underway countrywide. Today,volatile organic compounds (VOC) inpaints are seen as harmful to the envi-ronment and because of that manystates in the U.S. have enacted regula-tions that are making auto body shopsswitch to waterborne basecoat to re-duce VOC emissions while ensuringthey meet all standards.

Europe and Canada already usewaterborne and many OEM’s havealso converted to using water-basedpaints. Most paint companies are de-veloping new low-VOC primers andclearcoats along with color coats tomeet the expected regulations that theentire country will need to complywith in the coming years.

Auto body shop owners will tellyou that the change to water is hap-pening and the majority agree that itis not as difficult or as costly as manyfirst suspected. The decision onchoosing which waterborne paint touse can be critical to shop productiv-ity. DuPont™ Cromax® Pro water-borne basecoat is helping shops meetall of the new requirements while alsomeeting production goals. Cromax®

Pro is formulated with 88% less sol-vent but 25% more pigment. The re-sults have been astonishing. Paintersare calling it the easiest waterborne touse and most productive waterbornebasecoat available. Cromax® Pro alsocomplies with the toughest emissionsregulations and helps to reduce cycletimes and improve shop efficiency.

“DuPont did more than formulatea basecoat to help our customers meetall of the environmental regulations,”said Harry Hall, DuPont Perform-ance Coatings North America SalesDirector. “With Cromax® Pro, youcan paint cars faster than ever before.And that speed of production im-proves your bottom line.”

Cromax® Pro delivers single-visitapplication, 1.5 coat coverage for themajority of colors and application iseasier, faster and more dependable.No flash time between coats helps tosignificantly reduce cycle times. Cro-max® Pro’s wet-on-wet process meansthat basecoat can be applied non-stopuntil full coverage is achieved. Fewercoats reduces the opportunity for dirtand contamination and fewer bake ordrying cycles reduce energy costs.You can paint more cars in less timebecause painters get the job done witha single trip into the booth.

“We made the switch in Novem-ber 2007 and since then, Cromax® Prois all I use,” said Rande Lance, LeadPaint Technician & Paint Shop Man-ager at Prestigious Auto Body &Painting in Goleta, CA. “It’s veryuser-friendly and holds up extremelywell when you push it to the limit.Plus, it’s a great finish. It looks betterthan solvent, and it’s much better inregard to speed and efficiency.”

Cromax® Pro also has excellentcolor match because DuPont has in-dustry-leading digital color tools thatwork in all types of shops and provideease-of-use and confidence as well asfan decks that are sprayed with actualCromax® Pro colors.

DuPont™ Cromax® Pro waterborne basecoat is a 5-step process:Step 1: Surface Preparation – Repairarea is cleaned, degreased, primed andsanded to prepare for basecoat.Step 2: Blender Application – Applyone or two closed coats on the fade-out area.Step 3: Wet-on-Wet Basecoat Appli-cation – Spray one full coat of Cro-max® Pro to 75% hiding. Followimmediately with a half-coat to com-plete hiding and to set the flake.Step 4: Flash Basecoat – Allowbasecoat to flash until matte.Step 5: Final Step – Clearcoat is ap-plied.

Compare to competitors’ water-borne basecoat 9-step process:Step 1: Surface Preparation – Repairarea is cleaned, degreased, primed andsanded to prepare for basecoat.Step 2: Blender Application – Applyone or two closed coats on the fade-out area.Step 3: Basecoat Application – Firstcoat: apply one medium coat to repairarea.

Step 4: Flash Basecoat – Allowbasecoat to flash until matte.Step 5: Basecoat Application – Sec-ond coat: apply one medium coat torepair area.Step 6: Flash Basecoat – Allowbasecoat to flash until matte.Step 7: Effect Coat Application –Apply a final half-coat to completehiding and to set the flake.Step 8: Flash Basecoat – Allowbasecoat to flash until matte.Step 9: Final Step – Clearcoat is ap-plied.

Cromax® Pro eliminates up tofour steps in the repair process so youcan move more cars through yourshop every day.

The changeoverfrom solvent-borne toCromax® Pro bringshops a number of im-portant advantages.Body shops that makea living on being ableto paint fast, matchcolors perfectly andare economical in theprocess are winningwith this product.

A lot of collisionshops have put off thetransition, in part be-cause of cost concernswith equipment and

training. But according to Harry Hall,that isn’t the case. “When switchingto waterborne, you don’t need to buyall kinds of new equipment and newspray booths to make the conversion,”said Hall. “Shops will, however, needa new stainless steel spray. Because ofthe water, you need a gun that won’trust.”

In addition to a new paint gun,waterborne paint does have a little dif-ferent technique. DuPont trainspainters at one of their 11 DuPont Re-finish Systems North American Train-ing Centers and will also spend aweek at the shop once they are fullysetup to make sure painters are com-fortable.

Your employees are your mostvaluable asset. Providing them withopportunities to increase their knowl-edge and improve their skills makesgood business sense. It’s a smart wayto increase productivity, profitabilityand customer satisfaction.

DuPont offers outcome-based,continuing education that is designedto enable even the most experienced

painters to raise the bar for quality,productivity and cost efficiency.

The Refinish Systems TrainingCenters are located throughout theUnited States and Canada and educateover 4,000 collision repair techniciansannually. In Canada, they are locatedin Pointe-Claire, QC (Montreal), Ajax,ON (Toronto) and Coquitlam, BC(Vancouver).

In the United States, the Centersare located in Lionville, PA (Philadel-phia), Marietta, GA (Atlanta), Jack-sonville, FL (Florida State College ofJacksonville), Plymouth, MI (Detroit),Itasca, IL (Chicago), St. Louis, MO,Pomona, CA (Los Angeles) and Ana-heim, CA.

The centers are fully equippedand staffed by capable instructors whohave a solid background in collisionrefinishing.

“My body shop switched toDuPont Cromax® Pro and I couldn’tbe more pleased,” said Rob Daku,Owner and Production Manager atDaku’s Auto Body Shop in North Cat-asauqua, PA. “DuPont’s waterbornepaint is easy to use, looks great whenapplied, and is so much faster.DuPont made sure that we were com-fortable with waterborne and theirtraining was great.”

“Not all waterborne basecoats arethe same. Give us the chance to showyou our product and I am sure youwill want to upgrade to Cromax®

Pro,” continued Hall.Environmental requirements and

regulations are coming, so make thedecision to go with DuPont water-borne and join the thousands of bodyshops around the country that are up-grading to the next level of productiv-ity.

For more information aboutDuPont Cromax® Pro, go to up-grade2cromaxpro.dupontrefinish.comor call 1-800-GET-DUPONT. To reg-ister for a DuPont training course, call1-800-338-7668, prompt 7, fax/emailStudent Enrollment Form, or login towww.pc.dupont.com, click on DuPontRefinish, click on Training then loginto eCareerTrack.

DuPont™ Cromax® Pro is the Ultimate Upgrade for Your Refinish Painting Process

Attendees learn the benefits of DuPont Cromax® Pro at a DuPontRefinish Systems North American Training Center

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Along with full paint jobs,APUSA also performs spot work forthose cars that only need small areasrepaired and some minor body work,up to $5,000-$6,000 per job. The ticket

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penses. Sales are approximately$750,000 per shop per year. APUSA iscommitted to customer satisfactionand is proud to say there are zero com-plaints with the Consumer AffairsDept. of Florida. It is their policy tobend over backwards for customers.

As a car enters the productionline, it first goes to the body person for

any repair work that is necessary. Typ-ically, that includes rust damage andminor dents or body work. Next, thecar moves into the area where it issanded and prepped for painting. Fromthe prep area, it proceeds to the masker

for taping and then into thepaint booth where a gallon ofpaint, or the equivalent ofthree coats, is sprayed on thecar. Before the car is finallyready for delivery, a detailercleans all paint oversprayfrom the windows, tires, andbumpers, then cleans all thewindows, Armor-alls thetires and dashboards, andblows all the dust and dirtout of the interior.Presently the company has

three locations between Ft. Lauderdaleand Miami. These locations are super-vised by Vice President, ClaudioCasasnovas. Claudio has been a val-ued employee with APUSA for over20 years. A new location opening inPhoenix, AZ, with two or three morelocations in the works. These new lo-cations are part of a Licensing Agree-

ment Program, which allows new oralready established auto paint andbody shops to license the name andpurchase materials at a huge discount.By becoming a licensed owner of anAPUSA shop, shops benefit from aname that is recognized and associatedwith quality and value. They also be-come part of a team that is well knownand respected in South Florida for over35 years. Training is offered to all li-censees to run a smooth and profitablebusiness. In addition, advertisingthrough direct mail, TV, radio and In-ternet is provided. For more informa-tion on joining the team and LicensingAgreement Program, go to www.au-topaintingusa.com and click on busi-ness opportunities.

Auto Painting USA Collision(APUSA) originally started in DelrayBeach, FL and has its roots in a com-pany called Electro Bake Auto Paint-ing. Tom Kobus, the owner andPresident of APUSA, began workingfor Electro Bake Auto Painting in1975. Tom started as a manager, thenwas a supervisor and became Execu-tive Vice President before buying two


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Montanez reminds repairers thatit generally takes three to four years todevelop a vehicle, and manufacturershave spent many millions of dollarson designing and testing, using crashtests, CAAD drawings, algorithmsand so forth, and their instructionsneed to be taken seriously.

Though some aftermarket partsare not very different from OEMparts, a problem arises if the OEMchanges the substrate of their materialwhich can change corrosion rates andmultiple other variables. For example,using an aftermarket radiator that doesnot meet OEM standards can causeoverheating which will not be coveredunder the OEM’s warranty.

These standards can be referencedat i-car.com or nastf.org which bothprovide links to OEM websites. All-data.com and autoepi.org also offer in-formation on some OEM procedures.See www.autobodynews.com for a listof OEM guidelines to give you a min-imal reminder on specific OEM cau-tions, processes and procedures.

retaining spring. This spring is whatkeeps the rubber seal up against thecrankshaft to prevent any leaks. Lookat the one I just purchased, and you’llsee it has twice as many coils on thespring,” I calmly explained to him.(OK, I “tried” to say it calmly).

After a bit of scrutiny on his part,he did see the difference between thetwo so-called “exact” parts. He apolo-gized for his belligerent ranting and saidhe would make good on his promise notto buy any more parts based on the dol-lar amount. I hope so — that surewould make my day go a lot smoother.

These days, with even more partscoming in from different countries,and at different quality levels, the techhas to be on his toes to make surewhat they are installing on a cus-tomer’s car is actually a decent com-ponent. Even today, I’ll do my best tosway the customer into buying qual-ity parts rather than going the cheaproute. If they insist on using a cheaperpart, I’ll be the first to tell them whatthe results will be.

Comparing apples to apples is stilla good method of explaining things tosomeone who might have a differenceof opinion. One bad apple doesn’t spoilthe whole bunch; even good parts failsometimes. But I’d put my money on aquality part any day. Service is thename of the game in the automotive re-pair business — knowing which“apple” is the right one for a customer’scar is just another part of the servicegood shops provide. There are plenty ofapples out there in the orchard, andsorting out the bad ones aren’t aboutwho has the best TV commercial ornewspaper ad. Ask a mechanic, he’llknow the difference between goodparts and bad ones. As the old sayinggoes; “Ya get what ya paid for.”

shops in 1982 in Delray and LakeWorth. In 1984, Tom bought CongressAuto Paint and Supply Inc. (the hold-ing company) and the remaining twoshops, Pompano and Stuart.

Over the next four years, Tomopened the remaining five shops:Davie, Hollywood, West Palm Beach,North Palm Beach and Ft. Laud-erdale. In 1987, Tom changed thename of the company to Auto Paint-ing USA and in 1988 the holdingcompany was changed to Auto Paint-ing USA Enterprises Inc.


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Autobody News.

by Ed Attanasio

If there’s a list somewhere containingthe names of the automotive indus-try’s top artisans/painters, MitchKelly is right up there at the top. The

owner of Kelly & Son in Bellflower,California and the creator of CrazyPaint, Mitch and his father Tom areproud to say that they’re not averagepainters and they run a shop that is notaverage either.

Tom Kelly’s grandfather startedpinstriping vehicles back in the 1940sand Tom is well-known for workingwith Von Dutch as well as Ed “BigDaddy” Roth and still works along-side his son on a wide range of proj-ects.

Mitch Kelly, 52, is at a stage inhis professional career where he isready to start giving back to the in-dustry in which he made his name.

“I have a ton of knowledge and atthis point in my life, I want to shareit,” says Kelly. “Back in the day, mycars were on at least three magazinecovers every year, whether it was atruck, motorcycle or hot rod maga-zine. More recently, a motorcycle thatI painted will be appearing on thecover of Ground Pounder magazine.It’s a cinnamon-colored Harleypainted with PPG paint and I reallylike working on bikes lately. We didone Harley that has more than$13,000 worth of paint, with multiple

colors, stripes everywhere, includinggold leaf—-it’s just really cool stuff.”

It all began 39 years ago when ateenager started to learn the familybusiness to make some walkingaround money. “When I was 13, my

dad told me to tape off somewheels on some vans,” Kellyexplained. “He was doinglots of vans back then. In the1960’s everybody had a vanand they wanted graphics on

them. He was fast. He’d lay them out,paper them and Scotch Bright themand I learned how to do it all.

The first thing I did was paintwheels. They used to have those oldwestern-style wheels with ribs onthem and you’d have to paint betweenthe ribs and color match them to thevehicle. I would do a couple sets ofwheels every day and Dad would giveme $10-$15 per wheel. So, as a 13-year-old, I was making good money,sometimes $150 per day.”

Tom Kelly didn’t want his son’sfuture in the paint business. “At onepoint, my father told me, ‘This is fineand all, but I want you to get a regularjob.’ I worked six hours a day in a cab-inet shop, but I also stayed on at mydad’s shop. Between the cabinet shop,my dad’s shop, and school, I was put-ting in 13-hour days. Eventually Iwent to work with my father full-timein 1978.

“My father is probably the bestpinstriper in the world, in my opinion,and many will agree. His talent andhis ability to stripe stuff is phenome-nal,” Mitch says with evident pride.

“He’s a super artist and he’s verycreative. He’s got all my ability in his

little pinky. I realized early on that Ididn’t want to do pinstripes, murals orhand lettering, so I figured out that Ineeded to get into the painting side. Ilearned about as much as I couldabout two-color toning, fading andgraphics to where I could do them at ahigh level. My father and I are still ateam. He’s 72 now and we still worktogether.”

ABN sat down with Mitch Kellyrecently to chronicle his topfive projects over the yearsand the first one he cited wasthe very first car he paintedcompletely from start to fin-ish while a high school stu-dent. “My friend had a 1978Z-28, and asked ‘would I putsome stripes on his car’? Isaid yeah, but not for free. For$200, I put three-coloredstripes around his car for a hotrod look. That was my firstsuccess, because it made the cover ofHot Rod magazine. I was still in highschool and I got my first cover! Ithought to myself, “I must have atleast some talent to make the cover of

a magazine! It was my first really se-rious graphic effort and I was soproud.”

Mitch Kelly’s number two proj-ect came at age 19. “After a while, Istarted getting better and better atpainting cars. One day, a couplebrought in a 1969 Corvette that theywanted candy red. I used a red andgold pearl base with the red candy ontop. It came out with a very different

effect by just messing around with thecolors.

They wanted a silhouette ofthem together painted on the hood,so we ghosted it in. It looked awe-


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Legendary “Crazy” Painter Mitch Kelly Cites his Top 5 Projects

One of Kelly’s current projects is this 1957 Chevy Bel Air. The crew at Kelly & Son is (from left) JohnWeening, Mitch Kelly, Brandon Hedden, Thomas Kelly (Mitch’s son) and Tom Kelly (Mitch’s father)

Kelly includes this truck he painted for Thor Wear as oneof his top five projects ever

some and the customers loved it.They gave me a $300 tip, which wasunheard of way back then! Thatrocked my world and I realized howimportant good customer service canbe. Meeting deadlines and givingthem exactly what they want is cru-cial, and I learned a lot about it withthat Corvette.”

Number three on the MitchKelly countdown happened roughly20 years ago, he said. “One day in1992, I got a phone call from the peo-ple at the Association of Volleyball

Professionals (AVP). At that time,they had a countrywide tour featur-ing some of the country’s best vol-leyball players and Miller Lite was

their sponsor. They asked me, canyou airbrush a mural of a 30-40 footvolleyball player diving for volley-ball on the side of a semi-truck? AndI told them, yes—we can do that.After I hung up the phone, I turned tomy dad and said, ‘Uh, we can do this,right?’ and he said we’ll give it ourbest shot! We got the job and did animage of Sinjin Smith, who was oneof the world’s top volleyball playersat that time and they were reallyhappy with it.”

That semi led to a lot of newbusiness on a corporatelevel, Mitch explained.“After that initial meetingwith the people from MillerLite, things really startedhappening. It’s totally differ-ent from working with cus-tomers off the street. Forone, my business clientsnever even come to look atthe trucks after they’re fin-ished. They just send thecheck after seeing it on TV

or in publications. We started doing alot of these semi trailers for the AVPand they let us do the things we dobest—our graphics, fading and

blending. We worked closely withtheir designers to make them pop andit’s been a great relationship.”

The fourth notable accomplish-ment for Kelly is another truck proj-

ect that came from some of hismotorcycle work, he said. “I’ve al-ways loved motorcycles of all kindsand I was racing for a while. So, wewere painting a bike one day for acompany called Thor Wear and theyasked us to bid on a truck job forthem. We got the bid and then workedwith their designer and it came outgreat. They loved it! We took it to abig show and it got amazing reviews.The big boss saw it and said, ‘We need

to do more of those!’ I’ve done at least15 trucks for them over the years andat least a total of 50 jobs overall, so ithas turned out to be an excellent ac-count.”

This now takes us to thefifth fabulous project per-formed by Mitch and hiscrew—another semi for amajor brand name. “Fifteenyears ago, we got a callfrom the people fromMazda’s racing team anddid a semi for them featur-ing a Mazda race car on theside and with the logos.When the people fromMazda saw it, they werethrilled. The next call was

another car and trailer. They neededit in just three weeks time and it hadto be in Texas for a TV commercial.They said we don’t care about theprice. It was the biggest projectmoney-wise that I had ever done. Wegot it done three days early and it ledto a bunch of work with Mazda afterthat.”

For more information aboutMitch and his work, go to:www.kellyandsoncrazypainters.com


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Mitch Kelly is well-known for his amazing work onmotorcycles. This green beauty is his own personalride and proud of it

Mitch Kelly is well-known for painting semis, includingthis beauty he designed and painted for one of hissponsors, PPG


by Melanie Anderson

Custom Painter Jim Hetzler, 53, ofMuscatine, Iowa is a world class pin-stripe and airbrush artist whose careerstarted at the tender age of 13 whenhis hobby was building model cars.

“It’s a funny thing,” Hetzlersaid. “I enjoyed building model carsas a pre-teen and I wanted to paintpinstripes on my cars but didn’tknow how to begin. I wanted to learnand know the secretsof pinstriping, butback in those days itwas hard to findsomeone to teachme.” One day he sawan advertisement in amagazine and boughta $5 book on how topinstripe. That bookwas written by fa-mous car builder anda i rbrush /p ins t r ipeartist, Ed “BigDaddy” Roth. Rothwas the creator of the “Rat Fink andgang” monster hot rod characterswhich became rock-art icons, ap-pearing on airbrushed T-shirts,posters and hot rods. Roth’s cartooncharacters were known for symbol-

izing the rebellious nature of the1960s hot rod movement. Roth took

the young man under his wing, andeven though Roth was in Californiaand Hetzler lived in Iowa, Rothtalked to young Jim over the phoneand became his mentor. “He is theone who gave me direction,” Hetzlersaid.

Hetzler became a self-taught artist when his interestin art grew over time in highschool. His love of art, hisfriends’ referrals and word ofmouth soon grew to be a full-time business. In the early 80shis career took off, launchedby the Honda MotorcycleGold Wing touring bikes.“They came from the manu-facturer in only three colors,”Hetzler said. “People wantedcustom paint jobs and the

more I did, the more referrals I got andmy business grew to cars, trucks andsemis.”

Today, Hetzler is a world classpinstripe and airbrush artist and spe-

cializes in lettering, graphics, pin-striping, gold leaf and airbrush and ishighly recommended for his symmet-rical, multi-colored fine line stripes aswell as his realistic airbrush tech-niques and ability to apply the most

current techniques toany project. Jim andhis wife, Chris, ownand operate Hetz Pin-striping and JC HetzStudio Signs andGraphics in Musca-tine, Iowa.

With 40 years ex-perience as a pin-striper, 35 years as anairbrush artist and 25years in the custompainting business, Het-

zler has too many projects to count.But some of his favorite projects in-

clude pinstriping the Good Guys 2009Street Rod of the Year, custom paint-ing his own 1950 Ford Club Coupe,and creating the paint job on a full-

size tractor trailer semi for the Uni-versity of Iowa’s Hawkeye FootballTeam.

Jim was given the title of “Pin-striping Legend” by Northern andSouthern Rodder magazines and hasreceived many awards for his graph-ics and designs throughout the years.In 2007 and 2011, Hetzler receivedthe House of Kolor Prestigious PainterAward. He’s been using House ofKolor products for 25 years and forthe past two years, has been testing thenew Shrimrin2 Formula.

“I like the new line even more,”Hetzler said. “It’s incredible paint andgives you the ability to create thou-sands of colors from16 base colors. It’s eas-ier to use and you canintermix it for anycolor combination.”The newest line ofpaint from House ofKolor, released in June2011, is a solvent-based paint with lowVOC. What makes theShrimrim2 Formulaspecial, Hetzler says, isthe ability to customcreate a multitude ofcolors and intermixing Kandy withbases and creating special effects withits line of pearls and flakes.

“House of Kolor has been mypaint of choice for the last 25 years,”Hetzler said. “House of Kolor paintsis the foundation of all my artworkand graphics. It’s vibrant, easy towork with and is convenient to mixcolors. Using their paints has en-hanced my artwork and really madethe colors pop.”

One of the highlights of his ca-reer, Hetzler said, has been the honorof working with Jon Kosmoski, whofounded House of Kolor in 1956.

Today, they work to-gether to create newproducts for House ofKolor. “When I firststarted using theirpaints 25 years ago, Iwas impressed andthought they had agreat product. In myworld, Jon is a rockstar. To be involvedwith custom paintingat this level is amazingfor me.”

Hetzler often trav-els with the House of Kolor, taking histalent on the road and showcasingHouse of Kolor paints. He is a regularshowcase artist every year at theSEMA show in Las Vegas. He also willbe at the Back to the 50s car show inMinnesota in June. In August, he’ll bein Louisville, Kentucky for the StreetRod Nationals. In his spare time, heholds his own workshops in pinstripingand airbrushing, as well as working asa pinstripe instructor for “getawayworkshops” in Orlando and Las Vegas.

Hetzler’s trademark signature is“Hetz” and can be found on all hisprojects. His online, Facebook andpersonal connections in the custom

painting world have made him fa-mous. “I can go anywhere in the U.S.and people know who I am. It’s kindof scary,” Hetzler said.

For more information, visithttp://www.hetzstudio.com/ or contactJim at (563) 263-2803 or at [email protected].

Custom Painter Jim Hetzler Started Out at Age 13 with a Model Car

Jim Hetzler won the House of Kolor Prestigious Car Painter Awardin 2007 when he painted this 1940 Buick

Jim Hetzler painted his own 1950 Ford Club Coupe

Jim Hetzler is a world-class pinstripe and airbrush artistwho started painting when he was 13.

One of Jim's favorite projects was painting this full-sized semi forthe University of Iowa’s Hawkeye Football team.

Jim Hetzler won the House of Kolor Prestigious Car Painter Awardin 2011 for this 1934 Ford



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door that was left open in his haste toreach safety. “I was holding onto theframe rack thinking I was going for aride with it.”

While his shop suffered no dam-

age, the building next door was de-stroyed and is now being demolished.Two cars, both owned by DeFatta,were damaged in the parking lot. Onevehicle was totaled and the othernearly totaled.

Less than 30 minutes before thetornado hit, DeFatta heard the news onthe radio about an approaching stormand he sent his five employees home.

DeFatta stayed at the shop and wasworking under a frame machine whenhe heard the tornado sirens go off. Hewent outside to watch the storm.

“I’m from Texas,” DeFatta said.“In Texas, you can watch the tornadosbecause you can see them coming. So,I went outside looking for it. That wasmy takeaway lesson from this,” helaughed. “Don’t stand outside lookingfor a tornado.” The tornado camewrapped in swirling, heavy rain, mak-ing it impossible to see. “I never sawit, never heard it. It just came.” De-Fatta, who has been in town for only afew years, is told by the older folks intown that it’s a rare occurrence for atornado to hit the heart of Norman.

Today, DeFatta says the town isstill cleaning up. “Overall, we hadmild damage but there are stillmesses, tree limbs, to clean up.” Dam-age to cars in town is making the shopbusier these days too.


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Continued from Cover

Friday the 13th

Phillip DeFatta

Search:Autobody News

on Facebook

General Motors will stop advertisingon Facebook, citing the ineffective-ness of the paid ads, The Wall StreetJournal reported May 15. The movecame days before Facebook’s initialpublic offering that valued the socialmedia giant at near $100 billion. Theautomaker will still utilize free Face-book pages for marketing. JoelEwanick, GM’s top marketer, saidthe company was “reassessing our ad-vertising on Facebook, although thecontent is effective and important,”the Journal reported, adding that “thecontent” referred to the free pages.GM spends about $40 million tomaintain all aspects of its Facebookmarketing, including about $10 mil-lion on paid ads, the Journal reported.The automaker began to reconsideradvertising on Facebook earlier thisyear, according to the Journal, andEwanick and other members of GM’smarketing team recently met with rep-resentatives from Facebook but themeeting didn’t sway GM from its de-cision to pull the ads. GM spent $2.8billion in advertising in the UnitedStates and $3.9 billion globally in2010, the most recent year for whichdata is available.

GM to Stop $40M in FacebookAdvertising—“it’s ineffective”

Responding to GM’s announcementthat it is pulling Facebook paid adver-tising, a Ford representative tweeted:“It’s all about the execution. Our Face-book ads are effective when strategi-cally combined with engaging content& innovation.”

“We’ve found Facebook ads to bevery effective when strategically com-bined with engagement, great content andinnovative ways of storytelling, ratherthan treating them as a straight mediabuy,” a Ford spokesperson said in a state-ment. “We continue to have a strong, col-laborative relationship with Facebook,which includes first-of-a-kind vehicle re-veals, advertising and innovative ways ofsharing content. Our engineers have alsobeen working with Facebook engineersto develop unique and safer ways of inte-grating the car experience with Face-book.” Ford has been a vocal supporterof Facebook marketing for quite sometime. Most recently, the company wasone of the first to pay for Facebook’s newlogout ads. The automaker has also beenworking closely with the social network-ing giant to figure out how to integrateFacebook into Ford Sync. Ford has 1.5million Likes and 378,000 Likes on theirFacebook Pages, respectively.

Ford Tweaks GM and DoublesDown on Facebook Advertising

This year’s winner of hot rodding’stop prize—the Don Ridler® MemorialAward—was a 1955 Ford Thunder-bird owned by Dwayne Peace ofTyler, Texas. This masterpiece of cre-

ativity, engineering and workmanshipwas chosen from among 63 verystrong contenders that had been pareddown to the “Great 8” before the ulti-mate winner was announced at theDetroit Autorama® back in February.

The ‘55 T-Bird had been in thefamily for more than 20 years and thecustom build was a family af-fair, handled by Peace’s sonsin an outbuilding behind hishouse. The uncompromisingdesign and build of the customhot rod brought in a number ofoutside shops and some of thecountry’s top automotivecraftsmen. Greening AutoCompany in Nashville, Tenn.,was one of these partner shops,called upon to handle the paintwork and some machining du-ties.

In a meticulous process that tooksix months, Greening machined all ofthe side trim, as well as the grill, taillights and wheels; and painted theshow-stopper with BASF’s Glasurit®

90-Line™ Brilliant Red waterbornepaint. In the process, they demon-

strated once again why the premiumGlasurit line is a favorite of top cus-tom builders.

“Dwayne Peace found us througha customer referral,” recalled Jesse

Greening. “We knew up front that hewould be going to Detroit with the car,so we had the goal of going for the Ri-dler from the beginning.”

The shop has been a loyal BASFcustomer for years, after SalesRepresentative Ray Mc-Cutcheon called on them andhelped them solve some par-ticularly challenging paint is-sues. “Ray got us started withGlasurit years ago, and we’vebeen working with him andBASF ever since,” said Green-ing, who runs the full-servicestreet rod shop with his fatherJeff.

“The ‘55 T-Bird representsour typical approach and quality fin-ish,” observed Greening. “What madeit different were some of the areas wedon’t normally get into. Just look atthe underbody and engine compart-ment detail.”

Greening Auto Company looks toBASF to help them deliver show-win-

ning results with every project, andthat sometimes involves the kind ofproblem solving that started their re-lationship. “One example where welean on Ray for technical help is whenwe’re facing problems with a repairthat involves blending back into an al-ready-painted panel,” said Greening.“Fortunately, we don’t do this veryoften, but when we do it needs to beflawless.”

Greening Auto Company’s workon the Ridler-Award-winning ‘55 T-Bird is a great example of howBASF’s industry-leading products andcommitment to adding value after thesale gives its customers a competitiveedge.

“Our focus is on adding value toour products and supporting our cus-tomers to help them be more efficient,cost-effective and successful,” saidMarket Segment Manager TonyDyach. “That translates into the top

quality finishes that make our cus-tomers stand out.”

The commitment to customer sat-isfaction demonstrated by Mc-Cutcheon’s work with Greening AutoCompany is an integral part ofBASF’s business model and companyculture. “Our work with high-end cus-

tomizers, restoration specialists andstreet-rod builders like Greening re-flects the ‘passion around the paint’that makes our business fun and per-sonally satisfying,” said Dyach. “Inturn, our passion at BASF is to offerthe world’s finest automotive coatings

and to add value through expert, re-sponsive service with all of our cus-tomers, including the collision repairshops that are the core of our busi-ness.”

It’s no wonder that many of thecountry’s top custom builderschoose to go with BASF. And it’s no

coincidence that Glasuritpaint has been on six of thelast 11 Ridler Award win-ners. That same commitmentto excellence extends toevery BASF Automotive Re-finish customer, and also totheir demanding customers.So, it should come as no sur-prise that among users ofGlasurit paints, more than 50percent of their volume is inhigh-end and luxury vehicleapplications — twice that of

the premium brand’s nearest com-petitor.

For more information aboutBASF Automotive Refinish productsand services, contact your BASF rep-resentative by calling 800-825-3000,or visit www.basfrefinish.com.


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AkzoNobel Announces 2012’s Most Influential WomenAkzoNobel Automotive & AerospaceCoatings Americas (A&AC) an-nounced the three recipients of its 2012Most Influential Women in the Colli-sion Repair Industry (MIW) Award.

AkzoNobel’s annual MIW awardprogram, which launched in 1998, rec-ognizes and promotes the contributionsof key leaders within the collision re-pair industry. The company said 69women have received the award overthe program’s 14-year history.

The 2012 MIW awards willhonor three women who hold leader-ship positions within the U.S. andCanadian collision repair industry.AkzoNobel said the recipients wereselected for their contributions to theorganizations they represent, the col-lision industry at large and their re-spective communities.

This year’s three recipients are:Kim Parsons, president of Auto-

motive Collision Technologies Inc. inRandallstown, MD.Catherine Mills, executive di-

rector of the Florida Autobody Colli-sion Alliance in Orange Park, Fla.Kim Roberts, manager of Fix

Auto in Barrie, Ontario, Canada.“The collision repair industry’s

collective strength, image and long-term sustainability is dependent on in-

dividuals who have a passion, a visionand a vested interest in its future,”said Margret Kleinsman, generalmanager for AkzoNobel A&ACAmericas. “The leaders we are honor-ing with this prestigious award allshare these qualities and are amongthe top tier of those who continue tomake this a vital industry.”

AkzoNobel said it will presentthe 2012 MIW awards during a cere-mony July 19 at the San Antonio Con-vention Center in San Antonio, inconjunction with the 2012 I-CAR In-dustry Event and Collision IndustryConference (CIC) meeting.

Bill to End Fossil Fuel Subsidies Introduced to Congress‘Brown energy’ is subsidized muchmore heavily than ‘green energy.’Many consumers and business own-ers, especially those skeptical of thegreen energy movement, are notaware that the fossil fuel industry getsfar more in subsidies than does the re-newable energy industry.

Oil and gas companies are subsi-dized at almost six times the rate ofrenewable energy. From 2002 to2008, the federal government gave thefossil fuel industry over $72 billion insubsidies while the renewable indus-try received about $12.2 billion.

The End Polluter Welfare Actwould end fossil fuel subsidies, andsave over $10 billion a year and morethan $110 billion over 10 years. Sen-ator Bernie Sanders (I-VT) and Rep.Keith Ellison announced they wouldintroduce the bill to Congress during apress conference with 350.org. Thebill would specifically end tax breaksfor fossil fuel companies, plus elimi-nate special financing, end taxpayerfunded R&D, and set fair royaltiespolicies. Bernie Sanders describes theEnd Polluter Welfare Act in an op-edpiece for Reader Supported News asthe “most comprehensive ever intro-duced on this subject.” Sanders addedthat the Act “ends all the tax breaks,

the special financing arrangements,and the federal research and develop-ment funding.”

A fact sheet distributed by 350.orglists the money that would be saved byeliminating fossil fuel subsidies:

● $14 billion saved by eliminat-ing the intangible drilling deduction

● $12 billion saved by repealinga 2004 law that allows fossil fuel cor-porations to take deductions aimed athelping American manufacturers byclaiming they are manufacturers

● $6.8 billion saved by closingthe loophole that allows corporationslike BP to deduct money they spendcleaning up their own oil spills andpaying damages

● $2.4 billion saved by stoppingfossil fuel companies from investingthrough Master Limited Partnerships,an option not available to clean en-ergy businesses

● $3.7 billion saved by shuttingthe federal Office of Fossil Energy

● $10.6 billion saved by recoup-ing lost royalties for offshore drillingin public waters.

Web-Est Adds No-Cost PaintCodes to Estimating PlatformWeb-Est announced the addition ofpaint codes to their collision estimat-ing application. “We’re excited tolaunch this new feature in our pro-gram,” said CEO Eric Seidel. “Thisfeature will provide the paint code ofthe vehicle to the estimator using thevin decoder. This will make it easierto match the paint color of the vehiclethat the shop is working on.” Mr. Sei-del also says that this new feature willcome at no extra for the user. Web-Estcan be had for $99 per month.



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by Melanie Anderson

Back in 1956, House of Kolor®,based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, wasfounded by world-renowned custompainter, Jon Kosmoski, and 56 years

later, is still a strong player in theworld of automotive color.

House of Kolor producesbasecoats, surfacers, primers, sealers,thinners, reducers, dry pearls andflakes and other specialty products.The company is known in particularfor its premium custom finishes.

The company’s roots were in-spired by a ‘40 Chevy Coupe. Jon hadrebuilt the car and took it to the bestpaint shop in town. But the paint jobwas less than satisfactory and Jonknew it could be done better and so hedecided to learn how. And, as they say,the rest is history. Jonquickly became well-knownfor his skills as a custompainter, however, he was dis-pleased with the problematicnitrocellulose laquers andalkyd enamels of the day,which would sometimes sun-fade or cold-crack.

Jon wanted something better andif it wasn’t already available, then hedecided he would have to invent it.Together with a doctor in polymerchemistry, Jon set out to produce cus-

tom paints that wouldn’t tarnish, crackor sun-fade, even in severe climates orradical temperature changes. In addi-tion, he wanted paints that could with-stand the many coats required for acustom job. When Jon’s products and

skills came together, his paint jobsbegan to win awards, and peoplebegan to talk. Word spread and by1965, House of Kolor was nationallyrenowned as high-caliber paint forcustomizing vehicles.

In 1997, House of Kolor becamepart of the Valspar Automotive Coat-ings Division. Jon continues to playan important role in House of Kolor.He travels around the world con-ducting training classes and contin-ues to share his innovative ideas,helping to keep House of Kolor onthe leading edge of custom automo-tive coatings.

“After all these years, I’m stillpassionate about House of Kolor asever,” said Jon. “In fact, I can walkthrough a car show and pick out thecars that have the House of Kolorpaint on them. They are that muchricher and brighter. The people atHouse of Kolor know that it is allabout quality and longevity. That’swhy we use the best pigments and sol-vents that money can buy.”

House of Kolor maintains its in-tegrity and reputation as a leader in thecustom coatings industry by usingonly the finest ingredients in the pro-duction of its award-winning paint

products. The unique product linegives custom painters the freedom touse their imaginations to design, in-vent, and create “one of a kind” cus-tom paint jobs.

The newest paint from House ofKolor is called Shrimrin2 and comeswith a supporting line of new clears,primers and more, said Nick Dahl,General Manager with House ofKolor. Shrimrim2 is the second gen-eration of the proven ShrimrinBasecoat technology introduced in1982.

“Through new polymers and in-novative chemistry, we are able tomeet and exceed waterborne with asolvent-based system which allowsthe painter to create an unlimited pal-let of easy-to-mix colors and to usecolors that are the most exciting,” saidDahl, who has been with the companyfor 17 years. “Shrimrim2 basecoatsare ultra productive, easy to apply andrange from metallic, pearl and kandybasecoats. Shrimin2 Basecoats are athree-component system that consistsof our S2-FX Karrier Bases, S2-FXEffect Pacs and RU Series Kosmic re-

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districts in California. House of Koloris hitting a home run with solvent-based custom paints that are coast-to-coast compliant.”

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Should repairers be held solely re-sponsible if a repair process or partthey choose fails—even if that processor part was chosen at the behest of aninsurer?

That was one of the questions atthe heart of a panel discussion on “in-demnification” at the Collision Indus-try Conference (CIC) held inOklahoma City in late April.Rick Tuuri, who chairs CIC’s

“Insurer-Repairer Relations Commit-tee,” said the topic was triggered bythe indemnification clause found inmany direct repair agreements. Thatclause requires the participating shopto “indemnify” (or “hold harmless”)the insurer, which could prevent theshop from pursing a legal claimagainst the insurer, or make the shopresponsible to compensate or defendthe insurer in a legal claim arisingfrom repairs made under the agree-ment.

“I think for repairers it ultimatelycomes down to this: If the contract isgoing to hold me to indemnify the in-surer against anything caused by therepair, then insurers should ultimatelysay, ‘You’re responsible for indemni-fying us, so you make all the (repair)decisions and we’ll pay you for whatthe repair is,’ ” panelist Aaron Schu-lenburg, executive director of the So-ciety of Collision Repair Specialists(SCRS), said. “I think most repairerswould be fine with that. I think wherethe issue comes is when insurers startto be involved in the process by spec-ifying part types or repair proce-dures—to identity how the repair shop

does their job –while also askingto be indemnifiedagainst anythingthat results fromthat. If there’s in-volvement in thedecision-makingprocess, I think the

repairer believes there should also beinvolvement in the liability.”

Oklahoma shop owner GaryWano agreed. He said he thinks that,indemnification or not, if a problemoccurs based on a repair, the shop andinsurer will both find themselves incourt.

“The argument from the repairerstandpoint is that if the insurer…hadleft me to do what I do—put the parton I want to put on, or do the opera-tion the way I wanted to do it—noneof us would be in that court to beginwith,” Wano said.

Perhaps not surprisingly, insurerson the panel viewed the issue differ-ently. Allstate’s Randy Hanson saidthat, first, he’s not sure it’s much atopic of concern. He said that in thedecades he’s been involved with hiscompany’s DRP, he doesn’t recall aquestion from shops coming up aboutit.

“I can also say in 30-plus years, Ihave not once evoked an indemnifica-tion clause in a contract for a DRPpartner,” Hanson said. “Not once.”

He said five of the six indemnifi-cation elements in the Allstate DRPagreement have nothing to do with re-pair issues. They prohibit such thingsas a shop making a claim against theinsurer if a shop employee makes aworkers’ compensation claim, orsomeone having repaired vehiclesunder the agreement seeking Allstateemployee benefits.

But Hanson said Allstate needsrepairers to fix cars for its policyhold-ers, so if concerns about indemnifica-tion prevented enough shops fromsigning the agreement, his companywould have to find ways to addressthat.

“I don’t want to be so crass as tosay take it or leave it, but they’re notgoing away,” Hanson said of the in-demnification clauses. “Everybody isprotecting themselves to a certain ex-tent. To an extent that we can’t dobusiness together? Let’s have a con-versation. I’m open for that. I thinkwe’ll listen. And I think we’ll makechanges where it’s appropriate.”

Panelist George Avery, a claimsconsultant with State Farm, said atfirst that like Hanson, he hasn’t seenthe indemnification clause beingmuch of an issue for shops on hiscompany’s direct repair program. Buthe also said State Farm did make asignificant change to its indemnifica-tion clause.

“Our initial Select Service agree-ment did have a one-way hold-harm-

less against us,” Avery said. “It was inour benefit. As a result of input fromour (repairer) advisory council, wechanged that and now it’s both ways.We added a two-way hold-harmlessfor both the repairer and for us.”

But he also pointed out that someof what shops consider insurer in-volvement in the repair process isdriven by the insurer’s policy contractwith its customers. He said StateFarm’s insurance policy, for example,says it can designate the type of re-placement parts for which it owes.

“George has a good point: The pol-icy is the policy,” Schulenburg con-ceded. “You’ve set an expectationwith your policyholder on what youowe for. I don’t think there’s an issuethere at all. You owe for what youcontracted for. However, there arethird-party claimants, and they don’thave a policy with you.”

Schulenburg also pointed out thatinsurers attempt to involve themselvesin repair decisions beyond just parts.The policy doesn’t inform the con-sumer that the insurer may say,“We’re going to section this rail hereversus putting it in at a factory seam,”Schulenburg said.

He said that intrusion by insurersinto the repair process, pressing shopsto do something that deviates fromOEM recommendations or their ownrepairers expertise, is why shops areconcerned about the indemnificationclause.

Speaking from the floor of CIC,California shopowner Randy Sta-bler raised severalother concerns hehas related to in-demnification. Hesaid the fact thatAvery and Hansonhaven’t seen in-

demnification result in an issue does-n’t mean it couldn’t.

“I’ve never had a fire in my shop,but I have fire insurance,” Stablercited as an analogy.

He also said it would seem fairthat insurers cross-indemnify shops, incase an adjustor, for example, slipsand falls while at the shop, or makesinappropriate comments to a shop em-

ployee that results in a claim againstthe shop. He also pointed out thatshops have business insurance to pro-tect themselves in the case of an erroror omission, but that insurer offeringthat coverage is basing that policy onprotecting the shop, not the insurerwith which the shop has a contract.

“When you actually go to your(business) insurance company and sayhere’s my DRP agreement and theyactually look at that, they go, ‘Ooooh.Ooooh. We don’t like that so much.’So that’s another practical issue wehave to be aware of.”

Schulenburg pointed out that theindemnification discussion cameabout as part of the committee’s effortto craft a set of guidelines for the“most beneficial and productive re-pairer-insurer relationships.”

“So insurers could say, ‘Look, it’sin there; you should read your docu-ments and if you don’t like it, don’tsign it,’ and repairers could say, ‘Letme fix the car and get out of my busi-ness.’ But neither of those things re-ally get us to the goal of thiscommittee, which is to build better re-lationships between the two parties.”

To that end, committee chairmanTuuri said he drafted a position state-ment on the topic that reads in part,“Indemnification clauses in DRPagreements…should be fair to both in-surer and repairers.”

Wano, Avery and Schulenburgsaid that initially that seemed like agood addition to the committee’sguidelines for mutually beneficial in-surer/shop relationships.

“We’re not solving the world’sproblems here,” Wano conceded. “Butas long as the carriers and repairers arewilling to sit down and take a look atthese things.”

Shops and Insurers Discuss Indemnification in DRP Contracts

with Ed Attanasio

Shop and Product Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Shop Showcase

with Ed Attanasio

Social Media for Shops


The Right Causewith Mike Causey

Industry Insightwith John Yoswick

John Yoswick is a freelance writer based in Portland, Oregon, who has a body shop in thefamily and has been writing about the automotive industry since 1988. He is the editor of theweekly CRASH Network (for a free 4-week trial subscription, visit www.CrashNetwork.com).Contact him by email at [email protected].

Gary Wano

Randy Stabler



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This is an interesting story and I don’tknow quite where to start. How about:Elvis has just entered the building andnobody noticed. Is it possible for Elvisto walk into a room and take a seat yethave nobody notice that the King is inthe house? It’s impossible, right?

Well, it seems just as impossiblethat collision repairers didn’t mentionState Farm and parts at the most re-cent Collision Industry Conference(CIC) meeting. They are the mostcommon words affectionately utteredby body shops owners throughout thecountry these days. So how is it pos-sible that during one of the industry’sbiggest stages, CIC, there wasn’t evena mention?

Yes, there were some sidebar con-versations during breaks. Yes, therewas a lot of discussion at an associa-tion meeting held in conjunction withCIC. And yes, there have been somepress releases.

But when everyone had a chanceto address State Farm publicly, no-body noticed that the elephant was inthe room. I know the elephant wasthere.

Maybe a gag order was issued?Maybe the industry felt that StateFarm deserved a break? Or could it bethat the industry realized that it’s notas bad as some have made it out to be?

I am among those who think StateFarm’s parts move isn’t as bad assome make it out to be. While thereare pros and cons, the reality is thatoverall it’s a good thing. If State Farmdidn’t take the lead on this, the indus-try would have continued to flounderaround for years to come. The ineffi-cient parts ordering model employedby the collision repairers is archaicand wasteful.

Why wouldn’t State Farm want ashop to order the most cost-effectivepart on a given repair? Why shouldState Farm have to reimburse a shopfor a more expensive part if the exactsame part is available at a cheaperprice? Paying more for the same partis a waste of insured’s premium dol-lars.

If shops were more cost-con-scious over the past 10 years, insurersmay have been in a position to lowerthe cost of insurance instead of con-

tinually raising it. I realize it’s not en-tirely the shops’ fault, but I can assureyou that when shops are repairing oneof their own vehicles, they’re lookingharder for the best price on parts.

We all have a responsibility to becost-conscious when spending some-one else’s money. When you repair acustomer’s vehicle, you are spendingTHEIR money. Yes, you are spendingTHEIR MONEY. I don’t care if it’s aninsurance claim. The money the in-surance company pays you is from theinsured’s premiums.

If you understand and respect thatconcept, you would treat an insuranceclaim like it was a customer-pay jobfrom a family member. Instead, wehave an industry that couldn’t careless about the cost of parts becausethey aren’t paying for them and willmake more money by choosing thehighest-priced parts.

Don’t all of us have a responsibil-ity to make sure the customer’s car isrepaired in the most cost-effectivemanner possible? If the answer is‘yes,’ why are body shops all over thecountry crying foul? If State Farm wastrying to eliminate your parts profit,like an ill-fated pilot program manyyears ago, then you’d have a right tocomplain. But finding the most cost-effective part shouldn’t be somethinginsurers have to ask or require you todo. You should have been doing itsince the first car entered your build-ing.

Although insurance companiesinserting themselves into the bodyshop’s business isn’t a popular sub-ject, you might as well get used to it.I’ve been around this industry long

enough to know that unless an insur-ance company requires it, it’s notgoing to happen. Allstate requiringCCC’s first estimating system facili-tated the widespread adoption of elec-

tronic estimating. Ifthat didn’t happen,we might still bewriting estimates byhand.

Why is Allstaterequiring their di-rect repair shops tobe I-CAR GoldClass? It’s becausethe vast majority ofthe industry doesn’twant to investmoney into training.Shops shouldn’t be

forced to keep up with the latest tech-nology and repair methodologies.They should be seeking training with-out any interference or mandate by an

insurance company. But they don’t.There are many other examples of

insurance companies changing the in-dustry but I think my point has beenmade. When there are inefficiencies inthe system, money to be saved or abetter way to serve the customer, un-less an insurance company decides toplay the role of the evil villain, shopsaren’t going to do it willingly.

If the majority of shops were op-erating at a high level (as a few are),there would be no reason for any car-rier to manage the shops’ business. In-surance companies are similar to thegovernment. You are better served re-solving the problem yourself, other-wise your fate will be decided for you.

Elvis sang a song titled, “Don’tAsk Me Why.” The next time you areat an industry meeting and want tocomplain about insurance companiestaking over the industry, remember theKing’s song…and this article.


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Is the State Farm Elephant in the Room a Bad Elephant?





Mainstream Media


Mainstream Media













The Insider is a corporate-level executive with a Top 10 auto insurerin the U.S.. Got a comment or question you’d like to see him addressin a future column? Email him at [email protected]

The following is an interview withChuck Gosney, President of CollisionBilling, a company that could helpbring the changes the collision indus-try desperately needs. In this inter-view, Domenico Nigro asks somedirect questions on exactly how thiscompany could bring needed change.

Domenico: Chuck, what exactly isCollision Billing?

Chuck: Collision Billing was cre-ated to keep the insurance compa-nies in check and to help the autobody shops get paid for the workthey are doing. Nobody was repre-senting the shops, so we createdCollision Billing to level the playingfield. We have two main servicesthat we provide for the collision in-dustry, the first being our FullBilling Services, and, of course, ourClaims Database.

Domenico: For years, there have beenconsultants that have been tellingshops how to get paid by using the ref-erence manuals, P-Pages, and othertips on writing a complete sheet. Howare you different?

Chuck: The other consultants do agreat job of explaining what is in-cluded and not included and what toask for. We have all been to theirworkshops and get excited and go outon Monday and start writing repair or-ders the way we should. When youask for those things, the insurancecompany’s response is that they don’tpay for that and the shop has no re-course to get paid for it and they stopasking for it. What the shop is lackingis data to substantiate the operation, orsomeone who will challenge the in-surance company on the shop’s be-half. That’s where we come in, andthat’s how we’re different.

Domenico:How does your full billingservices work?

Chuck: Our full billing services aresimilar to the professional billing serv-ices used in the medical field, andmuch like a medical biller, we workwith the shop in submitting their finalblueprint for repair to the insurancecompany. We work with the shop tomake sure they are billing for all op-erations performed to repair their cus-tomer’s vehicle to pre-accidentcondition. We then use data gatheredfrom our experience and our claimsdatabase to justify the charges to theinsurance company.

Domenico: So you simply submit thefinished paperwork to the insurancecompany once the job is done?

Chuck: Actually, we work the jobfrom the moment the car arrives at the

shop to the time the shop receivesfinal payment for the job. The estima-tor writes the original blueprint for re-pair and we take over from there,adding any additional R&I or otheroperations that may have been missed.From that point forward, we handle allcommunication with the insurancecompany. We then make them justifywhy they refuse to pay by using ourarsenal of tools and experience toshow them the validity of the opera-tion.

Domenico: So what has been the re-sponse so far?

Chuck: Given our knowledge of thethree major estimating platforms, theP-Pages, database reference manualsand our Claims Database, we havebeen very successful in getting ourclients paid on the work they have


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Domenico Nigro’s Q&A with Chuck Gosney of Collision Billing

with David BrownShop Showcase

with Attorney Martin ZuradaBody Shop Law

with Domenico Nigro

The Community-Focused Body Shop

with Janet CheneyShop Showcase

with Frank SheroskyIndustry Business Beat

Domenico Nigro is the president of Nigro’s Auto Body, a very progressive shop fortheir community in Philadelphia. In addition to many productivity innovations, Nigro’sinstalls equipment for disabled drivers, has developed several phone Applications,and represents products which directly support charities such as United Way and theNational Breast Cancer Foundation. Contact him at: [email protected].

See Domenico Nigro, Page 45

As BMW Groups’ vehicle construc-tion technology advances, so does therepair process required to fix themproperly. Conventional welding,which has been used primarily inBMW Groups’ repair processes in thepast, is slowly becoming the second-ary method to bonding and rivet bond-ing technology. BMW currentlyrecommends primarily using bondingand rivet bonding to replace exteriorbody panels, structural parts, and sec-tioning specific locations in conjunc-tion with VIN-specific repairprocedures. Changes in recommendedrepair procedures affect all currentproduction models. This does notmean that all models, and all parts, areaffected though. Consulting VIN-spe-cific repair procedures should alwaysbe the first step in the repair process.The same is true for Mini and forRolls-Royce vehicles (see Figure 1).

BMW Group has been recom-mending bonding and rivet bondingtechniques to replace damaged alu-minum parts for over a decade. Therecommendation has now been broughtto repairs on steel vehicles. The theorybehind the repair of both aluminum andsteel parts is similar, although the ad-hesives and preparation material usedcan vary by the repair situation and thematerials being joined (see Figure 2).

Reasons for the ChangeThere are several reasons that BMWhas made the transition from conven-tional welding and STRSW to bond-ing and rivet bonding. One of the mainreasons is the use of heat-sensitivesteel. With bonding and rivet bonding,there is no heat generated that wouldweaken the steel, allowing the steel toretain its strength.

Another reason for bonding andrivet bonding is the increased corro-sion resistance of the repair joints.Corrosion protection is extremely im-portant during repairs because BMWoffers a 12-year corrosion warranty.

Repair OverviewThe recommended BMW sectioningjoint on outer body panels requires apre-fabricated E-coated reinforcementplate, available from BMW, alongwith VIN-specific repair information.The sectioning joint locations are in asimilar area as the previously recom-mended weld joint, but may havemoved to accommodate the reinforce-ment plate. The reinforcement platehas studs built into the part. This re-quires notches to be placed into theexisting part and the new part.

Special plastic lock nuts are usedto hold the parts in position until theadhesive cures. If the joint calls forthem, rivets, which may be specialblind rivets or punch rivets (alsocalled self-piercing rivets or SPRs),are then installed on mating flangeareas where applicable. When the ad-hesive is cured, the studs on the rein-forcement plate are removed and thesurface is prepared for the applicationof the BMW-recommended epoxymetal filler.

The sectioning procedure for arail is similar to an outer body panel.The difference is this repair joint usesa repair element that fits into the rail.A bolt is inserted into the repair ele-ment. When the bolt is tightened

down, the repair element expandsagainst the inside of the rail, causingthe adhesive to emerge. The bolt is re-moved once the rivets have been in-stalled and the adhesive is cured.

Still Some WeldingBonding and rivet bonding does notreplace all welding procedures forBMW. There are some areas that willstill require welding to be done. Theseareas can only be identified with thecorrect repair information.

Tools and Equipment AvailabilityAll of the tools and parts, includingthe reinforcement plates, repair ele-ments, rivets, and adhesives needed tocomplete bonding and rivet bondingprocedures for BMW are available toindependent collision repair facilities.It is highly recommended, however,that before any repairs are attempted,the technician acquire training fromBMW on the tools and techniques tocorrectly perform these repairs. It isalso critical to have access to the mostcurrent and up-to-date repair proce-dures and sectioning locations fromBMW.

ConclusionBMW recommends primarily usingadhesive bonding and rivet bonding toreplace exterior body panels, framerails, and when sectioning. The repairsare vehicle specific and require spe-cial tools, equipment, and procedures.BMW recommends specific trainingbefore doing these repairs, and havingaccess to their specific repair infor-mation.

The recommended change in re-pair procedures from BMW is just oneof the many examples of the chal-lenges that collision repairers face ontoday’s HSS and UHSS vehicles.While traditional repair methods arestill used on these vehicles, how andwhere those repair methods are usedis constantly changing. For more in-formation on working on HSS andUHSS vehicles, attend I-CAR’s BestPractices For High-Strength Steel Re-pairs (SPS09) course.


with Kathy Steck-FlynnAutobody CSI

with Dan EspersenALL OEM Information

with Tom McGeeALL OEM Information

with J.R. CarlsonConsumer Callout

Automaker Actions and Announcementswith Jeremy Hayhurst

Autobody Techwith Jeremy Hayhurst

Parts Profileswith Larry Williams

Automaker Actions and Announcementswith Janet Chaney

I-CAR Tech

Amaradio Explains CRAwith Lee Amaradio Jr.

Consumer Callout

The Right Causewith Mike Causey

with Ed AttanasioShop Showcase

Say What?!

This article first appeared in the I-CAR Advantage Online, which is published and distrib-uted free of charge. I-CAR, the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair, is anot-for-profit international training organization that researches and develops qualitytechnical education programs related to collision repair. To learn more about I-CAR, andto subscribe to the free publication, visit http://www.i-car.com.

Bonding and Rivet Bonding Technology on Steel BMW Vehicle Parts

Figure 1 - This BMW 5 Series has several partsthat need to be rivet bonded during repairs

Figure 2 - The repairs on this aluminum frontend are similar to the repairs on steel vehicles

by the Audi Quality AssuranceDepartment for the A3

Exterior Master JigAt Audi, the master jig is the main in-strument used by the Quality Assur-

ance department to attain a premiumimpression and perfect fits.

The task of the exterior masterjig is to optimize and fine-tune di-mensional fits on every vehicle proj-ect before a production launch. Thisinvolves coordinating the fits of allparts that are visible on the exteriorwith one another.

These parts range from sheetmetal panels such as doors, enginehoods and trunk lids to exterior trimparts such as bumpers, headlights, tail-lights, windows, mirrors, door handles,spoilers and decorative trim strips.

The measurement and analysisfixtures of the exterior master jig arehoused in a dedicated building to-gether with the interior master jig.

Other tools—which are also fun-damental to successful coordina-tion—are used in this area beforework is performed on the exteriormaster jig.

The joint master jig is used tocheck for dimensional conformity ofthe underbody and its individual com-ponents, such as the front and rearfloors and to coordinate them to oneanother.

It ensures that all components canbe joined without stresses. This is nec-essary to be able to produce a high-quality body in the later productionprocess, which is the foundation forthe premium image of Audi vehicles.

Using what are known as exte-rior function cubes, experts analyzethe vehicle’s exterior trim parts in alocal zero-reference environment.Correction data is derived from thisprocess, which is used to optimizecomponents at an early phase. Whenthey fit to the cubes, they are addedto the exterior master jig for furtherfine tuning.

Work in the zero-reference envi-ronment of the exterior master jig be-gins about nine months beforeproduction launch. Previously in-spected panel parts of the body’s ex-terior skin and the parts mounted tothem, such as doors and hoods andlids, are built up on a frame con-structed of solid aluminum profiles.Exterior trim parts are also added tothe assembly to analyze the interplayof all body parts.

This gives specialists a stepwisemethod for perfecting the dimensionaltolerances of parts, achieving flush fitsand perfecting the lines of joints.

An additional fine-tuning step in-volves working with reference bodiesthat are equipped in a way similar tothat of an exterior master jig.

This is done so that the paint ap-plication can also be considered in afinal fine-tuning step. Although thepaint is only as much as 15 hundredthsof a millimeter (0.04 inch) thick, byAudi’s way of thinking, even thisplays a major role in dimensional op-timization.

The seam pattern on the new AudiA3 does not always follow exactmathematics; in some zones, subjec-tive impressions are also considered inthe tuning process.

Take the front bumper, for exam-ple, which is slightly offset to the rearat its transition to the fender so that thecustomer always perceives a harmo-nious transition when looking at itfrom above. Another example: theseams at the fuel filler door. The upperseam was intentionally made smallerthan the lower one, to give the subjec-tive impression of a better fit for theobserver.

Along with dimensional con-formity, the exterior master jig alsoyields information on color fidelity,gloss level and the tactile feel of sheetmetal, aluminum and plastic parts. Inaddition, it provides information onthe firm seating of all components andtheir easy assembly and whether opti-mization potential exists in the com-ponent concepts.

Audi specialists are alwaysfaced with exciting new challengesin their work at the exterior masterjig—challenges they must overcometo fulfill stringent requirements forthe overall impression of the vehi-cle’s exterior.

Different materials such as steel,aluminum, plastics, rubber and glassmust be cleanly fitted to one another.The overall impression is only dis-tinctive and high- end if all edges andtheir radii fit precisely to tenths of amillimeter; only then is the run of thetornado line from the fender over thedoor to the side wall frame pleasing tothe eye.

Interior Master JigThe interior master jig is a body pro-duced to a specific design level thatdoes not exhibit any deviations at thepoints where interior components aremounted.

Ten months before productionlaunch, the components are coordi-nated and fitted to one another usingoptical and tactile measurement meth-ods.


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Audi A3 Development with Master Jigs and Color Matching

Master jigs are used to optimize dimensionalfits and the colors and materials matchingoperations.

Front cubing measurements with CNCcoordinate machine

Rear cubing measurements with CNCcoordinate machine

Optical measurements on joints master jig

Along with verifying functionalcriteria—free movement of parts, firmseating, ease of installation, harmo-nious actuation forces and sounds—the primary focus of measurementwork with the interior master jig is onvisual properties. All parts are in-spected for grooves, voids and blisters.

Special attention is given tochecking of seams, e.g. on the centreconsole that is made up of numerousindividual components—from kneepads to the MMI terminal.

The four air nozzles in jet designat the front of the cockpit are highlycomplex parts. Each consists of over30 individual components.

Allowable tolerances are on theorder of a few hundredths of a mil-

limeter in the design feature for ad-justing the air stream to spot mode ordiffuse mode. Therefore, the supplierassembles and checks every part in a100 percent automated process.

A parts that helps to ensure optimalsitting comfort is the center armrestwith its height and length adjustments.A high-quality aluminum die cast bodywith a two-component material jointensures full adjustment acoustics.

Another highlight in the Audi A3:the three-dimensional decorative trimstrips in the doors—they are embed-ded in a soft film without any gaps.

The complex mounting feature onthe rear side was not released in the in-ternal master jig process until it wasperfectly tuned to assure an elegantimpression and no noise.

The decorative ring on the gearshift grip is embedded with a preci-sion of just a few hundredths of a mil-limeter to assure perfect tactile feel forthe driver.

Audi has even implemented elab-orate solutions in the luggage com-partment of the new A3: when thecargo floor is folded upward, spring-loaded plastic latches hold it in placefor the customer.

Special cubes are used to checkthe fits of functionally relevant vehicle

subassemblies. In the doors of the newA3, quality experts worked untilpleasant-sounding window trackingand door closing acoustics were as-sured under all conditions.

This was technically implementedby features such as “post-tracking,” inwhich the window slides into the win-dow guide starting at the front.

Only then did the window sealperfectly on the roof profile of thewindow guide with a constant inser-tion depth.

Another focal point was the dou-ble seal between the door and thebody.

A continuous seal was attainedwith the help of color imprint methodsand optical measurement technology.Only with this high level of precisioncould the stringent quality require-ments for closing noise, closing com-fort and interior acoustics be met.

On the interior master jig, spe-cialists also ensure that the door trimhas precise, uniform gaps in its transi-tion to the body door to ensure noise-free operation over the entire life ofthe vehicle at the customer. A new fas-tening concept with a flocked stop railwas coordinated and implemented.

Audi A3—Color matchingThe interior of the new Audi A3 inte-grates about 150 colored components;customers can choose from five colorschemes.

All parts, from decorative trimstrips to the carpeting, must be pre-cisely matched and coordinated. AudiQuality Assurance coordinates them

all and resolves any issues with sup-pliers.

The colored parts in the A3 interiorare extremely diverse. They consist of34 different types of semi-finishedgoods—such as fabrics, leathers andfilms—and ten types of plastic; theycome from 45 suppliers across theglobe.

This broad variety of materials re-sults in many difficult neighboring in-teractions. For example, when smoothplastic meets textured surfaces, such asin the area of the center console, thedifferent reflectance values of the ma-terials can generate different, undesir-able colors as perceived by an observer.

Special pigments are necessary todye parts with different material

chemistries in the same color hue. Allcomponents are dyed through, and

many are also painted—some withhigh-gloss paint. In the new A3, forexample, high-gloss components in-clude the control panel for the climatecontrol system and the frame of theMMI monitor. UV-stabilizers in theplastics prevent colors from bleachingout over a period of years.

Quality Assurance coordinatescolors in its light studio whose light-ing system can be adjusted to producethree different light environments:clear daylight, warm evening light orartificial light as in a showroom.

This is necessary, because indi-vidual materials give a different color


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Measurements on instrument panel withcoordinate machine

Visual surface inspection of a trim strip

Discussing analysis results of functionalcubing for door

Visual color evaluation of roofliner

Color hue check and gloss measurements incockpit

performed. We have helped shops getpaid for operations where previouslythey were told “We don’t pay for that”and we were able to show that the in-surance prevailing rates were not ac-curate to get some shops their truelabor rates.

Domenico: I’m familiar with the P-Pages and reference manuals, butwhat exactly is the Claims Database?

Chuck: The Claims Database is ournumber one tool in assisting ourclients in getting paid. It’s wherewe track different components ofthe estimates and log them for fu-ture use. For example, we can findif a certain insurance company haspaid for a specific operation (suchas a finish sand and buff or testdrive car), paid for itemized mate-rials, or are even suppressing thelabor rates for the area with decep-tive estimating practices. It’s realsimple. We submit this data toprove our point.

Domenico: That sounds like it wouldbe extremely useful. Do shops have touse your billing service to get accessto that information?

Chuck:Actually, we realized early onhow powerful the data was, and wewanted to make it available to themasses. So we created a subscriptionmodel that allows shops to submittheir estimates along with the corre-sponding insurance estimates to con-tribute to the database. They can thenrequest from Collision Billing infor-mation to be sent to an adjustor onspecific operations or rates. To followour earlier example, let’s say an in-surance company claims they won’tpay for finish sand and buff, so wethen show them examples of wherethey have. Now, it’s up to them to jus-tify why the operation is paid on oneside of town, but not on the other.

Domenico: You have mentioned afew times that you will pursue pay-ment. What is meant by that and howfar are you willing to take it?

Chuck: We are collecting and track-ing a lot of information. We will use

that information to get our memberspaid, period. We see trends where in-surance companies have “policies”that they don’t pay for specific opera-tions. We don’t see any justificationfor their “policies,” especially whenthe information providers state thatthose are not included operations. Wewill challenge them to do what’s rightand start paying for the operations,and if we have to, we will take them tocourt. One of our partners and legalcouncil, Erica Eversman, has suc-cessfully won many cases. With thedata we are collecting, we will be ableto achieve on a global scale what shehas accomplished at the local and statelevel. This data can also be used toshare with both the Department of In-surance and the States Attorney Gen-erals to show patterns of unfair tradepractices.

For more information on Colli-sion Billing, call 517-489-4280 or goto www.collisionbilling.com.

All opinions presented are those of theauthor. Autobody News does not en-dorse or recommend any company orservice discussed by columnists in thecourse of their editorial submissions.

impression under different lightingconditions. This effect—known asmetamerism—must of course beavoided.

Visual surface inspection of a trimstrip. All employees participating incolor matching efforts must first pass aspecial vision test, because the opticalmeasuring instruments at Quality As-surance—such as the spectral pho-tometer—can only provide objectivemeasured values of the surfaces.

Such instruments cannot measurethe impression the color makes on aperson, because only people can si-multaneously detect and evaluatecolor, gloss level and surface texture.Therefore, if there is any doubt, in theend it is the subjective impression oftrained employees that is the decisivefactor in achieving perfect color har-mony.

Color matching work is also per-formed in the finished, assembled in-terior, i.e. with components in theirmounted positions and from the view-ing perspective of the driver. This isdone, because the appearance of cer-tain components such as pillar trimchanges due to the texture of the trimmaterial.


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A San Antonio company has beenfined $46,000 by OSHA in connec-tion with a fatal loading dock acci-dent.

A worker at Certifit Incorpo-rated in San Antonio was prepar-ing a loading dock for a deliverywhen the delivery truck backedover him.

Investigators with the Occupa-tional Safety and Health Adminis-tration said the auto body partssupplier is being cited for serious vi-olations that compromised workersafety, including failure to makesure someone was available to givefirst aid.

The Occupational Safety andHealth Administration cited SaltLake City, Utah-based CertiFit Inc.for nine serious safety violations atthe company’s facility in San Anto-nio. OSHA initiated the inspectionafter an employee, 40-year-oldSolomon Roberts, was killed whena delivery truck backed into a load-ing dock.

OSHA found the companyfailed to ensure that a trained personin first aid is present, provide train-ing on evacuation procedures, repairand maintain electrical equipmentand rolling ladders.

OSHA Fines San Antonio PartsSupplier Due to Fatal Accident

Ford started shipping its firstelectric passenger car to dealersthe weekend of May 19, accord-ing to Reuters. About 350 FocusElectric cars will be sent to 67dealers in California, New Jerseyand New York over the next cou-ple weeks. Manufacturing execu-tives signed off on the decisionon May 18. Each dealer will getabout six cars, one of which willbe a demonstration model, the re-ports said. Ford declined to com-ment on the news. The peopleasked not to be named becausethe plans are confidential.

“We are still on track to beginshipping the Focus Electric thisspring,” Ford spokesman Wes Sher-wood said.

The Focus EV will compete inthe burgeoning electric vehicle mar-ket against Nissan’s Leaf and GM’sCo.’s Chevrolet Volt.

In April, Ford CEO Alan Mu-lally said he would not consider it afailure if Ford sold fewer than 5,000Focus EVs in its first year.

In the first four months of2012, GM sold 5,377 ChevroletVolts, while Nissan sold 2,103 of itsLeaf electric cars. Both vehicleswere launched in late 2010.

Ford Starts Shipping its first EV,the Focus Electric, to Dealers


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Collision Section Secures Exhibit Space at SEMA ShowAfter debuting at last year’s SEMAShow, the Collision Repair & Refin-ish section will return to provide buy-ers with a dedicated area on the showfloor where they can quickly and eas-ily meet with major refinish compa-nies, paint booth manufacturers, partssuppliers and manufacturers, estimat-ing and management software com-panies, manufacturers of structuralrepair and welding equipment, safetyequipment and other related products.The section has been identified as oneof the fastest growing areas of theshow, and is on track to surpass lastyears’ numbers. The 2012 SEMAShow takes place Tuesday throughFriday, October 30 through Novem-ber 2, in Las Vegas, NV.

“We’ve seen interest from thecollision repair market increase overthe years,” said Peter MacGillivray,SEMA VP of events and communi-cations. Last year, due to significantgrowth and interest from the collisionrepair industry, show organizers cre-ated a new floor section called “Col-lision Repair & Refinish” to make iteasy for those in the professional re-pair business to connect with manu-facturers in the industry. SEMAShow exhibitors are categorized by

market segments and display theirproducts in sectionalized floor areas.

Buyers interested in the Colli-sion Repair & Refinish segment, forexample, often visit the Tools &Equipment section of the SEMAShow. The related section featuresproducts, such as new lifts, grinders,jacks and more, to help shop ownerswork smarter and faster.

Last year’s SEMA Show fea-tured more than 300 companies thatwere of high interest to the collisionrepair business owners attending theshow.

“One of the unique things aboutthe SEMA Show is that is encom-passes the entire automotive partsand accessories industry,” saidMacGillivray. “Participants are ableto accomplish a great deal in a shortamount of time.”

Other floor sections at theSEMA Show are Business Services,Global Tire Expo Powered by TIA,Hot Rod Alley, Mobile Electronics &Technology, Powersports & UtilityVehicles, Racing & Performance,Restoration Marketplace, Restyling& Car Care Accessories, Trucks,SUVs & Off-Road, and Wheels &Accessories.

“V2V” Communications a HitAn “overwhelming majority” of driv-ers who have experienced technologythat allows vehicles to communicatewith each other have a highly favor-able opinion of its safety benefits, ac-cording to data released today by theU.S. Department of Transportation(DOT). Together, the National High-way Traffic Safety Administration(NHTSA) and the Research and Inno-vation Technology Administration(RITA) have been working with theauto industry, state and federal part-ners to research the effectiveness andfeasibility of connected vehicle tech-nology that enables vehicles to “talk”to one another with Wi-Fi-like tech-nology that could help prevent crashesaltogether. The Department an-nounced the results of six “driver ac-ceptance clinics” that were heldacross the country at the IntelligentTransportation Society of America’s2012 Annual Meeting. The pilot pro-grams gathered feedback from 688drivers who participated in tests of“vehicle-to-vehicle” communications.An overwhelming majority of driverswould like to have the features in-cluded in their own vehicles, and mostbelieve the technology would be use-ful in improving driver safety.

Enterprise Rent-A-Car has launcheda new customer repair status notifica-tion system for collision repair shopsthat uses text and email messages tokeep customers updated on the statusof vehicle repairs.

Enterprise said the new cus-tomer repair status notification sys-tem was developed in response tostudies conducted by J.D. Power &Associates that revealed customersof all ages prefer to receive repairstatus updates through email and textmessages. The system is now part ofEnterprise’s Automated Rental Man-agement System (ARMS) suite ofproducts.

The feature allows shops to up-date all of its customers, not just itsEnterprise rental customers, througheither customized or automated mes-sages. The system also providesshops with a written record of infor-mation communicated to customersto help avoid misunderstandings, En-terprise said.

The system is available to allbody shops that use the ARMS Auto-motive Data Manager application,Enterprise said. For more informa-tion, visit ARMSAutoSuite.com.

Enterprise Introduces CustomerRepair Notification Tool

For some time now, Edwards Paint andBody, in St. Augustine, FL, has beenmaking shop space available a to about20 young martial artists who call them-selves the Body Shop Boys. The group’sbenefactor is co-owner Jimmy Ed-wards, who with his son-in-law, ToddRaven, felt the boys needed a place tocompete other than the streets, saidshop co-owner Chris Cheshire.

The Body Shop Boys’ newest mem-ber already has something to brag aboutaround the garage. Former Menendezathlete Matt Ngwon his first local matchat Rumble in the Ancient City mixedmartial arts event at Ketterlinus Gym.

Ng recently moved back to St. Au-gustine. It wasn’t long before Ng be-came one of the Body Shop Boys,training for fighting events weeknightsat Edwards Paint and Body.

“Everybody has something toteach,” Ng said. Fighting at 158 pounds,Ng said he’s trained all over and mostrecently fought in Georgia. He said theSt. Augustine event was a great thing toget people interested in the sport.

“It’s a good-sized event,” he said.“I do it because I love it. I’d really liketo do more. Ng wasn’t the only memberof the Body Shop Boys to compete in theearly matches. Joseph Green, who wasnot on the original schedule, picked up avictory over Michael Dukes in a sub-mission grapple match. With Russell un-able to fight Saturday, the main event

was probably the 155-pound title bout.St. Augustine fighter Teddy Hud-

son came in with a 5-0 record and wasthe two-time defending Ancient Citychampion. Yet he was stopped by chal-lenger Richard Evers.

“It was awesome,” Evers said. “Ilove to fight like that. I was nervousand excited,” he said. Evers came outaggressively and put Hudson into theropes multiple times. However, Hud-son never really panicked and kepthimself in the fight.

Knowing how close the match was,both fighters came out swinging wildlyin the final round. Neither contenderwas able to dominate, and Hudson re-acted with complete disappointmentwhen the winner was announced.

Newest Body Shop Boy, Matt Ng, Shines in Rumble

Matt Ng throws a kick in his bout with BertSmallwood during Saturday’s Rumble in theAncient City mixed martial arts event atKetterlinus Gym. Photo by Gary McCullough


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Taiwanese Auto Parts Makers Eye Recovering US MarketSales of new cars in the U.S. grew10% from the same period of lastyear, showing a positive sign for thatmarket, as well as good news formajor auto-parts suppliers in Taiwan.

Industry sources said that majorAmerican automakers are optimisticthat the U.S. new car market willreach about 15 million units thisyear, and Taiwan’s suppliers of orig-inal equipment (OE) parts to Ameri-can automakers can expect biggerorders.

Hota Industrial ManufacturingCo., Ltd., a major supplier of trans-mission parts, for example, currentlyindirectly supplies differentials andtorque converters to the Big-ThreeAmerican carmakers through majorcustomer BorgWarner, is preparingfor increasing orders this year.

In the third quarter of 2011, Hotawon an order for torque-converterparts for Chrysler`s pick-ups, sayingthat the order volume has been in-creasing month by month, leading toits record-high monthly revenues inthe first three months this year.

Increasing orders from the U.S.and smooth exports to China motivateinstitutional investors to forecast thatHota`s revenue could challenge a new

high of NT$3 billion (US$100 mil-lion) this year.

The aftermarket (AM) replace-ment parts market in the U.S. is alsoexpected to benefit from increasingnew car sales, said industry sources.Taiwan, as the largest supplier of AMcollision replacement parts to the U.S.market, is also expected to win moreorders.

Tong Yang Industrial Co., Ltd.,the world`s largest maker of AM plas-tic body parts, began capacity expan-sion for AM products at itsheadquarter factory in Tainan, south-ern Taiwan in 2011, and has raised ca-pacity of plastic parts, sheet-metalparts and cooling-system parts by23%, 75% and 73%, respectively,hence is fully prepared for increasingAM-parts orders from the recoveringU.S. market.

Crispin Wu, Tong Yang`s presi-dent, pointed out that employment inthe U.S. has shown recovery, andconsumer spending in February set aseven-month high, in addition to newcar sales growth in March, all ofwhich show an almost confirmed eco-nomic recovery, which will alsopump up demand for AM parts in thesecond half.

Forgetting to Use Blinkers Caused 2 Million AccidentsBlink, blink. A new study suggestsfailure to properly use turn signalscauses 2 million accidents annually, amore serious problem than distracteddriving.

When’s the last time you usedyour own turn signals? According toresearch by the Society of AutomotiveEngineers, drivers either neglect touse their signals when changing lanes,or fail to turn the signals off 48% ofthe time. And when making a turn,the failure rate is around 25%. Thatworks out to 2 billion times a daydrivers fail to use signals, or 750 bil-lion times annually.

A lack of courtesy? Laziness? Poortraining? Whatever the reason, the SAEstudy says the problem results in about2 million roadway collisions annu-ally. That’s more than twice the 950,000accidents linked to distracted driving,which has become one of the centraltopics of the U.S. Department of Trans-portation under Sec. Ray LaHood.

“This is a first of its kind reporton a subject that amazingly, has neverbeen studied,” said Richard Ponziani,P.E., President of RLP Engineeringand author of the report. Yet, despitethe fact that turn signals are simple,ubiquitous and “extremely effective,”

there is an epidemic lack of compli-ance even though “all drivers have anongoing duty to use it, just as theyhave a duty to stop at a stop sign or ata red light.”

Anecdotal evidence suggests thatpolice put little effort into enforce-ment, less than they devote to speed-ing, or running stop signs and redlights. Other than shifting priorities,the new study suggests an alternativethat it dubs the “Smart Turn Signal.”

They “are the perfect complementto the Stability Control System sinceStability Control predominately pre-vents single-vehicle crashes, whereasthe Smart Turn Signal prevents multi-vehicle crashes,” suggested Ponziani.

Such a system would automati-cally shut off a turn signal, likely bytiming out after a set delay or by de-tecting when a vehicle has finishedchanging lanes, much as today’s carsautomatically cancel the signals aftermaking a turn at an intersection.

For scofflaws who simply don’tuse their signals, the system wouldwork much like a seatbelt reminder. Itwould be able to sense if drivers rou-tinely ignore their turn signals andstart to flash what the study calls a“friendly” reminder.

Shop Owner Arrested in ‘False Auto Theft’ AllegationMassachusetts police arrested a manon charges of stealing a car from abody shop, then arrested the owner ofthe body shop on charges of filing afalse stolen vehicle report and mis-leading or lying to police during theinvestigation.

The 2007 Acura TL sedan wasreported stolen by Jose Munoz, 41,owner of Munoz Auto Body, 11 AldenCourt, in Lawrence, MA, on April 26.Police said Munoz knew who hadstolen the car and agreed to come tothe station to speak to police. Munozsaid he had sold a Honda Accord toGorki Rafael “Bebo” Gonzalez, 26,of 25 Hale St. Gonzalez came back tothe shop April 25 saying he didn’t likethe color of the Honda and wanted hismoney back, which Munoz said hewouldn’t do.

Munoz told police he went to thepaint room to paint another car, andwhen he returned to the office, no-ticed the Acura that had been parkedin front of the business was missing. Asecurity video showed Gonzalez en-tering the office, taking the keys to theAcura, then driving off in it.

Munoz told police he calledGonzalez, who told him he would re-turn the Acura when he got his moneyback for the Honda.

Munoz told police he agreed topay Gonzalez back in return for the

car, but then decided to go to the po-lice to report the car stolen. Munozadmitted he knew who had taken theAcura but didn’t provide that infor-mation to the officer who took the re-port. He told police Gonzalez hadthreatened to kill him if he went to thepolice.

During the interview at the po-lice station, Munoz received severalcalls from Gonzalez threateningMunoz and his family because heknew Munoz was at the station.Munoz was still at the police stationwhen he received a call from hisbrother that Gonzalez was at the bodyshop with his friends, causing a scene.Police went to the body shop and ar-rested Gonzalez, charging him withlarceny of a motor vehicle, extortionby threat of injury and threatening tocommit a crime.

Capt. Michael Driscoll said theinvestigation continued and Munozwas arrested and charged with filinga false report of a motor vehicle theft,and misleading or lying to police dur-ing an investigation.

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