autobody news december 2011 southeast edition

The National Auto Body Council(NABC) announced the winners of the16th annual Pride Awards on Novem-

ber 2 at the 2011 SEMA Show. TheNABC began bestowing the awardson deserving individuals in the colli-sion repair industry to further theirmission to create positive publicawareness of the collision repair in-dustry.

Jessica Anderson, a student ofcollision repair at Wiregrass GeorgiaTechnical College, was the only stu-dent to receive a Pride Award this year.Anderson is a Skills USA participantwho decided she wanted to use hercollision training to help people in hercommunity. She observed plenty of

Student at Georgia Technical College ReceivesNABC Pride Award at SEMA Show 2011

See Pride Awards, 1

by John Yoswick

When you read a sampling of com-ments from among the 135,000 peo-ple in Vegas during SEMA week—nomatter how you look at it—SEMA hasall the diversity of a small city. A citywhere, for love or profit, all the citi-zens share a car obsession, but it’s acity-sized population 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-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 front

See SEMAHeard & Said, Page 30

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

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

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 theuse of aftermarket parts on November16th in San Francisco.

In preparation for the “pre-noticepublic discussions,” the Commis-sioner released a series of proposedrevisions to the California Code ofRegulations that was discussed andreviewed in depth at the meeting. Inapproximately 45 days, Jones and hisdepartment will issue an official No-tice of Proposed Action.

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

shops, insurers and aftermarket partsvendors and manufacturers, the Com-missioner’s office wrote: “The pur-pose of these discussions is to permitcertain interested and affected personsan opportunity to present statementsor comments with respect to the at-tached draft regulations text.”

The draft regulations largelypertain to the specification and use ofaftermarket parts, but also includenew requirements for adjusting esti-mates as well as consumer disclo-sures and remedies in the event that adefective part is used for a repair. Seesidebar.

Gene Crozat, the owner ofG&C Auto Body with seven NorthernCalifornia locations, attended themeeting and and offered his perspec-tive. After reviewing the proposedchanges, Crozat recognizes that theCommissioner is addressing a volatilesubject and questions some of the lan-guage within the contemplated revi-sions.

California DOI Meeting Addresses RegulationsAffecting Aftermarket Parts and Accountability

Jessica Anderson (center) and InstructorMark Whitson (2nd from left) received a“Pride Award” at SEMA 2011. Representingthe NABC are (from left) Bob Keith, StacyBartnik and Janet Chaney

A California federal judge granted ajoint plaintiff and defendant motion todismiss an antitrust class action againstState Farm Mutual Automobile Insur-ance Co. and other insurers Nov. 15,saying the plaintiffs do not have stand-ing to sue several wholly owned sub-sidiaries of the insurance companies.The plaintiffs had filed a fourthamended complaint in July against StateFarm, Allstate Indemnity Co., GeicoGeneral Insurance Co., Liberty MutualFire Insurance Co. and the CertifiedAu-tomotive Parts Association (CAPA), apurported independent regulatory bodycreated by the 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 aclass action against them under Arti-cle III of the U.S. Constitution.

The plaintiffs filed suit against theinsurance companies and CAPA in2006. Named plaintiffs Sarah Perez,

California Court Grants Joint Motion to Dismiss Perez et al.Aftermarket Antitrust Case, Allows Plaintiffs to Refile Case

See Antitrust Dismissal, Page 19

See DOI Meeting, Page 33

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REGIONALABRA Auto Body & Glass Partners WithInvestment Firm to Continue PlannedNational Expansion . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Albany Technical College in Albany, GA,Raffles Off Car Repaired by School’sCollision Students . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Chaney Re-elected Mississippi InsuranceCommissioner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Daimler to Produce Additional Model at theMercedes-Benz Tuscaloosa, AL, Plant . . 8

FACA’s Cathy Mills Speaks to Girl Scouts atNACE Show About Careers in the CollisionIndustry. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

FACA’s Polk County Chapter, Auto Angelson Target for Christmas Giveaway ofReconditioned Vehicles . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Five Florida Families Receive RecycledRides at NACE . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

FL May Train More Troopers to InvestigateAccident Scenes . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

FL’s Collex Collision Experts Wins CSiComplete Award at SEMA . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Insurer Group Urges FL to Curb AutoInsurance ‘Fraud Tax’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

More ‘Unfit’ Floridians Having LicensesRevoked . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

State Farm Lowering Rate Level in GA by2.2 Percent . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Student at Georgia Technical College ReceivesNABC Pride Award at SEMA Show 2011. 1

Trademark Metals Acquires Georgia Dealer. 8

COLUMNISTSChess - Keenan Auto Body’s First ResponderTraining Brings Together PA & DECommunities . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Franklin - Use Estimator Tactics to Closethe Sale . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Gesterkamp - How Lucky Do You Feel?—Durability of Back-Taped Edges . . . . . . 17

I-CAR - How to Work With Active GrilleShutters on a 2012 Ford Focus . . . . . . 12

Insurance Insider - Industry UndecidedWhich Will Prevail in NACE vs. SEMA. . 28

Sisk - Clarktown International CollisionCredits BASF with Increased Productivity. 38

Weaver - Are We Crossing Into the ‘OuterLimits’ of Automotive Repair? . . . . . . . 23

Williams - Southeast Toyota Distributors(SET) Embraces Industry Changes toHelp Dealers Stay Competitive . . . . . . . 18

Yoswick - CIC Committee and I-CARRespond to Association Statement on‘Industry Standards’ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Zurada - How to Prepare, File and Win aClaim in Small Claims Court . . . . . . . . 26

NATIONAL13 Las Vegas Families Receive Gift ofReliable Transportation this Year atSEMA With Recycled Rides . . . . . . . . . 31

Aftermarket Associations Complain toFTC About Mazda’s Claims RegardingWarranty Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Aftermarket Legislative Summit Opens

Registration . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33ALLDATA Celebrates 25 Years of Business. 39ASRW 2011: Attendance Up 18%, PositiveFeedback from Exhibitors . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Automotive Service Association (ASA)Approves New Replacement CrashParts Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Barrett-Jackson President’s Custom FordFairlane Garners $700K . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

BodyShopBids.com Processes $1.5 Millionin Estimates in 5 mos. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

Boyd-Gerber-True2Form Group Reports41% Sales Increase . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32

California Court Grants Joint Motion toDismiss Perez et al. AftermarketAntitrust Case, Allows Plaintiffs to Refile. . 1

California DOI Proposes Regs AffectingAftermarket Parts and Accountability . . . 1

Chief Donates Frame Rack to OperationComfort Automotivation Program forWounded Warriors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35

CIECA Advises on Progress of Total LossCommittee. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Collision Repairer Wins Welder at SCRSSEMA Booth . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8

Delphi Goes Public at $22 a Share . . . . . . 14Gerber Collision & Glass Joins CollisionRepair Education Foundation’s IndustryLeadership Circle With $10K Donation . 11

Hot Rod Industry Alliance (HRIA) SponsoredPinewood Drag Races Light Up 2011SEMA Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

Honda Civic Natural Gas Wins Green Carof the Year Award. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

Hughes Telematics Partners with AAA Clubto Offer In-Drive Connected Services toMembers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

SCRS and Collision Industry Raise over$3,200 for Operation Comfort’sAutomotivation Program at the 2011SEMA Show . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 37

SCRS Joins with Leading Collision RepairOrganizations to Release Joint PositionStatement on Collision Repair Standards . 34

SEMA Announces New Product ShowcaseAward Winners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Sherwin-Williams Donates $12,000 inProduct to Collision Repair EducationFoundation 2011 Makeover ApplicantSchools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Social Studies Panel Held at 2011 SEMAShow Highlights Social Media BestPractices for Shops . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Supplier Price-fixing Litigation May PlayOut in Detroit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22

Voices Heard Amid Revving Engines atSEMA, What the Collision RepairersSaid and Heard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1

White and Silver Most Popular Car Colorsin the World . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Women Drivers at Greater Risk in CarCrashes, Says Study. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Women’s Board Car Care Council HoldsReception at AAPEX 2011, AwardsIndustry Leaders . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Contents

Southeast

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

Serving Florida, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi and adjacent metro areas, Autobody Newsis a monthly publication for the auto body industry. Permission to reproduce in any form thematerial published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher.©2011 Adamantine Media LLC.

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

Arrigo Dodge-Jeep-Chrysler. . . . . . . 8

Autoland Scientech. . . . . . . . . . . . . 23

BASF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9

Bill Penney Toyota. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19

BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . 11

Classifieds. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39

Crown Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2

Delray Honda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18

Don Reid Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11

Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7

Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers

FL, GA, AL, MS . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 40

Galloway Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13

Garmat USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4

Global PDR Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

Gus Machado Ford. . . . . . . . . . . . . 16

Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts

Dealers. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20-21

Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . 31

Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers. 27

Mazda Wholesale Parts . . . . . . . . . 33

Mercedes-Benz Wholesale Parts

Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28

MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 13

Nalley BMW. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 10

Nissan Wholesale Parts Dealers. . . 30

Palmers Toyota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 24

Porsche Wholesale Parts Dealers . 35

Safety Regulation Strategies . . . . . 14

Serra Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25

Shop-Pro Equipment . . . . . . . . . . . 15

South Motors . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5

Southtowne Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . 17

Subaru of Gwinnett . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29

Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . 37

Tameron Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 12

Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . 32

Volkswagen Wholesale Parts

Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 36

Inde

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www.autobodynews.com | DECEMBER 2011 AUTOBODY NEWS 3


Palladium 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 repairservices. Terms of the transactionwere not disclosed.

Founded in 1984, ABRA is a rec-ognized leader in collision repair,paintless dent removal, and auto glassrepair and replacement with 75 com-pany-owned vehicle damage repaircenters and 38 franchised centers in12 states.

ABRA distinguishes itself byproviding a solution that seeks to en-able its insurance company partners tosubstantially improve customer satis-faction and drive policyholder reten-tion, while simultaneously reducingrepair costs and realizing substantialefficiencies in the claims managementprocess.

ABRA’s commitment to opera-tional excellence allows it to consis-tently offer high quality service to itscustomers and insurance partners.

RollieBenjamin,ABRA’s founder,will remain Chairman of the Companyand Tim Adelmann and Scott Krohnwill continue in their senior executiveroles. Duane Rouse, ABRA’s President

and Chief Financial Officer, was ap-pointed Chief Executive Officer in con-nection with the transaction.

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-po-sitioned to accelerate our national ex-pansion plan, and to further ourmission of becoming the leading autobody and glass 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 services.But it is ABRA’s innovative servicemodel and deep insurance industry re-lationships that truly set it apart. TheCompany has a terrific managementteam that has guided its organic growthover the course of nearly threedecades—including through the estab-lishment of a highly successful fran-chise program. Palladium looksforward to partnering with ABRA on arange of new market opportunities inthe months and years ahead.”

For more information pleasevisit www.palladiumequity.com orwww.abraauto.com.

ABRA Auto Body & Glass Partners With InvestmentFirm to Continue Planned National Expansion

One Albany, GA, resident is driving anew car she won at a raffle at AlbanyTechnical College on October 28, ac-cording to WALB News Albany GA.The 1991 Nissan Maxima parked infront of the Kirkland ConferenceCenter now belongs toMaggie Grif-fin.

Before Griffin took the keys, theschool owned the car, but when theygot it there was some work to do. Andwho better to do it than the automo-tive repair and automotive collisionprograms at the college?

“Very elated—I’m ecstatic,”said Griffin. She won it by entering araffle, but while the odds weren’tnecessarily in her favor, she felt fairlyconfident about her chances.

But this car is more than justan extra vehicle for the Griffin fam-ily. She said, “the neat thing aboutthis car is not necessarily its color, al-though I think it’s pretty cool, it’show it came to look how it doestoday.”

The students combined theirskills to make the car look, and run,nearly as new. Student Instructor El-liott Bonds did the paint work. He

said “it took me about a month and ahalf to finish that car.”

The skills being learned here bythe 40 or so students working underBonds should translate into jobswhen they’re out in the workforce.

Bonds said, “there are manyfields you can go into with this de-gree. Because you can go into thepainting part of the auto body, youcan go into the body, the collision re-pair part of it as well as you can gointo the detail end of it.”

About 700 tickets were sold forthe raffle and the proceeds went tothe Albany Technical College foun-dation.

Albany Tech met or exceededmany of its goals this fiscal year, in-cluding student retention, graduationand full-time equivalents. The jobplacement goal of 95 percent fell a bitshort at 79.1 percent, though gradua-tions were at 64.2 percent, exceedingthe goal of 60 percent.

From 3,718 students during thesummer semester of 2010, enroll-ment at the college has increasedeach subsequent semester to a total of4,562 for the fall of 2011.

Albany Technical College in Albany, GA, Raffles OffCar Repaired by School’s Collision Students

A mid-year update from the FloridaAuto Collision Alliance (FACA) re-veals that the “Auto Angels” are ontarget for this year’s Christmas give-away of reconditioned vehicles toneedy recipients.

“Thanks to the support of manysponsors and the collision repairersinvolved in this program, thus far wehave five vehicles which will beready at the end of July,” said DavidStewart of Stewart’s Auto Repair inWinterhaven, FL.The donated vehicles include a:• 2001 Ford Escort four-door• 1999 Neon four-door• 2002 Chrysler Voyager van• 2001 Grand Marquis• 1991 Nissan Pathfinder SUV

Auto Angels’ goal is to have 14to 15 vehicles ready for this year’sChristmas giveaway. They’re cur-rently seeking donor vehicles andare in discussions with several in-surers and others in hopes of get-ting suitable vehicles as well assponsors for cash and/or materialdonations.

Stewart stated, “We’re excitedas to what this year offers. Last year

was a great success and people arestill talking about what a blessing itwas to both the recipients as well asthose who were responsible for mak-ing it happen. This year we’ve en-joined the local chapter of FACAwith the intent to make it even biggerwith a goal of presenting up to 15 ve-hicles.”Participating Florida businesses in-clude:• Bernie’s Body Shop (Lakeland)• Ben’s Paint Supply (Lakeland)• Winter Haven Honda• Douglass Collision (Lakeland)• Gunder’s Auto Center (Lakeland)• LKQ-Auto Parts (Brandon)• All-Pro Used Auto Parts (Auburn-dale)• Jenkins Lincoln Mercury (Lake-land)• Meisner’s Paint & Body (Lakeland)• NAPA Auto Parts (Lakeland)• 1-800 Radiator (Central Florida)• Stewart Auto Repair (Winterhaven)• Maurice’s Auto Body (Lakeland)• Watkins Motor Lines (Lakeland)

For more information please con-tact David Stewart at [email protected] or (863) 965-2030.

FACA’s Polk County Chapter, Auto Angels on Targetfor Christmas Giveaway of Reconditioned Vehicles


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The Girl Scouts of Citrus Counciljoined the industry on the NACEshow floor Saturday, October 8thfrom 9:00 am to 12:00 pm.

The girls met with female lead-ers in the industry, learned about theinfluential and transformative workbeing done by women in this field andexplored the expo floor searching forthose unique “tools for success” ourindustry has to offer. Among thewomen who spoke to the girls wasCathy Mills, Executive Director ofthe Florida Auto Collision Alliance(FACA).

Mills stated, “I had the opportu-nity of giving them the opening talkon Saturday morning. With mymother, myself, and my daughter asGirl Scout troop leaders it was a priv-ilege to speak to the girls about di-verse career opportunities available inthis industry. Speaking to them abouta bit of my history in the industry andmy journey from a parts driver to theexecutive director of the FACA. Howas long as you give whatever you do110% you can succeed at anything. Ihave always been passionate abouteducation and supporting women inthe industry.”

This year Collision Hub, who hasput the event on for the last two years,also added a panel discussion andlunch hosted by LKQ where the GirlScouts had a chance to meet with andhear from leaders in the industry ontopics ranging from the science behindthe collision repair industry to the di-verse career opportunities available.

Girl Scouts: Tools for Successwas powered by Enterprise Rent-A-Car and was made possible by thegenerous sponsorship of companies atevery level of the collision repair in-dustry.

For more information about thisprogram please visit www.collision-hub.com.

FACA’s Cathy Mills Speaks to Girl Scouts at NACEShow About Careers in the Collision Industry

Insurance Commissioner MikeChaney won re-election in voting onNovember 10 in Mississippi, accord-ing to Insurance Journal.

Chaney, a Republican fromVicksburg, defeated Democrat LouisFondren of Gautier and ReformParty candidate Barbara DaleWasher of Hattiesburg. Chaney, 67,was first elected commissioner in2007.

Chaney counted among hisachievements digitizing departmentrecords, updating the agency’s web-site, recruiting 140 new insurancecompanies to the state, completing ahurricane wind mitigation study, help-ing create a $20 million grant-basedmitigation program for Gulf Coasthomeowners and giving back policy-holders more than $11 million.

He also said the insurance de-partment had recovered nearly $154million related to jailed financialswindler Martin Frankel.

Although opponents hadcharged more could be done to keepinsurance rates low in Mississippi,Chaney was successfully re-electedto his post as Insurance Commis-sioner.

Chaney Re-elected MississippiInsurance Commissioner

Florida’s top highway safety officialwants to put more troopers who spe-cialize in investigating highway fa-talities out on the road, according toreports made by Insurance Journal.

Highway Safety and Motor Ve-hicles Director Julie Jones toldmembers of the Florida Cabinet thisweek that she wants to train all troop-ers on how to investigate simple fa-talities that involve a single car, suchas when a car crashes into a tree.

Jones said that will save time byallowing a trooper who responds toan accident to begin an investigationimmediately, rather than wait for aninvestigator.

Jones said the current class at theacademy is being trained to investigatesimple fatalities. Starting in February,current troopers will start attending aspecial school to get the extra trainingon investigating accidents.

FL May Train More Troopersto Investigate Accident Scenes

Florida should allow more time forlooking into suspicious claims, placea cap on attorneys’ fees and moreclosely regulate medical clinics tohelp reduce rampant fraud in thestate’s personal injury protection (PIP)auto insurance system, an insurer tradegroup says.

The Property Casualty InsurersAssociation of America (PCI) has re-leased a report detailing what it seesas the problems with the current PIPprovision in its no-fault auto insurancelaw and offering several legislativeproposals.

“The bottom line is that if PIP isnot transformed this year, Florida willcontinue to lead the country in ques-tionable automobile claims, invitingeven more criminal activity and put-ting Florida’s consumers and busi-nesses at risk,” said Paul Blume,PCI’s senior vice president in chargeof state government relations.

Based on Florida Office on In-surance Regulation data, Florida driv-ers pay the highest amount for autoliability in the country at an annualcost of $736 as opposed to $471. Thestate’s claim frequency has also risenby 19.2 percent since 2006 as opposedto the one percent increase in statesthat have a pure tort system. Likewise,Florida’s average PIP claim cost isoutpacing the increase in health care

costs by 31.1 percent as opposed to6.4 percent. The number of PIP relatedlawsuits has also increased from some6,000 cases in 2006 to over 28,000 lastyear. Blume said action by lawmakersis needed to change the situation.

PCI is making four specific leg-islative proposals, including allowingmore time to investigate suspiciousclaims and placing caps on claimantattorney fees. The association also rec-ommends that there should be moreoversight of medical clinics by allow-ing on-site inspections to ensure theyare performing the services they billfor and reduce utilization by estab-lishing reasonable treatment limits.

“By passing legislation in the up-coming 2012 legislative session thatincludes these four vital components,the legislature will help close loop-holes that prevent regulators and themarketplace for investigating andfighting fraud,” said Blume.

Florida has been struggling withthe state’s no-fault law for severalyears. In 2007, lawmakers briefly letthe bill repeal only to find themselvesreinstating it due to pressure from triallawyers and medical providers. Nextyear, however, the battle is expectedto continue. Gov. Rick Scott has putthe issue at the top of his legislativeagenda with the goal of making thecoverage optional.

Insurer Group Urges FL to Curb Auto Insurance ‘Fraud Tax’

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Five Florida Families Received NABC and FACA-Sponsored Recycled Rides at NACEThe National Auto Body Council(NABC) changed the lives of fiveFlorida families on Oct. 7 at theNACE convention in Orlando by giv-ing them each a newly refurbished ve-hicle through Recycled Rides, anational initiative that refurbishes do-nated vehicles and gives them to fam-ilies in need and organizationsdedicated to assisting others.

The Florida Autobody CollisionAlliance (FACA) contributed to thesuccess of this program this year. WithNACE being held in Orlando, CathyMills, FACA’s executive director, wascontacted to assist in the coordinatingfor this year’s program. These fami-lies were using public transportationand spending anywhere from 3-6hours a day on buses.

The program works with chari-ties in specific geographic areas tofind qualified recipients that need avehicle on which they can depend tocontinue leading productive lives.

Marenza Guyos and her four-year-old daughter from Jacksonville,FL, received their vehicle in conjunc-tion with the charity Community Con-

nections located in the same city.Two recipient families are gradu-

ates of Family Promise of Orlando, anon-profit interfaith network that pro-vides support to families in crisis. Thefirst of these, the Fox family, consistsof a mother and father and four chil-dren, three of which have specialneeds that require frequent doctors’appointments that are difficult to keepwhen public transportation is the onlyoption.

The Yates family was the secondFamily Promise recipient. Theymoved to Florida to take care of a sickaunt. After experiencing initial diffi-culty finding full-time jobs, both par-ents are now employed and havesaved enough money to move into ahome with their 16- year old daughter.However, a lack of reliable trans-portation continues to impede theireconomic progress, forcing them tospend a disproportionate amount oftime shopping for groceries, runningerrands and going to doctors’ appoint-ments.

Vehicles for the other two re-cipient families were facilitated by

the charity Wheels for Success.Diana is a mother of three children,ages five, six, and eight. She neededa vehicle for a variety of reasons:transporting her children to school,bringing her father to doctor’s ap-pointments, and getting to and fromschool where she is getting an edu-cation that will help her better herfamily’s prospects.

The second Wheels for Successrecipient family is headed by Michaeland Ivy Rossi, who have two children,ages six and eight. Michael is physi-cally disabled and receives state assis-tance. This vehicle will help thefamily get back on their feet.

Esurance and Allstate were thecontributing insurance companies thatmade available the vehicles to be re-paired. The collision repair facilitiesthat did the work are NABC membersSterling Autobody Centers, SunbeamAuto Body, and Autobody Resurrec-tion CARSTAR.

“The five families in Orlando arejust a fraction of the 150 families whowill receive the gift of reliable trans-portation from Recycled Rides this

year,” said Nick Notte, RecycledRides co-chairman and president ofSterling Autobody Centers. “That’s150 families who will receive the op-portunity to make better lives forthemselves through the intra-industryefforts of the program. I am gratefulto be part of a project that clearly il-lustrates the giving nature of NABCmembers and the collision repair in-dustry in general.”

Recycled Rides® is a communityawareness project whereby membersof the NABC repair and donate refur-bished vehicles to families and serv-ice organizations in need throughoutthe United States. A green program,Recycled Rides® recruits auto bodyshops, insurers, paint suppliers andparts vendors to contribute in theirown specific ways.

NABC and FACA are a non-profit organization dedicated to en-hancing the image of the collisionindustry. Ongoing and continued suc-cess of these programs is a direct re-sult of the efforts and support of theirsponsoring companies and member-ship.

Collex Collision Experts, a multi-shopoperation with facilities in Michiganand Florida, was awarded CSi Com-plete’s “Clearly Elite” award for cus-tomer satisfaction at the 2011 SEMAShow.

“CSi Complete is blessed to havemany outstanding customers, butCollex Collision is most deserving ofour 2011 Clearly Elite customer of the

year award,” saidDavidMerrell, vicepresident of sales and service for CSiComplete. “Collex Collision Expertsis a valued partner and an exceptionalcustomer service organization.”

Merrell went on to say that theMSO won the award as a result of thecompany’s continuously high cus-tomer service indexing (CSI) and itscommunity involvement.

“It’s a true pleasure to be in an in-dustry that allows me to not just servepeople, but give me the opportunity toget to know people’s needs on a muchmore personal level, always buildingeffective healthy relationships,” saidAmanda Gottschling, CSR at Collexin Clinton Township, MI.

Collex serves its surroundingcommunities by always giving back.Founders of the Wheels of HOPEOutreach program, Collex gives carsto families in need. They’re also plat-inum sponsors and partners with SafeHaven 4 Kids of Michigan, a programto help abused children.

For more information visitwww.collex.com.

Florida MSO Collex Collision Experts WinsCSi Customer Satisfaction Award at SEMA

CSi Complete presented its “Clearly EliteAward” to John Gagliano, CEO of CollexCollision Experts which operates 15 shopsin Michigan and Florida. The annual award,presented in Las Vegas in November by CSIComplete’s David Merrell, honors a CSiComplete client based on consistent highcustomer satisfaction indexing (CSI) andcreative application of CSI.


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

The number of Floridians who havehad their driver’s licenses revokedbecause they are deemed physicallyor mentally unfit has more than dou-bled in the last decade, according toreports made by Insurance Journal.

State figures show the main rea-sons many lose driving privileges arerelated to dementia, stroke andseizures.

The South Florida Sun Sentinelreported that a little-known Floridalaw allows anyone to notify the stateabout motorists with physical or men-tal conditions that might impact theirdriving. Many revocations startedwith reports from family members.

Last year, the Florida Depart-ment of Highway Safety and MotorVehicles revoked 7,716 licenses formedical reasons compared to 3,559 in2000.

More ‘Unfit’ Floridians HavingLicenses Revoked

State Farm Mutual Automobile Insur-ance Co. will cut its rate level inGeorgia by an average of 2.2 percentas of Nov. 21, according to the AtlantaBusiness Chronicle. The companysaid that will save its Georgia autocustomers $23.2 million annually.

The Georgia Insurance andSafety Fire Commissioner’s officesaid State Farm’s rate cuts are not dueto any mandate from the state.

“No pressure was applied by theGeorgia Insurance Department to StateFarm; this was a market decision thatthey made on their own,” a spokesmanfor the commissioner said. “At this time,no other major insurers in Georgia havetaken such an action, but our departmentis hopeful that this is a trend.”

State Farm insures about 20 per-cent of drivers in Georgia. Followingthe rate change, State Farm’s overallrate level in Georgia will be 11.9 per-cent lower than it was seven and ahalf years ago. Overall premiumchanges for individual motorists willvary depending on which coveragesthey carry, the discounts for whichthey qualify, where they live, the kindof car insured, who drives it and howmuch it is driven, the insurer said.

State Farm Lowering RateLevel in GA by 2.2 Percent

Trademark Metals AcquiresGeorgia DealerTrademark Metals Recycling LLC(TMR), an operating division of theDavid J. Joseph Company (DJJ), haspurchased the assets and business ofRice Iron & Metals, Valdosta, GA.

TMR, headquartered in Tampa,FL, operates more than 20 scrapmetal recycling facilities in Florida.

The company says it is thelargest scrap metal recycler in theSoutheast. DJJ, based in Cincinnati,is a subsidiary of steelmaker NucorCorp., Charlotte, NC.

In addition to purchasing RiceIron & Metals, TMR also announcedit has opened a new scrap metal re-cycling facility in Sanford, FL.

According to a DJJ news re-lease, the acquired location and thenew facility will process both ferrousand nonferrous scrap metal.

The company says the additionof the two facilities “demonstratesDJJ’s commitment to expanding itsexisting regional recycling plat-forms.”

In total, DJJ operates 61 scraprecycling facilities and seven U-Pull-&-Pay self-service auto parts storesin the United States.

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 theraffle for it was Glen Caudle, Ownerof Glendale 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.

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The Car Care Council Women’s Boardheld their14thAnnual Car Care Council

Women’s Board Reception on Novem-ber 1 from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. at theSands Expo Center in Las Vegas, Ne-vada during the annual Automotive Af-termarket Parts Expo (AAPEX)tradeshow. The reception awards manycompanies and industry leaders.

DeborahBjorklundwas awardedthe Aftermarket Woman of the YearAward. Bjorklund is president of TheMain Resource (TMR), a manufacturerand distributor of aftermarket parts to re-pair shops. TMR also provides parts andaccessories to the auto equipment in-dustry. Since Bjorklund purchased the

company in 2005, it has doubled in size.Prior to TMR, she worked at Will-Fix

Automotive for 17 years.Audra Fordin, owner of Great

Bear 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... ‘womenAUTO know!’To be the first recipientof this award is pretty darn cool too!”

Women’s Board Car Care Council Holds Receptionat AAPEX 2011, Awards Industry Leaders

Ruth Ehlinger, the Car Care Council Women’sBoard President, and Aftermarket Woman ofthe Year Deborah Bjorklund

Ruth Ehlinger and Audra Fordin, owner ofGreat Bear Auto Shop, winner of the BestShop Award

SeeWomen’s Board, Page 11

CIECAAdvises 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.”

If a vehicle looks to be a totalloss, the estimator can document thevehicle condition, vehicle options, es-timate the salvage value, determineactual cash value, complete the VIR,and submit it with the repair estimatefor valuation electronically.

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 andblack were once the top colors of luxury,but white 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.

students in need of affordable, reliabletransportation and saw plenty of carsin the area just waiting to be fixed.Utilizing the resources at her school,she brought a car in need of repair tothe mechanical department of herschool, then she and her team of ded-icated students and instructors fin-ished the collision repair work. Thatproject went to a fulltime criminal jus-tice student with a family of four, pre-viously without transportation. This isto be the first in series of reconstructedvehicles that will be donated to Wire-grass Georgia Technical College stu-dents recommended by theirinstructors. Jessica is working with in-structorMarkTilson to procure morecars and expand the program into thecommunity.

Other Pride Award winners in-cluded Jordan Hendler, Joe Gloar,DerekWillemson andRichardHene-gar Jr. for heroic efforts in their indi-vidual communities. More informationabout each award winner can be foundat www.autobodycouncil.org.


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Continued from Front Page

Pride Awards

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.

Continued from Previous Page

Women’s Board


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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

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 suchas vehicle speed, coolant temperature,ambient air temperature, and air con-ditioning system pressure.

During normal operation, the grilleshutters are fully open when the engineis off. When starting the engine fromcold, the grille shutters will remainclosed as long as possible to help reachthe most efficient operating tempera-tures more quickly. This also helps re-duce 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 thatwould 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 obstructionmay 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 untilcalibration 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, adiagnostic trouble code is set in thePCM.

ConclusionThe 2012 Ford Focus may be equippedwith the active grille shutter system.Located in the front of the vehicle, the

system is in a vulnerable position dur-ing frontal collisions.

Except for the actuator, no parts ofthe system can be serviced individu-ally. When repairs are required, the ac-

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

The Ford Focus and the activegrille shutter system is one of many2011-2012 vehicles and systems fea-tured in I-CAR’s instructor-led (live)course, Collision Repair for Ford and

Lincoln Vehicles (FOR05).This course will provide you with

an understanding of several of Ford’svehicle-specific parts and proceduresand help you gain an understanding of

how maintaining Ford quality repairscan be key to customer satisfactionand achieving a complete and safe re-pair. Visit the I-CAR website to find aclass near you.

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


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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 equippedwith the active grille shutter system

Figure 2 - This is how the active grille shuttersystem looks fully closed

Figure 3 - This is how the active grille shuttersystem looks fully open

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 scope

of 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 saidthat he sees some potential merit in theproposal.

“We see that I-CAR is positioneduniquely to engage in that dialogue

with the OEMs on behalf of the in-dustry,” he said. “But that said, we

have a lot of stake-holders associatedwith I-CAR. Wehave a missionand vision, andneed to see if thisis a fit. So I’m tak-ing on the chal-lenge of taking

this request back to our board. Thatprocess will start this afternoon actu-ally. So we will be getting back to youwith 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 activity

and committee.”But at CIC in November,Russell

Thrall 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 on thecommittee’s work, saying it will nowbe the first quarter of next year beforea consultant’s report is released onwhat consensus exists within the in-dustry about standards and a possiblenew organization to oversee the devel-opment and implementation of them.

“That position statement (an-nounced today) certainly is going to


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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

inform 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 conferencecall to gather input from 18 state andlocal repairer trade groups. About 43percent of those individually inter-viewed were repairers (another 17percent were shop network or asso-ciation representatives), includingboth single- and multi-shop busi-nesses; Thrall said he wasn’t surehow many shop locations in all thosecompanies represented, but he saidtheir combined annual 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 of suchoccurrences, but Tony Passwater,

chairman of the committee, reportedin Las Vegas that not a single responseto the survey had been received.

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 donor

vehicle 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,Texas, said he’s concerned that the

term “recycled” could be misleadingto a consumer. The public, Womblesaid, generally thinks of recycling asbreaking something down into its coresubstance to be used in a remanufac-

turing process.Paper isn’t recy-cled by just eras-ing the print on it,he said; it’s turnedinto pulp and re-formed into paper.Plastic bumpersare “recycled,” he

said, only when they are cut into tinychips to be melted down and reformedinto another product.

“Most used parts aren’t reallybeing recycled,” he said. “You’re nottearing it down and remanufacturing aproduct. You’re cleaning it up and re-selling it.”

Guilliams said the committeewould take that into consideration, butalso is developing definitions for “re-built”, “reconditioned,” and “remanu-factured” that may help clarify theissue.

CIC’s next meeting will be heldJanuary 12–13 in Palm Springs, Calif.in conjunction with CIECA & NABC.


Dusty Womble

Delphi Automotive went public No-vember 17—two years after the com-pany exited bankruptcy, according totheDetroit News Washington Bureau.

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 of

the $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 Goes Public at $22 a Share

See Delphi, Page 18


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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 respon-ders need and cancontribute to the cause.

Recently, however,it’s become evident thatvehicle responders needmore experience withmodern vehicles, whichhave otherwise unfamiliarand even dangerous fea-tures to contend with.

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

makes a class like thisa necessity.”

State Farm Insur-ance Co, Esuranceand 1800 CharityCars donated eightlate model vehiclesfor first responders topractice on. This is areal strength of theprogram since mostfire departments don’thave access to suchmodern vehicles.

“Local fire departments have indi-cated this kind of knowledge is muchneeded and we are honored to be ableto deliver critical information to thosewho need 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 thehands-on cutting. Enter-prise Rent-A-Car spon-sored the catered dinnerfor Clifton Heights andHertz Local Edition spon-sored the dinner for WestChester. Both dinnerswere excellent

and well appreciated by thehungry first responders.

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 two newest fa-cilities in Avondale and KennettSquare 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 rescue

workers, it provides an invaluablesource 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

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

at www.autobodynews.com

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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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Sherwin Williams Automotive Finisheshas come to the aid of three school col-lision programs by donating $12,000 inproduct through the Collision RepairEducation Foundation. Applied Tech-nology Center (Rock Hill, SC), Free-dom High School (Freedom, WI) andSarasota County Technical Center(Sarasota, FL) all applied for the 2011Ultimate Collision Education Makeover$50,000 school grant and within theirwish lists, specifically requested Sher-win-Williams® products. The CollisionRepair Education Foundation forwardedthese requests to The Sherwin-WilliamsCompany for consideration of donationand they have come through for theschools.

Freedom High School Technol-ogy Education Instructor Jay Abitzsaid, “Sherwin-Williams has fulfilleda large need for my school. Theirgenerous donations have taken ahuge burden off of my shoulders andmy budget. I cannot thank themenough!”

Applied Technology Center and2011 Makeover school grant winninginstructor Mark Dellinger said, “Thisdonation is huge! With a shrinkingbudget that is tightening everyday, it isnext to impossible to let my studentsjust blow through waterborne basecoat.This is a quality waterborne line that all

students need to be exposed to on a reg-ular basis.”

Sarasota County Technical CenterProgram Manager Kristey Richard-son said, “Sherwin Williams is an ac-tive and valued partner to our Sarasota(SCTI) Automotive Collision Repairand Refinishing Program. WithoutSherwin Williams’ involvement on ourprogram advisory committee and occa-sional donation of product we wouldnot have the program success we enjoyat this time.”

Collision Repair Education Foun-dation Executive Director ScottKruger said, “Sherwin-WilliamsAuto-motive Finishes not only assisted our2011 Makeover winning school butthey also helped the two other applicantschools that specifically requested prod-uct from Sherwin-Williams throughtheir Makeover grant application. It is atrue testament of The Sherwin-WilliamsCompany’s commitment to the futureof the industry when it can be stated thatthey fulfilled all of the schools requestsfrom the 2011 Makeover grant.”

Information about Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes canbe found at www.sherwin-automo-tive.com. For information about theCREF contact Brandon Eckenrodeat Brandon.Eckenrode@ed founda-tion.org.

Sherwin-Williams Donates $12,000 in Product to Collision RepairEducation Foundation 2011 Makeover Applicant Schools

This month’s article is about changes—changes which I believe are for the bet-ter. One change I want to talk about isin inventory management. In the1970s, automotive dealers needed to bewarehouses. Stock orders cameweekly; or even monthly. Special or-ders took three days, unless you paidextra for the overnight surcharge. If adealer wanted to have good CustomerSatisfaction scores, he did his best toalways have the needed part on hand.This dumped the responsibility of cus-tomer service on the dealer’s parts de-partment. They needed to carry, on theshelf, massive inventories of 5,000numbers, or more. Manufacturers pro-moted this system, and the belief thatlarge inventories promoted betterscores. Of course, dealers absorbed thecost of these slow moving inventories;in the never ending search for bettercustomer 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 satisfactionscores!

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. A partsrepresentative was concerned aboutaccessory sales, not body parts. Now,that a few manufacturers have gottenserious about wholesale sales, theyhave started to actively help their deal-ers 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 facilitiesdistribute cars, trucks and vans, partsand accessories to 173 independentToyota dealers in Florida, Georgia, Al-abama 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 Toyotaregions or distributors, shipping morethan $1.7 million in parts per day toSET 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 Wholesale and CollisionField Support consists of six dedicated

specialists. Their responsibility is towork directly with dealers to assist ingrowing wholesale collision and me-chanical business. In addition to rou-tine dealer contacts, they conductweek-long, wholesale dealer consulta-tions; focusing on every needed aspectin order to create a more efficient andprofitable wholesale operation.

STAR Program, also know asToyota STAR Program (Support to Af-termarket Repair), is a marketing sup-port program sponsored by ToyotaMotor Sales to promote wholesalebusiness.

Collision Parts Price Support of-fers two different web-based price sup-port programs to their dealers; AutoParts Bridge, sponsored by ToyotaMotor Sales, and SET Parts Edge,sponsored by SET and managed byOE Connection. Both programs pro-vide participating dealers with thetools, training, and funding to support

increased sales and market sharethrough “conquest sales,” a processwhere the dealer has the opportunity tosell a Genuine Toyota Part over an al-ternative part using SET price supportfunding. This program allows dealersto be competitive in the marketplaceand increase parts sales profitably.

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 makes surethat its dealers can offer fast service;complete with competitive prices. Thisqualifies them for my Autobody Newslist of Distinctive Dealerships.


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Parts Profileswith Larry Williams

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

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 byseveral 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’s

largest 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.

Continued from Page 14

Delphi


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Michelle Lackney, Rachel Stewart andRachel Hardyck alleged that the auto in-surers violated California competitionand antitrust laws because they exclu-sively offered policies that provided in-ferior repair parts, as well as boxing outother insurers. They further alleged thatCAPA was created by the defendants toadvance the scam and that it promotedinferior crash parts as acceptable substi-tutes for those from the original manu-facturers.

Judge Ware dismissed the suit ontwo separate occasions, but the rulingwas overturned on appeal by the NinthCircuit both times. The appeals courtruled inApril 2009 that the plaintiffs hadArticle III standing to proceed with theirclaims and said in August 2010 that theantitrust claims did not fall under theCalifornia insurance commissioner’s ex-clusive rate-making authority. JudgeWare based his decision on the NinthCircuit’s 2001 ruling in Lee v. AmericanNational Insurance Co., which saysclass action plaintiffs lack Article IIIstanding in insurance suits if they did notbuy a policy from a named defendant.

The plaintiffs had claimed in ear-

lier filings thatLee is not pertinent to thecase because it focused on whether aplaintiff had standing to bring an insur-ance class action, not whether a sub-sidiary of a defendant could be sued.

In rejecting the plaintiffs’ argu-ment, Judge Ware said that under Lee,plaintiffs can be barred from litigating aclass action in federal court if they can-not establish injury.

The judge dismissed the complaintwithout prejudice and granted leave forthe plaintiffs to refile their complaintagainst only the insurance companies byNov. 22.

The subsidiaries named in theamended complaint were State FarmFire and Casualty Co., State Farm Gen-eral Insurance Co., Allstate InsuranceCo., Allstate Property and Casualty In-surance Co., Geico Casualty Co., GeicoIndemnity Co., and Government Em-ployees Insurance Co., according tocourt documents.

The defendants include State FarmMutual Automobile Insurance Com-pany, Geico General Insurance Com-pany, Liberty Mutual Fire InsuranceCompany, and Allstate Insurance.

Background on the case, including alegal analysis, can be read in June 2011’sAutobody News, or online at: www.au-tobodynews.com, search “Perez.”

Continued from Cover Page

Antitrust Dismissal

Automotive Service Association (ASA) Approves New ReplacementCrash Parts Policy: Supports Full Disclosure of Parts Used in RepairThe 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 ofJerry 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 definesits goal to provide the highest levelof repair by requiring full disclosureof all part types by all parties, andhaving the standard for replacementcrash parts that are certified and ver-

ified to be the equivalent of the OEMpart.”

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-manufactured, reconditioned andrebuilt crash parts.

ASA supports quality parts, cer-tified and verified in which the qualityis determined based on empirical andmeasurable evidence equal to thestandard of OEM parts. ASA recom-mends quality verification and testingrelated to metallurgy, fit, functionalityand responsiveness.

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 to

certification, 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 referenceto the growing use of aftermarketcrash parts, which we, as shop own-ers, are being asked to use in repair-ing 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 mustwork together to ensure the testingand verification procedures are thebest possible to protect consumers andrepairers. When this happens, con-sumers can have confidence that theparts they are receiving meet OEMstandards.”

The Honda Civic Natural Gas tookhomeGreen Car Journal’s 2012 GreenCar of the Year award at the L.A. AutoShow on November 17, according toreports made by CNN Money.

The Civic was lauded for beingthe cleanest running internal combus-tion vehicle as certified by the EPA andthe only assembly-line produced natu-ral gas passenger model for sale on theU.S. market.

“There is no other vehicle onAmerican highways like the Civic Nat-ural Gas, and this recognition has beena 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 effi-ciency, a handsome and roomier newdesign, and tailpipe emission levels un-touched by any other internal combus-tion production vehicle.”

The 2012 Civic Natural Gas is afifth generation model, running on “aclean fuel that is almost exclusively do-mestically sourced and typically pricedabout 30 percent less than gasoline,”the statement said.

It retails for just over $26,000.

Honda Civic Natural Gas WinsGreen Car of the Year Award


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and MechanicalAutobody News December 2011FLORIDA • GEORGIA • ALABAMA • MISSISSIPPI


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.Your Air Conditioner is under mycomplete control, along with steering,windows, stereo volume and braking.Don’t be alarmed, I’m here to help as-sist in operating your vehicle.” Whoam I? 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 that name.

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’sPCM’s? I think it does.

With all the information beingpassed 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-fito have this electronic nightmare at-

tached to a combustion engine, pound-ing out a level of torque and perform-ance that has never been seen beforein the realm of automotive history? Ithink of it this way, these days youdon’t turn ON the A/C, you merelyask the PCM for permission to turn iton. Seems strange to ask permissionto turn on the A/C, but it’s pretty muchwhat you do these days. If all the pa-rameters are correct then the A/C willturn on. If something is out of place,well then, Hal will not allow it tocome on until you have corrected theproblem. Same thing with the elec-tronic throttle, if the PCM thinks thereis any reason for you NOT to be incharge, it will take over and reduce thepower level and send you home at aspeed 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 theroad? Gone for sure; I guess we are

moving 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 weare a part of.

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 24

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


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A good example of this is my lat-est intern at the shop. I was showinghim how the IDS (Ford diagnosticsand scanning machine) runs on a lap-top based program. He already hadthe whole thing figured out; before Ieven got into the diagnostics part of ithe was showing me short cuts withkey strokes and things I never knewabout. But, this is the generation thathas grown up with computers. This istheir world of PC’s and video games.Me, I’m lucky I can get through around of Ms. PacMan without screw-ing 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.


Outer Limits

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

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.


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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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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 in smallclaims court, and the steps you need totake to maximize your chances of win-ning. Keep in mind that this articleprovides general guidance only, and isnot a substitute for legal advice. Theremay be facts specific to your situationthat must be addressed by a lawyer ora small claims legal advisor.

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 in smallclaims court, and as a business plain-tiff (partnership, limited liability com-pany, or corporation) you can make aclaim for up to $5,000. If you areowed more than that, you can still suein small claims court as long as youreduce your claim to the maximum al-lowed. There are some limits designedto prevent abuse of the small claimscourt system. You can file as manyclaims as you want for up to $2,500each, but you cannot file more than 2claims per calendar year for more than$2,500. The limitation is applied onlyif the same person or legal entity ismaking multiple claims within thesame calendar year.

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 best thatthis demand be a letter that states howmuch money is owed, why the moneyis owed, and that you will go to courtif the money is not paid by a certaindate. If you are a business attemptingto collect debts from consumers, youneed to consult a lawyer to make surethat you are obeying special state andfederal laws protecting the 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 claims

complaint, 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, butto make sure that the service is doneproperly it is best to hire a professional“process server” to do this for you.Service must be done fairly quickly

after you file your claim. If the defen-dant lives in the county where yourclaim is filed, you must serve him atleast 15 days before the hearing date.You should ask the server to completeand sign Proof of Service form SC-104for each defendant. The completed andsigned Proof of Service form must befiled with the court at least 5 days be-fore the hearing.

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-sations or saw the events you arecomplaining about will be helpful toyour case. You may be able to force awitness, other than the defendant, tocome to the hearing by serving them

How to Prepare, File and Win a Claim in 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 34


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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)and its sponsoring organization, theAutomotive Service Association, havestaked their claim as the undisputed“Collision Industry Trade Show Cham-pion.”

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 isdivided and stuck supporting twotrade shows. The NACE and SEMAdivide is all about “I” (rather than“we”) and the industry is holding thebag and left asking “Y?” So how andwhy is the industry losing in a fight itnever 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 wouldvote 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 a

glimpse 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 saybeauty 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 was

needed, and as a result, it thrived.As years passed, attendance

slowly dwindled and the industrycalled for change. NACE organizersdidn’t respond or act as quickly as

many had hoped. Asa result, it openedthe door for compe-tition. In a changingmarket, you need tobe able to adapt oryou lose the sale.NACE lost the sale,and Round 1 of the“Battle of Century”last year went toSEMA.

Round 2 this year,by my card, was a

draw. For all my criticisms of NACE,SEMA is not yet the clearly bettershow for the industry. And unlike“Rocky 3,” “Jaws 3” or “Fried GreenTomatoes, Part 3,” (in which Jessica

Tandy is reincarnated), I’m actuallylooking 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].


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Automakers’ Actions and Analysisby Autobody News Staff

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Automotive Service & Repair Week(ASRW) 2011 was held October 5through 8 in Orlando, Fla., and con-clusive results deem this year’s eventthe most successful in recent years,largely attributed to an 18 percent in-crease in overall attendance andstrong initial sales for the 2012event. ASRW 2012 is scheduled forOct. 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,” said Ron Andress,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, Autoshop Solutions.


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ASRW 2011: Attendance Up 18%, Positive Feedback from Exhibitors

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

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

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of the Las Vegas Convention Centerfor the event.

The Society of Collision RepairSpecialists (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 weekclassrooms and meetings spaces.

“What does new au-tomotive refrigerantmean to you? —Itmeans all newequipment. They’renot interchangeable.You’re going to haveto buy new manifoldsand a new recoverysystem.”

—Industry trainer Toby Chess on thenew 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, you

must 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’reunder 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 reviewits 2005 decision throwing out a $1billion judgment against State Farm

related to its use ofnon-OEM parts.Plaintiffs attor-neys argue JusticeLloyd Karmeier,who voted in favorof State Farm,should have re-cused himself fromthe case because

of what they say was the level of theinsurer’s backing of Karmeier’s elec-tion 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 inKansas City, Missouri, upon being thelatest to be inducted into the collision in-

dustry’s “Hall ofEagles.” Bailey, theformer president ofCARSTAR’s na-tional corporate or-ganization, wasrecognized for a ca-reer that has in-cluded serving onmany industry

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 about

16,250, were sold for export out of theUnited 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 at

the insurance (process), typically you get anappraisal inspection, someone hands you acheck, and you’re done. We’re starting to toywith the idea of whether post-repair inspec-tions makes sense… I think it opens anotherdimension in terms of what you can bring

the customer. Out-side of their home,their automobile isthe most expensiveinvestment theymake. I think cus-tomers are demand-ing more from that(insurance claim)transaction, and I

think 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 largeststeel manufacturers in the world. Rogerasked him, ‘From your research, what’s


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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

Bob Keith,CARSTAR

Dan Bailey,CARSTAR

going to happen to some of these newsteels if we heat them or we weld them in-correctly. Will there be a little more intru-sion (in a subsequent accident) or a minorchange in airbag timing?’ And the guysaid, ‘No, from our research, it’s cata-strophic 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 the place for an insur-ance company tosteer a customer to ashop. But I do thinkthe manufacturershould play a role inthat. I think you’reseeing more andmore OEMs gettinginvolved in shop cer-tification. That (certi-

fication) doesn’t mean you’re going to get100 percent correct repairs, but it in-

creases the opportunity that that will hap-pen. And automakers can steer their cus-tomers to those 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 in

the field. It’s impossi-ble. So the proce-dures are to weldand glue that roof.You get the sameusefulness out of thevehicle. But is thatvehicle ‘pre-accidentor pre-loss condi-

tion’? Our focus is to restore the crashwor-thiness and usability of the product. You’regoing to see more verbiage like that.

—Chrysler’s Doug Craig

John Yoswick is a freelancewriter based in Portland, Oregon, whohas been writing about the automotiveindustry since 1988. He is also the ed-itor of the weekly CRASH Network(for a free 4-week trial subscription,visit www.CrashNetwork.com). Hecan be contacted by email [email protected].


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The National Auto Body Council(NABC) awarded refurbished vehiclesto 13 Las Vegas families this year onThursday, November 3, at 2:30 p.m.outside of the Las Vegas ConventionCenter in conjunction with the SEMAShow. Family Promise, the charitywho assisted these families, also re-ceived a vehicle at this event to furtherhelp them assist hundreds of familiesin crisis in the Las Vegas area.

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 donated ve-hicles and gift them to families in needand organizations dedicated to assist-ing others. Through their generoussupport, the following NABC Dia-mond Members donated vehicles:State Farm, Allstate and Enterprise-Rent-A-Car. Additional vehicles weredonated by GEICO, American Family,AAA of Northern California, Nevadaand Utah Insurance Exchange. NABCmembers Sterling Collision Centers,

911 Collision, Caliber Collision Cen-ters, Gerber Collision & Glass, Colli-sion Authority, Collision MastersCARSTAR East and two area Vo-techschools, Southeast Career TechnicalAcademy and the College of SouthernNevada, repaired the vehicles.

Each recipient family is a gradu-ate of Family Promise of Las Vegas,a non-profit interfaith network thatprovides support to families in crisis.The NABC 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.

13 Las Vegas Families Receive Gift of Reliable Transportationthis Year at SEMA With Recycled Rides

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.

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Boyd Group Income Fund, operatorof 166 North American auto bodyshops, reported its financial results forthe three-month and nine-month peri-ods ended September 30, 2011.

Highlights:● Record sales and Adjusted EBITDAwhen compared to previous thirdquarter results● Sales increased by 41.1% to $97.3million from $69.0 million in Q32010; True2Form Collision RepairCenters, Inc. (“True2Form”), CarsCollision Center of Colorado, LLCand Cars Collision Center, LLC, (col-lectively “Cars Collision”), and sevenother new locations contributed $26.3million of sales● Same-store sales increased by8.7%, excluding the impact of foreignexchange translation● Gross margin increased to $43.5million or 44.7% compared with$31.5 million or 45.7% in Q3 2010● Adjusted EBITDA totalled $6.4million compared with $5.0 million inQ3 2010● Payout ratio was 24.9% comparedwith 16.9% in Q3 2010, due in part,to a higher level of distributions● The Fund completed a bought dealpublic offering, issuing 1,300,000units out of treasury at a price of$10.75● On September 16, 2011, the Fund

was 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 quarterof 2011 are solid, driven by positivegrowth in same-store sales despitecontinued challenging market con-ditions,” said Brock Bulbuck,President and Chief Executive Of-ficer of the Boyd Group. “Al-though unemployment and gasprices remained elevated and milesdriven has continued to trend down-wards, we have been able to growrevenue as a result of successful op-erational execution and superior in-dustry position. The completedacquisitions of Cars Collision andTrue2Form have proven to be in-crementally positive to our busi-ness, meeting and exceeding ourexpectations. As the largest multi-location collision operator in NorthAmerica, both in annual sales andnumber of locations, we continue tolook to leverage our scale to capi-talize on attractive opportunitiesgoing forward. The equity injec-tion of approximately $12.7 mil-lion, net of costs, this quarterstrengthens our balance sheet andputs us in an excellent position toexecute on future opportunities.”

Boyd-Gerber-True2Form Group Reports 41% Sales Increase

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. Barrett-Jackson President’s Custom Ford Fairlane Garners $700K

“I fix 1,000 cars every month andat least 70% of them contain aftermar-ket parts, prescribed by the insurancecompanies,” Crozat said. “In manycases, the aftermarket parts are equalin quality when compared to factoryparts and price is always a huge issue.By using aftermarket parts many carsthat would have been totaled can befixed. For example, a bumper on a1998 Toyota Corolla from the factorycosts $239, but I can get a comparableset for $74 from the aftermarket. Weneed the aftermarket to provide com-petition for the OEMs. Can you imag-ine what factory parts could cost ifthere was no aftermarket?”

Crozat questions the word “de-fective” in the proposed revisions, hesaid. “They need to be more specificthere, because it’s too loose and opento interpretation. Who is going to de-termine that these aftermarket partsare defective and what does defectivemean? There is just too much wriggleroom here and that needs to be ad-dressed.”

Overall, Crozat lauds the Insur-ance Commissioner’s efforts towardclarifying the factory vs. the after-market dilemma, he said. “The 500-lb. gorilla in this industry is the laborrates issue, but this is a good startand we’ve needed a meeting like thisfor quite some time. Opening up di-alog and sharing ideas is always im-portant and the DOI is doing it theright way.”

Son Sean Crozat, manager ofG&C’s Santa Rosa location, said thatit all comes down to the consumer.“The market will take care of itself. Ifthe majority of the aftermarket partsout there were truly defective or infe-rior, body shops wouldn’t use them. Ifall these damaged cars were totaled bythe insurance companies, rates wouldgo up and the customer would sufferthe most.”

Gigi Walker is the owner ofWalker’s Auto Body and Fleet Repairin Concord, the Past President of theCAA and a current board member, aswell as the former president of theEast Bay CAA’s chapter. She was en-thused about the meeting and the pos-itive things that could result. Beforethe meeting she told Autobody News:

“I hope these new regulationsproposed by Commissioner Jones willbetter hold accountable the parts thatdon’t work to the insurers,” she said.“As you know, many shops don’t getreimbursed for parts that don’t fitproperly. These proposed revisionsjust might help the collision repairerto recoup the costs associated with ill-fitting aftermarket parts. These mightnot cover a DRP contract positionwith an insurer/collision agreement,but by Commissioner Jones openingup the conversation it’s definitelygood for both sides of the industry.I’ve never seen this before, so it’s verypromising.

“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 aquality repair to the consumer. I hopesome of the changes make the repairprocess for the collision repairer andconsumers better, because that’s whatit is all about. The first change addsmore specific requirements for esti-mates written by insurers. Current lawsimply requires insurers to write anestimate that will allow the repairs tobe made in ‘a workmanlike manner.’”

The proposed regulations would

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 limitedto, repair procedures performed in ac-cordance with original equipmentmanufacturer service specificationsor, if manufacturer specifications andprocedures are not available, nation-ally distributed and periodically up-dated service specifications that aregenerally accepted by the auto bodyrepair industry. No insurer shall will-fully depart from or disregard ac-cepted 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 de-viates from the collision repair esti-mating software guidelines for useand 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 proposed rules dealing with af-termarket parts, insurers would be re-quired to communicate in writing thatit will warrant any aftermarket partsused to be of like kind, quality, safety,fit and performance as original equip-ment parts.

Should a part be found to be de-fective or unsafe, the proposed ruleswould require insurers to “immedi-ately cease requiring the use of theseparts” and notify the estimating soft-ware provider and request the part beremoved from the estimating soft-ware.

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

Finally, the proposed regula-tions contain language requiring that“insurers specifying the use of non-original equipment manufacturer re-placement crash parts that are foundto be defective, unsafe, or do nototherwise comply with this section,shall pay for the costs associatedwith loss of use or rental car ex-penses caused by the use of suchpart.”

Inquiries about the meetingshould be directed to the department’sTeresa R. Campbell; Phone number:415-538-4126; E-mail: [email protected].


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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 and dis-cuss issues of importance to theircompany and the industry. The summitwill be kicked off with a briefing ses-sion at 3 p.m. on Wednesday, March14. The briefing session will featurespeakers from both the public and pri-vate sectors who will touch on every-thing from aftermarket-specific issuesto the overall political climate in Wash-ington. On Wednesday evening, thecongressional reception will be held inRayburn House Office Building andwill provide an opportunity to networkwith fellow aftermarket professionalsand congressional staffers. The fol-lowing day, Thursday, March 15, willbe entirely dedicated to appointmentswith the individual congressional of-fices. Registration is free and the sum-mit staff will make legislativeappointments. Those attending needonly to take care of travel and hotelarrangements.

Aftermarket Legislative SummitOpens Registration

Continued from Page One

DOI Meeting


before 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 copy ofall important documents and bring thecopies and originals with you. Thinkof what the other person will say, andhow you will answer. Remember, it isyour job to prove your case to thejudge, so come to court prepared.

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 hearingbeforehand, and brought relevant evi-dence and witnesses with you. Nowyou must know how to behave incourt to make sure that the judge un-derstands your evidence and likes you.

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 stern andtough on both sides. Be polite to youropponent and do not interrupt your op-ponent or their witnesses while they areexplaining their side of the story to thejudge. It is fine to correct the judge ifthey get a fact wrong or misunderstandsomething you said, but you must bevery respectful. If the judge starts talk-ing, you must stop talking immediatelyand listen. Remember the judge hasnever met you, and will be watchingcarefully how you behave in court tosee if you are a reasonable, civilizedand trustworthy person. Be on yourbest behavior, no matter how angry youare at the defendant.

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. Thecourt 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

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 ServiceProviders (AASP), Automotive Serv-ice Association (ASA), and AssuredPerformance Network.

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

collision repair businesses and techni-cians across the United States, just asthey have for decades. Representingtheir interests, we hereby recognizepublished repair procedures, as pro-vided by automotive original equip-ment manufacturers (OEM), as theofficial industry recognized “RepairStandards” for collision repair. Thesestandards, where they exist, shall bethe basis for the establishment of

training, testing, repair practices, anddocumentations.

“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 recog-

SCRS Joins with Leading Collision Repair Organizations to Release Joint Position Statement on Collision Repair Standards

See SCRS, Page 36

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 and

equip waiting roomsat the medical cen-ter, and offers anumber of rehabili-tative and therapeu-tic programs innon-clinical envi-ronments. Theseprograms includehand cycling, sledice hockey, amputeesurfing, softball,river rafting and Au-tomotivation.

“Operation Com-fort is structured toimprove the sol-diers’ spirits, sotheir rehab is fasterand more effective,”explains JanisRoznowski, Opera-tion Comfort execu-tive director andfounder. “Their livesnow are a cycle of

medical appointments, surgeries, ther-apy, rehab, more appointments, moretreatments, more surgeries, morerehab… That’s why it’s so importantto give them relief. I believe that ifthey’re working on something they re-ally love, they forget all the traumagoing on in their lives. When they’reworking on a car, they’re focusing onthat car and enjoying the process. Byfixing a car, somehow or other, theyfix something inside of themselves.”

Automotivation was developedat the request of service memberswho were reluctant to participate inconventional rehabilitative activitiesor 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 Automotivationparticipants on how to properly usethe equipment.

“We’re so appreciative that Chief un-derstands the value of what we do andthat they jumped in to help,”Roznowski says. “This was an incredi-bly generous donation. With the Chiefrack, we’ll be able to teach the guysnew skills that they may also be able touse when they return to civilian life.”

The soldiers have a long wish list ofadditional tools and equipment the pro-gram could use. Operation Comfortdoes not have funding to buy equip-ment, so it relies on industry donationsof tools, equipment and contacts formentoring 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

SEMA, the Specialty Equipment Mar-ket Association, announced on Novem-ber 1 the winners of the New ProductsShowcase Awards held at the 2011SEMA Show. The event recognizes themost cutting-edge automotive productseither on the market or about to hit themarket. This year, nearly 2,000 newproducts were submitted for considera-tion. Criteria that ranked high on thejudges' selection for the New ProductShowcase Awards included superiorityof innovation, technical achievement,quality and workmanship, consumerappeal and marketability.

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 Regulator Best New Exterior Accessory ProductWinner: Cargo Ease Inc., Cargo Ramp/ Brake SystemRunner Up: Bestop Inc., TrekStepSide Mounted StepRunner Up: Rhino-Rack USA, RoofMounted Cargo Basket Best New Interior Accessory ProductWinner: Auto Meter Products, Uni-versal 3 Gauge Mounting SolutionRunner Up: LOKAR Performance Prod-ucts, Billet Aluminum Tremec ShifterLevers For TKO 500 and TKO 600Runner Up: Bully Dog Technologies,RAM Mounting Systems for BullyDog GTs and WatchDogs Best New Merchandising Display Winner: 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 Display Best New Mobile Electronics ProductWinner: 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 EFIRunner Up: Daystar Products Interna-tional, Can Cam Fuel and Water SystemRunner Up: ProRYDE SuspensionSystems, SuperBLOK 3-in-1 LeafSpring Blocks Best 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 System Best New Collision Repair & Refin-ish ProductWinner: Eagle Abrasives Inc., SuperAssilexRunner Up: Plio Grip by Valvoline,Like90 Turbo Pad for BumpersRunner Up: Gema, OptiFlex®2 Best 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, SCT iTSXfor iPhone

Runner Up: COMP PerformanceGroup, Inglese EFI Throttle Body In-sert Hidden Metal Screen FiltersRunner Up: COMP PerformanceGroup, FAST EZ-EFI Jeep 4.2L/6Cylinder Kit Best 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 Winch Best 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 Chevys Best New Tire and Related Product Winner: Continental Tire the AmericasLLC, Continental Cross Contact LX20Runner Up: Cooper Tire & RubberCo., Discoverer A/T3Runner Up: Continental Tire the

Americas LLC, General Tire G-MAXAS-03 Best New Tools & Equipment Prod-uctWinner: PH2 Solutions Inc., PH2 Val-idatorRunner Up: Las Vegas Tool LLC,EASYPULLER by Las Vegas ToolLLCRunner Up: Schley Products/SPTOOLS, Air Hammer Ball Joint R&RToolBest New Van/Pickup/Sport-UtilityProductWinner: EZ Connector Inc., EZS7-02Runner Up: Daystar Products Interna-tional, Shock and Steering StabilizerArmorRunner Up: Specialty Products Co.,Leaf Spring Silencer™ Best New Wheel and Related Prod-uctWinner: Topline Products, Verde Cus-tom Wheels | V39 - ParallaxRunner Up: iForged Performance Al-loys/Forgestar Wheels, CF10 RotaryForged Carbon Fiber EditionRunner Up: MGP Caliper Covers,MGP Caliper Covers.


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nition that further development ofprocedures will be necessary in areasnot covered by published proce-dures.

“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 industry

proposed 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.


SCRS


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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

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 buildersincluded Art 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.

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


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

Clarktown 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

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 AutoBody Association, moderated the panel.

Hendler started off the session by

asking 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 andLinkedIn.

“Have a plan,” said Terlep, “Sitwith other shops and put a plan to-gether.”

Felder said a good, low-costway to start a social media re-poire could be to look at localcolleges for students who need tocreate an online portfolio for aclass project. This way the stu-

dent can set-up the social media at nocost to 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 canand 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’tswere for shops just starting out in so-cial media.

“People will read your posts for3 reasons; education, entertainmentand exclusive offers,” said Barrick. Heencouraged shops to stay away fromposting just random facts. “They willfollow you for what they can’t getanywhere else,” he said.

Felder warned shops to be waryof what they post online, “don’t postthe 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 panelhow 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 Hendlertouched on being wary of getting caughtup with hoarding page likes. Barricksaid that although a page may only have3,000 fans, they may generate 5,000page views per month. So although theymay not have fans subscribing to theirposts, people are still using the page toget information 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

ALLDATA LLC, provider of automo-tive business solutions to professionalmechanical and collision repair shops,is celebrating its 25th anniversary.

“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 celebrated its70,000th product subscriber, and justthree years later the company an-nounced a record 80,000 subscribers.To continue to meet customer’s needs,ALLDATA successfully launched a

new generation of products within thelast year: ALLDATA® RepairSMS3000 and ALLDATA® CollisionSMS3500. In addition, the company intro-duced a major update to its fast-sellingstrategic shop management system,ALLDATA® ManageSM. ALLDATA®

MarketSM, a customer communica-tions tool, is also rapidly gaining in pop-ularity.

Long-time ALLDATA employee,Patti Collins, said, “I have been withALLDATA for 20 years, and I haveseen many changes. Over the years,the one thing that remains the same isour commitment to our customers. Wehave never stopped developing prod-ucts to meet their needs and continueto explore new ways to help them.That’s why I’m still here.”

For more information aboutALLDATA and its products, visitwww.alldata.com or call 800-697-2533.

ALLDATA Celebrates 25 Years of Business

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autobody news december 2011 southeast edition

Documents

sema weeknomatter

public meeting

collision repairers

student ofcollision

theuse of aftermarket

ofaftermarket parts

collision repair industry

tached draft regulations