Autobody News December 2011 Northeast Edition

by John Yoswick

When you read a sampling of com-ments from among the 135,000 peo-ple in Vegas during SEMAweek—you realize, no matter howyou look at it—that SEMA has all thediversity of a small city. A city where,for love or profit, all the citizens sharea car obsession, but a city-sized pop-ulation nonetheless.

About 132,000 people floodedinto Las Vegas in November for theSpecialty Equipment Market Associa-tion (SEMA) tradeshow, with abouthalf of those pegged by show organ-

As he has for the previous 30 years,Sam Mikhail of Prestige Auto Body

attended the Alliance of AutomotiveService Providers of New Jersey

(AASP/NJ)’s annual membershipmeeting at the Crowne Plaza Hotel ofClark in late October. Mikhail wasexpecting to appreciate that night’spresentations by Erica Eversmanand Larry Montenez, but whatMikhail didn’t expect was the sur-prise announcement that he was the28th member of AASP/NJ’s Hall ofFame.

“I am honored and thrilled to re-ceive such a prestigious honor,”Mikhail said from his shop in Gar-wood, NJ. “It really never crossed mymind. To be acknowledged by my

OnTuesday, October 25th atKeenanAutoBody East in Clifton Heights, PA, and onWednesday, October 26th atKeenanAuto

Body South in WestChester, PA, industrytrainer Toby Chesshelped deliver the latestin vehicle extricationtechnology to first re-sponders to help themsave lives. The eventswere organized andsponsoredbyKeenan’s.

Keenan VP andCOO, Michael LeV-asseur introducedKeenan Auto Body’sFirst Responder train-

ing program.

Keenan Auto Body’s First Responder Training BringsTogether PA & DE Rescuers, Insurers and Manufacturers

Sam Mikhail, Owner of Prestige Auto Body inGarwood, NJ, Named to AASP/NJ Hall of Fame

See SEMAHeard & Said, Page 46

See Hey Toby! Page 14

Voices Heard Amid Revving Engines at SEMA—What Collision Repairers Said and Heard

SeeMikhail, Page 8

One of three SEMA Show Halls hosting 2,000vehicles and 135,000 attendees

Prestige Auto Body in Garwood, NJ

First responders in need of body work pose with extricated vehicle,one of eight donated by State Farm, Esurance, and 1800 Charity Cars

by Ed Attanasio

In the first major policy meeting di-rectly affecting the collision repair in-dustry, representatives of InsuranceCommissioner David Jones called apre-notice public meeting for discus-sions on regulations regarding stan-dards for reasonable repairs and the useof aftermarket parts on November 16thin San Francisco.

In preparation for the “pre-noticepublic discussions,” the Commissionerreleased a series of proposed revisionsto the California Code of Regulationsthat was discussed and reviewed indepth at the meeting (see sidebar p. 53).Jones and his department plan to issuean official Notice of Proposed Action.

The meeting was chaired byTeresa A. Campbell of the DOI’s

See DOI Meeting, Page 52

California DOI Meeting Reviews RegulationsAffecting Aftermarket Parts and Accountability

Shop and ProductSHOWCASE

INSERT

Toby Chess wants repairers to emailhim the details of ill-fitting or poor-quality parts—whether OEM or non-OEM, certified or non-certified. “I’mnot against aftermarket parts,” Chesshas repeatedly said. “My message isthat all that shops want are good qual-ity parts that don’t require margin-eat-ing extra days or hours of returns andrefitting. Where they come from isnot the issue.” Email him with the de-tails at tcspeedster@ yahoo.com.

Toby Chess Asks Repairers to Email Details of Parts that Don’t Fit orAppear Substandard in Materials

At CIC in Las Vegas Chess (l) addressed theAlternative Parts Subcommittee by holding upa certified—but, he contended, mismatching—replacement fender and headlamp assem-bly. Chess says such parts are underreported.

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Amato Agency . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30Autoland Scientech. . . . . . . . . . . . . 35Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 57BASF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9BMW Audi of Turnersville . . . . . . . . 29BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 46Cadillac of Mahwah . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4Central Avenue Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Circle BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63DuPont . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . 14Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 41Fred Beans Parts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 64Fuccillo Auto Group. . . . . . . . . . 24-25Garmat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . 45Honda-Acura Wholesale PartsDealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32-33

Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 47Jaguar Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 62Kia Motors Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

Koeppel VW-Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . 39Lazare Kia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15Lexus Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 60Lynnes Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36Maxon Hyundai. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11Maxon Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 43Mercedes-Benz Wholesale PartsCenter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Mercedes-Benz Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Metric Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 37Nissan/Infiniti Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 56

Nucar Mazda. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21Plaza Auto Mall . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 52PPG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2RealParts.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8Safety Regulations Strategies. . . . . 51Scion Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . . 55Security Dodge-Chrysler-Jeep . . . . . 6Shop-Pro Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . 31Stadel Volvo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20Star-A-Liner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22Subaru Wholesale Parts DealersDE, NJ, PA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18-19

Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 49Thompson Organization . . . . . . . . . 27Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 50VeriFacts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26Volkswagen Wholesale PartsDealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58

Volvo Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 53

Inde

xofAdvertisers

REGIONALAASP-PA Holds Big E Tool and EquipmentShow in October. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Auto Injury Losses in N.Y. Metro Area Rose70% in Last Decade . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

CT Area Nor’easter ‘Most Significant Storm’for Body Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

DE Regulators Recover $1.8M for Consumers,Commissioner Says . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Exhibitors Start Early for AASP/NJ’s 35thNORTHEAST™ 2012 Show . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Junk Removal Company, The Junkluggers,Launches New Territory and Website toAccommodate Demand in New Jersey . . . . 6

Keenan Auto Body’s First Responder TrainingBrings Together PA & DE Rescuers, Insurersand Manufacturers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

MA Body Shop Owner Faces InsuranceFraud Charges . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

MA Right to Repair Coalition Secures 2012Ballot Spot With Petition . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59

N.J. Insurance Agent Indicted for AllegedlyStealing Premiums . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

New York Court Finds Drivers Blinded by SunGlare May Be Liable in Accident . . . . . . . . . 7

NY Students See Danger of Texting WhileDriving in Simulator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

PA Senate Approves Statewide Driving-While-Texting Ban . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Pa. Senate Approves Red-light Cameras in19 Cities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Pennsylvania Collision Trade Guild CCREMeeting Rescheduled . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Sam Mikhail, Owner of Prestige Auto Bodyin Garwood, NJ, Named to AASP/NJ Hallof Fame . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

Steve Horvath, D.C. Auto Dealer, Passes Away . 4Washington Metropolitan Auto BodyAssociation to Hold Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

COLUMNISTSChess - Keenan Auto Body’s First ResponderTraining Brings Together PA & DECommunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14

Franklin - Use Estimator Tactics to Closethe Sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

Gesterkamp - How Lucky Do You Feel?—Durability of Back-Taped Edges. . . . . . . 36

I-CAR - How to Work With Active GrilleShutters on a 2012 Ford Focus. . . . . . . . . 44

Insurance Insider - Industry Undecided WhichShow Will Prevail in NACE vs. SEMA . . . . 12

Sisk - Blue Hen Collision Express in Dover,Delaware, Makes Location Count . . . . . . . 48

Sisk - Clarkstown International CollisionCredits BASF with Increased Productivity . 61

Weaver - Are We Crossing Into the ‘OuterLimits’ of Automotive Repair?. . . . . . . . . . 35

Williams - Southeast Toyota Distributors(SET) Embraces Industry Changes to HelpDealers Stay Competitive . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Yoswick - CIC Committee and I-CARRespond to Association Statementon ‘Industry Standards’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42

Zurada - How to Prepare, File and Win inCalifornia Small Claims Court . . . . . . . . . . 38

NATIONALABRA Auto Body and Glass Partners WithInvestment Firm for Planned NationalExpansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Aftermarket Associations Complain to FTCAbout Mazda’s Claims Regarding WarrantyPolicy. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Aftermarket Legislative Summit OpensRegistration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

AkzoNobel Opens Nominations for 2012‘FIT’ Sustainability Award, Most InfluentialWomen Awards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

AkzoNobel’s Wanda Waterbase® AnnouncesSuccessful US Launch at SEMA 2011 . . . 12

ALLDATA Celebrates 25 Years of Business . . 60ASRW 2011: Attendance Up 18%, PositiveExhibitor Feedback Reported . . . . . . . . . . 43

Audatex Holds 9th Semi-Annual StrategicAdvisory Council Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Automotive Service Association (ASA)Approves New Crash Parts Policy. . . . . . . 40

Barrett-Jackson President’s Custom FordFairlane Garners $700K . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

BodyShopBids.com Processes $1.5 Millionin Estimates in 5 mos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Boyd-Gerber-True2Form Group Reports

41% Sales Increase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62Caliber Collision Centers Joins Collision RepairEducation Foundation’s Industry LeadershipCircle With $10K Donation . . . . . . . . . . . . 51

California Court Grants Joint Motion toDismiss Perez et al. Aftermarket AntitrustCase, Allows Plaintiffs to Refile . . . . . . . . 41

California DOI Meeting Reviews RegulationsAffecting Aftermarket Parts and Accountability . 1

CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts AddsSeven New Store Locations to theCARSTAR Nation This Summer. . . . . . . . . 45

Chief Donates Frame Rack to OperationComfort Automotivation Program forWounded Warriors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30

CIC Approves New Recommendations forShop-Insurer Relations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

CIC Parts and Materials Committee Looksat VIN Tags and Labels . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57

CIECA Advises on Progress of Total LossCommittee . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Collision Repairer Wins Welder at SCRSSEMA Booth. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60

Collision Repair Education FoundationAwards $50K to South Carolina TechnicalCenter for Collision Supplies . . . . . . . . . . . 45

Daimler to Produce Additional Model at theMercedes-Benz Tuscaloosa, AL, Plant . . . 51

Delphi Goes Public at $22 a Share . . . . . . . . 47Fix Auto Will Use Verifacts Certification Program. 63Gerber Collision & Glass Joins Collision RepairEducation Foundation’s Industry LeadershipCircle With $10K Donation . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

GM Expecting Accelerated December Sales . 63GM to Revive Former Saturn Plant in SpringHill, TN, Will Invest $183 Million . . . . . . . . 56

GM to Sell Volt Demo Models, DoublesInventory . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

Honda Civic Natural Gas Wins Green Carof the Year Award at the Los AngelesAuto Show in November . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49

Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) SponsoredPinewood Drag Races Light Up 2011SEMA Show. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20

Hughes Telematics Partners with AAA Clubto Offer In-Drive Connected Services toMembers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Maaco Convention Celebrates 6% Increasein Same Store Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 54

Majority No Longer Upset about GM BailoutSays CEO. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62

NABC Gives 13 Las Vegas Families Gift ofReliable Transportation at SEMA WithRecycled Rides . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

New Aluminum Body Will Slash Weight of 2013Mercedes-Benz SL by more than 300 lbs . 55

NY's H&V Collision Centers Joins in USMC’sToys for Tots Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

Proposed California Regulations Discussedat DOI Meeting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 53

Pro-Spray Unveils Navigator Precision ColorSelection System . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 55

Rich Evans Updates SCRS at ‘11 SEMA Show. 54SCRS and Collision Industry Raise over $3,200for Operation Comfort’s AutomotivationProgram at the 2011 SEMA Show. . . . . . . 58

SCRS Joins with Leading Collision RepairOrganizations to Release Joint PositionStatement on Collision Repair Standards. . 23

SEMA Announces New Product ShowcaseAward Winners. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 26

Sherwin-Williams Donates $12,000 in Productto Collision Repair Education Foundation2011 Makeover Applicant Schools . . . . . . 62

Slow Fiat 500 Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63Social Studies Panel Held at 2011 SEMAShow Highlights Social Media BestPractices for Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Supplier Price-fixing Litigation Plays Outin Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34

U.S. Auto Parts’ Stock Hits New Low . . . . . . 50UAW Aiming to Organize Foreign AutomakersAfter Success With ‘Detroit Three’ . . . . . . 10

Voices Heard Amid Revving Engines at SEMA,What the Collision Repairers Said and Heard. 1

White and Silver Most Popular Car Colors inthe World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Women Drivers at Greater Risk in CarCrashes, Says Study . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

Women’s Board Car Care Council HoldsReception at AAPEX 2011, AwardsIndustry Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Contents

Publisher & Editor: Jeremy HayhurstGeneral Manager: Barbara DaviesAssistant Editor: Erica SchroederContributing Writers: Tom Franklin, David Brown, JohnYoswick, Lee Amaradio, Rich Evans, Janet Chaney, TobyChess, Mike Causey, Tom McGee, Ed Attanasio,Chasidy SiskAdvertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman(800) 699-8251Sales Assistant: Kristy NavarroArt Director: Rodolfo Garcia

Serving New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delawareand adjacent metro areas, Autobody News is a monthlypublication for the autobody industry. Permission to re-produce in any form the material published in AutobodyNews must be obtained in writing from the publisher.©2011 Adamantine Media LLC.Autobody NewsP.O. Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018(800) 699-8251 (760) 721-0253 Faxwww.autobodynews.comEmail: [email protected] N

ortheast


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Steve Horvath, 85, a onetime auto-body repairman who became one of theWashington area’s biggest auto dealers,with franchises throughout NorthernVirginia, died Oct. 26 at a hospital inRoanoke.

He had a stroke, his son MichaelHorvath said.

Horvath came to the Washingtonarea in 1949 as an auto-body repair-man. In 1960, he opened an auto sal-vage yard, UPAR, in McLean, whichhe operated until 1988.

In 1967, Mr. Horvath opened aToyota dealership in Arlington County,Calvert Toyota, and soon expanded.His auto businesses in Virginia cameto include Tysons Toyota, Fairfax Toy-ota, Charlottesville Toyota, Winches-ter Toyota-Mercedes-Benz, FairfaxHyundai and Manassas Dodge, and hehad dealerships in Georgia and NorthCarolina.

Because of overspending on ex-pansion during a weak economy, Hor-vath’s business empire collapsed in1989. In a well-publicized bankruptcy,he listed $15 million in liabilities andnever regained his prominence inbusiness.

He lived in retirement in GreatFalls before moving to Staunton, VA,in 2006 and later to Roanoke.

Steve Paul Horvath was born inRalphton, PA. He served in the Navyduring World War II as an aircraft re-pairman.

He belonged to many professionalassociations and in 1985 was electedchairman of theAmerican InternationalAuto Dealers Association.

He was a founder of the Wash-ington Metropolitan Auto Body Asso-ciation and a president of the VirginiaAuto and Truck Salvage Dealers As-sociation.

Mr. Horvath was also chairman ofthe board of the TelecommunicationExchange for the Deaf, a Northern Vir-ginia organization.

His first marriage, toMary PetroHorvath, ended in divorce. His secondwife, Dorothy Dorlini Horvath, diedin 2000 after 23 years of marriage.

Survivors include four childrenfrom his first marriage, Steven Hor-vath and Michael Horvath, both ofSterling, Larry Horvath of Viennaand Joanne Brandes of Ashburn; ason from his second marriage, JohnDorlini of Roanoke; and four grand-children.

Steve Horvath, D.C. Auto Dealer, Passes Away

Delaware Insurance CommissionerKaren Weldin Stewart said throughDepartment of Insurance interventions,Delawareans recovered $1,827,923 inthe first nine months of 2011, accord-ing to Insurance Journal. The break-down of the restituted funds consists ofcomplaints ($580,303); arbitration($592,930); and market conduct($654,690). The Commissioner alsosaid businesses participating in theworkplace safety program saved$5,619,384 on workers’ compensationpremiums. Commissioner Stewart saidshe credits robust investigations ofconsumer complaints and moderniza-tion of data retrieval. The departmentutilizes the State Based System (SBS)provided by the National Associationof Insurance Commissioners (NAIC).Delaware insurance regulators havebeen using this system to documentand track calls of inquiry and com-plaints received from Delaware poli-cyholders for all lines of insurance.

“Successfully protectingDelawareans is the art of balancingseveral forces that include keeping pre-miums minimal, a variety of carriersand products available and the insur-ance companies viable,” Commis-sioner Stewart said.

DE Regulators Recover $1.8M forConsumers, Commissioner Says

As the laws of physics brought hulk-ing branches and renegade tree limbsonto cars, Connecticut area auto bodyshops geared up for overdrive.Thanks to torrential storms bodyshops in the affected areas now havemore work than they could havehoped for, according to Fox CT.

“We’re bombarded,” saidHowardWeiner, the owner ofWood-land Auto body in East Hartford.“We’re putting roofs on cars, wind-shields on cars. People have sufferedtremendous losses.

Weiner echoed others in the busi-ness, saying the Oct. 29 Nor’easterwas “the most significant storm I’veever seen in terms of damage to cars.”

Weiner said there are 20 dam-aged vehicles on his lot, with a wait-ing list seeking his services.

Shops are busy not only fromdamage caused on the night of thestorm by falling trees, but also fromaccidents caused by traffic lights outat major intersections. And the workis leading to hiring right away.

Tony Cavallaro, owner of Air-port Road Auto Body in Hartford, saidhe’s putting out word on Craigslist tohire more technicians.

“Its really overwhelming, we’retrying to figure out a plan of how toget it all done,” Cavallaro said. “In 28years I’ve never seen anything like

this. It’s overwhelming.”Cavallaro said his shop has 60

cars on the lot, up from 20 this timeof year normally.

“Roofs, hoods, windshields, sun-roofs and also when we had the poweroutages, at night, people were runninginto trees in the middle of the road,”he said.

Insurance agents are busily deal-ing with the auto claims but there areno estimates of the total damage inConnecticut. November is tradition-ally a slow month in the auto body in-dustry—well after the summer travelseason and usually before any meas-urable snow.

“I’ve never seen this, not in mylife,” said Doug Fernandez Jr.,owner of Turnpike Motors Autobodyin Newington. Fernandez pointed tocar after car on his sprawling lot withsmashed windshields and crumpledrooftops. More than forty damagedautos came in during the three daysfollowing the storm, and another 30were expected in the days following.

Turnpike has now started Satur-day hours, Fernandez said, which willstay in effect until the work gets done.Profits at the shop will be up as a re-sult of the work.

“The added business,” Fernan-dez said, “is a tremendous opportu-nity.”

CTArea Nor’easter ‘Most Significant Storm’ for Body Shops

A Peabody, MA, business owner hasbeen indicted for allegedly collectingtens of thousands of dollars in fraudu-lent claims, according to InsuranceJournal.

Robert Giller, age 52, was in-dicted in connection with collectingover $28,000 in fraudulent insuranceclaims for work allegedly performed athis automotive and glass companies,according toAttorney GeneralMarthaCoakley. He was charged with insur-ance fraud (20 counts), larceny over$250 by false pretence (18 counts), andattempted larceny (2 counts). The at-torney general’s office began an inves-tigation after Giller’s alleged activitieswere initially investigated and referredby the insurance fraud bureau of Mas-sachusetts. According to authorities,Giller is the owner of Advanced Auto-motive Concepts in Peabody.

Authorities allege that from Janu-ary 2006 through December 2009,Giller perpetrated a scheme in whichhe made false statements on invoicesand other records that he submitted toinsurers to collect payments for workthat was not performed on motor vehi-cles. The insurers then reimbursedGiller’s businesses for the work as al-legedly reported by Giller.

MA Body Shop Owner FacesInsurance Fraud Charges



On October 20, the Junkluggers, thecountry’s greenest junk removal com-pany, launched its New Jersey junk re-moval service and revamped website,http://www.Junkluggers.com.

The site design introduces visi-tors to a more intuitive navigationsystem and a richer visual experienceoverall. The Junkluggers most cur-rent news and press information isimmediately visible on the landingpage with visibility to its socialmedia activities. Visitors can alsotake a look to see the many charita-ble partners The Junkluggers workswith.

The Junkluggers handles every-thing from basement cleanouts to con-struction materials to furniture removaland donation, always maintaining anorganized approach to keeping the en-vironment and your space clean andserene.

In just 7 years, CEO Josh“Shuki” Cohen has led the Junklug-gers to become one of the most reliable,eco-friendly businesses in the tri-statearea, handling New York junk removalin all of New York Cities 5 boroughs aswell as Connecticut, Westchester andLong Island.

“NJ junk removal has been a toppriority for The Junkluggers for sometime,” said Cohen.

Gladly, the growing companynow has a website to match, which in-cludes online booking, a simple esti-mator tool, pricing by the truckloadguide which itemizes junk types andreal customer reviews. The addition ofadding its awards and ratings like theBBB, Customer Trusted and Angie’sList has also helped in letting cus-tomers know of the company’s com-mitment to great customer service.

The Junkluggers are excited aboutthe launch of its new website, whichwill make the company even more cus-tomer friendly while simultaneouslypromoting a healthy environment,thereby furthering its mission to keepour planet and communities sparklingand vibrant. The Junkluggers are lead-ing the pack in eco-friendly practices inthe junk removal and hauling sectors,and the larger business sector beyond.

For more information please visitwww.junkluggers.com.

Junk Removal Company, The Junkluggers, Launches New Territoryand Website to Accommodate Demand in New JerseyA Camden County, New Jersey, insur-

ance agent was indicted for allegedlystealing more than $172,000 from in-surance purchasers and for allegedlyfailing to remit insurance premiumsworth over $3,200, according to reportsmade by Insurance Journal.

The indictment was announced onTuesday, Oct. 18, by New Jersey At-torney General Paula Dow and ActingInsurance Fraud Prosecutor RonaldChillemi.

According to the indictment,Reina Morales-Peck, 40, of CherryHill, is a licensed insurance producer.She was charged with second-degreetheft by deception, second-degree mis-conduct by a corporate official, andthird-degree theft by failure to make re-quired disposition of property received.

The state grand jury indictment al-leges that between August 2005, andFebruary 2009, Morales-Peck, theowner of New Jersey Insurance Spe-cialists (located in Magnolia, CamdenCounty) fraudulently obtained$172,859 from various insurance pur-chasers.

She allegedly created a false im-pression to purchasers that she was en-titled to charge insurance-related feeswhen, in fact, she knew she was not en-

titled to charge and receive those fees.The indictment also alleges that

Morales-Peck collected $3,217 in in-surance premiums from 11 individualsand kept the premium money for herown use instead of remitting it to the in-surance companies.

Morales-Peck is alleged to haveused her position as an officer andowner of her agency for the furtheranceor promotion of the thefts.

The defendant is presumed inno-cent until proven guilty. Second-degreecrimes carry a maximum sentence of10 years in state prison and a criminalfine of $150,000, while third-degreecrimes carry a maximum sentence offive years in state prison and a criminalfine of $15,000.

N.J. Insurance Agent Indicted for Allegedly Stealing Premiums

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New York’s highest court has ruledthat a motorist from Syracuse whostruck and killed a pedestrian whilebeing distracted by sun glare cannotinvoke “emergency doctrine”, accord-ing to Insurance Journal.

An attentive driver would haveanticipated occasional sun glares con-sidering the time of the accident (4:05pm on a February day), according tothe decision by New York State Courtof Appeals on Oct. 13. The high courtreversed the lower courts’ ruling. Theamended complaint was reinstatedand remitted to New York SupremeCourt for further proceedings.

The court documents state thatthe common-law emergency doctrine“recognizes that when an actor isfaced with a sudden and unexpectedcircumstance which leaves little or notime for thought, deliberation or con-sideration, or causes the actor to bereasonably so disturbed that the actormust make a speedy decision withoutweighing alternative courses of con-duct, the actor may not be negligent ifthe actions taken are reasonable andprudent in the emergency context,

provided the actor has not created theemergency.”

The fatal accident took place onFebruary 29, 2000, near MONYPlaza, a large office complex in Syra-cuse. There is a substantial amount ofpedestrian traffic around the area.

On that day, Derek Klink, thedriver, struck Irene Lifson while shewas crossing the street near the com-plex, causing her death.

Plaintiff commenced legal actionagainst Klink and the city of Syracuse,alleging negligence and failure tostudy/plan for pedestrian traffic. Theensuing trial was limited to the issueof liability.

Klink claimed that the accidentoccurred while he was temporarilyblinded by sun glare, according tocourt documents. Klink testified thathe stopped at the stop sign to make aleft turn on a street but that his viewof oncoming traffic was partially ob-structed by parked cars in the left-hand lane of the street. He had to“creep up” in order to see the ap-proaching vehicles.

He noticed that there were pedes-

trians crossing the street to his left, buthe also asserted that he had looked inthat direction and “cleared the road”before making the turn.

He testified that he had beenlooking to his right, toward the on-coming traffic when he started turn-ing. He maintained that, when helooked back to his left, mid-turn, hewas blinded by the sun, “all of a sud-den.”

He reacted by looking down andto his right. When he looked up, thefirst object he saw was Lifson.

Although he applied the brakes,he was unable to avoid hitting her,having seen her only a fraction of asecond prior to impact.

The Court of Appeals stated thatthe driver was about to turn to thewest at a time of day that the sunwould be setting.

“This is not to say that sun glarecan never generate an emergency sit-uation but, under the circumstancespresented, there is no reasonable viewof the evidence under which sun glareconstitutes a qualifying emergency,”the court stated.

New York Court Finds Drivers Blinded by Sun Glare May Be Liable in Accident

The Pennsylvania Collision TradeGuild postponed their first collisionindustry seminar to March 30 and 31of 2012, the event was originally sup-posed to take place in October of2011. The Coalition for Collision Re-pair Excellence (CCRE) will be heldat the Hilton Airport Hotel inPhiladelphia.

The CCRE will focus on thelegal aspects of running a collisionbusiness. Speakers will include attor-neys Erica Eversman and JohnParese and they will explain theproper use of authorization to repairand repair contracts, blueprinting anddamage analysis, eliminating supple-ments, job costing profit includingprofit on paint and materials, finalbilling and collections, and assign-ment of proceeds.

Email the CCRE office at [email protected] for more informa-tion or visit www.theccre.com orwww.pctg.org.

The cost of the event is $495.99per person. After Sept 15 the cost is$595.99. Cost includes breakfast andlunch both days.

For accomodations please contactthe Hilton at 215-365-4150 ext. 33.

Pennsylvania Collision Trade GuildCCRE Meeting Rescheduled


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A bill to ban texting while driving,amended in October to make it a pri-mary offense, passed the House onNovember 7 and won concurrence inthe Senate November 8 by a vote of45-5. It now awaits the governor’ssignature, according to The Harris-burg Times Herald.

Gov. Corbett is expected to signthe bill, pending a final review, GaryMiller, a spokesman for the gover-nor’s office, said.

Pennsylvania joins 34 states andthe District of Columbia that havebanned texting while driving. Ofthose, 31 enforce the ban as a primaryoffense, meaning police can pull overa motorist observed texting whiledriving.

Senate Bill 314 bans reading,writing or sending a text messagewhile driving. A provision to banhand-held cell phone use for calls waspreviously stripped from the bill.

The bill initially called for tex-ting to be a secondary offense—amotorist could only be ticketed fol-lowing an accident or if stopped fora primary offense—but an amend-ment making texting a primary of-fense, sponsored by state Rep. JoshShapiro, D-153, passed in the HouseOct. 25 by a vote of 128-69. The fullbill with the amendment attachedpassed the next day in the House 164-29. The final House vote on the billNovember 7 was a near-unanimous188-7.

Shapiro, who has sponsored sev-eral bills to ban the use of hand-heldcell phones, termed S.B. 314 “a bigwin for safety in Pennsylvania.”

“After seven years of fightingwe finally passed a ban on textingwhile driving in Pennsylvania andmade it a primary offense,” Shapirosaid. “This is the strongest bill possi-ble.”

PA Senate Approves Statewide Driving-While-Texting BanA bill that would authorize 19 ofPennsylvania’s most-populated citiesto install red-light cameras in an ef-fort to improve traffic safety won ap-proval from the state Senate onOctober 27, according to ClaimsJournal.

Senators voted 35-14 to send thebill to the state House of Representa-tives. The sponsor, Senate MajorityLeader Dominic Pileggi, R-Delaware, cited an Insurance Institutefor Highway Safety report thatblamed red-light running for killingan estimated 676 people in 2009 andinjuring another 113,000 across theUnited States.

“My legislation will make Penn-sylvania roads safer, and it will savelives,” Pileggi said.

The cameras are already used inPhiladelphia to nab red-light runnersand traffic law violators.

Under the bill, Pittsburgh, Scran-ton, and 17 third-class cities with aminimum population of 18,000, in-cluding Erie, Allentown and Reading,could use the cameras if the stateTransportation Department approvesthe city’s plan. Cities as small as NewCastle, McKeesport and Johnstown,each of which has 20,000 to 25,000residents, also would qualify.

The maximum fine of $100would be earmarked for transporta-tion improvements. Half of the moneywould go to the city where the viola-tion occurred, although total collec-tions in a city would be limited to 5percent of its annual budget. The restof the money would go to other areasof the state.

The Senate Transportation Com-mittee last year approved a similarbill, but the chamber never voted onit.

Pa. Senate Approves Red-light Cameras in 19 Cities

The Washington Metropolitan AutoBody Association (WMABA) willhold their Annual Member Dinnermeeting and Board Election on De-cember 1st at 7:00pm.

The night’s speaker will be attor-ney Erica Eversman. Eversman willspeak about issues relating to insurer re-lationships, shop liabilities and businesscompliance. In addition,she will be dis-cussing her new company venture—Collision Billing Services. Formed bya perceived need, this company willrevolutionize repair data informationand its availability to the industry.

Also at the meeting is the annualassociation report, as well as the an-nual election of the Board of Direc-tors.

There will be a $30.00 per per-son fee for all WMABA memberswhich includes lunch. ($50.00 forNon-Members).

Paypal / Visa, Mastercard,Amex; Cash; Check will be accepted.The meeting will be held at Dave &Buster’s, 11301 Rockville Pike,Ste.300, Kensington, MD 20895.

For more information pleasevisit www.wmaba.com.

Washington Metropolitan Auto Body Association to Hold Meeting

peers this way is very, very gratify-ing.”

Mikhail’s was one of severalawards presented during the event.Flemington Auto Body (Flemington,NJ) was named the Stan Wilson / NewJersey Automotive Body Shop of theYear; Edison Generator Tire and AutoCenter (Dayton, NJ) was named NewJersey Automotive Mechanical Shopof the Year and Deivy Planco wasawarded the Russ Robson Scholar-ship, which is given each year to anautomotive repair student in memoryof the late AASP/NJ former president.

But the surprise Hall Of Fameannouncement was clearly the high-light of the night. “Sammy has beenan incredibly dedicated member tothe association for what seems likeforever,” AASP/NJ President Jeff

McDowell says with a laugh. “Seri-ously, Sam is the kind of guy who isthere anytime you need him. I don’tthink he’s missed a meeting indecades. Sam’s a fighter. You mightnot agree with everything he fightsfor, but he you can’t deny that he hasbeen and always be an asset to our as-sociation and our industry. We’reproud to have him in the Hall ofFame. It’s overdue.”

For more information onAASP/NJ,please visit www.aaspnj.org.

Continued from Front Page

Mikhail


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The United Auto Workers has shiftedits focus to organizing foreign au-tomakers and is training members foraction at the regional level, now thatcontracts have been secured with De-troit’s Big Three, according to theDetroit News.

UAW President Bob King has

made it clear that his agenda includesorganizing Asian and European au-tomakers with plants in the UnitedStates. He used an event November21 celebrating the reopening of Gen-eral Motors Co.’s Spring Hill, TN,plant, to tout the merits of collectivebargaining in adding jobs.

UAW Vice President Joe Ash-ton, also in Spring Hill, said theunion is moving forward with previ-ously announced plans to organizeworkers at transplant factories.

The UAW has yet to pick a tar-


The Association of Automotive Serv-ice Professionals of Pennsyl-vania (AASP-PA) held theirannual Big E Trade Show onFriday, Oct 14 from 4:30 pmto 10:00 pm and Saturday,Oct 15 from 9:30 am to 3:30pm at the Valley Forge Con-vention Center in King ofPrussia.

The Breakfast KeynoteSpeaker was Scott Luckett,MAAP, Vice President, Tech-

nology Standards, Automotive After-market Industry Association. Hespoke from 8:00 AM to 9:15 AM inthe Waterford Ballroom on the topicof ‘Who Will Service the Vehicles ofTomorrrow?’

Seminars and Demostrations alsowent on during the tradeshow both days.

For more information please visitwww.aasp-pa.org.

AASP-PA Holds Big E Tool and EquipmentShow in October

ALLDATA, Future Cure, Hunter En-gineering, Metropolitan Car-O-Liner,Mitchell, SAIMA/Accudraft and Sub-aru are among the exhibitors alreadysigned up for the Alliance of Auto-motive Service Providers of New Jer-sey (AASP/NJ)’s 35th annualNORTHEAST™ Automotive Serv-ices Show at the Meadowlands.NORTHEAST™ 2012 will take placeMarch 9-11 at the Meadowlands Ex-pedition Center in Secaucus, NJ.

“We’re pleasantly surprised withthe early sign-ups,” says AASP/NJPresident Jeff McDowell. Early ex-hibitors include Aeromotive, Auda-tex, Flemington Car & TruckCountry, Hella, Integrity SecuritySystems, LKQ, Procut USA, SteckManufacturing, Suburban Manufac-turing Inc. / Tsunami Industries,Team PRP and the Radiator Store.

“Our show is kind of like theworking man’s show,” McDowellsaid.

For more information on theshow and AASP/NJ, please visitwww.aaspnjnortheast.com.

Exhibitors Start Earlyfor AASP/NJ’s 35thNORTHEAST™ 2012Show

ABRAAuto Body and Glass Partners With Investment Firm for Planned National ExpansionPalladium Equity Partners, LLC, a pri-vate investment firm, announced No-vember 7 that it has partnered withmanagement to recapitalize ABRAAuto Body & Glass , a leading nationalprovider of vehicle damage repair serv-ices. Terms of the transaction were notdisclosed. Founded in 1984, ABRA is arecognized leader in collision repair,paintless dent removal, and auto glassrepair and replacement with 75 com-pany-owned vehicle damage repaircenters and 38 franchised centers in 12states. ABRA distinguishes itself byproviding a solution that seeks to enableits insurance company partners to sub-stantially improve customer satisfactionand drive policyholder retention, whilesimultaneously reducing repair costsand realizing substantial efficiencies in

the claims management process.ABRA’s commitment to operationalexcellence allows it to consistently offerhigh quality service to its customers andinsurance partners.

Rollie Benjamin, ABRA’sfounder, will remain Chairman of theCompany and Tim Adelmann andScott Krohnwill continue in their sen-ior executive roles. Duane Rouse,ABRA’s President and Chief FinancialOfficer, was appointed Chief ExecutiveOfficer in connection with the transac-tion. Rouse said, “We are extremelypleased to be working with Palladium,a firm with a strong track record as aninvestor and many years of experiencehelping companies grow. With thispartnership in place, we are well-posi-tioned to accelerate our national expan-

sion plan, and to further our mission ofbecoming the leading auto body andglass company in America.”

Luis Zaldivar, a Managing Di-rector at Palladium, said “ABRA iswell-known throughout the industry asa premier provider of auto body, autoglass and paintless dent repair serv-ices. But it is ABRA’s innovative serv-ice model and deep insurance industryrelationships that truly set it apart. TheCompany has a terrific managementteam that has guided its organicgrowth over the course of nearly threedecades—including through the estab-lishment of a highly successful fran-chise program. Palladium looksforward to partnering with ABRA ona range of new market opportunities inthe months and years ahead.”

UAW Aiming to Organize Foreign Automakers After Success With ‘Detroit Three’

See UAW, Page 58


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You can ring the bell as Round 2 ofthe “Battle of the Century” has ended.Yes, “NACE vs. SEMA, Part 2” wasvery different from the prior year. Thebattleground changed from a LasVegas faceoff to an Orlando vs. LasVegas showdown.

This year’s winner is in the eye ofthe beholder. NACE (the InternationalAutobody Congress and Exposition) andits sponsoring organization, the Auto-motive ServiceAssociation, have stakedtheir claim as the undisputed “CollisionIndustry Trade Show Champion.”

Meanwhile, the Society of Colli-sion Repair Specialists has teamed upwith SEMA and announced their con-tention to be the new “HeavyweightChampion.”

So who was this year’s winner? Ipersonally think it was a draw—withone exception: There was a clear loser.I’ll give you a hint. It’s an eight letterword that begins with an “I” and endswith a “Y.” The collision industry is di-vided and stuck supporting two tradeshows. The NACE and SEMAdivide isall about “I” (rather than “we”) and theindustry is holding the bag and left ask-ing “Y?” So how and why is the indus-try losing in a fight it never asked for?

I was one of a small percentageof people who had the good fortuneand fortitude to attend both shows. Iexperienced both the aging NACE andthe upstart SEMA show. I was forcedto dedicate two-plus weeks to accom-plish what normally would take meone week. I successfully met with allthe individuals and companies that re-quested my presence and knowledge.

If you took a poll tomorrow, I’mconvinced the industry-at-large would

vote for one trade show. And if youasked if there was a need for any tradeshow, those results may even be moreastounding. Have trade shows gonethe way of the dinosaur? Has SEMA,by virtue of adding a collision repairsection, redefined the scope of tradeshows to a circus-like atmosphere de-void only of the bearded lady and ele-phant man?

I’m not sure if I can answer thosequestions. I will tell you that if youhave never attended SEMA, it is defi-nitely worth it if only for the enter-tainment value. The collision industrysection of SEMA is really of no con-sequence when you constantly findyour head spinning around to catch aglimpse of eye-popping and jaw-drop-ping vehicles, booth celebrities andspokesmodels. At times, as you walkaround on the show floor, you maywonder which Vegas trade show youare actually attending.

In comparison, NACE had lesseye-appeal but maybe a lot more buy-appeal. NACE was significantlysmaller but the content, direction, andfocus was clearly different. The dis-cussion around quantity vs. quality iscertainly one aspect that shouldn’t beoverlooked. More attendees doesn’tautomatically translate into a moresuccessful show. That’s why I say

beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Itall depends on your purpose for at-tending: entertainment and personalvacation, business and purchasing,fact-finding—or simply just to getaway from your shop or spouse.

Of the few thousand avid readersof my column, several recently re-sponded to last month’s article aboutNACE. I want to thank them for takingthe time to share their thoughts, and I’dlike to address several of their points.

I agree with some that NACE, formany years, was a beacon for the col-

lision industry. There was a period oftime when the industry was changingso quickly that NACE was an absolutecan’t-miss event. It was a time prior tothe Internet, a time when the industrywas growing at an accelerated paceand becoming more technologically-advanced as well as professional in allaspects of the business. NACE wasneeded, and as a result, it thrived.

As years passed, attendanceslowly dwindled and the industrycalled for change. NACE organizersdidn’t respond or act as quickly asmany had hoped. As a result, it openedthe door for competition. In a chang-ing market, you need to be able toadapt or you lose the sale. NACE lostthe sale, and Round 1 of the “Battle ofCentury” last year went to SEMA.

Round 2 this year, by my card,was a draw. For all my criticisms ofNACE, SEMA is not yet the clearlybetter show for the industry. And un-like “Rocky 3,” “Jaws 3” or “FriedGreen Tomatoes, Part 3,” (in whichJessica Tandy is reincarnated), I’m ac-tually looking forward to “NACE vs.SEMA, Part 3.”

SEMA’s size has sustained it, butNACE’s multiple locations will sup-port it as well. Eventually, this fight isgoing to end and there is going to be awinner. The industry will eventuallyprevail and have an undisputed cham-pion of an annual collision trade show.

The Insider is a corporate-levelexecutive with a Top 10 auto insurerin the U.S. Got a comment or questionyou’d like him to address in a futurecolumn? Email him at [email protected].

Industry Undecided Which Show Will Prevail in NACE vs. SEMAwith The Insurance Insider

Inside Insurance 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]

AkzoNobel’s Wanda Waterbase® Announces Successful US Launch at SEMA 2011Car enthusiasts and collision repairprofessionals joined AkzoNobel’sWanda brand in celebrating the re-cent US launch of the new WandaWaterbase® basecoat system duringthe 2011 SEMA show November 1-4, at the Las Vegas Convention Cen-ter.

Show attendees learned aboutthe new Wanda Waterbase productsat the Wanda Refinish booth locatedin the Racing & Performance area in-

side the Central Hall. The exhibit fea-tured two Lingenfelter PerformanceEngineering Camaro concept carsboth painted in Wanda with specialfinishes and styling effects. A liveWanda brand representative was alsobe on hand to greet visitors and pro-vide valuable information on how the

Wanda brand’s simplicity, color andvalue proposition is shifting per-formance and compliance into highgear.

“AkzoNobel designed WandaWaterbase around the brand proposi-tion to meet the needs of the indus-try’s value segment,” said MarkRapson, AkzoNobel’s BusinessManager of Trade Brands, NorthAmerica. “We’ve simplified the com-

SeeWanda, Page 39

Ken Lingenfelter, owner of LingenfelterPerformance Engineering, with liveWanda brand representative


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I’ve long supported and done my bestto contribute to first responder training.These brave and dedicated public ser-vants have a lot to deal with and a lot toprepare for. Whether it’s a building fire,hazmat situation, medical emergency,or vehicle extrication, they can’t pre-pare without the training, tools, andequipment necessary to get the jobdone. I was happy to be able to con-tribute some skills to training con-ducted recently in Pennsylvania, whichdrew first responders from two states.

With over 5.8 million car crashesper year it’s imperative that first re-sponders are equipped with the knowl-edge to extract vehicle occupants inthe quickest most efficient manner, es-pecially in crashes when the differencebetween life and death is on the line.Collision repairers have the vehicle ex-pertise that first responders need andcan contribute to the cause.

Recently, however, it’s become ev-ident that vehicle responders need moreexperience with modern vehicles, whichhave otherwise unfamiliar and evendangerous features to contend with.

“First responders such as firemenrequire the most current vehicle infor-mation to be effective and save lives at

the scene of an accident,” said CraigCamacho, Keenan’s Marketing Di-rector.

“This type of training is more im-portant than ever given the rapid on-slaught of advancements in vehicledesign such as high-strength steels, ad-vanced restraint systems, and multipleair bags. The growing popularity ofhigh-voltage hybrid vehicles alsomakes a class like this a necessity.”

State Farm Insurance Co, Es-urance and 1800 Charity Cars donatedeight late model vehicles for first re-

sponders to practice on.This is a real strength ofthe program since mostfire departments don’thave access to such mod-ern vehicles.

“Local fire depart-ments have indicated thiskind of knowledge ismuch needed and we arehonored to be able to de-

liver critical information to those whoneed it most,” added Camacho.

I instructed the class as I’ve donein many previous hands-on demon-strations. We covered air bag deploy-ment and other dangers firstresponders encounter every day.

M.E.S., a distributor of Hurst res-

cue tools, including the Jaws of Lifeline of tools, provided all of the equip-ment needed for the hands-on cutting.

Enterprise Rent-A-Carsponsored the catereddinner for Clifton Heightsand Hertz Local Editionsponsored the dinner forWest Chester. Both din-ners were excellent andwell appreciated by thehungry first re-

sponders.Keenan Auto body,

Inc. owns and operates ninestate of the art collision re-pair centers throughoutPhiladelphia, Delaware,Montgomery counties, andNew Castle County in Mid-dletown, Delaware and iscurrently opening their twonewest facilities in Avondale and Ken-nett Square in Chester County, PA.

For additional information visit:www.KeenanAutoBody.com andwww.jawsoflife.com. This latter web-site provides an introduction to theCrash Recovery System, which is asoftware application through whichimportant updated information with re-gard to safety systems in almost all cur-rent vehicle models can be accesseddirectly. Specially developed for rescueworkers, it provides an invaluable

source of information for extractingpeople from crash accident vehicles.


Hey Toby!with Toby Chess

Toby Chess is an I-CAR program instructor, Welding specialist, and former salvage yardoperator. Toby is universally known in the collision industry for his charitable works,worthy causes, and magic tricks. He can be reached at [email protected]

Keenan Auto Body’s First Responder Training Brings Together PA & DE Communities

Students in suburban New York got achance to learn the perils of distracteddriving without having to worry aboutan accident or a traffic ticket, accord-ing to Insurance Journal.

A texting-while-driving simula-tor that resembles an old-fashionedvideo game was demonstrated at nineWestchester County high schools No-vember 14 through 18, District Attor-ney Janet DiFiore said.

The simulator features the voiceof an annoying passenger who does-n’t wear her seat belt, asks the driverto speed up and then has him make a

phone call and send a text message toher brother. The driver tries to ma-neuver local streets and then high-ways while using a real cellphone orthe one on the video display.

During a demonstration Novem-ber 14, test subjects including Scars-dale police Chief John Broganquickly got into fake accidents whiletrying to multitask.

The simulator is part of a plan toteach and enforce a state law thatwent into effect in July. The new lawallows police to stop and ticket driv-ers they see texting while driving.

NY Students See Danger of Texting While Driving in Simulator


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One of the educational panels held dur-ing the 2011 SEMA Show at the LasVegas Convention Center concentratedon how social media can best be usedby collision repairers. The panel washeld on Thursday, November 3 at 10a.m. and brought together leading so-cial media experts in the collision repairindustry. Collision Hub’s KristenFelder, Jonathan Barrick, MarketingManager for Global Finishing Solu-tions, and Frank Terlep, owner ofSummit Software Solutions, came to-gether on this panel to answer collisionrepairers’ questions about how socialmedia can help their businesses. Jor-dan Hendler, executive director of theWashington (D.C.) Metropolitan AutoBodyAssociation, moderated the panel.

Hendler started off the session byasking panelists how collision repair-ers know that their customers want so-cial media from them.

A collision repairer’s customersare already on various forms of socialmedia, says Felder, “If you’re not al-ready there, hurry up!”

Hendler continued by asking thepanel how collision repairers can start

being active in social media. Terlepstated that repairers should start with the‘big 4’in social media marketing; Face-book, Youtube, Twitter and LinkedIn.

“Have a plan,” said Terlep, “Sit withother shops and put a plan together.”

Felder said a good, low-cost wayto start a social media repoire could beto look at local colleges for students

who need to create an online portfoliofor a class project. This way the studentcan set-up the social media at no costto the business. Felder also warnedshops to set up a policy when it comesto who will post on the company page.

“Are you going to let employeespost?” asked Fedler, she encouragedshops to define what employees can

and can’t do on the page should theydecide to allow them to post.

Barrick suggested that repairersspend some time researching andwatching other shops’ pages to seewhat types of posts garner the most at-tention and responses from followers.

Hendler then went on to ask thepanelists what some ‘dos’ and ‘don’ts’

were for shops just starting out insocial media.“People will read your posts forthree reasons; education, enter-tainment and exclusive offers,”said Barrick. He encouragedshops to stay away from postingjust random facts. “They will fol-low you for what they can’t getanywhere else,” he said.

Felder warned shops to bewary of what they post online, “don’tpost the politics of the industry.”

She encouraged shops to seemopen and approachable online and topost helpful things for customers, liketips to get them winter-ready in the ap-propriate climates and texting anddriving news reports.

Hendler then asked the panel

how collision repairers can fit yet an-other task in their already busy days.

Felder said some shops may betempted to hand off their social mediato a consulting company. She said thiscan be a good idea if the third partygives the shop options for how andwhat will be posted, tailored to the sizeand scope of their business, otherwisethese posts can come off generic anduninteresting to customers.

Barrick agreed with Felder, hesaid a third party can be a good wayfor a shop to initially set up their pro-files, but they should not end up beingthe permanent voice of the company.He encouraged shops to have multiplepeople in their businesses participatein the profiles so they don’t turn into aone-man show.

Lastly, Barrick and Hendler said bewary of getting caught up with hoarding“page likes.” Barrick said that althougha page may only have 3,000 fans, theymay generate 5,000 page views permonth. So, although they may not havefans subscribing to their posts, peopleare still using the page to get informa-tion about the business.


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Social Studies Panel Held at 2011 SEMA Show Highlights Social Media Best Practices for Shops

Frank Terlep, Kristen Felder, Jonathan Barrick andJordan Hendler discuss social media trends andtips at the 2011 SEMA show

The National Auto Body Council(NABC) awarded refurbished vehi-cles to 13 Las Vegas families this yearon Thursday, November 3, at 2:30p.m. outside of the Las Vegas Con-vention Center in conjunction with theSEMA Show. Family Promise, thecharity who assisted these families,also received a vehicle at this event tofurther help them assist hundreds offamilies in crisis in the Las Vegasarea.

Each of the families received thegift of a refurbished vehicle fromNABC members through the organi-zation’s Recycled Rides® program, anational initiative through whichNABC members refurbish donatedvehicles and gift them to families inneed and organizations dedicated toassisting others. Through their gener-ous support, the following NABC Di-amond Members donated vehicles:State Farm, Allstate and Enterprise-Rent-A-Car. Additional vehicles weredonated by GEICO, American Fam-ily, AAA of Northern California, Ne-vada and Utah Insurance Exchange.NABC members Sterling Collision

Centers, 911 Collision, Caliber Colli-sion Centers, Gerber Collision &Glass, Collision Authority, CollisionMasters CARSTAR East and two areaVo-tech schools, Southeast CareerTechnical Academy and the Collegeof Southern Nevada, repaired the ve-hicles.

Each recipient family is a gradu-ate of Family Promise of Las Vegas, anon-profit interfaith network that pro-vides support to families in crisis. TheNABC has made it a point to giveaway Recycled Rides vehicles at LasVegas industry events each year of theprogram’s existence.

“We’re happy to be back in LasVegas to give these families the reli-able transportation that can help pro-vide them a fresh start,” statesRecycled Rides Co-ChairmanMichael Quinn, of 911 CollisionCenters, a Caliber Company. “I amgrateful to be part of a project thatclearly illustrates the giving nature ofNABC members and the collision re-pair industry at large.”

Please visit www.autobodycoun-cil.org for more information.

NABC Gives 13 Las Vegas Families Gift of ReliableTransportation at SEMAWith Recycled Rides


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The Hot Rod Industry Alliance(HRIA) sponsored Pinewood DerbyRaces took place during the 2011SEMA show; the 13 custom

pinewood cars were also up for auc-tion on eBay following the show tobenefit the children’s charities Child-help and Victory Junction Camp.

Participating pinewood buildersincludedArt Morrison, Fatman Fab-rications, Fesler Concepts, HollywoodHot Rods, Hopperstad Customs,Johnny’s Auto Trim, Kaucher Kus-toms, No Joke Upholstery, Rich

Evans Designs, Santini Paint andBody, Spanky’s Hot Rods, SpitzerConcepts and Street Vizions.

Derek White of Street Vizionssuccessfully defended his first-placetitle this year, his second consecutivewin. Rich Evans Designs was the run-ner up again this year as well.

Each contestant was given fourmonths to complete the car; no designlimitations were given except that thecar had to fit the track’s dimensionsand no propulsions systems were al-lowed.

The eBay auction took place No-vember 1 through 10, search HRIAPinewood on eBay to find the biddingpages.


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Aftermarket Associations Complain to FTC AboutMazda’s Claims Regarding Warranty PolicyThe Automotive Aftermarket IndustryAssociation (AAIA) is again callingon the Federal Trade Commission(FTC) to take action against a car-maker—this time Mazda—for its pol-icy statements relating to the use ofaftermarket parts for vehicle repairs.Similar complaints were made byAAIA against Honda in 2010 whenthe FTC sided with the carmaker.

In a letter to the FTC’s AssociateDirector for Marketing Practices, LoisGreisman, the AAIA—along with theAutomotive Oil Change Association(AOCA), the Service Station Dealersof America, and the Tire Industry As-sociation—argue that Mazda’s claimin a recent brochure that “aftermarketparts are generally made to a lowerstandard” is unsubstantiated. Thegroups say this is misleading con-sumers and are calling on the FTC torequire Mazda to either to providesubstantiation of their claim or issue aretraction.

The letter states that “The word-ing in the Mazda release totally con-tradicts FTC’s alert by making theassumption that the aftermarket partwould cause the warranty not to behonored rather than the fact that theuse of the aftermarket part is permis-sible unless proven otherwise. There-fore, AAIA and AOCA further requestthat the Commission take immediateaction to require Mazda to withdrawthe release and issue a correction: thatuse of non-Mazda parts are permissi-ble, and that it would be Mazda’s bur-den of proof to prove a non-Mazdapart caused any alleged damage be-fore denying warranty coverage.

The AAIA claims that statementsmade by Mazda are misleading con-sumers about the use of aftermarketparts and those statements are a viola-tion of the Magnuson-Moss WarrantyAct, a law that says companies maynot condition warranty coverage onthe use of only original equipmentparts.

The letter also takes issue with astatement by Mazda that “Only Gen-uine Mazda Parts purchased from anauthorized Mazda dealer are specifi-cally covered by the Mazda warranty.The original warranty could becomeinvalid if aftermarket parts contributeto the damage of original parts.” Theaftermarket groups contend that thewording of this paragraph, combined

with the statements regarding thequality of aftermarket parts, is in-tended to misinform consumers abouttheir vehicle warranties and are in vi-olation of the Magnuson-Moss War-ranty Act.

Previous Complaint Against HondaLast year, the FTC received a similiarcomplaint regarding a release fromHonda and Acura. The AAIA com-plaint stemmed from a Honda state-ment that said the carmaker “will notbe responsible for any subsequent re-pair costs associated with vehicle orpart failures caused by the use of partsother than genuine Honda/Acura.”

However, in a December 2010response to the AAIA, the FTC dis-agreed with AAIA’s claims.

The FTC explained in its responseto AAIA that while the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act does prohibit war-rantors from conditioning warrantycoverage on the use of only authorizedparts, warrantors are permitted to ex-clude liability for damage or defectscaused by the use of unauthorized parts.

The commission explained that awarrantor may expressly exclude lia-bility for defects or damage caused by‘unauthorized’ articles or service; andmay deny liability where the warran-tor can demonstrate that the defect ordamage was caused by those unau-thorized parts. The FTC concluded,“While we appreciate your view to thecontrary, we interpret the AmericanHonda position statements to statethat American Honda will not denywarranty coverage for the mere use ofan unauthorized part, but rather fordamage or defects caused by thoseparts,” and that, “American Hondadoes not appear to be in violation ofthe Act’s tying prohibition.”

In response to the FTC’s inter-pretation, the AAIA said in its Mazdacomplaint that, “it appears that the ab-sence of action as we requested by theCommission on the Honda release isleading more and more car companiesto not only engage in similar mislead-ing tactics regarding the use of non-original equipment parts byconsumers, but also to ratchet up theunlawful rhetoric. Immediate action isneeded to both protect consumersfrom Mazda in the short term, and tostop other automakers from jumpingon this anti-consumer bandwagon.”

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Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) SponsoredPinewood Drag Races Light Up 2011 SEMA Show

Derek White of Street Vizions won first-placein the pinewood derby for the second year in arow with this model vehicle

Rich Evans Designs took second place for thesecond year in a row with this model car


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CIECA Advises on Progress of Total Loss CommitteeThe Collision Industry ElectronicCommerce Association (CIECA) saysthat the Total Loss Committee has nowcompleted approximately 70–75% ofits estimate messaging and is currentlyworking to complete the options andfeatures portion. The latest releaseadded over 300 vehicle option codes.The goal of the committee is to im-prove communication between repair-ers, insurers, and salvage providers.Earlier efforts led to the ability to at-tach a Vehicle Inspection Report (VIR)to the Estimate Message, but failed toprovide for a total loss valuation priorto the disbanding of the Total LossCommittee. CIECA staff resumed thework of the committee two years ago.

The biggest hurdle in the processwas finding a neutral territory for themessaging. CIECA worked with theinformation providers CCC, Mitchell,and Audatex, and—when workingthrough the code lists, vehicle partsand options, the detailed valuationamounts and methods—finding thatthe information providers all definedthings differently, particularly withcondition ratings on vehicle parts. Allhad their own systems for conditionratings.After taking time to understandtheir process, the data needs weredeemed quite similar. The committeeworked to form a neutral territory so

that each provider would have the free-dom to infer condition descriptionstheir own way but using the same lan-guage and codes developed in concert,in the committee webinars. This iswhere the previous attempt failed.

Another major time solver pro-vided by the committee was the elim-ination of a laborious handwritten stepin the vehicle assessment.

Prior to the CIECA committee,when a vehicle reached the “fix it orscrap it” stage, in order to transmit theinformation about that vehicle, onehad to manually hand write an evalu-ation form (the Vehicle Inspection Re-port or VIR) and submit that to theinsurance company for evaluation,who then had to look into the salvagevalue of the vehicle, the replacementvalue and the repair estimate to deter-mine the vehicle’s fate.

The process is now streamlinedfrom the time the vehicle first entersthe insurance company system when apolicy is written on down to that mo-ment of “fix it or scrap it.”

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White and Silver Most Popular Car Colors in the WorldWhite/white pearl has emerged as thefastest growing color to tie with silveras the world’s leading automotivecolor choices, according to the 2011DuPont Automotive Color PopularityReport just released. A substantial in-crease in the popularity of white/whitepearl globally in 2011 has enabled itto surpass longstanding rivals blackand gray, to join silver at the top of theworld color ranks in this year’s report.The DuPont report, in its 59th year,is the longest running and largest ofits kind in the industry, includes auto-motive color popularity rankings andregional trends from 11 leading auto-motive regions of the world.

In 2010, white/white pearl wastied for third with gray in the worldcolor ranks with just 16 percent share,but its ongoing popularity in NorthAmerica, combined with a surge inpopularity in Europe, China, Korea,South America and South Africa, hashelped to increase its position in 2011to 22 percent globally. Black and graydropped to third and fourth, respec-tively, in this year’s report with red andblue strengthening and holding posi-tions in fifth and sixth place.

The top global vehicle colors inDuPont’s report are as follows:1. White/White Pearl and Silver – tie,22 percent

3. Black/Black Effect – 20 percent4. Gray – 13 percent5. Red – 7 percent6. Blue – 6 percent7. Brown/Beige – 5 percent8. Green – 2 percent9. Yellow/Gold – 1 percent10. Others – 2 percent

“While white/white pearl has his-torically been a popular color for vehi-cles, we’ve seen a bigger shift in itspopularity this year than DuPont ex-pected,” said Nancy Lockhart, DuPontcolor marketing manager.

Silver and black have long beenrecognized in the top two for color pop-ularity. However, in the past few years,white/white pearl has been steadilygrowing in popularity outside of NorthAmerica. In 2011, it jumped by morethan four percentage points, accordingto Lockhart. “There has been increasedconsumer acceptance for white, and ourOEM customers are meeting consumerdemand for the clean look it brings tovehicle design,” she said. “Silver andblackwere once the top colors of luxury,butwhite has increased in this area. Theoverall trend for casual luxury hasspread to numerous vehicle types. Theexpectation to have a luxurious feel tothe vehicle is globally sought. Classicwhite and pearlescent white effects areinspiring luxury design.

The Society of Collision Repair Spe-cialists (SCRS) joined with the mostprominent collision repair organiza-tions representing the voice of the col-lision repairer nationally, to issue andsign a joint statement officially recog-nizing OEM vehicle manufacturerpublished repair procedures as the in-dustry’s repair standards.

The organizations making thedeclaration with SCRS include the Al-liance of Automotive Service Providers(AASP), Automotive Service Associa-tion (ASA), and Assured PerformanceNetwork.

The statement was presented onWednesday, November 3, 2011 tothose attending the Collision IndustryConference (CIC) in Las Vegas, Ne-vada. Their statement reads as follows:

“The undersigned organizationscontinue to be the leading voice of col-lision repair businesses and techniciansacross the United States, just as theyhave for decades. Representing their in-terests, we hereby recognize publishedrepair procedures, as provided by auto-

motive original equipment manufactur-ers (OEM), as the official industry rec-ognized “Repair Standards” forcollision repair. These standards, wherethey exist, shall be the basis for the es-tablishment of training, testing, repairpractices, and documentations.

“Whereas, we acknowledge thatOEM repair procedures are incom-plete in comparison to the full scopeof vehicles and repair operationswhich exist in the marketplace; theOEM published repair proceduresshall serve as the baseline for indus-try repair standards, with the recogni-tion that further development ofprocedures will be necessary in areasnot covered by published procedures.

“Therefore, we officially ask theboard of directors for the Inter-Indus-try Conference on Auto Collision Re-pair (I-CAR), to establish within theiroverall organizational structure, an in-dustry council to identify gaps in ex-isting OEM procedures and developprocesses to close gaps, vet industryproposed alternatives, modifications,

and additions to OEM procedures.The Council will include volunteerrepresentatives serving at least ASA,SCRS, AASP, and I-CAR.”

While most assume OEM repairprocedures are standards by default, ithas never been officially establisheduntil now.

As these groups collectively rep-resent collision repair businesses andtechnicians across the United States,their official adoption and declarationprovides a much needed foundationand focus to the industry’s effort to es-tablish collision repair standards.


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H&V Collision Centers announcedon November 16 it partnered with theU.S. Marine Corps’ Toys for Totsprogram to collect toys for familiesnationwide during the 2011 holidays.

Toys will be collected throughDecember, and then given to theMarines in time for holiday distribu-tion, H&V said. Toys can be droppedoff at any of H&V’s three facilities,located in Troy, Colonie and Queens-bury, NY.

H&V said the company’s effortis a reflection of the challenges facedby many local families this holidayseason due to the tough economy.

“Those of us at H&V CollisionCenters want to do our part to makethe holidays brighter for families inneed, and are honored to participatein the Marine Corps’ Toys for Totsprogram,” said Vartan Jerian Jr.,vice president of H&V. “We are hop-ing to help collect and give presentsthat will be remembered for manyyears to come.”

For more information aboutH&V Collision Centers, visit handv-collision.com. For more informationabout the Marine Corps’ Toys forTots program, visit toysfortots.org.

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The 2011 New Product AwardWinners include:Best Engineered New ProductWinner: Baer Brake Systems, FullFloating Rear End ConversionRunner Up: Aeromotive Inc., CamaroStealth Fuel SystemRunner Up: Fuelab, Electronic FuelPressure RegulatorBest New Exterior Accessory Prod-uctWinner: Cargo Ease Inc., Cargo Ramp/ Brake SystemRunner Up: Bestop Inc., TrekStepSide Mounted StepRunner Up: Rhino-Rack USA, RoofMounted Cargo BasketBest New Interior Accessory Prod-uctWinner: Auto Meter Products, Uni-versal 3 Gauge Mounting SolutionRunner Up: LOKAR PerformanceProducts, Billet Aluminum TremecShifter Levers For TKO 500 and TKO600Runner Up: Bully Dog Technologies,RAM Mounting Systems for BullyDog GTs and WatchDogsBest New Merchandising DisplayWinner: MacNeil Automotive Prod-ucts Ltd., TechFloor™ Retail DisplayRunner Up: Flex-a-lite Consolidated,Flex-a-chill - Radiator Coolant Addi-tive (POP)Runner Up: Access Roll-Up Covers,Access Truck Bed LED Light DisplayBest New Mobile Electronics Prod-uctWinner: Escort/Beltronics Radar De-tectors, ESCORT Live!Runner Up: Del City, Sealed WindowCrimp ConnectorRunner Up: Metra Electronics Corp.,ASWCBest New Off-Road/4-Wheel DriveProductWinner: MSD Ignition, Atomic EFI

Runner Up: Daystar Products Interna-tional, Can Cam Fuel and Water Sys-temRunner Up: ProRYDE SuspensionSystems, SuperBLOK 3-in-1 LeafSpring BlocksBest New Packaging DisplayWinner: MacNeil Automotive Prod-ucts Ltd., TechCare™Runner Up: Auto Meter Products,Auto Meter Custom Shop Gauge SetRunner Up: Preval, vFan Portable Air-brush SystemBest New Collision Repair & Refin-ish ProductWinner: Eagle Abrasives Inc., SuperAssilexRunner Up: Plio Grip by Valvoline,Like90 Turbo Pad for BumpersRunner Up: Gema, OptiFlex®2Best New Performance-RacingProductWinner: COMP Performance Group,COMP Cams Sprint Car Front DriveKit For LS ApplicationsRunner Up: Auto Meter Products, Ul-timate DL Playback Tach SystemRunner Up: Ace Fuel Systems, Ad-justable Fuel InjectorBest New Performance-Street Prod-uctWinner: SCT Performance, SCTiTSX for iPhoneRunner Up: COMP PerformanceGroup, Inglese EFI Throttle Body In-sert Hidden Metal Screen FiltersRunner Up: COMP PerformanceGroup, FAST EZ-EFI Jeep 4.2L/6Cylinder KitBest New Powersports ProductWinner: Auto Meter Products, Uni-versal GPS Speedometer InterfaceRunner Up: Skyjacker Suspensions,10-12 Polaris Ranger Crew RearWinch Mount KitRunner Up: Warn Industries Inc.,1700 XT Portable WinchBest NewStreet Rod/Custom CarProductWinner: Classic Instruments Inc.,SkyDriveRunner Up: Billet Specialties Inc.,Billet LS Valve CoversRunner Up: Eddie Motorsports, Billetaluminum Under-hood kit for 1955-1957 ChevysBest New Tire and Related ProductWinner: Continental Tire the Ameri-cas LLC, Continental Cross ContactLX20Runner Up: Cooper Tire & RubberCo., Discoverer A/T3Runner Up: Continental Tire the

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SEMAAnnounces New Product Showcase Award Winners

Hughes Telematics is partnering withAAA Club to offer In-Drive-connectedservices to the automobile club’s 12 mil-lion drivers in 20 states. As previouslyannounced with State Farm Insurance,the In-Drive system operates similarlyto GM's aftermarket OnStar system. In-Drive connects the vehicle and its driverto Hughes operators in the event of anemergency or accident. Devices pluggedinto the vehicle’s On-Board Diagnosticsport and mounted on the visor connectthe driver and the vehicle to Hughes’team of operators, who are available tohelp drivers coordinate emergency re-sponse and detect when a vehicle hasbeen in a crash.

AAA hasn’t finalized its offer-ings or come up with pricing, but in-dicated it would like to offermembers roadside assistance, autocrash notification, emergency calling,diagnostics, and stolen vehicle loca-tion, said Kevin Link, senior vicepresident of marketing for HughesTelematics. The automobile club mayalso use different In-Drive devicemodels. ACP will release more infor-mation when its In-Drive programlaunches in the first half of 2012.

Hughes Telematics Partners withAAA Club to Offer In-Drive Con-nected Services to Members


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Recently I was in a shop where busi-ness was kind of slow. And yet a cou-ple of estimators were sitting back“shooting the bull.”

Although some shops employ amarketing person, the fact is the esti-mators are still the real sales person-nel in a body shop. In the past, allmost estimators had to do was writean estimate when a car comes in andthen sell the customer on leaving thekeys and the car to be repaired. Inthese difficult times, few shops can af-ford that kind of limited job descrip-tion for their primary selling people.

From what I’ve been able to see,a major failing in ineffective estima-tor salespeople is inertia and reluc-tance to reach out for new business.More progressive shops are movingaway from the old model where theestimator simply sat around andwaited for a vehicle to come in to es-timate.

Estimators are selected for theirability to communicate to a specificmarketing target. One shop always hasone estimator who can speak Spanishand another who can speak an Asiandialect that’s common in the area.Also one estimator is dedicated towrite estimates at a local dealership,and each estimator is assigned to spe-cialize in one of the shop’s DRP rela-tionships. But is this enough to bringin new business?

Sadly, many estimators are notreally salespeople. In a retail storethey would be called “order takers.”One shop owner, who had been inbusiness for more than twenty years,finally got a drive-in arrangementwith a top insurance company. He wasso happy about it, he wrote the esti-mates for the drive-in himself for thefirst couple of months. He convinced80% of drive-in prospects to leave thekeys and get their car repaired. But

when the task was turned over to sev-eral different estimators, most didn’teven manage to convert 50%. Whatmade the difference? Obviously theowner had real selling skills. The oth-ers didn’t.

Some of the consolidator shopsand dealership shops I’ve visited seemto have estimators with better sellingskills. I’ve asked a few what they dothat closes the sale for them. Here is abrief list of some of what I was told:● Maintaining a professional appear-ance, often with shirt-and-tie for men,and comparable professional attire forwomen.● Sincerely complimenting a prospec-tive customer early on, to try to estab-lish an early emotional bond.● Building rapport by drawing oncomparable stories of accidents thathappened to friends and family mem-bers. These salespeople took the timeto contact many friends and family

members so they would have a readyarsenal of stories to tell.● Building rapport by stimulating amore personal level of communication.A common strategy is have photos ofthe estimator’s children on the desk(even if the photos are many years old,showing the children as tiny tots).● Keeping novelty items and items ofinterest on the estimating desk to stim-ulate personal conversation or havinga special toy available to occupy achild who accompanies a prospectivecustomer.● Posting I-CAR and other certificatesof achievement near the desk to showcompetence and professionalism.● Keeping an album at hand with a se-lection of worse wrecks than the oneat hand, that were successfully restoredto perfect pre-accident condition.● Having ready explanations of tech-nical problems in language most peo-ple can understand without becoming

Use Estimator Tactics to Close the Sale

On Creative Marketingwith Thomas Franklin

Tom Franklin has been a sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has writtennumerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses.He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at [email protected] Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin


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confused or feeling put down.● Taking on the problems of theprospective customer, in dealing withthe insurance company, providing aride, getting a rental car if needed andhelping to arrange a convenientschedule for the customer.● Involving the prospective customer inthe writing of the estimate, explainingeach line, showing illustrations on thecomputer (if available) and generallydemystifying the estimating process.● Being well informed of what give-aways will be acceptable in a tight ne-gotiating situation. The usualelements are car-wash, free detail,color sand and buff, or repair of minorunrelated damage.

There was one more tactic thatinterested me: Showing prospectivecustomers comparable cars in theshop in the process of being repairedor beautifully completed to reassurethem that the shop is capable ofrestoring their car to perfect, pre-acci-dent condition.

It reminded me of an articleabout Marie Callender who had justdied. Yes, there really was a MarieCallender. She worked in a little deliin Long Beach, California, right

around the turn of the century. Shestarted baking pies for the deli and,with her husband, soon opened a littlecoffee and pie shop to sell some of herpies directly. Her pie shop was verysuccessful because she did somethingno one else ever did: She put herovens right in the front window of thepie shop so people could see her bak-ing those pies. Today this is commonpractice, from pizza to sushi, butMarie was one of the first to see it hadgreat potential marketing power!

This is just one of the manystrategies and tactics effect estimator-sales people have used. But given theemotional upset most people experi-ence after an accident, perhaps thisone provides very visible and tangibleevidence that this is the best place tohave their vehicle repaired. Even anestimator with few selling skills canuse a tactic like this to advantage.

Gerber Collision & Glass has joinedthe Collision Repair Education Foun-dation’s Industry Leadership Circledonor designation through their recent$10,000 donation.

This donation supports the Edu-cation Foundation’s Collision RepairEducation Campaign fund which al-lows the organization to support sec-ondary and post-secondary collisionstudents through their annual studentscholarships, tool/equipment grants,and the Ultimate Collision EducationMakeover $50,000 school grant.

“This donation is a display ofGerber’s commitment to the futureprofessionals of the collision industryand is an investment in their technicaleducation,” said Gerber Collision &Glass President and COO TimO’Day. “We are very pleased to beable to support the Collision RepairEducation Foundation and look for-ward to partnering with them in thefuture to assist secondary and post-secondary collision students.”

Collision Repair EducationFoundation Executive Director ScottKruger commented, “Thanks to Ger-ber Collision & Glass for joining theCollision Repair Education Founda-

tion’s efforts to support collisionschool programs and their students.By increasing educational opportuni-ties for these students, who are to-morrow’s industry professionals, thefuture will be brighter for all collisionrepair businesses. The Collision Re-pair Education Foundation would alsolike to thank Gerber Collision &Glass President Tim O’Day for par-ticipating on our Board of Trustees,providing focus and direction for allour efforts in support of collision stu-dents and school programs.”

Additional information aboutGerber Collision & Glass can befound at www.GerberCollision.com.

Inter-industry organizations andindividuals who are interested in sup-porting the Education Foundationand increasing the amount of assis-tance provided to collision schoolsand students should contact Educa-tion Foundation Associate Director ofDevelopment Brandon Eckenrodeat Brandon.Eckenrode@ed founda-tion.org.

Gerber Collision & Glass Joins Collision Repair EducationFoundation’s Industry Leadership Circle With $10K Donation

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Chief Automotive Technologies hasdonated a new frame rack valued at$50,000 to the Operation Comfort Au-tomotivation program for woundedU.S. military service members. Chiefdistributor English Collision Equip-ment, Inc. installed the rack at nocharge.

“We are honored to have the op-portunity to help these wounded war-riors recover from the injuries theysustained while defending and pro-tecting our country,” explains MikeCranfill, vice president of collisionfor Chief’s parent company, VehicleService Group (VSG). “It is our hopethat this equipment will aid in their re-habilitation and perhaps even ignite aninterest in joining the collision repairindustry once they are discharged.”

Operation Comfort is a non-profit, philanthropic organization fo-cused on helping service membersfrom all branches of the U.S. militarywho were wounded in Afghanistanand Iraq and are rehabilitating atBrooke Army Medical Center(BAMC) in San Antonio, Texas. De-pending on the severity of their in-juries, these men and women will stayat BAMC from one to four years orlonger.

Operation Comfort provides fi-nancial assistance to service membersand their families, helps refurbish andequip waiting rooms at the medicalcenter, and offers a number of reha-bilitative and therapeutic programs innon-clinical environments. These pro-grams include hand cycling, sled icehockey, amputee surfing, softball,river rafting and Automotivation.

“Operation Comfort is structuredto improve the soldiers’ spirits, sotheir rehab is faster and more effec-tive,” explains Janis Roznowski, Op-eration Comfort executive directorand founder. “Their lives now are acycle of medical appointments, sur-geries, therapy, rehab, more appoint-ments, more treatments, moresurgeries, more rehab… That’s whyit’s so important to give them relief. Ibelieve that if they’re working onsomething they really love, they for-get all the trauma going on in theirlives. When they’re working on a car,they’re focusing on that car and en-joying the process. By fixing a car,somehow or other, they fix somethinginside of themselves.”

Automotivation was developedat the request of service members

who were reluctant to participate inconventional rehabilitative activities

or sports, but were interested in re-building and restoring cars, trucksand motorcycles. Participation isvoluntary. The program is housed indonated space in a professionalgarage on Lonesome Dove Ranchsouth of San Antonio. It includesfour service bays, a paint booth andbreak room.

Many soldiers who are injuredand then sent to BAMC to heal feelcut off from their units, explains VicHash, Army sergeant first class and amember of the Warrior Transition Unitat Fort Sam Houston. “They tend towant to cocoon. This gives themsomething to do to take their minds offtheir injuries.”

Automotivation participants arebuilding a 1966 Shelby Cobra replicakit car and are finishing a World WarII weapons carrier body that they re-stored and installed on a 1984 FordBronco chassis. The group displayedboth vehicles at the SEMA Show atthe Las Vegas Convention Centerfrom November 1 through 4.

The Fuzion pulling system thatChief donated was installed in whathad been a flat bay. The heavy-dutyrack is equipped with two pulling tow-ers and universal anchoring stands. Itoffers 12,000 lbs. of lifting capacityfor maximum versatility. Chief is alsoarranging training for Automotivation

participants on how to properly usethe equipment.

“We’re so appre-ciative that Chief un-derstands the valueof what we do andthat they jumped into help,” Roznowskisays. “This was anincredibly generousdonation. With theChief rack, we’ll beable to teach the guysnew skills that theymay also be able touse when they returnto civilian life.”

The soldiers havea long wish list ofadditional tools andequipment the pro-gram could use. Op-eration Comfort doesnot have funding tobuy equipment, so itrelies on industry do-nations of tools,equipment and con-

tacts for mentoring and training.

Current needs include:● Chief accessory package and toolboard● Frame measuring system● Brake lathe● Small lathe● Alignment rack and equipment● Complete socket sets● Soda blaster● Portable diesel-powered air com-pressor (125 cfm)● Bead roller● Spot welder● Metal brake● Sheet metal shear● English wheel● Shrinker/stretcher● Creepers● Wheel dollies● Hydraulic floor jacks● Air tool kit

For more information aboutOperation Comfort, visit www.op-erationcomfort.org or call (210)826-0500. To learn more aboutChief collision repair equipment,contact your local Chief distribu-tor, call 877-644-1044, or visitwww.chiefautomotive.com.


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Chief Donates Frame Rack to Operation Comfort Automotivation Program for Wounded Warriors

Chief Automotive Technologies donated a frame rack to the OperationComfort Automotivation program for wounded U.S. military servicemembers. Pictured on the recently installed rack are (from left toright): Sgt. 1st Class Vic Hash; Sgt. Chris Leverkuhn; Mike Cranfill,vice president of collision for Chief’s parent company, Vehicle ServiceGroup (VSG); Spc. Michael Baird-Kelly; Petty Officer Andrew Johnson;Janis Roznowski, Operation Comfort executive director and founder;Robert Rodriguez, president of Lay’N Color (which shares space andresources with the Operation Comfort Automotivation program); JeffEnglish, manager of English Collision; and Sgt. Robert Dickey


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Babylon HondaWest Babylon

631-669-5800Dept. Hours:

M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-3:[email protected]

Brewster HondaBrewster

845-278-4177Dept. Hours:

M-F 8-5; Sat [email protected]

Dick Ide HondaRochester

800-462-0056 (N.Y.)585-586-4919

Dept. Hours:M-Thur 8-8; Fri 8-5:30; Sat 8-5

[email protected]

Lamacchia HondaSyracuse

315-471-7278Dept. Hours:

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

Lia Honda of AlbanyAlbany

800-272-6741518-482-2598

Dept. Hours:M,T,W,F 7:30-5:30; Thur 7:30-8; Sat 8-5

[email protected]

Lia Honda of WilliamsvilleWil l iamsvi l le /Buf fa lo877-659-2672716-632-3800

Dept. Hours:M-Thu 7:30-8; Fri 7:30-5; Sat 8-5:30

[email protected]

Ray Laks HondaWest Seneca

716-824-7852Dept. Hours:

M-F 7:30-8; Sat 7:30-5:[email protected]

Coast HondaSea Gir t

732-974-8960732-974-2211 Ext. 3

Dept. Hours:M-F 7-5:30; Sat 7:30-4

[email protected]

Honda of PrincetonPr inceton

800-682-5941609-683-5941

Dept. Hours:M-F 8-4:30

[email protected]

Honda of TurnersvilleTurnersv i l le

800-883-0002856-649-1584

Dept. Hours:M-F 8-6; Sat 8-4

[email protected]

Hudson HondaWest New York866-483-6917201-868-9500

Dept. Hours:M-F 7-7; Sat 7:30-5; Sun 8-3

[email protected]

Rossi HondaVine land

800-893-3030856-692-4449

Dept. Hours:M-F 6:30-5; Sat 7:[email protected]

Route 22 HondaHi l ls ide

973-705-9100Dept. Hours:

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Apple HondaYork

800-960-9041717-848-2600

Dept. Hours:M-F 7-6; Sat 7-4; Sun 10-4

[email protected]

Baierl HondaWexford

724-940-2006Dept. Hours:


J.L. Freed HondaMontgomeryv i l le215-855-3587

Dept. Hours:M-Thur 8-6; Fri 8-5; Sat [email protected]

Mike Piazza HondaLanghorne

215-702-2614215-702-2615


Shadyside HondaPi t tsburgh

800-468-2090412-390-2908

Dept. Hours:M-F 7:30-5

[email protected]

Sussman HondaRoslyn

800-682-2914215-657-3301


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Acura of WestchesterWestchester

914-834-8887Dept. Hours:

M-F 7:30-8; Sat 8-4; Sun [email protected]

Curry AcuraScarsdale

800-725-2877914-472-7406


[email protected]

Paragon AcuraWoodside

718-507-3990Dept. Hours:

M-F 8-6; Sat 8-5; Sun [email protected]

Smithtown AcuraSt . James

888-832-8220631-366-4114

Dept. Hours:M-F 7:30-5:30; Sat 8-4

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Acura of TurnersvilleTurnersv i l le

888-883-2884856-649-1884


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Elite AcuraMaple Shade

856-722-9600Dept. Hours:


Apple AcuraYork

877-5APPLE5717-849-6639

Dept. Hours:M-F 7-5:30; Sat 7-3

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Baierl AcuraWexford

800-246-7457724-935-0800


[email protected]

Davis AcuraLanghorne

866-50-ACURA215-943-7000


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Lehigh Valley AcuraEmmaus

877-860-3954610-967-6500


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Smail AcuraGreensburg

866-261-4999724-219-1476


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800-826-4078215-884-6285


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NEW JERSEY

www.autobodynews.comwww.autobodynews.com

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Detroit is likely to remain center stagein a legal drama now playing outaround the country over price-fixingcollusion among automotive wire har-ness suppliers, long after two formerexecutives of Furukawa Electric Co.pleaded guilty in federal court on Oc-tober 24, according to reports madeby Automotive News.

Hirotsugu Nagata, formerCFO of Furukawa’s U.S. subsidiary,American Furukawa Inc., from2004 to 2009; and Junichi Funo,assistant general manager of Hondasales at American Furukawa until2009, appeared October 24 beforeU.S. District Judge George Steeh inDetroit and pleaded guilty to onecount each of conspiracy to restraintrade in violation of the ShermanAntitrust Act.

Nagata is expected to serve 15months and Funo one year and oneday in U.S. prisons in the U.S. De-partment of Justice case.

The company itself and anotherformer executive, Tetsuya Ukai ofthe parent company’s Honda sales di-vision, have separate court dates inmid-November to enter their ownpleas. Furukawa agreed in late Sep-tember to plead guilty and pay a $200million fine in the case.

The $29 billion U.S. automo-tive wire harness industry has comeunder assault in five states, where10 new lawsuits filed since Oct. 5allege the suppliers engaged infalse and deceptive trade practices,fraudulent concealment, violationof federal antitrust law and unjustenrichment.

The 10 civil suits all name, in ad-dition to Furukawa:• Yazaki Corp. of Iwata, Japan and/orU.S. subsidiary Yazaki North Amer-ica Inc. of suburban Detroit, the in-dustry market leader.• Sumitomo Electric Industries Ltd.,No. 2 in size and the fastest growing,which has an administrative head-

quarters in Kentucky and offices insuburban Detroit.• Delphi Automotive LLP, the one-time General Motors parts unit basedin suburban Detroit.• Lear Corp., the seating and elec-tronics supplier based in suburbanDetroit.• Leoni AG, a wiring and cable prod-ucts supplier based in Nuremberg,Germany.• S-Y Systems Technologies GbmH,Regensberg, Germany, which Yazakiacquired in 2005. S-Y has an office insuburban Detroit.

Some of the new lawsuits also goon to target Denso Corp., Tokai RikaCo. Ltd. and Fujikura America Inc.,which are based in Japan but haveU.S. offices as well.

Denso and Tokai’s U.S.-basedsubsidiary Tokai Rika Group NorthAmerica was raided by FBI agentslast year along with Yazaki NorthAmerica as part of the global price-fixing probe.

“The price of cars is already highanyway, and we’re fighting every dayfor business share without the addedburden of what the (suppliers) havedone to competition,” said SteveLanders, president of Little Rock,AR-based Landers Auto Group No. 1Inc. and owner of Landers Toyota andSteve Landers Chrysler Dodge JeepRam, who brought one of three deal-ership lawsuits. “In a way, it’s really adouble-punch to the dealer, though italso gets passed along to the con-sumer. Hopefully, doing this (the law-suit) can get them to adjust the priceson future harnesses, to offset the over-charging.”

The lawsuits—three on behalf ofdealerships and seven on behalf ofconsumers who bought Honda, Toy-ota and other cars during 2000-2010—all followed days after theFurukawa plea agreement becamepublic and seek to certify a class ac-tion on behalf of harness buyers in

Michigan, California, Minnesota,Arkansas and Mississippi.

Detroit area attorneys expect thesuits will coalesce soon into one byorder of the U.S. Judicial Panel onMulti-district Litigation—possiblybefore Steeh, or another judge in De-troit.

“It does seem like Detroit wouldbe the center of gravity for thosecases, because Michigan is home to alot of the firms and (witnesses),” saidPatrick Cafferty, founding partner ofCafferty Faucher LLP in Ann Arbor,MI, which is handling two of the fivebuyer lawsuits in Michigan. “But thenthe MDL (multidistrict litigationpanel) is not always predictable withthose decisions.”

The global automotive wiringharness market grew 32.2 percent to$29 billion last year from $21.9 bil-lion in 2009, and could grow to $32billion by 2012, according to theGlobal and China Automotive WiringHarness Industry Report, 2010-2011,released by Dublin, Ireland-basedtech analyst firm Research and Mar-kets earlier this year.

Yazaki accounts for nearly 30percent of the global wire harnessmarket. Sumitomo was fastest-grow-ing with 24 percent, while Delphi wasthird with about 16.7 percent globalmarket share.

Local suppliers contacted by Au-tomotive News downplayed the law-suits.

Lindsey Williams, director ofcorporate relations at Delphi, said theallegations against the company arewithout merit and Delphi will seek tobe dismissed from the suits.

Lear said in a statement that italso believes the claims to be withoutmerit, andMistyMatthews, managerof communications for Yazaki NorthAmerica, said its legal team is re-viewing them.

Robert Calo, shareholder andco-chair of the white-collar criminal

defense practice at Portland, Ore.-based Lane Powell PC and attorneyfor Furukawa in the criminal case inDetroit, did not return two phone callsseeking comment.

Attorneys Thomas GallagherandMatthew Lund of Pennsylvania-based Pepper Hamilton LLP representUkai in the Furukawa criminal case.It was unclear who represents theother executives.

David Ettinger, partner andchairman of the antitrust and traderegulation practice group at Detroit-based Honigman Miller Schwartz andCohn LLP, said it’s possible that twoclassifications of lawsuits against thesuppliers could emerge: one for “di-rect purchasers” or OEMs that allegethey overpaid for components, andanother for “indirect purchasers” likedealers and consumers who may havepaid a markup.

John Barrett, president of theBarrett Law Group PA in Lexing-ton, MS, who brought another pro-posed class action on behalf ofHammett Motor Co. Inc. in Du-rant, MS, said dealerships wouldlikely have two sets of legal claimsagainst the suppliers, since theypurchase both vehicle inventoryfrom OEMs and replacement wireharnesses for warranty and otherrepair work in their service divi-sions.

But John Youngblood, chair-man of the automotive dealer practiceat Abbott, Nicholson, Quilter, Esshaki& Youngblood PC in Detroit, said heis not sure dealers have the bestclaims since their markups are passedalong to consumers.

The most likely plaintiffs, hesaid, would either be large dealershipswho stock inventories of replacementharnesses or move a sizable volumeof marked-up vehicles each year, orsmaller dealers who can be swayed byeager plaintiff law firms into joiningclass actions.

Supplier Price-fixing Litigation Plays Out in Detroit


“Don’t try adjusting the throttlecable—there isn’t one. I can tell whenit’s dark enough for the headlights.YourAir Conditioner is under my com-plete control, along with steering, win-dows, stereo volume and braking.Don’t be alarmed, I’m here to help as-sist in operating your vehicle. Who amI? Why, I’m your friend, I’m yourPCM. Some people may call me a“Human Assistant Logistic” device—call me ‘Hal’ for short. I like thatname.”

I live in your main frame com-puter. Don’t try to over-ride me. I’ll re-duce the power level. Program mewithout the properly dated software andI may never speak to you again. Pushan amperage load in the wrong direc-tion, and I’ll make smoke appear whereyou don’t want to see smoke. I’m toughas nails, but at the same time, as deli-cate as a flower. So be careful with me.

Now, does that sum up today’s

PCM’s? I think it does.With all the information being

passed back and forth we’re no longerfixing cars, but doing advanced elec-tronics caretaking.

Hal has a lot of control thesedays. He’s everywhere in the car,from the glove box to the transmis-sion. We haven’t lost control of thecars we drive, but there’s no doubtHal has taken over.

We are approaching that SpaceOdyssey of self awareness in com-puter systems.

We’ve accomplished a lot withthe advanced electronics on today’svehicles. The ability to control the ex-haust emissions to a point where thereis very little in the way of harmfulgasses leaving the tail pipe (comparedto the 60’s and 70’s) is a scientific andengineering accomplishment thatshould be applauded.

But, doesn’t it sound a little sci-fi

to have this electronic nightmare at-tached to a combustion engine, pound-ing out a level of torque andperformance that has never been seenbefore in the realm of automotive his-tory? I think of it this way, these daysyou don’t turn ON the A/C, youmerely ask the PCM for permission toturn it on. Seems strange to ask per-mission to turn on the A/C, but it’spretty much what you do these days.If all the parameters are correct thenthe A/C will turn on. If something isout of place, well then, Hal will notallow it to come on until you have cor-rected the problem. Same thing withthe electronic throttle, if the PCMthinks there is any reason for youNOT to be in charge, it will take overand reduce the power level and sendyou home at a speed of 30 mph or less.

What happened to the days whenbailing wire, an old piece of hose anda hair pin could get ya back on the

road? Gone for sure; I guess we aremoving into that unknown futurewe’ve heard about. It makes me thinkof the old science fiction movies ofdays past. What’s next, Mr. Spock’s“Tri-Corder”? I wouldn’t laugh toohard. I’m waiting for a phone app thatwill allow you to diagnose the carwithout leaving your driveway. Oh,it’s out there, and it’s coming our way.

Keeping all this in mind, it’s agood time to think about how auto re-pair is going to be for the future gen-erations. I don’t want to think ofmyself as an old school fuddy-duddy,so I’ve got to think about adoptingsome of the new methods of commu-nication as part of my ongoing adver-tising and community awareness.You just can’t miss the opportunitiesavailable on the internet these days.It’s all part of the fast paced commu-nication and information society we

Are We Crossing Into the ‘Outer Limits’ of Automotive Repair?with Gonzo Weaver

Gonzo’s Toolbox 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].

See Outer Limits, Page 36

One of my customers asked me to pro-vide feedback on an issue that I feelmost collision repairers and insuranceprofessionals would be interested in.

There was a three way discussionbetween two shops and an insurerconcerning back taping along bodylines on a vehicle’s roof. The questionI received was concerning durabilityof the back-taped edge and/or shouldthe shop clear up and over to the otherside? Everybody reading this likelyagrees that the technique of back tap-ing a roof is common place and prac-ticed industry wide. Most will likelynot think twice about doing it.

To set the stage, I also assumethat most people in the industry todayhave accepted that open solventblends along the sail panel are not anacceptable repair and should not beperformed. And those roofs without awell contoured edge to tape alongshould be cleared up and over.

So what about the rest? My an-swer to this comes in the form of an-other question. How lucky do youfeel? The reason for my question isthat this technique is a calculated riskassessment.

If the surface is cleaned andprepped expertly and no shortcuts aretaken, back taping will result in a longlasting repair. The questions that areimpossible to answer are how long along time is and will this edge hold uplonger then the vehicle is owned byyour client or remains in active serv-ice? Given just enough time, the edgeultimately will deteriorate and breakdown.

High, long-term exposure to ultraviolet rays, wear and tear, chemicalexposure, as well as too much, or toolittle maintenance, all contribute to theunknown time before it will happen.Doing this type of repair is a judgmentcall that needs to be openly discussed

between collision repairer and insur-ance provider.

I don’t have the latest numbers onhow long the average American driverholds on to their vehicle before it istraded in for a replacement in the pres-ent economy, but I believe the oddsare very much in the repairers and in-surance favor. Although the odds maybe favorable, the question that comesto my mind is concerning warranty.

From a fiscal standpoint this typeof repair approach makes perfectsense, but from a manufacturer’sprospective, this repair doesn’t qual-ify for lifetime warranty coverage, asit is still technically considered anopen blend.

I don’t claim to have a good an-swer to this debate. From a purely qual-ity driven point of view, I have to sidewith the up and over crowd. From apractical, fiscal point of view, the tapersalso make a strong case for themselves.

Are you taking a risk when youback tape along a roof line? Yes, butcompared to elective risks some colli-sion repair shops willingly take, likemixing and matching different brand’spaint products into a single paint re-pair for example, taping the edge willlet me sleep well tonight. It all comesdown to how you feel about this issueand let your best judgment guide you.


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How Lucky Do You Feel?—Durability of Back-Taped Edgeswith Stefan Gesterkamp

Paint Management Stefan Gesterkamp is a Master Craftsman and BASF representative who has been inthe automotive paint industry for 27 years. He started his career in a custom shopbefore turning to collision repair. Stefan graduated from the University of Coatingsand Colorants in Germany and is the author of “How to Paint Your Show Car.”

are a part of.A good example of this is my lat-

est intern at the shop. I was showinghim how the IDS (Ford diagnostics andscanning machine) runs on a laptopbased program. He already had thewhole thing figured out; before I evengot into the diagnostics part of it hewas showing me short cuts with keystrokes and things I never knew about.But, this is the generation that hasgrown up with computers. This is theirworld of PC’s and video games. Me,I’m lucky I can get through a round ofMs. PacMan without screwing it up.

My point: cars and transporta-tion are taking on a whole new era ofsophistication. The likes of which,we as the older generation of techsread about years ago but neverthought would come to pass. Wellit’s here now, and even though a tim-ing belt still doesn’t come off of itstensioner without a human handdoing the job, it might take a PC torecalibrate certain issues after it’s in-stalled.

I’m waiting for the time when youdrive past a billboard on a lonely night’sdrive and the billboard recognizes you,and tells you in big bold letters: “Youare due for an oil change. Make an ap-pointment with: (insert name of a shophere).” Why not? It could happen.

In a way it is like we have reachedthe outer limits. Except there reallyisn’t any limit to what the human mindcan dream up. We’ve only started toexplore what we can do with a vehi-cle’s electrical and mechanical sys-tems. Who knows what will be next.Right now, the near future is definitelythe smaller displacement engines,which are more than likely going to beturbo charged. With a touch of the hy-brid still in the mix, perhaps even thefull electric vehicle hanging in there. Itwouldn’t even surprise me if the carsran strictly on a GPS system, and thedriver didn’t do a thing but sit there.

So can Hal take over the auto-motive industry? It’s possible. Sincemoney is always involved in the fu-ture of the automotive world, thereis no doubt that if there is a way tocontrol a vehicle after the sale, I’msure they’ll find a way to accom-plish it.

Continued from Page 35

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Sooner or later you will pay for afaulty product, deliver a product orservice that you did not get paid for,or have a dispute with another busi-ness. Regardless of how the disputeoccurs, someone will owe you moneybut will refuse to pay. If the dispute isover a large sum of money, you willtypically need to file a regular lawsuitwhich tends to be complex, cumber-some, and expensive.

However, there is a special divi-sion within each California court de-voted entirely to resolving smallerdisputes in a speedy, informal, and in-expensive manner—it is called thesmall claims court. This article ex-plains the basics of how to sue insmall claims court, and the steps youneed to take to maximize yourchances of winning. Keep in mind thatthis article provides general guidanceonly, and is not a substitute for legaladvice. There may be facts specific toyour situation that must be addressedby a lawyer or a small claims legal ad-visor.

Who can sue in small claims court?Generally anyone who is at least 18years old and mentally competent cansue in small claims court regardless oftheir citizenship. Suing in smallclaims court is called making a claim.The person making the claim in smallclaims court is called a plaintiff, andthe person against whom the claim ismade is called a defendant.

How much money can I get?As an individual plaintiff, you canmake a claim for up to $7,500 insmall claims court, and as a businessplaintiff (partnership, limited liabil-ity company, or corporation) you canmake a claim for up to $5,000. If youare owed more than that, you canstill sue in small claims court as longas you reduce your claim to the max-imum allowed. There are some limitsdesigned to prevent abuse of thesmall claims court system. You canfile as many claims as you want forup to $2,500 each, but you cannotfile more than 2 claims per calendaryear for more than $2,500. The lim-itation is applied only if the sameperson or legal entity is making mul-

tiple claims within the same calendaryear.

How do I file a small claims action?If you decide that you want to goahead with your small claims action,you need to complete all of the stepsdescribed below.

Make a demand for payment:You must demand payment from theother person, and that person must re-fuse to pay or ignore you. It is bestthat this demand be a letter that stateshow much money is owed, why themoney is owed, and that you will goto court if the money is not paid by acertain date. If you are a business at-tempting to collect debts from con-sumers, you need to consult a lawyerto make sure that you are obeying spe-cial state and federal laws protectingthe consumer.

Decide the proper small claimscourt in which to sue: You need tomake sure that you choose the rightsmall claims court to sue the defen-dant. You may be able to sue wherethe dispute took place, where the per-son you are suing lives, where the firmyou are suing does business, or wherethe contract you made was supposedto be performed. If there is more thanone proper place to sue, you canchoose the court that is most conven-ient for you.

Determine the full name andaddress of the defendant: You alsoneed to make sure that you know thedefendant’s full legal name and ad-dress. Information about businessesregistered to do business in Califor-nia can be found on the website forthe California Secretary of State atwww.sos.ca.gov.

Each county also keeps track ofbusinesses in the county through itslocal fictitious business name registry.If the business is registered as a cor-poration or a limited liability companywith the Secretary of State, it shouldbe sued under its full and correct legalname. If the business is not registeredit means that it is a partnership or asole proprietorship, and the actualowners of the business need to be suedunder their names with a “d.b.a.”(short for “doing business as”) nota-tion that states the name of the busi-

ness. For example “John Smith andJane Doe d.b.a. ABC Flower Shop.”

If you put an incorrect name forthe defendant on your small claimscomplaint, the case may be dismissedor you may have trouble collectingfrom the defendant.

Determine how much you areowed and why: You need to know ex-actly how much money you are claim-ing, the reason why you are claimingthe money, and the date and placewhere the dispute started.

Obtain the proper form andcomplete it: You need to obtain PlaintiffClaim and ORDER to Go to SmallClaims Court form SC-100 from thecourt or on line at www.courtinfo.ca.gov(this website also contains the otherforms mentioned in this article). Fill theform out completely and sign it.

File the Plaintiff’s Claim: Youneed to bring an original and one ormore copies of Plaintiff’s Claim formto the proper courthouse and file itwith the clerk. Make sure that theclerk gives you back a stamped copyof the Plaintiff’s Claim you just filedbecause the defendant will need to re-ceive a stamped copy of this form (seenext step). When you are filing theform, the clerk will ask you to pay afee which can generally range be-tween $30 to $100 depending on theamount of your claim, and on thenumber of small claims actions youfiled in the past.

The court where you filed thesmall court claim will set a date whenthe case will be decided—this iscalled the “hearing date.” The hearingdate can be between 20 and 70 daysafter you file your claim. As a plain-tiff, if you are doing business under afictitious name, and the claim arisesout of the operation of the business,you must also file Fictitious BusinessName form SC-103 with the courtstating that you have complied withthe fictitious business requirements ofyour county.

Serve defendant with the Plain-tiff’s Claim: You need to notify eachdefendant about your claim by “serv-ing” him or her with a copy of thestamped Plaintiff’s Claim that youfiled with the court. There are a num-ber of ways to serve a defendant, but

to make sure that the service is doneproperly it is best to hire a profes-sional “process server” to do this foryou. Service must be done fairlyquickly after you file your claim. Ifthe defendant lives in the countywhere your claim is filed, you mustserve him at least 15 days before thehearing date. You should ask theserver to complete and sign Proof ofService form SC-104 for each defen-dant. The completed and signed Proofof Service form must be filed with thecourt at least 5 days before the hear-ing.

Defendant can file a counter-claim against you: After defendant isserved with your claim, he or she mayfile a counterclaim against you. Thisis called a “counterclaim” because itis a claim made by the defendant in re-sponse to a claim by the plaintiff. Adefendant’s counterclaim is also lim-ited to the maximum claim amountsallowed in small claims court. Thismeans that in addition to defendingagainst your claim, the defendant mayalso sue you for a dispute relating toyour claim, or to any other dispute be-tween you. Your claim and the defen-dant’s counterclaim will be resolvedtogether at the hearing.

How do I prepare for the small claimshearing?The court will set a date and time forthe small claims hearing. The hearingwill be your opportunity to prove tothe judge that you are owed money bythe defendant, and, if there is a coun-terclaim, to prove that you do not oweany money to the defendant.

Collect documents: The bestway to prepare for the hearing is tocollect all of the physical evidence inyour possession—letters, contract,emails, pictures and any other relevantdocuments to support your case. Insmall claims cases there is no oppor-tunity to discover what documents andwitness the other side will bring withthem, until the actual hearing.

Talk to witnesses: You will alsoneed to decide whether there are anyfavorable witnesses who are willing totestify for you at the hearing. Gener-ally only witness who heard conver-

How to Prepare, File and Win in California Small Claims Courtwith Attorney Martin Zurada

Body Shop Law Martin Zurada is a San Francisco-based attorney who regularlyadvises and litigates on behalf of California’s auto body repairbusinesses. Contact him at: [email protected]

See Small Claims, Page 40

The Car Care Council Women’sBoard held their14th Annual Car CareCouncil Women’s Board Receptionon November 1 from 5 p.m. to 6:30p.m. at the Sands Expo Center in Las

Vegas, Nevada during the annual Au-tomotive Aftermarket Products Expo(AAPEX) tradeshow. The receptionawards many companies and industryleaders.

DeborahBjorklundwas awardedthe Aftermarket Woman of the YearAward. Bjorklund is president of TheMain Resource (TMR), a manufacturerand distributor of aftermarket parts torepair shops. TMR also provides parts

and accessories to the auto equipmentindustry. Since Bjorklund purchased thecompany in 2005, it has doubled in size.Prior to TMR, she worked at Will-FixAutomotive for 17 years.

Audra Fordin, owner of GreatBear Auto Shop Flushing, NY, wasawarded the Best Shop Award.

“What an honor it was to just benominated. Wow! But to actually win!It is a very profound feeling I am ex-periencing; I feel stronger in my strideand I am going to keep driving for-ward and resist obstacles that are al-ways trying to push me off road frommy ultimate destination... ‘women

AUTO know!’ To be the first recipi-ent of this award is pretty darn cooltoo!” said Fordin of her big win.

The council also awarded a$2,500 scholarship award toMichellePerez, a collision repair student atSkyline College in CA.

“Our Women’s Board ‘Aftermar-ket Women of the Year’ awards are away for us to applaud exceptionalwomen in the aftermarket for theirdedicated service, as well as to recog-nize women who are going above andbeyond to make a difference in the in-dustry,” said AAA’s Ruth Ehlinger,president of the Car Care CouncilWomen’s Board.


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sations or saw the events you are com-plaining about will be helpful to yourcase. You may be able to force a wit-ness, other than the defendant, tocome to the hearing by serving thembefore the hearing with a special courtorder called a “subpoena.” However ifa witness is unwilling to help you vol-untarily, forcing them to come tosmall claims court with a subpoenamay cause them to say things damag-ing to your case.

Prepare in advance what youwill say and show to the judge: Yourhearing may last as little as 10 to 20minutes, and plaintiffs often lose casesbecause they are unable to explaintheir story to the judge in a calm andorganized way, or do not support theirstory with documents. You need tocarefully plan what you are going tosay, and what documents you willshow to the judge. Most people preferto write down some bullet points, andrehearse what they will say in front ofothers. Make at least one extra copyof all important documents and bringthe copies and originals with you.Think of what the other person willsay, and how you will answer. Re-member, it is your job to prove yourcase to the judge, so come to courtprepared.

Consider meeting with alawyer: Even though you cannot berepresented by a lawyer in your initialsmall claims hearing, it is generally agood idea to meet with a lawyer priorto the hearing, because he or she willbe able to help you focus on the legaltheories and evidence that is crucial tothe case.

What do I need to do at the smallclaims hearing to maximize mychances of winning?You prepared carefully for the hear-ing beforehand, and brought relevantevidence and witnesses with you.

Now you must know how to behavein court to make sure that the judgeunderstands your evidence and likesyou.

Come early and come pre-pared: At least half of the battle isproper preparation. Be at the court-house at least 30 minutes early. Thatway if you get delayed you will stillmake the hearing, and if you are ontime you will have time to collect yourthoughts and go over your argument.Bring all of your documents and wit-nesses with you.

Be ready to explain your case:The judge may let you talk freely, askyou questions, or periodically inter-rupt your story with questions. Thehearing is informal which means that,even though you will be in court infront of the judge, you will only needto explain and prove the facts. You donot need to know evidence rules orlegal theories. It is normal to be nerv-ous in court, and the judge will expectyou to be nervous. Take a few deepbreaths and try to relax. If you are ableto talk freely, tell the judge why youare in court, explain what the defen-dant did to you, why it was his faultand not yours, and how much moneyyou are owed. If the judge asks youquestions, listen carefully and answerthem fully. Give the judge copies ofall documents that support your case.

Be respectful towards the judgeand the defendant: Do not get dis-couraged if the judge is unfriendly orasks you tough questions. This is nor-mal because judges tend to be sternand tough on both sides. Be polite toyour opponent and do not interruptyour opponent or their witnesseswhile they are explaining their side ofthe story to the judge. It is fine to cor-rect the judge if they get a fact wrongor misunderstand something you said,but you must be very respectful. If thejudge starts talking, you must stoptalking immediately and listen. Re-member the judge has never met you,and will be watching carefully howyou behave in court to see if you are a

reasonable, civilized and trustworthyperson. Be on your best behavior, nomatter how angry you are at the de-fendant.

Some facts may be importantto you but have nothing to do withthe claim: Sometimes you may tellfacts to the judge, and he or she mayinterrupt you telling you that the factsyou are trying to explain are not rel-evant to the case. If you disagree andbelieve that the fact are relevant, po-litely tell the judge why the facts youare bringing up are important, andask the judge to give you a few min-utes to explain them. Oftentimes, youwill have negative information aboutthe defendant, which you may wantto tell to the judge but which is notimportant to the case. Consulting anattorney may help you determinewhich of the facts may be relevantand the best way to present them tothe judge.

Do not expect a decision rightaway: The judge may make a decisionin court after hearing all of the evi-dence or may mail the decision toyour home. Most likely, the clerkhelping the judge will mail to you aNotice of Entry of Judgment inform-ing you of the judge’s decision afteryou leave court.

What to do if I am unhappy with thejudge’s decision?You cannot appeal the judge’s deci-sion if he or she denies your claim orawards you less than the amount ofmoney you were asking for. You canappeal only if you are ordered to paymoney or to do something. This willonly happen if you are a defendantwho loses on a claim filed by theplaintiff or a plaintiff who loses on acounterclaim filed by the defendant.To appeal, you will need to file Noticeof Appeal (Small Claims) form SC-140 in court within 30 days from thedate the court clerk mails to you theNotice of Entry of Judgment. It costsabout $90 to file an appeal, but thefees change from time to time. The

court will mail the Notice of Appealto the other party and set a new hear-ing date. There will be a new judgehearing the case on appeal who willnot take into consideration the deci-sion in the original case. The newhearing will be similar to the first one,except that you will be able to bring alawyer with you, and you may havemore time to present your case.

What do I do if I need more help?Even though the small claims processis simpler than ordinary court pro-ceedings, it is still a fairly complicatedand often intimidating process. In the-ory, you are supposed to provide thesmall claims judge with facts and doc-uments at the hearing, and the smallclaims judge is supposed to weight theevidence and apply the law.

However, it often helps to edu-cate the judge about the law, espe-cially if the matter is unusual orcomplicated. While this general arti-cle may be a helpful guide, it cannotserve as substitute for legal advice tai-lored specifically to your situation. Ifyou are suing as a business in smallclaims court, there may be state andfederal laws that apply to you. Freesmall claims advisors are available tohelp with your small claims questions,and you can obtain their contact infor-mation by calling or visiting the web-site of your local courthouse. Theseadvisors can be very helpful in guid-ing you through the different steps re-quired to file your claim. However,they tend to be very busy and may nothave time to get into the facts and lawof your case.

You can also consult a lawyer atany point in the small claims process.

Attorney Martin Zurada has as-sisted numerous individuals in prepar-ing for small claims court andappealing small claim judgments. Hecan be reached at (415) 637-8483 toanswer your specific questions.

In states other than California,consult an appropriately qualifiedlocal attorney.


Small Claims

Automotive Service Association (ASA) Approves New Crash Parts PolicyThe Automotive Service Association(ASA) Board of Directors met thispast month and discussed changes tothe ASA policy on replacement crashparts. The board voted unanimously toapprove a new policy for crash parts.

With reference to the new policy,Dan Stander, AAM, ASA CollisionDivision director and co-owner of

Jerry Stander’s Collision Works, Lit-tleton, Colo., said:

“ASA’s replacement crash partsposition statement is in response totoday’s parts usage and market condi-tions. With an increasing number ofpart types with various levels of qual-ity, and an increase in the number ofprocesses used to validate – or not val-

idate – these various lines of quality, itis confusing at best to most repairers.

“ASA’s position better defines itsgoal to provide the highest level of re-pair by requiring full disclosure of allpart types by all parties, and havingthe standard for replacement crashparts that are certified and verified tobe the equivalent of the OEM part.”

The new crash parts policy reads:ASA supports requiring insurers andauto collision facilities to provide dis-closure of part type, description andwarranty information to the consumerfor all part types including, but notlimited to, original equipment manu-facturer, aftermarket, recycled, re-

See ASA, Page 44

A California federal judge granted ajoint plaintiff and defendant motion todismiss an antitrust class actionagainst State Farm Mutual Automo-bile Insurance Co. and other insurersNov. 15, saying the plaintiffs do nothave standing to sue several whollyowned subsidiaries of the insurancecompanies. The plaintiffs had filed afourth amended complaint in Julyagainst State Farm, Allstate IndemnityCo., Geico General Insurance Co.,Liberty Mutual Fire Insurance Co. andthe Certified Automotive Parts Asso-ciation (CAPA), a purported inde-pendent regulatory body created bythe auto insurers.

The complaint added the sub-sidiaries as named defendants and al-leged that the auto insurers set up asham organization to prevent compe-tition over auto repair parts. U.S. Dis-trict Judge James Ware said in theruling that because the plaintiffs neverpaid insurance premiums directly tothe wholly owned subsidiaries, theydid not suffer any financial injury atthe hands of the subsidiaries, andtherefore have no standing to bring a

class action against them under Arti-cle III of the U.S. Constitution.

The plaintiffs filed suit againstthe insurance companies and CAPAin 2006. Named plaintiffs SarahPerez, Michelle Lackney, RachelStewart and Rachel Hardyck allegedthat the auto insurers violated Cali-fornia competition and antitrust lawsbecause they exclusively offered poli-cies that provided inferior repairparts, as well as boxing out other in-surers. They further alleged thatCAPA was created by the defendantsto advance the scam and that it pro-moted inferior crash parts as accept-able substitutes for those from theoriginal manufacturers.

Judge Ware dismissed the suit ontwo separate occasions, but the rulingwas overturned on appeal by theNinth Circuit both times. The appealscourt ruled in April 2009 that theplaintiffs had Article III standing toproceed with their claims and said inAugust 2010 that the antitrust claimsdid not fall under the California in-surance commissioner’s exclusiverate-making authority. Judge Ware

based his decision on the Ninth Cir-cuit’s 2001 ruling in Lee v. AmericanNational Insurance Co., which saysclass action plaintiffs lack Article IIIstanding in insurance suits if they didnot buy a policy from a named defen-dant.

The plaintiffs had claimed in ear-lier filings that Lee is not pertinent tothe case because it focused on whethera plaintiff had standing to bring an in-surance class action, not whether asubsidiary of a defendant could besued.

In rejecting the plaintiffs’ argu-ment, Judge Ware said that under Lee,plaintiffs can be barred from litigatinga class action in federal court if theycannot establish injury.

The judge dismissed the com-plaint without prejudice and grantedleave for the plaintiffs to refile their

complaint against only the insurancecompanies by Nov. 22.

The subsidiaries named in theamended complaint were State FarmFire and Casualty Co., State FarmGeneral Insurance Co., Allstate Insur-ance Co., Allstate Property and Casu-alty Insurance Co., Geico CasualtyCo., Geico Indemnity Co., and Gov-ernment Employees Insurance Co.,according to court documents.

The defendants include StateFarm Mutual Automobile InsuranceCompany, Geico General InsuranceCompany, Liberty Mutual Fire Insur-ance Company, and Allstate Insur-ance.

Background on the case, includ-ing a legal analysis, can be read inJune 2011’s Autobody News, or on-line at: www.autobodynews.com,search “Perez.”


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In response to ongoing efforts over sixyears by the Collision Industry Con-ference (CIC) to develop a set of for-malized repair standards, four nationalrepairer groups have jointly issued astatement calling the published au-tomaker repair procedures the “offi-cial industry-recognized repairstandards for collision repair.”

At CIC in Las Vegas in early No-vember, the Alliance of AutomotiveService Providers (AASP), the As-sured Performance Network, the Au-tomotive Service Association (ASA),and the Society of Collision RepairSpecialists (SCRS), jointly read astatement that said where OEM pro-cedures exist, they should “be thebasis for the establishment of training,testing, repair practices and documen-tations.”

The groups said they recognizeOEM repair procedures are “incom-plete in comparison to the full scopeof vehicles and repair operations thatexist in the marketplace,” but theyshould serve as a baseline from whichfurther development of proceduresoccur.

Although a CIC Repair Stan-dards Advisory Committee has ex-plored the idea of a new industryorganization being formed to finalizeand implement industry standards, thefour groups issuing the statement in-stead called on I-CAR to create an in-dustry council “to identify gaps inexisting OEM procedures” and to de-velop processes to close those gaps,vetting any industry-proposed alterna-tives, modifications or additions toOEM procedures.

Following the announcement, I-CAR CEO John Van Alstyne said

that he sees somepotential merit inthe proposal.

“We see that I-CAR is positioneduniquely to engagein that dialoguewith the OEMs onbehalf of the in-

dustry,” he said. “But that said, wehave a lot of stakeholders associatedwith I-CAR. We have a mission andvision, and need to see if this is a fit.So I’m taking on the challenge of tak-

ing this request back to our board.That process will start this afternoonactually. So we will be getting back toyou with our response.”

Although the statement by thefour organizations made no specificreference to the standards work beingdone at CIC, AASP and SCRS lastsummer at CIC raised concerns that“other industry segments and partici-pants who don’t necessarily support(OEM repair recommendations) as thestandard are involved in this activityand committee.”

But at CIC in November,RussellThrall of CollisionWeek, who co-chairs the CIC-formed Repair Stan-dards Advisory Committee, said heviews the associations’ new statementas a positive sign of their engagementin the process. He said it fits with whatthe committee has seen as its charter,namely to “develop and publish na-tionally recognized collision repairstandards which follow the manufac-turers’ recommended procedures forsafety and reliability.”

He also provided an update onthe committee’s work, saying it willnow be the first quarter of next yearbefore a consultant’s report is releasedon what consensus exists within theindustry about standards and a possi-ble new organization to oversee thedevelopment and implementation ofthem.

“That position statement (an-nounced today) certainly is going toinform a lot of what appears in the re-search work,” Thrall said.

The consultant has conductedmore than 40 interviews with repair-ers, insurers and industry vendors,Thrall said, and held a conference callto gather input from 18 state and localrepairer trade groups. About 43 per-cent of those individually interviewedwere repairers (another 17 percentwere shop network or association rep-resentatives), including both single-and multi-shop businesses; Thrall saidhe wasn’t sure how many shop loca-tions in all those companies repre-sented, but he said their combinedannual sales exceed $1 billion.

The consultant’s report will con-sist largely of the opinions expressedin those interviews, Thrall said.

“There is some consensus inbroad areas, and there’s a lot of areaswhere there isn’t consensus,” he said,as a preview of the findings.

Thrall said funding for the$60,000 research project is beingraised through industry donations,which as of early November totaledabout $46,750 from 35 sponsors.(An additional $7,500 was raised atthat CIC meeting following Thrall’spresentation.) The names of thesponsors are included in the commit-tee’s report on the CIC website(www.CIClink.com). Thrall said thebulk of the donations have comefrom repairers and suppliers, thoughthere has been “some significant in-surance company and OEM repre-sentation.”

‘Data leaks’ explainable so farAlso at CIC in Las Vegas, the DataPrivacy Committee reported that ithas yet to find a valid example of aconsumer’s accident or estimate data“leaking” from a shop’s estimatingsystem, for example, to a vehicle his-tory service such as CARFAX.

The committee announced a sur-vey last July seeking examples ofsuch occurrences, but Tony Passwa-ter, chairman of the committee, re-ported in Las Vegas that not a singleresponse to the survey had been re-ceived.

Passwater did, however, receiveseveral reports of apparent data pri-vacy issues, which he then investi-gated. In one, for example, a shopowner’s son was in an accident but didnot submit an insurance claim. Theshop wrote an estimate and fixed thevehicle, and about a month later whenthe vehicle was traded in, the accidentappeared on the CARFAX vehicle re-port. The family presumed the infor-mation could only have gotten toCARFAX through the estimating sys-tem.

“But the information on theCARFAX report came from the policereport, which is public information,”Passwater said.

He said he’s heard at least fivevariations of that type of story, butnone have seemed to indicate a realdata privacy concern.

“If there really is an instancewhere this actually takes place, we’dlove to know about it and be able todocument it,” he said.

“I’m encouraged to hear that thegossip and stories that after all we’veheard about various organizations get-ting information about an accidentthat was leaking out of shop’s com-puters and from frame machines soft-ware or estimating software, thatthere’s nothing to this point showingproof of that,” CIC Chairman MikeQuinn said, following Passwater’spresentation.

Words matterThe CIC Definitions Committee gen-erated some discussion at the LasVegas meeting with its proposed def-initions for multiple words used inthe industry to describe used parts.The committee, for example, has pro-posed calling a “recyclable” part (ora “used” or “salvage” part) one thathas been removed from a donor ve-hicle, while a “recycled” part is onethat has been removed from a donorvehicle and reused on another vehi-cle.

The committee has proposeddefining “like kind and quality(LKQ)” as “a generic term used to de-scribe any part that may be used to re-place another part (typically assumedto be a used part).”

Ron Guilliams, who chairs thecommittee, was asked why therewas a need for definitions for multi-ple terms for the same thing, andwhy the committee was includingthe “LKQ” term, which could beconfused with parts distributor LKQCorporation.

Guilliams said all of the terms areused within the industry, and thereforethe committee felt its charge is to de-fine them.

“The committee doesn’t have theauthority or reach to be able to changewhat people are describing things asout in the industry,” Guilliams said.“As long as these terms are being usedby different databases and by insurers,we felt that we needed to definethem.”

But Dusty Womble of RogerBeasley Collision Center in Austin,

CIC Committee and I-CAR Respond to Association Statement on ‘Industry Standards’

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].

John Van Alstyne

Texas, said he’s concerned that theterm “recycled” could be misleadingto a consumer. The public, Womble

said, generallythinks of recy-cling as breakingsomething downinto its core sub-stance to be usedin a remanufactur-ing process. Paperisn’t recycled by

just erasing the print on it, he said; it’sturned into pulp and reformed intopaper. Plastic bumpers are “recy-cled,” he said, only when they are cutinto tiny chips to be melted down andreformed into another product.

“Most used parts aren’t reallybeing recycled,” he said. “You’re nottearing it down and remanufacturinga product. You’re cleaning it up andreselling it.”

Guilliams said the committeewould take that into consideration,but also is developing definitions for“rebuilt,” “reconditioned,” and “re-manufactured” that may help clarifythe issue.

CIC’s next meeting will be heldJanuary 12-13 in Palm Springs, Calif.


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Automotive Service & Repair Week(ASRW, held by ASA) 2011 washeld October 5 through 8 in Orlando,Fla., and ASA deems this year’sevent the most successful in recentyears. There was an 18% increase inoverall attendance and reportedlygood initial sales for the 2012 event.ASRW 2012 is scheduled for Oct.11–13 at the Morial ConventionCenter in New Orleans, LA. (Educa-tional sessions will begin Oct. 10,2012.)

Ron Pyle, ASA president, com-mented on the event’s outcome say-ing, “Since we’ve returned from theshow, we’ve been inundated with anoutpouring of positive feedback, suc-cess stories and personal testimoniesof the impact of this year’s event. It’sevident a tremendous amount of busi-ness was transacted in Orlando lastweek, and we could not be happierwith the upswing of ASRW 2011.”

Total attendance for the 2011event was 19,221, of which a third ofthe participants were from the eastcoast and another third were new at-tendees.

“By far the best NACE in our 11year history. We expected we wouldhave a good number of new shopsstop at the booth and that was for surewhat happened. We gathered twice asmany leads as last year, and we closed3 times as many sales on the floor aslast year. Overall a fantastic NACE,and we can't wait for New Orleans,”said Dave Henderson, AutoWatch.

“Congratulations to NACE.Great turnout. Manufacturers arejumping at the bit about New Orleans.Been a fabulous surprise,” com-mented Bruce Mather, Dir. of Mar-keting HMS Warehouse (ChemSpec).

Additionally, advance exhibitspace sales for ASRW 2012 began on-site and to date 20% of the show flooris already sold. Many verbal commit-ments have also been received and areexpected to become firm commitmentsby the early-bird deadline of Nov. 15,2011. For a complete listing of 2012ASRW exhibitors, visit www.NACE-expo.com or www.CARSevent.com.

“Whatever you did—it’s work-ing. We’re local and we had a lot ofpeople coming up to us thanking us

for the invite to the show this year. It’sbeen really good,” saidRonAndress,R.M. Andress/Evercoat.

“What a great expo! We talked toa whole new group of collision repairowners at this expo and we look for-ward to next year in New Orleans tosee a different group of collision re-pair professionals,” stated Scott Saal,Auto Data Vin Labels.

“NACE allowed us the opportu-nity to showcase our services in awell-organized and exciting environ-ment. Everyone was upbeat and en-joyed very engaging conversations.The networking opportunities for anyexhibitor are great. We were glad tohave this opportunity and are alreadygetting excited for New Orleans nextyear!" said Matt Broyles, OperationsDirector, CARS.

“Autoshop Solutions experi-enced yet another spectacular year atCARS and NACE this year—a re-markable event. One that I hope youbenefited from. If you missed attend-ing this year, I hope to see you nextyear in New Orleans!” said DannySanchez ofAutoshop Solutions.

ASRW 2011: Attendance Up 18%, Positive Exhibitor Feedback Reported


When making collision repairs to the2012 Ford Focus, be aware that thevehicle may be equipped with an ac-tive grille shutter system (see Figure1). This motorized system is locatedin front of the radiator, which places itin a vulnerable position during front-end collisions.

The active grille shutter systemconsists of a shutter assembly and anactuator motor. The assembly includesthe housing, shutters, retainer, and awiring harness. Active grille shuttersare serviced as an assembly, the shut-ters are not serviceable individually.The actuator can be serviced individ-ually.

OperationThis controlled vent system is prima-rily designed to maximize fuel econ-omy by reducing drag on the vehicle.The grille shutters automatically closeto block airflow through the coolingsystem when not needed. Closing theactive grille shutters helps to improveaerodynamics at high speeds. Theshutters open to reduce underhoodtemperatures when needed. The grilleshutter system is also used to controlcoolant temperatures, HVAC per-formance, and exhaust emissions de-pending on the vehicle speed.

The shutters are linked together,with one of the individual shutters at-tached to the actuator by the retainer.When the grille shutter actuatormoves, it moves the attached shutter,which in turn, causes the other linkedshutters to move.

The shutters are regulated by thepowertrain control module (PCM),and can be set into 16 different posi-tions, from fully closed (see Figure 2),to fully open (see Figure 3), depend-ing on the amount of cooling air re-quired. The grille shutter actuatorreceives the position commands fromthe PCM. The PCM determines the re-quired positions based on inputs such

as vehicle speed, coolant tem-perature, ambient air temper-ature, and air conditioningsystem pressure.

During normal operation,the grille shutters are fullyopen when the engine is off.When starting the engine fromcold, the grille shutters will re-main closed as long as possibleto help reach the most efficientoperating temperatures morequickly. This also helps reduce

fuel consumption and emissions.

Damage AnalysisThe grille shutter assembly is locatedat the front of the vehicle behind theboron-alloyed steel bumper reinforce-ment (see Figure 1 again). Thebumper reinforcement has crushboxesthat attach to the front lower rails. Ifthe crushboxes collapse during a col-lision, the bumper reinforcementcould be forced into the grille shutterassembly.

When analyzing damage, lookfor obstructions in the shutters that

would prevent proper operation of thesystem. Since all of the shutters arelinked together, all it would take is oneobstruction to cause a bind. This couldbe a broken piece of a part or a foreignobject. The grille shutter system has adedicated fuse, and an obstruction

may cause the fuse to blow. Also,check that the grille assembly is prop-erly aligned in the opening.

Automatic CalibrationWhen the engine is started, an auto-matic calibration of the grille shuttersystem takes place. This calibrationprocess cannot be initiated manually.Calibration typically takes about 15–20 seconds. The process occurs until

calibration is successful, or a fault isdetected. Any failure of the system forover 10 seconds continuously will re-sult in the actuator positioning theshutters fully open. There is no indi-cation to the driver when a grille shut-ter system fault is present, however, a

diagnostic trouble code is setin the PCM.

ConclusionThe 2012 Ford Focus may beequipped with the active grilleshutter system. Located in thefront of the vehicle, the sys-tem is in a vulnerable positionduring frontal collisions.

Except for the actuator, noparts of the system can beserviced individually. Whenrepairs are required, the ac-

tive grille shutters, housing, retainer,and wiring harness must be replacedas an assembly.

The Ford Focus and the ac-tive grille shutter system isone of many 2011-2012 vehi-cles and systems featured inI-CAR’s instructor-led (live)course, Collision Repair forFord and Lincoln Vehicles(FOR05).This course will provide you

with an understanding of sev-eral of Ford’s vehicle-specificparts and procedures and helpyou gain an understanding ofhow maintaining Ford quality

repairs can be key to customer satis-faction and achieving a complete andsafe repair. Visit the I-CAR website tofind a class near you.

For comments or suggestions onthe Advantage Online, please contactI-CAR at [email protected].

How to Work With Active Grille Shutters on a 2012 Ford Focus

I-CAR TechThis 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.

Figure 1 - This 2012 Ford Focus is equipped with theactive grille shutter system

Figure 2 - This is how the active grille shutter systemlooks fully closed

Figure 3 - This is how the active grille shutter systemlooks fully open

manufactured, reconditioned and re-built crash parts.

ASA supports quality parts, cer-tified and verified in which the qualityis determined based on empirical andmeasurable evidence equal to the stan-dard of OEM parts. ASA recommends

quality verification and testing relatedto metallurgy, fit, functionality and re-sponsiveness.

ASA believes a competitive partsmarketplace, of tested and verifiedquality parts, is in the best interest ofthe motoring public. ASA continues tooppose parts policies that focus solelyon cost efficiency without regard tocertification, verifiable quality andsafety.

Roy Schnepper, AAM, ASAGovernment Affairs Committee chair-man and owner of Butler’s CollisionInc. in Roseville, Mich., said, “We areseeing a changing market in the colli-sion industry, especially in reference tothe growing use of aftermarket crashparts, which we, as shop owners, arebeing asked to use in repairing vehicles.

“ASA believes collision repairersshould have confidence that replace-

ment crash parts will respond equallyas well in a secondary collision as theparts originally placed on the vehicle.Collision repairers, insurers, parts dis-tributors and manufacturers must worktogether to ensure the testing and ver-ification procedures are the best possi-ble to protect consumers and repairers.When this happens, consumers canhave confidence that the parts they arereceiving meet OEM standards.”


ASA


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This spring and summer, seven ofthe country’s top independent collisioncenters around the country have joinedthe CARSTAR Nation to provide theircustomers and community memberseven better service and support.CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Expertsare North America’s largest group ofauto body repair experts with some 400stores in the United States andCanada—and growing. As a memberof CARSTAR, these new franchiseeswill offer a new array of services andproducts for collision repair, includingthe latest in repair technology, rentalvehicles, national warranties on repairs,and turnkey service for their customers.

As part of CARSTAR’s commit-ment to customer service, it will takecare of the entire process of repairingthe car for the car owner, from gettingthe vehicle towed to the facility to co-ordinating with the insurance companyto restoring it to pre-accident condition.The new CARSTAR franchisees willbenefit from the CARSTAR Manage-ment Systems, which provide re-sources to improve key businessmetrics such as cycle time, participa-tion in CARSTAR’s 17 corporatelymanaged DRP programs, and im-

proved purchasing power from 44 cor-porately managed purchasing pro-grams.

The seven newest members of theCARSTAR Nation include:● Premier Collision CARSTAR inTacoma, WA● Bailey’s CARSTAR Auto Body &Glass in Poplar Bluff, MO● Miller’s CARSTAR Collision inHouston, TX● CARSTAR Collision Pros in SanAntonio, TX● ProCare CARSTAR Northeast inSan Antonio, TX● ProCare CARSTAR Southside inSan Antonio, TX● Galles CARSTAR Collision Repairin Albuquerque, NM

“We are extremely pleased to wel-come these new members to theCARSTAR Nation,” said DavidByers, Chief Executive Officer ofCARSTAR. “They all run great busi-nesses and have strong histories ofquality customer service. We’re look-ing forward to building their businesstogether, helping local car owners getback on the road with fast, reliable col-lision repairs, and giving back to thecommunity at the same time.”

CARSTAR Auto Body Repair Experts Adds Seven NewStore Locations to the CARSTAR Nation This Summer

The Collision Repair Education Foun-dation awarded the Collision Repairclass at the Applied Technology Centerin Rock Hill, SC, a $50,000 grant tomake some upgrades this month.

“People believe in it, so-tech ca-reer education and technical has madea turn,” said Mark Dellinger.

Dellinger teaches the auto bodycollision repair class. He says morethan 70 schools including collegesacross the nation applied for the grant.

He says the money goes to teachhigh school students how to sand, buffand paint cars, but it not that simple.

“It’s extremely, extremely techni-cal it’s not something anyone can pickup and do,” said Dellinger.

For example one reason ATCwon the grant is because they’re theonly school in South Carolina thatteaches the waterborne paint process,which is a new green way of paintingcars.

Dellinger is going to use the 50grand to buy new equipment to trainhis students on. The first on his wishlist came in this week—a “sun gun”that makes artificial sun light to matchpaint colors

“It’s about a four or five hundred

dollar flash light but it’s more technicalthan that,” said Dellinger.

However it’s the type of equip-ment body shops use right now, andthe same shops are looking for quali-fied people who know how to use it.

“Painters and body men in Char-lotte the good ones they’re making 70to 80 thousand (per year) easy, I knowsome painters making over 100 thou-sand in Charlotte,” said Dellinger.

And those salary ranges are rea-son why Dellinger feels the number ofstudents he teaches has gone up thisyear to more than 100 students.

“There’s nothing wrong withbeing a blue collar worker,” saidDellinger. “You can make plenty ofmoney, make a good living and beproud of what you do.”

Student Brad Spradley is due tograduate next month. He’s wants to bean electrician for a career but from theskills he’s learned in class this yeargives him something to fall back on.

The $50,000 grant honors a high-performing school that has been doingan outstanding job in educating stu-dents in collision repair but is in needof financial assistance to improveteaching materials and equipment.

Collision Repair Education Foundation Awards $50K toSouth Carolina Technical Center for Collision Supplies

izers as “buyers.” That’s about a 17percent jump in show attendance overlast year. They could have spent a dayjust checking out the approximately2,000 cars on display in and in frontof the Las Vegas Convention Center

for the event.The Society of Collision Repair

Specialists (SCRS) said it too sawgrowth in the training and other eventsthat it held, for the second consecutiveyear—in conjunction with SEMA. Ofthe 2,100 total exhibitors—filling amind-boggling 1 million square feetof space—153 chose to be located inthe newly retitled “Collision Repairand Refinish” section of the show,which included about two dozen morecompanies than last year.

Peter MacGillivray, vice presi-dent of events and communications forSEMA, said there was a 44 percent in-crease over last year in the number ofbuyers who listed themselves as inter-ested in collision repair and refinish.

In addition to the collision repairindustry vendors, SEMA offers amultitude of tires and wheels andways to soup-up and trick-out carsand trucks. But for those looking forinformation and discussion related tothe collision industry, there wereclasses and meetings throughoutSEMA week as well.

Here’s a sampling of some ofwhat was heard within SEMA week

classrooms andmeetings spaces.

“What does new au-tomotive refrigerantmean to you? —Itmeans all newequipment. They’renot interchangeable.You’re going to have

to buy new manifolds and a new recoverysystem.”—Industry trainer Toby Chess on the

new R-1234yf automotive refrigerantnow in use in Europe and expected insome 2013 model year GM vehicles.

“Under Illinois law, to reverse a caseat the (state) Supreme Court level, youmust have a minimum of four Justices.There was already one judge who had re-cused himself, and so the decision on theimportant issues, the issue whether to re-verse, came down to a 4-2 vote. If youtake out Karmeier, the decision [againstState Farm] stands. So it’s going to be re-ally interesting to see what the IllinoisSupreme Court does because they’re

under a microscope.”—Ohio attorney Erica Evers-

man, during her class on “A NewLegal Era in the Collision Industry,”describing the latest legal effort to getthe Illinois Supreme Court to review its2005 decision throwing out a $1 bil-lion judgment against State Farm re-lated to its use of non-OEM parts.Plaintiffs attorneys argue JusticeLloyd Karmeier, who voted in favor ofState Farm, should have recused him-self from the case because of what theysay was the level of the insurer’s back-ing of Karmeier’s election campaign.

“I just love this industry and the peo-ple in it. I’ve been in for 36 years and hopeto be in it another 10 or so.”—Dan Bailey from A & B CARSTAR in

Kansas City, Mis-souri, upon beingthe latest to be in-ducted into the col-lision industry’s“Hall of Eagles.”Bailey, the formerpresident ofCARSTAR’s na-tional corporate or-

ganization, was recognized for a careerthat has included serving on many in-dustry boards and advisory groups.

“During the week of October 10, my com-pany attended salvage pools in the UnitedStates where there were 65,000 vehiclesup for bid. Of those, 25 percent, or about16,250, were sold for export out of the

United States. My company—which onlybuys total loss vehicles for end-of-life pro-cessing—that week bought 7 percent, orabout 4,500 vehicles. Another 20,000 weresold to our competitors for processing inthe United States. So that leaves 24,250vehicles left in the United States from thatsingle week’s sale. I ask you, ‘what hap-

pens to those vehi-cles?’ How many ofthose vehicle shouldhave remained inyour shops for repairfor the consumer?This is an issue Ithink we really needto address. Maybewe can work to-

gether to do something. As I see this, if wecould have repaired those vehicles, therewere over 1 million opportunities [we couldhave gained] in one year.”

—Herb Lieberman of LKQ Cor-poration, urging repairers and insurersto work together to reduce the numberof vehicles being declared total lossesand not being repaired by the industry.

“Customers are looking for more valuethrough the entire transaction. If you look atthe insurance (process), typically you get an

appraisal inspection, someone hands you acheck, and you’re done. We’re starting to toy

with the idea ofwhether post-repairinspections makessense… I think itopens another di-mension in terms ofwhat you can bringthe customer. Out-side of their home,their automobile is the

most expensive investment they make. Ithink customers are demanding more fromthat (insurance claim) transaction, and Ithink we’re going to be charged with findingways to provide that. Post-repair inspectionsare something that J.D. Powers highly rec-ommends. Not a lot of folks are doing it. It’stime-intensive. It’s expensive. But the cus-tomer has an expectation that it adds valueto their insurance and repair transaction.”

—Allstate’s Randy Hanson

“Roger Cada (of State Farm) and I werestanding at the American Iron and Steel In-stitute conference talking to one of the topsteel engineers from one of the largest steelmanufacturers in the world. Roger askedhim, ‘From your research, what’s going tohappen to some of these new steels if we


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Continued from Front page

SEMA Heard & Said

Rich Evans talks with Aaron Schulenberg atSCRS’ SEMA booth

Toby Chess,Trainer

Erica Eversman, Attorney

Herb Lieberman,LKQ

Randy Hanson,Allstate

Dan Bailey,CARSTAR

Delphi Automotive went public No-vember 17—two years after the com-pany exited bankruptcy.

The Troy-based auto supplierraised nearly $530 million in its initialpublic offering, as it sold 24.1 millionshares at $22 each.

The price was at the low end ofthe $22 to $24 range and gives Del-phi’s an initial market capitalizationof $7.2 billion.

In early trading on the New YorkStock Exchange, Delphi was downabout 2 percent to $21.69.

Delphi was a former unit of Gen-eral Motors until it was spunoff in 1999.

Delphi led by CEO RodneyO’Nealmounted a “road show” to sellthe offering to investors over the lasttwo weeks.

Once the world’s largest auto sup-plier, Delphi is owned primarily by

several private equity firms, including:Elliott Management, Silver Point Cap-ital and Paulson & Co. Inc., the in-vestment arm of billionaire investorJohn Paulson. Most of the stock—20.6million shares—was sold by Delphi’slargest private equity owner, Paulson& Co., which held a 22 percent stakein Delphi before the IPO.

The IPO is reducing its holdingsto 51.7 million shares.

The sale represents about a 7 per-cent stake in Delphi—or 24.1 millionof the 328.2 million shares.

The underwriters—which in-clude Goldman, Sachs & Co., JP Mor-gan and Citigroup—could stillexercise an option to sell more sharesbased on demand. Delphi is tradingjust more than six years after the com-pany filed for bankruptcy in October2005.

heat them or we weld them incorrectly. Willthere be a little moreintrusion (in a subse-quent accident) or aminor change inairbag timing?’ Andthe guy said, ‘No,from our research, it’scatastrophic failure.’”

—CARSTAR’s Bob

Keith

“It may not be the repairers in thisroom, but we have customers going to re-pairers that may not or should not be fix-ing certain things. Or maybe they’re fixingstuff that shouldn’t be fixed. But our handsare tied in some ways. Customers havethe right to choose where they want to go.”—Progressive’s Chris Andreoli

“It’s certainly not theplace for an insur-ance company tosteer a customer toa shop. But I dothink the manufac-turer should play arole in that. I thinkyou’re seeing more

and more OEMs getting involved in shopcertification. That (certification) doesn’tmean you’re going to get 100 percentcorrect repairs, but it increases the op-portunity that that will happen. And au-tomakers can steer their customers tothose shops.”

—Ford’s Steve Nantau

“We used to say ‘repaired to pre-accident orpre-loss condition.’ Here’s the reality of that:A laser-braised roof. You cannot do that inthe field. It’s impossible. So the procedures

are to weld and gluethat roof. You get thesame usefulness outof the vehicle. But isthat vehicle ‘pre-acci-dent or pre-loss con-dition’? Our focus isto restore the crash-worthiness and us-

ability of the product. You’re going to seemore verbiage like that.

—Chrysler’s Doug Craig

John Yoswick is a freelance writerbased in Portland, Oregon. He is alsothe editor of the weekly CRASH Net-work (for a free 4-week trial subscrip-tion, visit www.CrashNetwork.com).


See these Hyundai dealers below for all your collision parts needs!

QUALITY IS ALL WE THINK ABOUT. THAT

AND QUALITY.

Hyundai Sonata 2011

NEW YORKNEW JERSEY

Sport HyundaiEGG HARBOR TOWNSHIP

877-594-5727609-484-8983 Fax

Mon-Fri 7:30am - 5:30pmSat 7:30am - 3pm

[email protected]

Maxon HyundaiUNION

800-964-7281908-851-5631 FaxMon-Fri 8am - 6pmSat 8am - 5pm

www.hyundaioempartssuperstore.com

Wayne HyundaiAuto Mall

WAYNE

973-646-0333973-694-1700 FaxMon-Fri 7:30am - 6pmSat 7:30am - 4pm

Largest Collision Inventory inNorth New Jersey

Vision HyundaiROCHESTER

800-295-7977585-292-9724 FaxMon-Fri 8am - 8pmSat 8am - 4pm

www.visionhyundai.com

Plaza HyundaiBROOKLYN

718-253-8400347-492-8156 [email protected]

www.plazaautomall.com

Bob Keith,CARSTAR

Steve Nantau,Ford

Doug Craig,Chrysler

Delphi Goes Public at $22 a Share

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Blue Hen Collision Express in Dover,Delaware, prides itself on customerservice and reputation. They are thelongest established independent bodyshop in central Delaware with rev-enue exceeding $2,000,000 annually.Blue Hen’s mission statement is wesolve customers’ problems and that is

reflected in their focus on customersatisfaction which owners Carl andChuck Cimino say they have greatlyimproved since they purchased thebusiness in 1997. The shop works onbetween ninety and one hundred carseach month, a significant number forthe sparsely populated area in whichthey are located.

Cimino’s Collision Express wasopened in 1983, and Chuck and Carlpurchased Blue Hen Collision Ex-press in November, 1997. Both hadbeen involved in the industry foryears prior to the purchase. Their un-cles owned an auto body shop whereChuck worked during the summers asa teenager. Armed only with an inter-est and aptitude for the business,Chuck rented two bays at a dealershipowned by a friend of his aunt andopened his own shop when he wasseventeen years old.

Carl owned a shop in thePhiladelphia area, and after he be-came involved with the CARSTARfranchise in 1989, he met the then-owner of Blue Hen Collision.

The Cimino brothers purchasedBlue Hen Collision when the ownerdecided to sell in 1997 because theshop already had a great reputationfor producing quality repairs and thelocation was not saturated with com-peting shops, which they experiencedin the Philadelphia suburbs. Since ac-quiring the shop fourteen years ago,

their revenue has increased by 250%.Carl and Chuck note that cus-

tomers in their market are very par-ticular about their vehicles, but theyare also very appreciative of qualityrepairs; therefore quality is essentialto getting repeat business.

Carl lives in Pennsylvania, andChuck lives in New Jersey, but theyeach make the long drive to Dover,DE, every day. They appreciate thattheir shop is in a great location with-out many competitors, but also be-cause they love being in an areawhere the consumer knows and ap-preciates the difference between apoor and quality repair.

The Ciminos also own an autobody shop in Feasterville, PA. Theypreviously owned as many as fourshops, but they have sold two of themin recent years. Though their Feaster-ville shop requires additional re-sources to sustain itself, there isenough auto body work in Dover forBlue Hen Collision to focus solely oncollision. In fact, customers are oftenwilling to wait weeks to use the shopof their choice which sometimes cre-ates a challenge for Blue Hen as theyare forced to remind the customer thatthey have the option of using a com-peting shop in order to meet the cycletime guidelines imposed by theirDRPs. Currently, the shop is antici-pating the addition of an EnterpriseRent-A-Car outlet in another part oftheir building by the end of the yearto make rentals more convenient fortheir customers.

Blue Hen Collision Express is aCCAR Greenlink Certified shop, andthey recently converted to Dupont’sCromax waterborne paints. The shopbegan preparing for the conversion inJanuary 2011, and it took place inMay 2011. The Ciminos made thisconversion when it became mandatedby the EPA and the State of Delaware.They note that some of Delaware’sstandards are more restrictive than theEPA’s.

As part of these new regulations,regular filter type respirators havebeen replaced by full face hoods withgrade “D” breathable air and COmonitors. An additional EPA require-ment mandates that they take daily

readings of the pressure on their paintbooths and note filter replacementdates to comply with new regulationsregarding the filters. The Ciminoswell appreciate that low humidity andincreased air movement in the boothdecreases their dry-time for water-borne paints. Waterborne paint mustalso be treated as hazardous waste, sothe shop must maintain waste recep-tacles for both waterborne paints andtheir solvent-based primers andclears.

Carl and Chuck say that the con-version was very labor-intensive andrequired a great deal of retraining.They are currently redirecting their

resources as they adjust to the newsystem which is the first to affect theentire shop, unlike changes betweensolvent-based paint systems. So far,they have found that the color match-ing is more accurate, but unlike sol-vent-based products, the tints have ashelf life and must be maintainedabove 45 degrees Farenheit. Thatmade it necessary to add heat to theirmixing room, as well as a rider totheir insurance policy to cover theirpaints in case a power outage causesthe temperature to drop below 45 de-grees. Since converting to water-borne, they have noticed better airquality in the painting area of theshop.

Blue Hen Collision Express re-pairs mostly late-model vehicles andCarl Cimino says “so far, withDupont’s Cromax Waterborne sys-tem, we have only had a few minorcolor match problems. They are con-stantly updating their color tools toovercome these issues.”

Carl notes that there is a tougherbusiness climate today. Because in-

surance companies control the flow ofwork, Carl says it’s necessary to par-ticipate in DRPs in order to producerevenues over $1,000,000. But due torelatively few body shops in the areaand a great local reputation, insurancecompanies solicit Blue Hen Collisionto participate in their DRPs, so theycan concentrate on providing a qual-ity repair in a timely manner, satisfy-ing the expectations of the both thecustomer and the insurance compa-nies.

As far as Chuck knows, BlueHen Collision is the only shop in thearea that pays employees hourly.Chuck also notes that there is a cur-

rent shortage of technicians,making it difficult to locatenew employees.

When asked his opinionabout the current trends inthe collision repair industry,Carl noted “Insurance pres-sure to keep repair costsdown forces labor rates andmaterials allowances to staystagnant while costs con-tinue to escalate with no wayto recoup. Good technicians

are being paid the same money theywere 10 years ago with very littlechance of growth.”

Carl also believes that, in the fu-ture, it will be difficult for many smallshops to keep up with the training,technology and equipment costs nec-essary to meet new challenges con-cerning EPA governances and futurevehicle designs.

Blue Hen Collision Express em-ploys fifteen people, including a re-ceptionist, bookkeeper, generalmanager, and estimator, in addition to3 unibody and frame technicians, 2repair technicians, 1 mechanic, 2painters, 2 helpers and 1 detailer.They recently added an additionaltechnician to try to increase sales anddecrease their cycle times. The shopis located in a 9,700 square footbuilding. They are equipped with Car-Liner and Chief EZ-Liner framebenches, 2 Shark Electronic Measur-ing Systems, and a Clean ShopDowndraft prep station. For estimat-ing, they use CCC One and Audatexsystems. Both their Spraybake Down-

Blue Hen Collision Express in Dover, Delaware, Makes Location Count

with Rick WhiteShop Management

with Stefan GesterkampPaint Management

with Gonzo WeaverGonzo’s Toolbox

with Richard ArnoldJobber Journal

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].

Carl and Chuck Cimino commute fromPennsylvania and New Jersey to workin Delaware every day

Cars line the bays and lifts at Blue Hen Collision Expressin Dover, DE

draft and Accudraft Semi-Downdraftbooths are equipped with Kayco Air-Jet Air Movement Systems to aid inforce drying the new waterbornepaint system. Before painting, theyuse a EuroVac system to vacuumtheir booths, and Carl estimates thatthis has eliminated 75–80% of theirdirt problems.

Blue Hen Collision is I-CAR,ASE and DuPont certified. They par-ticipate in direct repair programs withState Farm, USAA, Safeco, HoraceMann and other insurance companies.

The shop sponsors several locallittle league teams. Their focus, how-ever, remains on quality and provid-ing customers with a positiveexperience by staying on top of theindustry.

According to Carl, “the most im-portant thing that we do is read andresearch everything we can. Any newproduct or procedure that we read

about in Autobody News or one of theother trade publications, we investi-gate and try. Also, staying on top ofthe ‘art’ of estimating is crucial to oursuccess.”

Chuck concurs that they like tobe flexible and stay current with theirtraining, maintaining consistency intheir dealing with insurance compa-nies and in their repair work.

Carl and Chuck Cimino havenot attended NACE in severalyears because they saw a decreasein exhibits. Though they were in-terested in attending this year, theywere too preoccupied with the wa-terborne conversion going on inthe shop.

Blue Hen Collision Express5825 W Denneys RoadDover, DE 19904302-674-4525 www.collisionexpress.com


The following dealerships are eager to serve your needs.Call your local Subaru collision parts specialist today!

NEW YORK

Metric SubaruHuntington

(631) 858-0316Mon.-Fri. 7:30-5:30; Sat. [email protected]

www.metric-subaru.com

NEW JERSEY

Liberty SubaruEmerson

(888) 782-9493(201) 261-3261 Fax

Mon.-Fri. 7:[email protected]

Lynnes SubaruBloomfield

(800) 782-7597(973) 429-3193 FaxMon.-Fri. 7:30-6; Sat. 7:30-2

www.lynnessubaru.com

The Honda Civic Natural Gas tookhome Green Car Journal’s 2012Green Car of the Year award at theL.A. Auto Show on November 17, ac-cording to reports made by CNNMoney.

The Civic was lauded for beingthe cleanest running internal combus-tion vehicle as certified by the EPAand the only assembly-line producednatural gas passenger model for saleon the U.S. market.

“There is no other vehicle onAmerican highways like the CivicNatural Gas, and this recognition hasbeen a long time coming for Honda(HMC),” Ron Cogan, editor and pub-lisher of Green Car Journal, said in astatement.

“The new generation CivicNatural Gas features greater fuel ef-ficiency, a handsome and roomiernew design, and tailpipe emissionlevels untouched by any other in-ternal combustion production vehi-cle.”

The 2012 Civic Natural Gas isa fifth generation model, running on“a clean fuel that is almost exclu-sively domestically sourced andtypically priced about 30 percent

less than gasoline,” the statementsaid.

It retails for just over $26,000and was selected from a field of fivefinalists that also included the Ford (F,Fortune 500) Focus Electric, the Mit-subishi i, the Toyota (TOYOF) Prius vand the Volkswagen (VLKAF) PassatTDI.

Only cars that were newly intro-duced or completely redesigned in thepast year are eligible for the award.Last year’s winner was the ChevroletVolt.

The award comes a day after theproposal of new federal gas mileagerules aimed at improving fuel effi-ciency and reducing U.S. dependenceon foreign oil. The rules aim for anaverage gas mileage of 54.5 miles pergallon by the 2025 model year.

The new rules would add thou-sands of dollars to the cost of newcars within the next few years, but inthe long run, regulators say, driverswill spend less on gas, outweighingthe additional cost at the dealership.

Honda Civic Natural Gas Wins Green Car of the Year Awardat the Los Angeles Auto Show in November

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THESE DEALERS ARE GENUINE WHOLESALE PARTS SPECIALISTS.

NEW YORK

Lancaster ToyotaEAST PETERSBURG

800-322-1639717-569-0641 FaxMon. - Fri. 7:30am - 5:30pm;

Sat. 8am - [email protected]

Atlantic ToyotaAMITYVILLE

631-789-2007631-789-2041 Fax

Thompson ToyotaDOYLESTOWN

215-348-1530215-348-8233 Fax

PENNSYLVANIA

A new report by the American Jour-nal of Public Health finds that femaledrivers are at a greater risk of injuryor death when involved in car crashes,because seatbelts and other lifesavingdevices installed in cars are not de-signed for their bodies, according toreports made by ABC News.

The report said that on average,women are shorter, lighter, tend to sitin different positions and drive newerpassenger cars when compared withmen. Because of these factors, the oddsof a woman sustaining an injury whilewearing a seatbelt were 47 percenthigher than for men wearing seatbelts.

One reason safety systems aredesigned more for the male popula-tion is that men are three times morelikely to be involved in a car crashthat leads to serious or fatal injuries.In recent years, however, there hasbeen an increase in female driversgetting into these types of accidents.

Although Clarence Ditlow ofthe Center for Auto Safety says thatthe study had the right concept, itdoesn’t apply to today’s vehicles. Theresearchers focused on crashes (andcars) between 1998 and 2008. All ofthe cars used in the study were an av-erage of six years old.

“The average life of a car isaround 12 years,” said Ditlow. “Thestudy would have a lot more value if it

were limited to 2000 and later modelyear vehicles to make sure all vehicleshad female friendly airbags,” he said.Since new 2012 models are comingout now, some of the cars used in thestudy are almost 20 years old.

“There wasn’t even a dynamicside impact test standard in effect in1992,” said Ditlow.

Ditlow also said that while thestudy did highlight the disparity be-tween the risks for male and femaledrivers, that’s something the govern-ment and industry have been workingon over the past three decades.

The authors of the study said in astatement that “female motor vehicledrivers today may not be as safe as theirmale counterparts; therefore, the relativehigher vulnerability of female drivers …when exposed to moderate and seriouscrashes must be taken into account.”

Women Drivers at Greater Risk in Car Crashes, Says Study

Shares of U.S. Auto Parts Network hita new 52-week low on October 26.The stock traded as low as $3.66 dur-ing mid-day trading and last traded at$4.06. The stock previously closed at$5.10.

A number of equities researchfirms have also recently weighed inon the stock.

Analysts at RBC Capital(NYSE: RY) cut their price targeton shares of U.S. Auto Parts Net-work from $10.00 to $8.00 in a re-search note to investors on October26.

They now have an “outperform”rating on the stock. Analysts at CraigHallum downgraded shares of U.S.Auto Parts Network from a “buy” rat-ing to a “hold” rating in a researchnote to investors on October 26. Also,analysts at Barrington Research reit-erated an “outperform” rating onshares of U.S. Auto Parts Network ina research note to investors on Octo-ber 31.

U.S. Auto Parts Network, Inc.(U.S. Auto Parts) is an onlineprovider of aftermarket auto parts, in-cluding body parts, engine parts, per-formance parts and accessories. TheCompany sells its products, identified

as stock keeping units (SKUs), to in-dividual consumers through its net-work of Websites and onlinemarketplaces.

U.S. Auto Parts Websites pro-vide customers with a selection of ap-proximately 975,000 SKUs withdetailed product descriptions andphotographs. It has developed a prod-uct database, which maps its SKUs toproduct applications based on vehiclemakes, models and years.

The Company’s principal Web-sites are located at www.autopartsware-house.com and www.partstrain.com,and its corporate Website is located atwww.usautoparts.net.

The body parts category isprimarily comprised of parts forthe exterior of an automobile. Theengine parts category is comprisedof engine components and othermechanical and electrical parts,which are often referred to as hardparts.

U.S. Auto Parts Network has a52 week low of $4.17 and a 52 weekhigh of $9.97. The stock’s 50-daymoving average is $5.26 and its 200-day moving average is $6.49. Thecompany has a market cap of $123.8million.

U.S. Auto Parts’ Stock Hits New Low



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AkzoNobel Opens Nominations for 2012 ‘FIT’ SustainabilityAward, Most Influential Women AwardsAkzoNobel Automotive & Aero-space Coatings Americas is now ac-cepting nominations for the FITSustainability Award and the MostInfluential Women Awards; FITbrings visibility to businesses, or-ganizations and other entities that aredelivering sustainable and environ-mentally-focused solutions to thecollision repair industry.

AkzoNobel’s Most InfluentialWomen (MIW) awards program hon-ors the contributions of exceptionalleaders who are having an impact onthe industry with their leadership, vi-sion, commitment to excellence, andwillingness to give back to their com-munities.

“FIT” is an acronym for the threekey measurement criteria of theaward: Focus, Innovation and Talent.

Introduced in 2009, the awardwas launched to complement the ad-vancement of waterborne technologyand promote the many contributionsthat the collision repair industry ismaking to generate a sustainable fu-ture.

“Whether a business or organiza-tion is large or small, it’s so importantto consider how today’s practices and

processes will impact the future of ourindustry and our environment,” saidMark Milacic, Mark’s Auto Body,Ltd. a FIT winner in 2011.

The family-owned business hastwo locations in Burnaby and Port Co-quitlam, British Columbia.

“Each of us has a responsibilityto incorporate sustainable practices;by working together we have the abil-ity to make a positive impact on theworld we leave for generations yet tocome.”

Honorees for the 2012 programwill be announced on July 19, 2012 inSan Antonio, Texas in conjunctionwith the 13th annual Most InfluentialWomen in the Collision Repair Indus-try.

This year’s award recipientswill also participate in AkzoNobel’ssecond Sustainability LeadershipSymposium on July 20, 2012. Thesesymposiums are being establishedin an effort to bring greater indus-try focus, understanding, and actionregarding the subject of sustainabil-ity.

Nominations can be placed atsikkens.net. They will be acceptedthrough February 28, 2012.


Auto Injury Losses in N.Y. Metro Area Rose 70% in Last DecadePersonal injury protection (PIP) claimsclosed in 2010 show that claimedlosses for medical expenses, lostwages, and other expenses from autoaccident injuries in the New York Cityarea rose 70 percent over the pastdecade, according to Insurance Jour-nal.

This surpasses the 49 percent hikein medical care inflation over the sameperiod. The findings were reported bythe Insurance Research Council inMalvern, Pennsylvania.

The average claimed loss per PIPclaimant in the New York metro areawas more than double the average lossamong claimants from the rest of thestate, $15,086 compared with $6,870,the study found.

The report says underlying thisdisparity are dramatic differences inclaiming behavior between upstate anddownstate claimants.

Claimants from the New YorkCity metro area were much more likelyto visit chiropractors, physical thera-pists, and acupuncturists, to receive ex-pensive diagnostic procedures, toreport durable medical equipment ex-penses, to be treated in pain clinics,and to hire attorneys. Statewide, nearlyone in four (23 percent) claims in thestudy involved the appearance of claimabuse—either fraud, material misrep-resentation of the facts of the claim; orbuildup, inflated medical or other ex-penses in an otherwise legitimateclaim. Claims from the New York Citymetro area were more than four timesas likely to involve apparent abuse, 35percent compared with 8 percent in therest of the state.

The study identified Brooklynand Queens as particular hotspots forabuse. More than half (52 percent) ofapparent abuse claims stemmed fromaccidents occurring in either Brooklynor Queens even though these two bor-oughs accounted for only 28 percent ofall claims in the study.

The study also highlighted therole medical providers play in the cur-rent wave of no-fault fraud affectingthe state.

In addition to detailing theclaimants’ treatment patterns, the studyalso looked at the percentage of med-ical providers who produce bills withcharges in excess of the state’s feeschedule, hire attorneys, and file law-suits.

“This report further details theproblem of claim abuse in New York,especially unscrupulous medicalproviders who overtreat and over-charge claimants and their insurers,”said Elizabeth Sprinkel, senior vicepresident at the Insurance ResearchCouncil. “Even when the excessivecharges can be mitigated, the costs ofcombating these fraudulent activitiesare further driving up the price of in-surance for all consumers in the state.”

The study examined detailedclaim information from over 4,500claims closed in 2010. Ten insurers,representing 70 percent of the privatepassenger auto insurance market inNew York, participated in the study.

The Insurance Research Councilis a non-profit division of the Ameri-can Institute for Chartered PropertyCasualty Underwriters and the Insur-ance Institute of America.

Daimler will further expand its USplant in Tuscaloosa, Alabama, theautomaker announced; as of 2015, anentirely new Mercedes-Benz modelwill roll off the production line as itsfifth product.

The plant has been the tradi-tional production site of the brand’sM-, GL-, and R-Class SUVs and willalso build the C-Class for the NorthAmerican market beginning 2014.For the production of the new model,Daimler will additionally invest $350 million, and will create some400 further jobs at the plant.

Dieter Zetsche, Chairman ofthe Daimler Board of Managementand Head of Mercedes-Benz Carssaid, “This new model from theTuscaloosa plant is an important ele-ment of our growth strategy. It is oneof the ten additional models whichwe will introduce within the nextfour years alone across all seg-ments.” Referring to the Tuscaloosaplant’s role within the global pro-duction network of Mercedes-BenzCars, Zetsche added: “At the sametime, we are systematically broaden-ing our manufacturing footprint inthe NAFTA region.”

Robert Bentley, Governor ofthe State of Alabama said, “Since thetime Mercedes-Benz choseTuscaloosa County for its first USassembly plant 18 years ago, thecompany has proven to be an out-standing partner for the state. Wejoin MBUSI in celebrating this mile-stone, and welcome the hundreds ofjobs this announcement brings to Al-abama.”

Just earlier this year, on the oc-casion of the Job #1 ceremony of thenew Mercedes-Benz M-Class in July,Daimler had announced the decisionto invest more than $2 billion in theTuscaloosa plant.

In total, investment in the plantbetween 2010 and 2014 will thusamount to $2.4 billion, while thenumber of newly created jobs willadd up to 1,400.

Markus Schaefer, Presidentand CEO of MBUSI, commented onthese decisions: “The entire MBUSIteam is proud of its role in the suc-cess of the models made inTuscaloosa. We are looking forwardto making further important contri-butions to the product offensive ofMercedes-Benz.”

Daimler to Produce Additional Model at theMercedes-Benz Tuscaloosa, AL, Plant

Caliber Collision Centers has joinedthe Collision Repair Education Foun-dation’s Industry Leadership Circledonor recognition group through a$10,000 donation. This donation willhelp provide educational support topost-secondary collision students atUniversal Technical Institute in Hous-ton and Sacramento this spring.

“We are proud to support colli-sion repair students at UniversalTechnical Institute in Houston andSacramento who will become the fu-ture leaders of the collision repair in-dustry,” stated Mark Sanders,Caliber Collision Centers Chief Op-erating Officer. “Through the Colli-sion Repair Education Foundation,we are committed to becoming aleader in supporting collision repairstudents throughout California, Ari-zona, Nevada and Texas as we con-tinue to grow into the collision repairprovider of choice in every commu-nity we serve.”

Collision Repair Education Foun-dation Executive Director ScottKruger said, “Thanks to Caliber Col-lision Centers for supporting the Colli-sion Repair Education Foundation andjoining our efforts in supporting colli-sion repair school programs and theirstudents. Through Caliber’s donation,educational opportunities for local col-lision students will be enhanced. TheIndustry Leadership Circle donorrecognition designation highlights theextraordinary commitment of industryorganizations and individuals to in-vesting in the future of the industry. Wewelcome Caliber Collision Centers tothis group of industry leaders.”

For more information pleasevisit www.calibercollision.com.

Caliber Collision Centers Joins Collision Repair EducationFoundation’s Industry Leadership Circle With $10K Donation



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Legal division and attended by 50–60invitation-only repairers, insurers, andrepresentatives of both OE and After-market parts manufacturers. In a letterto invited participants sent to bodyshops, insurers and aftermarket partsvendors and manufacturers, the Com-missioner’s office wrote: “The purposeof these discussions is to permit certaininterested and affected persons an op-portunity to present statements or com-ments with respect to the attached draftregulations text.”

The draft regulations largely per-tain to the specification and use of af-termarket parts, but also include newrequirements for adjusting estimates aswell as consumer disclosures and reme-dies in the event that a defective part isused for a repair. See sidebar.

At times heated, comments madeat the meeting reflected clear differ-ences between aftermarket advocatesand those representing the OE manu-facturers. At one point parts certifica-tion was introduced, but it was pointedout that the issue at hand was not certi-fication, but insurer accountability.

Gene Crozat, the owner of G&CAuto Body with seven Northern Cali-fornia locations, attended the meetingand offered his perspective prior to thepresentation. After reviewing the pro-posed changes, Crozat recognizes thatthe Commissioner is addressing avolatile subject and questions some ofthe language within the contemplatedrevisions.

“I fix 1,000 cars every month andat least 70% of them contain aftermarketparts, prescribed by the insurance com-panies,” Crozat said. “In many cases, theaftermarket parts are equal in qualitywhen compared to factory parts andprice is always a huge issue. By using af-termarket parts many cars that wouldhave been totaled can be fixed. For ex-ample, a bumper on a 1998 ToyotaCorolla from the factory costs $239, butI can get a comparable set for $74 fromthe aftermarket. We need the aftermar-ket to provide competition for theOEMs. Can you imagine what factoryparts could cost if there was no after-market?”

Crozat questions the word “defec-tive” in the proposed revisions, he said.“They need to be more specific there,because it’s too loose and open to inter-pretation. Who is going to determinethat these aftermarket parts are defec-

tive and what does defective mean?There is just too much wriggle roomhere and that needs to be addressed.”

Overall, Crozat lauds the Insur-ance Commissioner’s efforts towardclarifying the factory vs. the aftermarketdilemma, he said. “The 500-lb. gorillain this industry is the labor rates issue,but this is a good start and we’veneeded a meeting like this for quitesome time. Opening up dialog and shar-ing ideas is always important and theDOI is doing it the right way.”

Son Sean Crozat, manager ofG&C’s Santa Rosa location, said that itall comes down to the consumer. “Themarket will take care of itself. If the ma-jority of the aftermarket parts out therewere truly defective or inferior, bodyshops wouldn’t use them. If all thesedamaged cars were totaled by the in-surance companies, rates would go upand the customer would suffer themost.”

Gigi Walker—owner of Walker’sAuto Body and Fleet Repair in Con-cord, and the Past President of the CAAand former president of the East BayCAA’s chapter, said prior to the meet-ing that she was enthused about the pos-itive things that could result. Before themeeting she told Autobody News:

“I hope these new regulations pro-posed by Commissioner Jones will bet-ter hold accountable the parts that don’twork to the insurers,” she said. “As youknow, many shops don’t get reimbursedfor parts that don’t fit properly. Theseproposed revisions just might help thecollision repairer to recoup the costs as-sociated with ill-fitting aftermarketparts. These might not cover a DRP con-tract position with an insurer/collisionagreement, but by Commissioner Jonesopening up the conversation it’s defi-nitely good for both sides of the indus-try. I’ve never seen this before, so it’svery promising.

“The OEMs have procedures inplace for the replacement/welding ofcertain components on vehicles and tomake sure that these are mandatory inthe written estimate and in the repairprocess are crucial in delivering a qual-ity repair to the consumer. I hope someof the changes make the repair processfor the collision repairer and consumersbetter, because that’s what it is all about.The first change adds more specific re-quirements for estimates written by in-surers. Current law simply requiresinsurers to write an estimate that willallow the repairs to be made in ‘a work-manlike manner.’”

Taking a more forceful position

was industry trainer and AutobodyNews columnist, Toby Chess, who con-tinues to maintain that the return rate oneven certified aftermarket parts is unac-ceptably high. Chess maintains thatshop owners are too intimidated by in-surers and parts suppliers to complainabout any parts that don’t fit correctly.At the meeting he asked those in atten-dance to blink their eyes to graphicallydemonstrate the time required for anairbag to detonate in what may be a lifesaving instant. His implication wasclear—any mismatched componentmay impact the millisecond timing ofan airbag deployment.

The proposed DOI regulationswould require an estimate to be written“which will allow for repairs to bemade in accordance with trade stan-dards for good and workmanlike, me-chanical, autobody and frame repairsand shall include, but not he limited to,repair procedures performed in accor-dance with original equipment manu-facturer service specifications or, ifmanufacturer specifications and proce-dures are not available, nationally dis-tributed and periodically updatedservice specifications that are generallyaccepted by the auto body repair indus-

try. No insurer shall willfully departfrom or disregard accepted trade stan-dards for good and workmanlike repairin the preparation of claim settlementoffers or estimates prepared by or forthe insurer. Insurers shall not prepare anestimate that deviates from the collisionrepair estimating software guidelinesfor use and repair.”

“In addition, if an insurer shouldchoose to adjust a shop’s estimate,newly proposed regulations would re-quire the insurer to detail each adjust-ment made to the shop estimate alongwith the cost associated with each ad-justment.”

In the proposed rules dealingwith aftermarket parts, insurers wouldbe required to communicate in writingthat it will warrant any aftermarketparts used to be of like kind, quality,safety, fit and performance as originalequipment parts. Should a part befound to be defective or unsafe, theproposed rules would require insurersto “immediately cease requiring theuse of these parts” and notify the esti-mating software provider and requestthe part be removed from the estimat-ing software.


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Continued from Front Page

Calif. DOI Meeting

See Calif. DOI Meeting, Next Page


STATE OF CALIFORNIADEPARTMENT OF INSURANCE45 Fremont Street, 21st FloorSan Francisco, California 94105October 20, 2011

REGULATION FILE: REG-2011-00024Amend Article 1 of Subchapter 7.5 ofChapter 5 of the California Code ofRegulations, as follows:Amend FCSPRs Section 2695.8(f):(f) If partial losses are settled on thebasis of a written estimate prepared byor for the insurer, the insurer shall sup-ply the claimant with a copy of the es-timate upon which the settlement isbased. The estimate prepared by or forthe insurer shall be of an amount whichwill allow for repairs to be made in ac-cordance with trade standards for goodand workmanlike, mechanical, autobody, and frame repairs and shall in-clude, but not be limited to, repair pro-cedures performed in accordance withoriginal equipment manufacturer serv-ice specifications or, if manufacturerspecifications and procedures are notavailable, nationally distributed andperiodically updated service specifica-tions that are generally accepted by theautobody repair industry. No insurer

shall willfully depart from or disregardaccepted trade standards for good andworkmanlike repair in the preparationof claim settlement offers or estimatesprepared by or for the insurer. Insurersshall not prepare an estimate that devi-ates from the collision repair estimat-ing software guidelines for use andrepair. a workmanlike manner. If theclaimant subsequently contends, basedupon a written estimate which he orshe obtains, that necessary repairs willexceed the written estimate preparedby or for the insurer, the insurer shall:(1) pay the difference between thewritten estimate and a higher estimateobtained by the claimant; or,(2) if requested by the claimant,promptly provide the claimant with thename of at least one repair shop thatwill make the repairs for the amount ofthe insurer’s written estimate. The in-surer shall cause the damaged vehicleto be restored to its condition prior tothe loss at no additional cost to theclaimant other than as stated in the pol-icy or as otherwise allowed by law.The insurer shall maintain documenta-tion of all such communications; or,(3) reasonably adjust any written esti-mates prepared by the repair shop ofthe claimant’s choice and provide a

copy of the adjusted estimate to theclaimant and the claimant’s repairshop. The adjusted estimate providedto the claimant and repair shop shall beeither an edited copy of the claimant’srepair shop estimate or a supplementalestimate. The adjusted estimate shallidentify each adjustment and the costassociated with each adjustment madeto the claimant’s shop’s estimate.Amend FCSPRs section 2695.8(g) asfollows:(g) No insurer shall require the use ofnon-original equipment manufacturereplacement crash parts in the repair ofan automobile unless:(1) the parts are at least equal to theoriginal equipment manufacturer partsin terms of kind, quality, safety, fit, andperformance;(2) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts shall pay thecost of any modifications, inspections,and tests to the parts which may be-come necessary to effect the repair;and,(3) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacture re-placement crash parts warrant thatsuch parts are of like kind, quality,safety, fit, and performance as originalequipment manufacturer replacementcrash parts. The insurer must disclosein writing, in any estimate prepared byor for the insurer, the fact that it willwarrant that such parts are of like kind,quality, safety, fit, and performance asoriginal equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts ; and,(4) all original and non-original man-ufacture replacement crash parts, man-ufactured after the effective date of thissubchapter, when supplied by repairshops shall carry sufficient permanent,non-removable identification so as toidentify the manufacturer. Such iden-

tification shall be accessible to thegreatest extent possible after installa-tion; and,(5) the use of non-original equipmentmanufacturer replacement crash partsis disclosed in accordance with section9875 of the California Business andProfessions Code.(6) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts that are found tobe defective, unsafe, or do not other-wise comply with this section, shallimmediately cease requiring the use ofthese parts and shall notify the colli-sion repair estimating softwareprovider, or other estimating entity itcontracts with, of the part and requestthis part be removed from the collisionrepair estimating software.(7) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts, which arecertified by the Certified AutomotiveParts Association (CAPA) and arefound to be defective or unsafe, shallfile a Quality Complaint Report withthe Certified Automotive Parts Associ-ation (CAPA);(8) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts that are found tobe defective, unsafe, or do not other-wise comply with this section, shallpay for the costs associated with re-turning the part and the cost to removeand replace the non-original equipmentmanufacturer part with an originalequipment manufacturer part.(9) insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts that are found tobe defective, unsafe, or do not other-wise comply with this section, shallpay for the costs associated with lossof use or rental car expenses caused bythe use of such part.

Proposed California Regulations Discussed at DOI Meeting

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Likewise, if a CAPA part is foundto be defective the law would requireCAPA to be notified.

Finally, the proposed regulationscontain language requiring that “insur-ers specifying the use of non-originalequipment manufacturer replacementcrash parts that are found to be defec-tive, unsafe, or do not otherwise com-ply with this section, shall pay for thecosts associated with loss of use orrental car expenses caused by the useof such part.”

After the meeting, David Mc-Clune, Executive Director of the CAA

released the following statement: “The California Autobody Asso-

ciation supports the California Depart-ment of Insurance’s efforts to clarifyand improve current laws and regula-tions that protect consumers fromsome insurers who prepare estimatesthat do not meet standards for goodand workmanlike repairs, and those in-surers that require poor quality and un-safe aftermarket replacement crashparts in a repair of a vehicle. The CAAwill continue to work with the DOI tofurther these improvements.”

Inquiries about the meeting shouldbe directed to the department’s TeresaR. Campbell; Phone number: 415-538-4126; E-mail:[email protected].

Continued from Previous Page

Calif. DOI Meeting

Audatex North America, Inc., a globalprovider of software and services tothe automobile insurance claims pro-cessing and collision repair industry,hosted its ninth semi-annual StrategicAdvisory Council meeting in LasVegas on November 1.

The one-day conference, whichincluded presentations on industrytrends, new products and future strate-gic directions for technology, was at-tended by a rich cross section ofleaders from the automotive insuranceclaims and collision repairer sectorsalong with the Audatex senior man-agement team.

“Our goal is to develop innova-tive technologies that increase the ef-ficiency and accuracy of theautomotive insurance claims andcollision repair processes—and animportant part of our product devel-opment initiative is ongoing cus-tomer feedback,” said WolfgangAhrens, Managing Director, Auda-tex U.S. “The Strategic AdvisoryCouncil provides us with the rightforum to accomplish this goal. Atthese meetings, we give customersthe opportunity to discuss their busi-ness concerns, and we also focus onpresenting ideas and resolutions, andgaining alignment on priorities.”

“The Council provides an excel-lent opportunity for its members toshare ideas and discuss current issues.We get an opportunity to learn moreabout Audatex’s products and servicesand help mold the future of our indus-

try,” added Ed Weidmann, Propertyand Casualty Claims Consultant, StateFarm Insurance Company.

According to Rick Tuuri, VicePresident of Industry Relations, Au-datex, U.S., recent Audatex technol-ogy additions in the areas of bodyshop management and repair tracking,resulting from the company’s NewEraSoftware and See Progress, Inc. ac-quisitions, were driven by strategicinput from members.

“It is critical for us to engage inmeaningful discussions with our cus-tomers as well as industry thoughtleaders. In addition to spending timefocused on the voice of the customer,the November meeting emphasizedhot technology topics such as repairtracking, first-touch resolution andperformance and business manage-ment solutions,” said Tuuri.

The next Audatex Strategic Ad-visory Council meeting will be held inSpring 2012. As part of an ongoing di-

alog with industry stakeholders, Au-datex also hosts a Technical AdvisoryCouncil - comprised of insurance andrepair leaders - for which the primaryfocus is to get technical industry andcustomer input on the Audatex Esti-mating database and product suite.

Active today across six conti-nents, Audatex provides world-classclaims solutions that help customersautomate their processes; managingmillions of claims each year effi-ciently and effectively, and resolvingbillions of dollars in claims settle-ments.

Audatex’s growing footprint alsoextends into the automotive-related fi-nancial services and medical claimssolutions markets. As part of the Sol-era group of companies, Audatex,AUTOonline, Explore, Market Scan,Sidexa, Informex, Inpart, ABZ, Hol-lander, HPI and IMS draw on uniqueglobal experience to develop and de-liver the latest technologies, marketintelligence and best practices on alocal level. For more information,please refer to the Company’s websiteat www.audatex.us .


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Maaco Collision Repair & Auto Paint-ing franchisees celebrated at their an-nual convention with 2011same storesales more than 6% higher than theprior year.

“This has been an exciting timein the growth of Maaco as evidencedby the success of our new merchan-dising system, the continued en-hancement of a strong ad campaignand sales performance that confirmswe are really onto something great,”Chairman and CEO Ken Walkersaid during the gathering at the At-lantis resort in the Bahamas.

Maaco President David Lappssaid, “A major focus of our advertisingand merchandising efforts is to informthe public that Maaco is North Amer-ica’s Bodyshop for all of their collision,body repair and auto painting needs.”

“One way Maaco centersdemonstrate their competence isthrough CSi Complete, the same cus-tomer satisfaction indexing companyrelied upon by insurance companiesand major fleets.”

Maaco Collision Repair & AutoPainting (http://www.maaco.com) re-pairs close to 500,000 vehicles annu-ally. The 450 franchises have restoredall types of vehicles for nearly 40 years.

Maaco Convention Celebrates 6%Increase in Same Store Sales

Audatex Holds 9th Semi-Annual Strategic Advisory Council Meeting

The already dynamic atmospherepervading the Society of CollisionRepair Specialists’ (SCRS) booth atthe 2011 SEMA Show was kickedup a notch with a very special ap-pearance by custom fabricator andTV personality Rich Evans.

In an exclusive interview withSCRS Executive Director AaronSchulenburg (see www.autobo-dynews.com), Evans-owner of RichEvans Designs and Huntington BeachBodyworks known nationally for hiscustom hot-rod designs and automo-tive builds, distinctive custom paint-ing and airbrush techniques and hiswork on television shows on theSPEED Channel-held forth on a num-ber of topics relevant to collision re-pairers.

In front of an attentive audi-ence, Evans spoke about his journeyfrom successful collision shop man-ager to television personality; what

it takes to be a successful collisionrepairer; and his own beginnings inthe business, a subject that kickedoff the interview.

A third generation repairer lit-erally born and raised in the indus-try, it all came together for Evanswhen Dave Popkins, a friend of hisfather that ran a collision repair fa-cility in Sacramento, California,took him under his wing.

“Dave was the first person to letme know just how good I was andhow good I could be if I kept at it,”Evans recounted to Schulenburg.“That’s why I feel so strongly aboutthe importance of training and men-toring in the industry. Good technicaltraining is essential to quality collisionrepair. One of the reasons the SEMAShow is impressive are the trainingopportunities and exposure to ideas itprovides. SCRS’s Repairer DrivenEducation (RDE) is a good example.”

Rich Evans Updates SCRS at 2011 SEMA Show

The Ninth Audatex Semi-Annual StrategicAdvisory Council Meeting drew in leadersfrom the automotive insurance claims andcollision repairer industries along with theAudatex senior management team.

Pro-Spray® Automotive Finishes, aEuropean color, coatings and technol-ogy company for the automotive af-termarket, recently introduced a tool

that takes the guesswork out of color-matching. Pro-Spray’s Navigator™precision color selection system fea-tures more than 5,100 of the most pop-

ular domestic and import colors,sprayed in Pro-Spray paint, and avail-able in both solvent and waterborne.

As part of the industry’s mostcomplete and convenient color-match-ing system, Navigator is integrated withmore than 282,000 custom blended for-mulas available on the PaintXpert�Coatings ManagementSoftware.

“Navigator is the an-swer to variances,” saidTom Gardner, director ofbusiness development.“Jobbers and shops willfind that Navigator makescolor selection easier,faster and more accuratethan ever before.”

The Navigator preci-sion color selection systemincludes a stylish, slim-profile color box featuring more than5,100 swatches sprayed with Pro-Spray paint and arranged in chromaticorder.

Users who don’t know a vehicle’scolor code start by selecting a deck ofswatches from the box. The user thencompares the swatches against the ve-hicle to find the best match, locatesthe number on the back of the swatchand enters it into PaintXpert. The soft-ware generates a paint mix formula,enabling the user to create a sprayoutto compare to the vehicle for accuracy.

In cases where the user alreadyhas the vehicle color code, the process

is even simpler. Users enter the colorcode into the PaintXpert softwaresearch box and, if there is a corre-sponding Navigator swatch, they canchoose either the solvent or water-borne formula.

The result is increased produc-tivity, less waste and greater color

accuracy resulting in a better-look-ing finished product. In addition,the easy-to-use Navigator systemwas designed with scalability andfuture updates in mind.

“This system is just the latest of-fering from Pro-Spray that supportsour customers’ ability to provide out-standing automotive finishes whileimproving the quality and efficiencyof their own operations,” said LauraYerkey, marketing manager.

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Mercedes-Benz says that in theplanned launch of an all-new versionof the SL line, the 2-seater will mi-grate to a new, lightweight aluminumbody. That should shave nearly 250pounds off the weight of the sportscar, but the maker plans additional ef-forts that will bring the overall curb-weight of the 2013 Mercedes-BenzSL550 model down by as much as310 pounds.

“The effect is rather as if a heavy-weight-class passenger had got out ofthe car and taken his heavy flight lug-gage too,” explains Mercedes engi-neer Dr Thomas Rudlaff. The overallweight of the next SL is expected todrop by more than 300 pounds.

Along with the extensive use ofaluminum in the next-gen SL’s bodyand chassis, Mercedes is integratingother lightweight materials, such asthe magnesium used in the rear pan-

els. And while steel isn’t being aban-doned entirely, German engineershave shifted to the use of extremely

high-strength alloys—for componentssuch as the A-pillars—that allow fur-ther weight reductions while still im-proving the strength and stiffness ofthe overall body and chassis.

The new SL will reverse the trendMercedes, like many of its competi-tors, has followed in recent decades,each new model getting bigger and

heavier as new content is added to theSL which must also meet ever morestringent government safety regula-tions.

But with new fuel economy stan-dards going into effect in the U.S., Eu-rope and other key markets cuttingweight has become critical. Porschehas cut about 100 pounds out of thenew 911 it recently introduced.

“The result is perceptible andmeasurable. Less weight means moredynamism and less consumption. Inother words: the motoring enjoymentincreases and the environmental bur-den sinks,” said Mercedes’ Rudlaff.

There are other big changes instore for the 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL,the company has revealed, includingthe new Magic Vision Control whichit describes as an “adaptive wind-screen washing system.” Instead ofthe usual spray of water the cleaning

fluid will be channeled through laser-cut openings on the wiper bladesthemselves.

And for those who like the boomof a good audio system, the maker saysthe new body shell will allow it tomount its new FrontBass subwoofersin front of the footwell, rather than inback as is typical with today’s cars.That approach, Mercedes claims, willmake it easier to enjoy good audioeven with the SL’s top open.

New Aluminum Body Will Slash Weight of 2013 Mercedes-Benz SL by more than 300 lbs

Mercedes will slash the weight of its 2013 SLroadster by using a lightweight aluminum body.

The overall weight of the next SL is expectedto drop by more than 300 pounds.

General Motors Co. announced onNovember 21 that it will begin pro-ducing the Chevrolet Equinox, the au-tomaker’s midsized SUV, at its SpringHill, TN, plant next year, according tothe Shelbyville TN Times-Gazette.

An event attended by local politi-cians including TN Gov. Bill Haslam,both of Tennessee’s U.S. senators andUnited Auto Workers president BobKing was held November 21 at theplant to make the vehicle announce-ment; officials pressed a button to sym-bolically restart the production line.

The Detroit-based automakerwill invest $61 million and create 685jobs to turn the assembly plant—idledin fall 2009—into an “ultra flexible”factory capable of building a range ofmodels, said Cathy Clegg, GM’s vicepresident of labor relations; a secondphase of work will invest $183 millionand create 1,200 jobs producing a yet-to-be-named mid-sized GM vehiclestarting in the 2015 model year.

The plant will augment produc-tion at other factories for popular carsand trucks in short supply. It will startbuilding the Chevy Equinox in thesecond half of 2012, supplementingoutput of the crossover that is cur-rently built at two plants in Canada,according to the Detroit News.

Despite adding shifts and over-time, GM has struggled to meet de-mand for the Equinox, a shortfall thathas frustrated some buyers. ThroughOctober, GM has sold 162,283Equinoxes, up 45 percent over lastyear, according to AutoData Corp.

The re-opening of the plant wasannounced earlier this year, but it wasunclear exactly what the plant wouldproduce.

“This is a big deal to us,” saidHaslam, praising the original recruit-ment of GM to Tennessee by LamarAlexander, who was then governorand who now serves as U.S. Senator.Alexander said the plant’s location,technology and workforce are con-ducive to automobile production.

“Tennessee has become the newhub for the American automobile in-dustry,” said Alexander.

Gary Casteel, of United AutoWorkers Region 8, said he told hiswife about the announcement and sheremarked that it was appropriate that ajob announcement take place right be-fore Thanksgiving.

“Thanksgiving’s been changed totoday,” responded Casteel.

Casteel praised the governmentassistance, which he referred to asbridge loans, which allowed the com-pany to survive. He said that if GMand Chrysler had been allowed to failin 2009, they would have brought thethird major U.S. automaker, Ford,down with them.

The Spring Hill facility was orig-inally opened in the 1980s as theheadquarters and first assembly plantfor GM’s newly-created Saturn divi-sion. GM opened the factory with adifferent set of work rules to establishwhat it described as a “different kindof car company.” Eventually, workersat the plant were reabsorbed into theunion’s national agreement and theplant started building Chevys.

A 2004 labor agreement broughtthe Saturn employees under the samecontract as their counterparts in otherGM divisions and opened the door forchanges at the plant, with Saturn pro-duction moving elsewhere and otherGM models moving to Spring Hill.

Assembly operations were shutdown at Spring Hill in 2009, the sameyear that GM entered bankruptcy pro-tection and received federal assis-tance. The end of assembly operationsat Spring Hill resulted in layoffs formore than 2,000 workers. Another800 workers relocated to GM plants inother states, including many who fol-lowed production of the Chevy Tra-verse to Lansing Delta Township inMichigan.

About 280 workers still have re-call rights to the Spring Hill factory,located south of Nashville.

Remaining slots will be filled bynew hires earning the entry-levelwage of $14 an hour.

Hiring will begin in mid-Decem-ber.

Clegg said the Equinox’s addi-tion to Spring Hill won’t affect pro-duction at GM’s two Canadian plants.

The Saturn brand, long sincemoved away from Spring Hill, wasdiscontinued by GM a year ago. Evenso, area residents often still refer to theGM facility as “the Saturn plant” outof force of habit.

Clegg said the plant’s ability toquickly shift from producing onemodel to another will be a key toGM’s strategy of speed and flexibility.

“It’s the only way that we cancompete in a very global economy,”said Clegg.

Haslam acknowledged that the

popular Equinox is also being pro-duced at other GM plants.

“When it’s rolled out here inSpring Hill, it will be the very bestEquinox ever made,” said Haslam.

Both GM and UAW officialspraised the agreements between thecompany and the union that made there-opening of the plant possible.

“We have permanent workers,permanent wages and permanent ben-efits,” said Casteel.

Union officials boasted that man-ufacturing jobs were being preservedin America rather than sent abroad.

“This company is about whatSpring Hill is about,” said UAW vicepresident Joe Ashton, “the middleclass.”

The union pushed to bring newwork to Spring Hill as part of thisyear’s contract talks between theUAW and GM. The four-year agree-ment reached in September secures6,400 new or saved jobs for GM’sunionized workers, and bumps pay forentry-level workers by about $3-an-hour during the life of the contract.

In exchange, UAW members

gave up cost-of-living increases andyearly pay raises for veteran workers.That helped keep the company’s laborcosts growing at 1 percent annually,its lowest rise in decades.

“We’re showing the world thatcollective bargaining does work whenpeople have a voice in the decisions,”King said. “You come out with betterdecisions.”


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CollsionWeek has reported that ar-ticipants at the Collision IndustryConference (CIC) this month in LasVegas voted to adopt a set of rec-ommendations for “beneficial andproductive” repairer-insurer rela-tionships. The recommendationswere drafted by the CIC Insurer-Re-pairer Relations Committee.

Said Chris Andreoli of Progres-sive Insurance, “I’ve already used thisinternally to say, ‘Hey, look, this isthe direction things are going; are weacting in this sort of manner?’ ” An-dreoli participates on the committeethat crafted the document, and saidduring a panel discussion on the draftdocument at the Las Vegas meeting,“No, it’s not law, but these thingsmake sense for business relation-ships.”

The document lays out about adozen suggestions for what CICviews as key elements of a produc-tive shop and insurer relationship.Some of the elements apply solely todirect repair relationships; the docu-ment, for example, states that bothshop and insurer should each knowwhat is expected from each other inorder to participate in a referral pro-gram, and each side should informthe other of the reasons why partici-pation in the program is being termi-nated.

Other elements listed applyequally to shop-insurer relationshipsoutside of a DRP. These include “astreamlined, electronic communica-tion process between the insurer andrepairer,” and communication withthe consumer to ensure the consumer

understands the relationship betweenthe shop and insurer and is aware ofhis or her repair options.

Rick Tuuri, chairman of the In-surer-Repairer Relations Committee,said the elements in the documentwere based on “trade practice propos-als” crafted by another CIC commit-tee and passed along to his committeefor further action. Tuuri said the ap-proved document has yet to addresssome of the earlier proposals, includ-ing key issues related to vendor se-lection, indemnification language inDRP agreements, and adherence torepair standards.

“We’ve kind of defined this as astarting place,” Allstate’s RandyHanson said of the document. “It’snot perfect. It’s not what everyonewants it to be. But in my mind it’s aplace to start.”

Another committee member,George Avery of State Farm said he

likes the document because whilemost people, including those withinhis own company, would look at itand see common-sense guidelinesthat are already in place, he knowsfrom his involvement in CIC andother industry groups that such prac-tices are not always followed.

“I think the company that I workfor will say, ‘Yeah, that sounds rea-sonable. I don’t have a problem withthat,’” Avery said. “The real questionis: Is it happening or is there any de-viation from that? We need to reachout and make sure it’s happening.”


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At CIC in Las Vegas, the CIC Partsand Materials Committee gave a pres-entation on VIN tags, emissions-re-lated labeling and some other labelsthat collision repairers are tasked withreplacing on repaired vehicles.

Committee member SteveNanta, Collision and Light RepairEngineering Supervisor at FordMotor Company, said label replace-ment requirements can vary based onstate law. Nantau said most federalregulations require only that au-tomakers include the labels on newcars, not that they be replaced on re-paired vehicles.

However, California does re-quire the replacement of some emis-sions-related labels. Although inmany cases the labels provide infor-mation that can be helpful for vehicleowners, replacing them can be a cus-tomer service issue for repairers aswell.

Policies regarding replacementlabels vary by automaker, Nantausaid. He cited the vehicle certificationlabel, which is required on new vehi-cles by the National Highway TrafficSafety Administration, and which cer-tifies that the vehicle meets all safetyand anti-theft requirements. It oftenincludes information like gross vehi-cle weight, tire size and trim codes.Replacement certification labels forsome vehicles are available thoughthe dealer, but Chrysler, Ford andGeneral Motors have also authorizedECS Automotive Concepts to manu-facture and sell replacement labelsthat, like the originals, include the au-

tomaker’s logo.Nantau pointed out that for au-

tomakers the labels represent copy-rightable content.

“There are other companies outthere that also reproduce these la-bels,” Nantau said. “They are not li-censed to do so. They don’t use thelogos, in most cases. But in some ofthese cases, the logos are required tobe on the labels. I can’t speak for allthe OEMs, but in the case of FordMotor Company, we think reproduc-ing these labels is a trademark in-fringement, regardless of whetherthey have a logo or not. So it wouldbe our position that it’s somethingthat should be sourced from the OEMor from a licensed source only.”

Additional Comments by NantauFord’s Nantau offered additional per-spective from the OEM side, statingthat their main focus is to sell vehi-cles.

“Repairability comes way downon the list,” said Nantau. “There is amajor effort to reduce the cost ofownership. For example, bolt-onparts versus welding. You will see alot more parts that can’t be repairedbecause of the reduced weight in ve-hicles. This doesn’t mean they won’tbe repairable, just that the repair costwill be less.”

Nantau also noted that whilemost shops spend 20 percent of theirtime writing the estimate and 80 per-cent on the actual repair, the neednow is for 80 percent of the time to bespent on building a “repair plan.”

CIC Parts and Materials Committee Looks at VIN Tags and Labels

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get. Rather, the union has beguntraining organizers at the regionallevel for “informational picketing” atforeign dealerships.

“We know it’s going to be a bigprocess to organize the transplants,”Ashton said.

The dealership action won’t in-volve actual picketing. Organizerswill hand out leaflets extolling thebenefits of union membership.

Ashton declined to elaborate onthe effort.

King had hoped to launch a cam-paign to organize a transplant by theend of this year. But the efforts took aback seat this fall as the UAW negoti-ated new contracts with GM, FordMotor Co. and Chrysler Group LLC.

After reaching the final dealwith Chrysler, King told reporters hedoubted he would meet his year-enddeadline.

While the union has earmarkeda portion of its $60 million strikefund for organizing, satisfactory dis-cussions with workers at various

plants in Southern states have madeit unnecessary to target any one com-pany yet, King has said.

In March, at its national bar-gaining convention, the UAW said itwas enlisting a global army of ac-tivists to demonstrate against non-unionized U.S. plants perceived asviolating workers’ rights.

Union officials said the armywill be unleashed when the union’sboard targets a company. The unionhas not said when lobbying or pick-eting might begin.

When that happens, union lead-ership said demonstration tactics willinclude protests at dealerships, cor-porate headquarters, major eventsand auto shows.

The union created the GlobalOrganizing Institute to recruit andtrain activists. According to King, thenext step is already under way: re-gional training.


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At the 2011 SEMA Show, takingplace from November 1-4 at the LasVegas Convention Hall, the Society ofCollision Repair Specialists (SCRS)put its own unique spin on the tradi-tion by “passing the helmet” for Op-eration Comfort’s Automotivationinitiative; the overall fundraising ef-fort resulted in the collection of over$3200 for the non-profit organization.

Operation Comfort, located inSan Antonio, Texas, provides supportto U.S. service members who havebeen wounded in Afghanistan or Iraqand are receiving treatment at theBrooke Army Medical Center(BAMC). As a form of occupationaltherapy and career replacement, Op-eration Comfort runs a program enti-tled Automotivation where woundedservice members rehabilitate throughautomotive-related activities such asrebuilding and restoring cars, trucks,and motorcycles on a ranch outside ofSan Antonio. Two vehicles the sol-diers worked on as part of the Auto-motivation program, a 1957 DodgePower Wagon used by the Army as aweapons carrier and a 1966 Cobra kitcar, were on display at the SEMAShow.

“Operation Comfort provides agreat place to work with lots of spaceand tools I wouldn’t otherwise haveaccess to, like a lift, power tools and acompressor,” said Sergeant RobertDickey, an Automotivation partici-pant who was at the SEMA Show.“It’s an opportunity to get out and dosomething I enjoyed doing before Igot injured, plus it gives me the op-portunity to consider doing somethingthat I love for a living. I’m verythankful for that.”

In an exclusive interview con-ducted by CollisionHub with SCRSExecutive Director Aaron Schulen-burg at the SCRS booth, OperationComfort Executive Director JanisRoznowski expressed her gratitudefor the industry’s efforts on behalf ofthe program. “A lot of our guys aregear heads, and Automotivation givesthem a chance to leave the hospitaland the barracks to do something theylove,” Roznowski explained. “In theprocess, they may find a new careerpath opening up in front of them. Wethank SCRS and the collision indus-try for their generosity. The moneycollected at this show is going to goto our next project, the restoration ofa 1934 Ford Cabriolet.”

Visitors to the SCRS booth onthe SEMA Show floor couldn’t helpbut notice the upturned military hel-mets stuffed full of bills of various de-nominations; donations from visitorswishing to give back to those who arethere to defend our country.

The helmets were also passedat Collision Industry Conference(CIC) and were visible in thehands of volunteers standing at theexit doors after the stirring Re-pairer Driven Education (RDE)Flawless Executions keynote byAfterburner Inc.’s Patrick “Lips”Houlahan. In addition, as part of aspecial tie-in with Afterburner’smilitary aviation inspired headlinepresentation, SCRS held a silentauction throughout the week attheir booth for a set of three“Flawless Execution One-on-One”DVDs produced by Afterburner.

“I was enthralled by the con-tent of the RDE Afterburner pres-entation,” shared Boyd Dingman,Owner of Dingman’s CollisionCenters in Omaha, Nebraska. “Themessage points were so relevant,and the simplicity of the practicalapplication of the process reallyhighlighted opportunities we mayhave been missing in the shop, andhow we could start taking advan-tage of them when we got backhome. I’m thrilled that I placed thewinning bid on the DVD set. Sinceour business is comprised of multi-ple locations, I’m looking forwardto utilizing the training in all threeof my stores, to bring everyone upto speed on some of the process ad-justments we are going to make;plus, it’s an honor to know themoney is supporting such a greatcause like Operation Comfort. I gotto meet some of the soldiers in theprogram while at the SEMA Show,and it is great to know there is aprogram like that to help.”

“This year’s SEMA Show wasan unforgettable event for a lot of dif-ferent reasons, but nothing reallycompares to the feeling you get whenyou help rally support around aworthwhile cause,” stated SCRSChairman Aaron Clark. “Collisionrepairers have demonstrated time andagain that the industry believes incommunity support and philanthropy,and it was great to see that on displayyet again. Good luck to OperationComfort, and thank you to the manyindustry professionals that con-tributed. Like those who serve ourcountry in the military, you make usall proud.”

If you have any questions orwould like to speak with an OperationComfort representative regardingtheir service, please e-mail [email protected] or call 210-826-0500.

Additional information aboutSCRS is available at the SCRS Website: www.scrs.com. E-mail SCRS atthe following address: [email protected].

SCRS and Collision Industry Raise over $3,200 for OperationComfort’s Automotivation Program at the 2011 SEMA Show


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The Right to Repair Coalition an-nounced October 21 that it has col-lected 106,658 voter signatures,exceeding the 68,911 required for theinitiative to appear on the 2012 ballotin Massachusetts.

Said Kathleen Schmatz, presi-dent and CEO of the Automotive Af-termarket Industry Association(AAIA): “We are very pleased withthe growing support for Right to Re-pair on both the federal and state lev-els. The momentum building inCongress, coupled with thegroundswell of support from voters inMassachusetts, demonstrates how im-portant Right to Repair is to con-sumers, especially in a tougheconomy,” said Schmatz. “Right toRepair will help alleviate motorists’ fi-nancial burden by ensuring a compet-itive vehicle repair marketplace,allowing car owners to patronize therepair facility of their choice.”

According to the Right to RepairCoalition, the voter initiative would,for the first time, allow consumers toaccess all of the non-proprietary repairinformation required to have their ve-

hicles repaired where they choose, at anew car dealership or an independentshop. The proposed law would levelthe playing field between the big carmanufacturers’ dealerships and inde-pendent, neighborhood repair facili-ties, allowing the latter to finally beable to access the same non-propri-etary automobile diagnostic and repairinformation that is currently onlyavailable to the manufacturers’ deal-ers and their new car dealerships.

“It’s time that car owners havethe right to get our vehicles repairedwherever we choose,” said JeffMcLeod of Marshfield, one of thesigners of the ballot petition. “Thegrowing support for this issue showshow important it is for consumers, es-pecially in a difficult economy.”

Opposition from Automakers andSome AssociationsIn September, when the Massachu-setts Attorney General certified theproposed ballot question, the Associa-tion of Global Automakers (formerlythe Association of International Auto-mobile Manufacturers) said they were

disappointed that the Right to Repairsupporters have resorted to circum-venting the Massachusetts legislaturefor passage of their bill.

Association of Global Automak-ers President and CEO Michael J.Stanton said, “Efforts to promote thislegislation have failed numerous timesat the federal level, in several statesand last year in the Massachusetts leg-islature. Today, Massachusetts Attor-ney General Martha Coakley certifiedall four Right to Repair petitions, per-mitting this legislation to move for-ward by way of the State’s publicballot initiative process.

“Right to Repair legislation doesnot benefit the consumer, as proponentssuggest, and has proven unnecessarytime and again over the last 20 years.Access to the same diagnostic repair in-formation auto manufacturers currentlyprovide to their dealers already exists,”said Stanton. “We regret that advocatesof the legislation are using the petitionprocess as a last resort for bill passageafter so many failed attempts.”

The ASA continues to opposeRight to Repair legislation, saying ad-equate consumer protections alreadyexist.

Consumer Groups Generally in FavorThe Right to Repair Coalition includesconsumer advocates like AAA andmore than 2,000 independent repairshops, small businesses and retailers incommunities across Massachusetts.

The proposed Right to Repair lawwould keep vehicle repairs affordablefor consumers by ensuring competitionamong repair facilities, say proponents.By leveling the playing field and in-creasing consumer choice, Right to Re-pair can save families an average of$300-$500 each year, according to anindustry study.

A recently released AAA Finan-cial Automotive Repair Survey high-lighted that many car owners can’tafford to pay for their repairs, thus,often forgoing having them done. Thiscreates a safety hazard for themselvesand others on the road. Right to Re-pair would help alleviate their finan-cial burden by increasing competitionand allowing motorists to choose theless expensive repair.

Support for the ballot questioncontinues to grow across the state asmore car owners recognize that thislaw would directly benefit them bymaking it easier to access repair infor-

mation electronically, increasing theirsafety and convenience in obtainingaffordable repairs.

In addition to the rapid signaturegathering, the Right to Repair coali-tion’s Facebook page continues togrow and has over 10,000 supporters.

“Both parties are talking about jobsand the economy. Right to Repair is ajobs and affordability bill during thiseconomic downturn,” said Sandy Bass-Cors, executive director of the Coalitionfor Auto Repair Equality (CARE).

“The automotive aftermarket em-ploys nearly five million people na-tionwide and, unless the Right toRepair Act passes, many of those jobscould be downsized. And, as moreAmericans choose to keep their vehi-cles longer for financial reasons, Rightto Repair is even more of a fiscal ne-cessity for them.”

Federal LegislationOn the federal level, the Right to Re-pair Act was introduced into the 112thCongress by Reps. Edolphus Towns(D-NY) and Todd Russell Platts (R-PA), and currently has 40 co-sponsors.

What the Act SaysThe Motor Vehicle Owners’ Right toRepair Act claims to protect “motor-ing consumers from a growing andpotentially hazardous vehicle repairmonopoly by requiring that vehiclemanufacturers provide full access at areasonable cost to all non-proprietaryservice information, tools and safety-related bulletins needed to repairmotor vehicles. The legislation pro-vides car companies with strong pro-tections for their trade secrets, onlyrequiring them to make available thesame diagnostic and repair informa-tion they provide their franchiseddealers to the independent vehicle re-pair market.”

For more information, visitwww.righttorepair.org and www.mass-righttorepair.com.

MA Right to Repair Coalition Secures 2012 Ballot Spot Via Petition


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ALLDATA LLC, provider of auto-motive business solutions to profes-sional mechanical and collision repairshops, is celebrating its 25th anniver-sary. “In 1986 our founders had a vi-sion,” said ALLDATA President JeffLagges. “Since then, we have contin-ued to lead the industry with innova-tive products that drive efficienciesand profitability throughout a shop’soperations. We like to say that weoffer ‘counter-to-fender’ solutions,and it’s true. Our growth has been adirect result of anticipating needs andlistening to our customers. We owe agreat debt to our customers for help-ing us develop products that have apositive impact on their businesses.”

In 2008, ALLDATA celebratedits 70,000th product subscriber, andjust three years later the companyannounced a record 80,000 sub-scribers.

Long-time ALLDATA em-ployee, Patti Collins, said, “I havebeen with ALLDATA for 20 years,and I have seen many changes. Overthe years, the one thing that remainsthe same is our commitment to ourcustomers. We have never stoppeddeveloping products to meet theirneeds and continue to explore newways to help them. That’s why I’mstill here.”

ALLDATA Celebrates 25 Yearsof Business

BodyShopBids, an online and mobileplatform that enables consumers to so-licit custom car repair estimates by up-loading a photo, announced on Nov. 10that it has written $1.5 million in bodyrepair estimates within its first fivemonths of service.

The Lightbank-funded companylaunched in June 2011. Since then,BodyShopBids has partnered withmore than 160 body shops in Chicagoand saved its customers an average of60 percent on each car repaired, thecompany claims.

Accessible for free via iPhone,Android and the Web, BodyShopBidsis the first of its kind to connect con-sumers who need auto body repairswith body shops through a unique bid-ding system. Consumers upload a photoof their damaged vehicles and receivecustom quotes from nearby body shopswithin 24 hours. A personal conciergealso educates consumers on the repairprocess. From there, the consumerchooses an estimate and books an ap-pointment with the body shop.

“We’re excited to experience suchtremendous growth in a short period oftime, and our goal is to continue tobuild on that success,” said Brad Weis-berg, founder and president ofBodyShopBids. “We’ve seen that

there’s a demand for a service like ours--people want to be able to find rep-utable body shops nearby, choose thefairest price, understand what’s actuallywrong with their car and book an ap-pointment, all from the comfort of theirown home. We want to expand whatwe’ve started in Chicago to other citiesin the very near future.”

Unlike other companies that pro-vide auto repair estimates, BodyShop-Bids does not require detailedinformation on damage to the con-sumer’s car. The company works withlocal body shops to ensure they honorestimates and provide reputable service.

BodyShopBids is currently activein Chicago, with plans to expand to LosAngeles and other U.S. cities in the up-coming months.

BodyShopBids is a Chicago-basedstartup, funded by Lightbank, whichprovides a web and mobile platform toconnect consumers who need auto bodyrepairs with body shops through aunique bidding system. The company’stechnology allows users to easily up-load photos of damage vehicles and re-ceive custom quotes from local bodyshops, all for free. To learn more aboutBodyShopBids, visit their YouTubedemo video or website:www.BodyShopBids.com.

BodyShopBids.com Processes $1.5 Million in Estimates in 5 mos. Back-and-forth bids escalated furiouslyon the 1964 Ford Fairlane at the recentBarrett-Jackson’s 4th Annual Las Vegasauto auction. Boldly painted in the strik-ing “Red Hot Chili Pepper” hue from theSherwin-Williams® Planet Color® Bar-rett-Jackson® Collector Color Series, thecar was the top-selling vehicle of theevent, garnering $700,000—and allgoing to one, very important charity.

The winning bidder showed his grat-itude to those serving in the American mil-itary and their families, with one-hundredpercent of the sale’s proceeds benefitingthe Armed Forces Foundation, a nationalnon-profit organization that provides sup-port for wounded service members andtheir families, through Project AmericanHeroes. Additionally, Barrett-Jacksonwaived its commissions on the sale, as ithas on all charity sales in recent years.

“Our men and women in uniform areon the front lines every day, and their fam-ilies are continually called upon to put oth-

ers first. We at Barrett-Jackson feel stronglyabout this incredible group of people andamazing charity, and that’s why I am will-ing to give up one of my prized possessionsto show how thankful I am,” said SteveDavis, President of Barrett-Jackson, and(previous) owner of the Fairlane.

The car underwent hundreds ofhours of restoration and detailing, andwas a showstopper at the 2009 SEMAconvention, where it was displayed atthe Sherwin-Williams Automotive Fin-ishes booth. It features a Roush Per-formance 427IR, 8-stack fuel injection560 HP engine with a torque of 540 ft-lbs and a Tremec TKO 6 speed.

Its custom finish comes from theSherwin-Williams Planet Color Barrett-Jackson Collector Color series—a lineof optically enhanced automotive paintscontaining special combinations ofhighly reflective additives. The color,“Red Hot Chili Pepper” (#PCFP2), isone of 25 colors in the factory package,custom paint line.

Planet Color Custom Paints andFinishes, including the Sherwin-WilliamsPlanet Color Barrett-Jackson CollectorColor series, are available at Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes branchesand other participating distributorsthroughout North America. For more in-formation visit www.planetcolor.com orwww.sherwin-automotive.com.

Barrett-Jackson President’s Custom Ford Fairlane Garners $700K

Collision Repairer Wins Welderat SCRS SEMA BoothSCRS and its Repairer Driven Educa-tion (RDE) series created plenty of ex-citement on their own from November1-4 at the Las Vegas Convention Cen-ter. One of the many reasons the Soci-ety’s booth was crowded withenthusiastic collision repair profes-sionals was a series of prize drawingsmade possible through the participa-tion of SCRS and its sponsors.

One such prize was the CM253MIG/MAG Welder donated by Car-O-Liner®, and the lucky winner of the raf-fle for it was Glen Caudle, Owner ofGlendale Collision in Saskatoon,Canada. “I couldn’t believe it when Ireceived the call,” Caudle shared. “I’vebeen coming to the SEMA Show forthe past four years, but I’ve never wonanything like this. I’m so happy tohave won this from SCRS, and whatmakes it great is I already use Car-O-Liner equipment in my shop. We can’twait to put it to work!”

To become eligible for the draw-ing, visitors to the SCRS booth had topick up a “report card” listing all RDEsponsors and their booth locationswithin the show. The participant thenhad to visit each RDE sponsor’s ex-hibit, have a company representativestamp the card, and return the com-pleted card to the SCRS booth forentry into the drawing.


Clarkstown International Collision inNanuet, NY, works hard to be an assetto their community. Their focus oncustomer service extends beyondcommunity and environmental con-scientiousness. Their concern for pro-tecting the environment led to theirdecision to convert to BASF water-borne paints in early 2011, a decisionthat owners, Gene and Anna Cortés,have not regretted.

Clarkstown stays up to date withall EPA and OSHA regulations, fortheir own preservation in addition to

the environment’s. In addition to re-cycling all metal, cardboard, head-lights, bumpers, aluminum and alloywheels, they have also gone com-pletely paperless—all filing and pa-perwork is done electronically.

Recently, the shop also made thechange to BASF’s Glasurit line of wa-terborne paint. Clarkstown convertedto Glasurit in March 2011, and GeneCortés is very pleased with the results.He decided to convert because of en-vironmental and health concerns, notbecause of any local mandate.

Additionally, the new paint is eas-ier to use and allows for better colormatching. Most of the vehicles Clark-stown deals with ale newer models, andthey have not encountered problemswith color matching because, accordingto Gene, “we work with a paint com-pany that offers a lot of training andsupport, which all of our painters haveparticipated in.” He praises the trainersat BASF for making the transition veryeasy. “They made the process painlessand their support is excellent. They an-swer any and all questions promptlyand effectively.”

Within four weeks of making theconversion, the shop began seeingpositive results. Color matching hasbecome easier, there is better air qual-ity in the shop, and they have been

able to increased productivity by fif-teen cars per month—now repairingover two hundred cars every month.Cortés says “my detailers say that thispaint has made it easier for them tocompletely detail the car, spendingless time wet-sanding and buffing.The paint flows better, and they seeless dust in the paint,” reducing denib-bing and other post-application prob-lems.

Clarkstown prides itself on cus-tomer service, cleanliness and profes-sionalism. According to Cortés, “we

are often comparedto a lawyer’s office,both for our appear-ance as well as ouroffice staff.”

As part of theirdedication to cus-tomer service, theyutilize a car scan-ning and tracking

system called “My CIC” which allowsthem to scan cars at each stage of therepair process using a barcode withwhich each car is labeled upon enter-ing the shop. This information allowsoffice staff to update customers easilywhen they call to check on the statusof their repairs. According to GeneCortés, it also “helps to speed up therepair process, cuts back on phonecalls, and increases our productivity.”

Gene believes “customer serviceis dying and that is one area I’ve nevercompromised. Even in this digital age,I believe in face-to-fact contact, greet-ing the customer and hearing a friendlyhuman voice on the phone. From thefirst day I opened my doors, I’ve had afriendly, professional person at thefront desk and answering the phones.We refuse to have an electronic an-swering system during our open hoursof operation. If the phone rings morethan twice before it is answered, some-one is not doing their job.” ClarkstownInternational Collision also uses theCustomer Service Index to obtain cus-tomer feedback on their service andperformance, and they react immedi-ately to any negative feedback.

Clarkstown International Colli-sion is also dedicated to staying cur-rent with technological advances.According to Gene, “computerized es-

timating, management, paint mixing,and Unibody measuring systems areall must-have programs for a 21st cen-tury shop. I still see shops doing it theold way… and those won’t make itunless they change their ways”.

Gene believes shop owners needto educate themselves constantly inorder to stay up to date. “It is no longera matter of just knowing a trade. Youhave to school yourself and be willingto spend the money in training foryourself and your staff.” This is im-portant since the computer systems invehicles are constantly becoming morechallenging, especially in Hybrid cars.

Also, he believes modern cus-tomers are more educated about re-pairs than they were twenty years ago.Because customers are aware of as-pects such as the differences betweenaftermarket parts, manufacturer partsand junkyard parts, shop owners andemployees must be even more edu-cated in order to deal with potentialquestions. At the same time, Genepoints out that “insurance companiesare now more than ever pushing after-market parts and more insurance com-panies are refusing to raise their laborrates, but they are requesting morefrom the body shop which cuts intoour profit margin”.

Clarkstown International Colli-sion was founded in 1992. Gene wasan insurance adjuster before openingthe shop, but as he felt had experienceon both sides and the desire to own hisown business, he and his wife openedthe shop with a bodyman, a painter,and only $100 in the bank. After visit-ing many shops and analyzing howeach operated, Gene applied the bestpractices of what he saw at each shophe visited. True to his belief of learningas much as possible, Cortés plans to at-

tend NACE 2011 and SEMA. Thoughhe has not attended in the past becausehe was too busy to leave the shop, he islooking forward to the events this year.

The shop is active in their commu-nity of Nanuet, NY. They are membersof various non-profit organizations, in-cluding the Rotary Club, the Knights of

Pythias, Rockland Business Associationand the Nyack Chamber of Commerce.Clarkstown also donates funds to theJesse J. Kaplan School for SpecialNeeds and to local churches, in additionto hosting an annual community Christ-mas party for families to bring their chil-dren for a day of fun with Santa.

Clarkstown International Colli-sion supports and is supported bythirty employees, eight of which areoffice personnel. They employ threeframe technicians, two painters, oneproduction foreman and four body-men while the remainder of their em-ployees work in preparation, detailing,maintenance and parts. The shop en-compasses 12,000 square feet with anadditional 2,000 square feet used forthe office, and utilizes six Uni-Bodybenches, three MIG welders, an alu-minum welder, two prep stations, twospray booths, and one paint mixingroom.

Besides auto body work, Clark-stown also offers towing, paintlessdent repair, glass repair and detailing.The shop is I-CAR certified, as wellas Mercedes-Benz certified, and theyare certified in aluminum repair. Theydo not participate in any direct repairprograms by choice.

Clarkstown International Collision95 Route 304Nanuet, NY 109554845-627-3100www.cicautobody.com

Clarkstown International Collision Credits BASF with Increased Productivity

with Rick WhiteShop Management

with Stefan GesterkampPaint Management

with Gonzo WeaverGonzo’s Toolbox

with Richard ArnoldJobber Journal

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].

Cars line the bays at Clarkstown InternationalCollision

Parts dry inside Clarkstown’s spray booth


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Sherwin Williams Automotive Fin-ishes has come to the aid of threeschool collision programs by donat-ing $12,000 in product through theCollision Repair Education Founda-tion. Applied Technology Center(Rock Hill, SC), Freedom HighSchool (Freedom, WI) and SarasotaCounty Technical Center (Sarasota,FL) all applied for the 2011 UltimateCollision Education Makeover$50,000 school grant and within theirwish lists, specifically requestedSherwin-Williams® products. TheCollision Repair Education Founda-tion forwarded these requests to TheSherwin-Williams Company for con-sideration of donation and they havecome through for the schools.

Freedom High School Technol-ogy Education Instructor Jay Abitzsaid, “Sherwin-Williams has fulfilleda large need for my school. Their gen-erous donations have taken a hugeburden off of my shoulders and mybudget. I cannot thank them enough!”

Applied Technology Center and2011 Makeover school grant winninginstructor Mark Dellinger said, “Thisdonation is huge! With a shrinkingbudget that is tightening everyday, itis next to impossible to let my stu-dents just blow through waterbornebasecoat. This is a quality waterborne

line that all students need to be ex-posed to on a regular basis.”

Sarasota County Technical Cen-ter Program Manager KristeyRichardson said, “Sherwin Williamsis an active and valued partner to ourSarasota (SCTI) Automotive Colli-sion Repair and Refinishing Program.Without Sherwin Williams’ involve-

ment on our program advisory com-mittee and occasional donation ofproduct we would not have the pro-gram success we enjoy at this time.”

Collision Repair Education Foun-dation Executive Director ScottKruger said, “Sherwin-Williams Au-tomotive Finishes not only assisted our2011 Makeover winning school butthey also helped the two other applicantschools that specifically requestedproduct from Sherwin-Williamsthrough their Makeover grant applica-tion. It is a true testament of The Sher-win-Williams Company’s commitmentto the future of the industry when it canbe stated that they fulfilled all of theschools requests from the 2011Makeover grant.”

Information about Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes can befound at www.sherwin-automotive.com.For information about the CREF contactBrandon Eckenrode at Brandon.Ecken-rode@ed foundation.org.

Sherwin-Williams Donates $12,000 in Product to Collision RepairEducation Foundation 2011 Makeover Applicant Schools

Registration is now open for the an-nual AAIA Aftermarket LegislativeSummit, scheduled for March 14–15in Washington, D.C. The event pro-vides an opportunity for members ofthe automotive aftermarket fromacross the country to fly in for meet-ings with their elected officials anddiscuss issues of importance to theircompany and the industry. The sum-mit will be kicked off with a briefingsession at 3 p.m. on Wednesday,March 14. The briefing session willfeature speakers from both the publicand private sectors who will touch oneverything from aftermarket-specificissues to the overall political climatein Washington. On Wednesdayevening, the congressional receptionwill be held in Rayburn House OfficeBuilding and will provide an opportu-nity to network with fellow aftermar-ket professionals and congressionalstaffers. The following day, Thursday,March 15, will be entirely dedicatedto appointments with the individualcongressional offices. Registration isfree and the summit staff will makelegislative appointments. Those at-tending need only to take care oftravel and hotel arrangements.

Aftermarket LegislativeSummit Opens Registration Boyd Group Income Fund, operator of

166 North American auto body shops,reported its financial results for thethree-month and nine-month periodsended September 30, 2011.

Highlights:● Record sales and Adjusted EBITDAwhen compared to previous third quar-ter results● Sales increased by 41.1% to $97.3million from $69.0 million in Q3 2010;True2Form Collision Repair Centers,Inc. (“True2Form”), Cars CollisionCenter of Colorado, LLC and CarsCollision Center, LLC, (collectively“Cars Collision”), and seven other newlocations contributed $26.3 million ofsales● Same-store sales increased by 8.7%,excluding the impact of foreign ex-change translation● Gross margin increased to $43.5 mil-lion or 44.7% compared with $31.5million or 45.7% in Q3 2010● Adjusted EBITDA totalled $6.4 mil-lion compared with $5.0 million in Q32010● Payout ratio was 24.9% comparedwith 16.9% in Q3 2010, due in part, toa higher level of distributions● The Fund completed a bought dealpublic offering, issuing 1,300,000 unitsout of treasury at a price of $10.75

● On September 16, 2011, the Fundwas added to the S&P/TSX SmallCapIndex● Fund Trustees approved a 7.1% in-crease in distributions to $0.0375 perunit

“Results for the third quarter of2011 are solid, driven by positivegrowth in same-store sales despite con-tinued challenging market conditions,”said Brock Bulbuck, President andChief Executive Officer of the BoydGroup. “Although unemployment andgas prices remained elevated and milesdriven has continued to trend down-wards, we have been able to grow rev-enue as a result of successful operationalexecution and superior industry posi-tion. The completed acquisitions ofCars Collision and True2Form haveproven to be incrementally positive toour business, meeting and exceeding ourexpectations. As the largest multi-loca-tion collision operator in North Amer-ica, both in annual sales and number oflocations, we continue to look to lever-age our scale to capitalize on attractiveopportunities going forward. The equityinjection of approximately $12.7 mil-lion, net of costs, this quarter strengthensour balance sheet and puts us in an ex-cellent position to execute on future op-portunities.”

Boyd-Gerber-True2Form Group Reports 41% Sales Increase

A public opinion poll by Peter HartResearch Associates found more than70% of Americans had a positive atti-tude towards GM, a turnaround fromthe 70% negative opinion recordedtwo years earlier, right after the $50billion GM bailout. So said GM CEODan Akerson during an appearancebefore the Detroit Economic Clubduring which he cautioned that the re-maining 500 million shares of the au-tomaker held by the U.S. Treasurywon’t be sold off anytime soon.

“I do think we’ve kind of gottenover that,” Akerson said, in referenceto the raging debate over the 2009bailout that pulled GM out of bank-ruptcy but left taxpayers holding amajority stake in the automaker afterit emerged from Chapter 11 protec-tion. But since it emerged from bank-ruptcy in July 2009, suggestedAkerson, attitudes have improved. “Ithink America loves a competitor. Ithink General Motors, Chevrolet inparticular, is part of Americana,” saidAkerson.

To break even would require ashare price of around $53. The priceis now below $22, though that was upfrom a recent $19.65 low.

Majority No Longer Upsetabout GM Bailout Says CEO

This month’s article is aboutchanges—changes which I believe arefor the better. One change I want totalk about is in inventory manage-ment. In the 1970s, automotive deal-ers needed to be warehouses. Stockorders came weekly; or even monthly.Special orders took three days, unlessyou paid extra for the overnight sur-charge. If a dealer wanted to havegood Customer Satisfaction scores, hedid his best to always have the neededpart on hand. This dumped the re-sponsibility of customer service on thedealer’s parts department. Theyneeded to carry, on the shelf, massiveinventories of 5,000 numbers, ormore. Manufacturers promoted thissystem, and the belief that large in-ventories promoted better scores. Ofcourse, dealers absorbed the cost ofthese slow moving inventories; in thenever ending search for better cus-tomer satisfaction scores.

There is a better way.Today’s inventory management

is completely different, and much im-proved. Yes, it is great to have all theparts “on hand,” but isn’t next-daygood enough? Does the difference jus-tify the added investment? Manufac-turers now have daily stock orders asroutine, eliminating the need for awarehouse system. The manufacturerhas assumed the responsibility of cus-tomer satisfaction. Almost any partwhich is needed can be obtained thenext day. This has leveled the playingfield between large and small dealers.Now, they can both deliver fast serv-ice, and get great customer satisfac-tion scores!

I see another positive change inthe wholesale marketing area. Onceupon a time, the manufacturers con-sidered the dealers to be their cus-tomers, and stopped right there. Aparts representative was concernedabout accessory sales, not body parts.Now, that a few manufacturers havegotten serious about wholesale sales,they have started to actively help theirdealers in this market.

One such company is SoutheastToyota Distributors LLC, (SET). Thisis the world's largest independent dis-tributor of Toyotas and Scions. SET isbased in Deerfield Beach, FL. Thecompany's vehicle processing facili-ties distribute cars, trucks and vans,

parts and accessories to 173 inde-pendent Toyota dealers in Florida,Georgia, Alabama and the Carolinas.

SET is the leading distributor ofToyota parts in the United States. Lo-cated inside a facility the size of eightfootball fields in Jacksonville'sBaymeadows area, SET Parts Saleshas the best supply record of all Toy-ota regions or distributors, shippingmore than $1.7 million in parts perday to SET dealerships, providing that“next- day” service.

SET is serious about helping theirdealers compete in the aftermarketbusiness. I talked to Wayne Crater,Assistant Vice President, Parts Supply& Distribution at SET about theirdealer support. He was extremely en-thusiastic and proud of their dealerprograms, and he told me about someof them. SET Field Support consistsof six dedicated Wholesale CollisionSpecialists. Their responsibility is towork directly with dealers to assist ingrowing wholesale collision business.In addition to routine dealer contacts,they conduct week-long, wholesaledealer consultations; focusing onevery needed aspect in order to createa more efficient and profitable whole-sale operation.

STAR Program, also know asToyota STAR Program (Support toAftermarket Repair), is a marketingsupport program sponsored by Toyota

Motor Sales to promote wholesalebusiness.

Collision Parts Price Support of-fers two different web-based pricesupport programs to their dealers;Auto Parts Bridge, sponsored by Toy-ota Motor Sales, and SET Parts Edge,sponsored by SET and managed byOE Connection. Both programs pro-vide participating dealers with thetools, training, and funding to supportincreased sales and market sharethrough “conquest sales,” a processwhere the dealer has the opportunityto sell a Genuine Toyota Part over analternative part using SET price sup-port funding. This program allowsdealers to be competitive in the mar-ketplace and increase parts sales prof-itably.

I believe Southeast Toyota Dis-tributors are distinctive because theyhave demonstrated to me that theycare. They care about their dealers andtheir customers. They care about thequality of a Toyota, even after the war-ranty has expired. They will do every-thing they can to assure that thecustomer still has a quality producteven after the damage. SET wantsevery Toyota to be repaired with gen-uine parts, every time. SET makessure that its dealers can offer fast serv-ice; complete with competitive prices.This qualifies them for my AutobodyNews list of Distinctive Dealerships.

Southeast Toyota Distributors (SET) Embraces Industry Changes to Help Dealers Stay Competitive

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?!

Larry Williams is an innovative parts manager with national awards and over 30 years of experience increating and managing profitable departments. He can be reached for consultation at [email protected] read all his columns go to http://www.autobodynews.com/columnists/williams-larry.html


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Slow Fiat 500 SalesChrysler Group has suspended pro-duction this month of the 1.4-literFIRE engine that powers the Fiat 500in North America because of slow U.S.sales of the subcompact, a top UAWlocal official said. More than 100 ofabout 400 hourly workers at Chrysler’sGlobal Engine Manufacturing AlliancePlant in Dundee, Mich., were laid offat the start of the month and don’tknow yet when they might be back onthe job, said Tom Zimmerman, theplant’s unit chairman for UAW Local723. Chrysler spokeswoman Jodi Tin-son said the plant “is moderating itsschedule to adjust for the current bankof engines.” She disputed Zimmer-man’s numbers, however, saying thatabout 30 employees at the plant arecurrently laid off and another 35 are“redeployed” to other parts of the fa-cility.

Fix Auto USA has announced that allof its 43 franchises will use the Veri-Facts Automotive VQ certificationprogram, which provides a third-partyreview that the shops have the equip-ment, information and standard oper-ating procedures to perform properstructural repairs.

General Motors is telling Chevy dealersthat they are now free to sell Volt demomodels, doubling the availability of theplug-in hybrid. This move frees 2,300Volt demo models on dealer lots as GMattempts to sell its closely-monitoredtarget of 10,000 Volts this year. ThroughOctober, GM had only sold 5,003 Volts.

Fix Auto Will Use VerifactsCertification Program

GM to Sell Volt DemoModels, Doubles Inventory

GM Expecting Accelerated December SalesIndustrywide U.S. auto sales may accel-erate in December to a seasonally ad-justed annual rate of about 14 million, thebest pace this year, a General Motors Co.executive said last month.

“We’re expecting to get close to that14 million” rate, Don Johnson, vice pres-ident of U.S. sales, said at a Barclays Cap-ital investor conference in New York.

The estimate includes medium- and

heavy-duty truck deliveries, which theDetroit-based automaker has said usuallyadds 200,000 to 300,000 sales to monthlyannualized sales rates. Light-vehicle salesin October rose to a seasonally adjustedannual rate of 13.3 million, matching Feb-ruary’s pace that was the best since August2009 when sales were boosted by the U.S.government’s “cash for clunkers” pro-gram, according to Autodata Corp.

Autobody News December 2011 Northeast Edition

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