Welding Services Council Bluffs IA

Welding is probably the least understood repair procedure in the collision industry, yet it's the most critical. Do your techs know the best gas mixture for MIG welding high-strength steel or the proper gun angle for making a lap joint? Are you sure?

By Toby Chess
12/1/2001

Recently, I was asked to inspect a vehicle with representatives from the California Bureau of Automotive Repair (BAR). The car in question was a 1998 Toyota Corolla. The vehicle owner was picked up at the accident scene by a sub-standard tow company and taken to an "unqualified" body shop. There, the shop owner promised the vehicle owner a free rental and said he'd save her deductible.

Sounds too good to be true, doesn't it?

It was. Six months later, the repair still wasn't finished, the shop had never given her a rental and, you guessed it, they cashed her check.

The car owner's insurer towed the vehicle from the shop and brought it to me for an inspection. The BAR got involved looking for fraud, but they couldn't find any. The shop performed all the operations specified in the estimate, but the quality of repairs was so bad the vehicle was a total loss. The car wasn't pulled properly - which could've been corrected - but the welding was another story. It was obvious the person who welded the frame rail, apron and core support had no idea how to MIG weld. In fact, I've seen beginning welding students do a better job.

Welding is probably the least understood repair procedure in ...