You don’t have to be an aircraft engineer to know the major differences to consider when repairing aluminum body panels vs. steel body panels. With so many car manufacturers using aluminum today (Audi, Porsche, BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Rolls-Royce, Aston Martin, Tesla and Bentley) it is important that you explore your options when choosing the right auto body shop. Finding a shop that specializes in aluminum body repair can be difficult.
Here are the top 5 questions to ask your auto body shop. We posed these questions to Colorado Coach Auto Body’s Mark Quiroz.
1. Does the auto body shop have any technicians that are highly skilled at TIG or Aluminum MIG welding? Working on aluminum body repair requires specific welding equipment.
Mark: Yes, We send our technicians to the Audi Training center outside of Washington D.C. The hands on training class is 10 day long and also requires recertification after a period of time. The technician must perform welds that are tested for strength.
2. Is there a specific room within the shop that they do aluminum repairs? Aluminum can be prone to galvanic corrosion if it comes near any steal dust or debris so a specific aluminum bay is required.
Mark: Yes, this is correct. We do have the only Aluminum Clean room in Boulder County. This significant investment was to ensure that we did not have any cross contamination.
“Yes, this is correct. We do have the only aluminum clean room in Boulder County.”
Mark Quiroz
3. How many of their technicians have specific certification training for aluminum repairs? Many manufacturers offer aluminum certification training for auto body technicians.
Mark: We have 2 aluminum certified technicians.
4. How many years of experience does your team have in aluminum body repair?
Mark: We have officially been Aluminum Certified for 4 Months.
5. How is the shop equipped to work on aluminum body repair?
Mark: Many manufacturers require that shops be Carbench equipped frame shops. We have the Celette Griffon Unibody Jig System. We also have a Aluminum Dedicated set of hand tools and grinders, as well as the proper aluminum Resistance welders.
