Posts made in February 2020

Reasons Why You Need Frame Straightening Services

It doesn’t take a multi-vehicle crash at high speed to damage the frame of your car. Even something small, such as running into a post, may have a significant impact on a part of the vehicle you don’t see. With any type of collision, auto technicians advise an inspection to determine if frame straightening in Lakewood, CO, is necessary.

Not every auto body repair shop has all the necessary equipment to diagnose and repair frame damage. First of all, diagnostic tools are required to search for weaknesses that could make your car dangerous to drive. Next, specific hydraulic equipment is necessary for proper straightening. This is not something every shop has.

Protect Your Car’s Structural Integrity

You’ll be relieved to know that a vehicle’s frame can be straightened in most cases. This way, your car returns to the road for safe and smooth driving. If you suspect the frame has been damaged during a collision, it’s best not to drive the vehicle for safety’s sake.

After all, the frame is much like a skeleton, which supports the muscles and organs of the body. An injury to the skeleton, such as a broken bone, affects the operation of the whole. Take your car to a body shop to make sure its skeleton is strong enough to support the whole.

How Your Suspension Can Be Damaged in an Accident

Your car has been damaged in a collision. It’s easy to spot much of the damage, such as a massive dent in the side of the vehicle or a bumper that has fallen off. However, in a crash, some or all of the damage can be hidden, impacting parts of the car you don’t see or that look fine from a quick inspection. To find these problems requires diagnostics for suspension work in Lakewood, CO.

What Your Suspension System Does

Your vehicle’s suspension system consists of the wheels, shock absorbers, and springs that control how the car handles and the smoothness of the ride. With damage to one or more of these parts, you may notice your car is hard to handle or gives you a bumpy ride. This is why it’s essential to work with a trusted auto body shop for visible and hidden damage.

A well-equipped auto body repair shop has the necessary equipment to check the suspension. Expect your technician to give your vehicle a visual check, as well as to use diagnostic tools to tell you what’s wrong and what’s needed to put it right. When it has been fixed, your car has no visible or invisible damage.

Finding Damage You Can’t See

You have a mystery to solve. Your car has been hit, but you can’t see any visible damage. How should you handle this? Your best course of action is to take your vehicle to a shop for auto body repair in Denver, CO. Just because the bumper isn’t hanging by a thread or your door isn’t caved in doesn’t mean it’s safe to drive. You want to make sure everything is in working order.Ask an auto repair technician to look over your car. When you take it into the shop, explain what happened so they’ll have a starting point for your visit. The damage underneath and inside of a car isn’t as visible as dents and paint scratches. An experienced technician knows what is normal and what is not.

Possibilities for Invisible Damage

Count on your technician to check out the possibilities for invisible damage after a collision. They might have to put your vehicle on a lift to find out what’s wrong. Here are some possibilities:

Frame – A crash with another car or hitting a curb can impact the frame. As this is what protects your vehicle’s structural integrity, it’s essential to make sure it isn’t bent or moved out of place.
Alignment – Alignment has to do with your tires and their wear and tear, as well as the steering. After an accident, checking the alignment ensures optimal gas mileage, as well as safe driving.

Inspecting Your Vehicle After an Accident

You won’t be the only one looking at your car after an accident. You may have a number of people inspecting the vehicle. This may include the insurance company’s claims adjuster, as well as a technician from an auto body shop in Denver, CO, and the police. As money is going to be paid to repair crash damage, many people will be on hand to provide input.

The Car Repair Process

To begin with, either the claims adjuster from your insurance company or a technician gives your car a thorough inspection, and a preliminary estimate is produced. After this, a garage issues a more detailed repair blueprint and awaits insurance approval. Once this is done, it’s time to order parts and schedule service.

When you get your vehicle back, we recommend you do another inspection. Look over your car to make sure everything that was written on that blueprint has been repaired. It’s easy to overlook 1 or 2 small things. However, you want to make sure your car is fully operational, with any damage to the frame itself corrected.

It’s best to work with an auto body shop you trust so that you can ask questions and get the necessary repairs. Once you’ve done this and driven your car to make sure it rides as it should, you can relax and enjoy being behind the wheel of your vehicle.

Understanding How Hail Affects Everyone

The weather is not something we have control over. The only power we have is taking precautions when dangerous and damaging weather is in the forecast. The State of Colorado is particularly prone to the type of thunderstorms that produce hail. This is because it’s part of what the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration call the “Hail Valley.” The most active season is May through June, but that doesn’t preclude the need for hailstorm vehicle repair in Denver, CO, in other months of the year.

Avoid Damage If You Can

Hail does a lot of damage to buildings, crops, and vehicles each year. The sheet metal with which cars are made is especially vulnerable to these misshapen balls of ice that dent and ding the outside of the car. Windshields and windows also are exposed and can crack or shatter underneath a hailstorm.

The best place for you and your car is home safe in a garage. When that’s not possible, see what cover you can locate for your vehicle. Also, try to avoid driving, as it’s safer for you to stay in one place. It’s even better for your car.

If you must be inside a car when it’s storming, cover yourself with a blanket and stay as far away from the windshield and windows as you can. When you find your vehicle is damaged by hail, make sure to call an auto body shop for repair.

Ways to Prepare for Inclement Weather

Thunderstorms can develop quickly and without much warning. While you can’t avoid bad weather all of the time, there are a number of precautions you can take to avoid needing hail damage repair in Denver, CO. These include:

Paying attention to the weather forecast. These days, technology is at the level where it’s wise to heed what the meteorologist says. If hail is in the forecast, try to stay out of it as much as you can.
Make sure your car is under a cover, whether in your garage at home or a multi-level parking garage at work. If you do not have access to a garage, you should consider parking your car in an area that may be safe.
If you can, remain at home. The biggest threat usually consists of dents and dings in your car that can be repaired, but hail also impairs visibility and makes it dangerous to drive.

The Insurance Process

Your auto body repair shop works with you and your insurance company to get your car repaired. It goes through a process where the vehicle is inspected for damage. Once complete, an estimate is sent to the insurance company. Once the insurance company approves the work, the technicians at the shop go to work to return your vehicle to you as quickly as possible.

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