Archive for May, 2011

There are new ideas and research being done within the realm of fasteners when it comes to repairs. One welcome change that has been observed is in the bumper mounting area now coated fasteners are being used. This means an added replacement expense during repairs but it also means less corroded bolds.A new trend is headed toward fascia plastic fasteners being used. They are perfect because they are corrosion free and will release then they are suppose to. Continued research and changes like this are going to create a need for new types of fasteners. A good example of this is aluminum panels demanding aluminum fasteners. Again another significant way of reducing corrosion meaning a cost reduction because assembly times are faster.

Routine Uses for Fastener Applications.

  • Any of the sheet metal parts such as body panels, trunk, lid and hood. Usually attached with a Grade 2 screw or rivet. Screws may all look the same but there can be differences in and long and strong, they are as well as the pitch.
  • Treaded fasteners are most common for assembling bumpers. They have to be high strength as the bumper provides safety to the occupants of the vehicle.
  • Steel, plastic threads or plastic clips can be used for the headlight, grille and fascia.
  • For interiors fasteners or screws that are threaded are used for the dash board, while the pads may be plastic fasteners of varying types. Door trim panels are normally clips but some are bolts. Be very careful with the plastic clips as many are designed for one time use. Steel bolts and screws are for the fiberglass items as well as plastic lips.
  • Steering and suspension are crucial to safety therefore demand high strength bolts.Proper Fastener Management Means Less Profit Loss

You can actually stop your losses and increase your profit by about $50 on every repair done if you itemize the supplemental materials needed in your repairs. Items such as your chemicals, fasteners and even masking tape. That may seem like gouging the customer but actually these costs can mount up to thousands of dollars per year because they are not factored in when doing the estimates. If your shop does about 200 car repairs, a month then you are going to exceed $100,000 in revenue alone just in this one small change. You can actually create a snowball affect just by implementing a small change like this. You can re invest that extra money into other cost saving equipment, which allows you to increase the workload yet cut down the labor expense. The same goes for being astute at keeping control of inventory. You can dramatically cut down on your losses. Once you have cut these costs down then naturally, your profit level rises. It’s the little things that can really make a big difference in the profit margin in this particular industry. The same with not wasting product is another issue to keep track off. By the same token, though don’t start cutting corners to save money. In the end, it could end up costing you more by having customers returning for repairs and this is damaging to your businesses reputation.



May 26, 2011

car paint scratch repairMany people around the world have great affection for their cars. They care a lot and even a single scratch makes them uncomfortable. Anyway, there is no need to worry about such minor problems because the car paint scratch repair is not a hard task in recent days. A minor scratch can be easily repaired but if it is a major one you really need help of one professional car painter. It is obvious that a car will get a scratch or two and there is nothing you can do about it.

The only thing you can do is take proper precaution while parking in or away from homes.The most important part in car paint scratch repair is to fix the scratch in early stage. There is no need of any expensive tools to fix it. You can just put in your fingernail over the surface and find out whether it is deep into the paint or just sitting on top of it. The scratch on top can be easily removed with acetone or polish thinner. If still remain you can use polishing compound to remove the scratch. Many times a mark appears because of rub against certain items such as rubber, plastic or other paint. This is not a scratch and it can be easily removed by using aerosol tar.

Car paint scratch repair can be easily done even if the scratch is long and deep. The first step is to wash the affected section with soapy water and dry it. In general, you can use black shoe polish for red color car or white shoe polish for dark color cars to fix the scratch. Sand the damaged area with dry sandpaper until they come to same level. Blow away all dust by using a brush. The next step is to apply body compound to the scratch area and wait until it hardens. After hardening, you can apply primer paint and wait until the area dries up completely. Finally, you can apply the touch-up paint that perfectly suits your car by using special touch-up brush.

Car paint scratch repair can be easy by using the above method but the primer paint will not apply to the cars with enamel paints. Many new cars have the enameled paints and will not mix well with the lacquer based primer paint. Hence, the best way is to take help of some specialist or local auto shop before proceeding. You can just provide them your vehicle identification number that will enable you to get the better idea.If the scratch is deep enough on the entire door, it is nice idea to allow the car painter to do the job. In such cases, the painter repaints the entire panel and this will provide your car the original look. Well, the scratch is a common thing that is bound to happen at certain times. There is no need to bother, as the car paint scratch repair is not a difficult.


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We take great pride in our cars today and want them to look good and run great for a long time. So, if something does go wrong we want to ensure that we get the right person to take care of our car care needs. You wouldn’t take your child to the Veterinary office when they are sick because they are not specialist for children’s health care. So why would you take your car to someone who doesn’t specialize in its needs. You need to find the best specialist who can take care of all your car needs who will treat you fair and do a great job. This can be a hard decision. Usually it is a decision of whether to take your car to the dealership that you got your car from or to an independent specialist.
Keep in mind that both are out to make money that is the reason they went into business. However, you need to be careful that they are not trying to take advantage of you and that they provide the best quality and products and services for your vehicles. You want to make sure that receive quality work for an affordable price, and with great service will be a plus.
The dealerships will have certified technicians and will most likely have the latest tools and services available. This means there is a good chance that your car will be in good hands. But they will also have the highest prices! So, if you are looking for a deal this is most likely not the best option for you.
Some independent shops may not have the latest technological products and tools to fix what you need. They also may not have certified or qualified professionals to repair your car. But, chances are they will have the most deals for your wallet. Keep in mind that I stated “some”, that means you just have to find the right independent auto body shop.
For the most part you will find that independent auto body shops have technicians that are certified and very well qualified to complete your cars repairs. They may actually be more qualified since they specialize in auto body work, where as in dealerships they may do engine work and other car repairs, but not auto body. If you do your homework you will even find many independent auto body repair shops that have the very latest technological tools and products for your cars repair needs!
So, if you are looking for the best deal and quality auto body repair for your vehicle, choosing an independent auto body specialist is the way to go. Chances are you will get great service as well since it is a smaller operation. You can’t beat it, great quality repairs, latest technology, qualified specialist, a great deal, a great service. However, ultimately the choice it up to you where you take your car for auto body repairs, but the choice is clear to many…. Independent auto body shop is the way to go!



The growing threat of global warming and the depletion of fossil fuels has forced the auto industry to venture in the development of auto technologies which will reduce dependence on fossil fuels. One technology being explored by car manufacturers is the possible advent of electric cars.

Currently, the auto industry has successfully developed hybrid electric vehicles and fully-electric vehicles as well. These vehicles use an electric motor to aid the vehicle’s internal combustion engine. One major issue being faced by the auto industry when it comes to the construction of hybrid electric and even fully-electric vehicles is the battery pack which a vehicle needs to have so as to get and store power.

To address the issue, car manufacturers are partnering with other companies outside the auto industry to develop better battery packs for electric cars. One car company which has expressed its dedication to the development of better battery packs is the Japanese car company Nissan. The company recently announced that they have formed an alliance with NEC Tokin, which is a subsidiary of NEC, to develop highly efficient lithium-ion batteries for automotive application.

The partnership aims to make the electric cars more practical. A problem being faced by the electric car technology is the cost of production. If a partnership such as this can find a way to make an electric car’s battery cheaper, then electric cars can be within the reach of an even larger number of consumers.

The partnership between two of Japan’s biggest companies will work on the safety and stability of lithium-ion batteries. This kind of battery is seen as a better alternative to the nickel-metal hydride batteries which is being widely used currently. Lithium-ion batteries weigh less than nickel-metal hydride batteries. It is also more powerful than Ni-MH batteries. In fact, lithium-ion batteries are half the size of nickel-metal hydride batteries but they can store twice as much power as the Ni-MH battery. This battery pack can efficiently power an electric car or its amenities such as power windows controlled by a Nissan window switch.

Investing in the development of an advanced battery pack will positively affect Nissan. After all, it is predicted that the rechargeable car battery market will experience a surge in the near future. The expected expansion of the said market will be the effect of the advent of electric cars. It can be expected that as car manufacturers come up with ways to bring the cost of production, the public will certainly buy these environment friendly vehicles.

Car manufacturers are already developing plug-in hybrid cars which show that the future of electric cars is coming pretty soon.



There have been a lot of issues regarding the purchasing of auto insurance. Some drivers even come to the point that they think they don’t need auto insurance anymore because they are very good in driving. Even some still think that they can escape accidents. Well, this matter is really unbelievable since accidents happen in the unexpected moments. Others may think that auto insurance is more of a painful task than a beneficial task. It could be something that makes them tiresome everytime they receive their monthly bills.

However, the importance of purchasing your auto insurance cannot be denied. You should have or you will forever live with worries while you are driving. Auto insurance will keep you away from that. If you have it with you or your car is insured, you will feel confident that whatever happens to you while you are on the road driving, you know that you are financially protected.

In San Francisco, California, they require their drivers to insure their car so that they will be covered if ever they got involved in any vehicular accidents.

San Francisco auto insurance requires you a certain minimum amount of auto insurance on your car. The coverage of your auto insurance that you must handle as a minimum on every car differs from the other states which could actually require more.

Every driver should comprehend that the state they live in affects the amount of liability they should carry. If the state is prone to accident then there is a higher the possibility that you will pay beyond the minimum coverage. There a lot more factors that could affect the amount of coverage that you should pay your insurance company. Some of them are your age, your gender, the type of car you are driving, your driving history and so on. That is why knowing and understanding all of these things is important so that you will be able to catch the suitable auto insurance for you.

San Francisco auto insurance will surely protect you from personal accountabilities should you be involved in any vehicular accident. If ever you are at fault, you will be required to pay for all of the damages you have caused. Aside from your legal responsibilities, you will have a lot of worries most especially if your car is not insured. This is how important San Francisco auto insurance is.

You should also endeavor to learn about the many ways of gaining discounts. If you are lucky enough to have discounts that will be a big factor that could lessen the burden of paying your auto insurance.

Surely, you can never escape having auto insurance. This is a requirement that has negative impression to many but in the long run it will help them from any quandaries caused by unexpected accidents.

Having San Francisco auto insurance serves as your angel in disguise. It will be there as your protection whatever happens to you. So why not embrace and never hate it? After all, it’s your best friend at the end.



You will be doing a gross injustice to your finances if you do not study the insurance rates of various companies before you take your auto insurance.  You can save a lot of money if you do this exercise.  There are insurance quote sites like 247autoinsurancequotes.com where you can get auto insurance rate quotes of almost all insurance companies.

The rate quotes of these insurance companies vary quite significantly, which fact you may not be aware of.  Probably without knowing this fact, you may have been paying more than necessary all these years.  Chances of getting the best auto insurance at a very cheap price are bright if you have the free price quotes of various companies.

It is not a lengthy process any more.  Earlier, you had to visit the insurance companies for getting the quotes for your auto insurance.  It is an easy task nowadays because using the Internet, you can get these quotes sitting pretty comfortably at home.  Another advantage is that getting these free quotes from different providers of this service does not make it obligatory on your part to purchase your auto insurance policy through them.

When you visit the site of a free-quotes company, you should fill in your needs on the site and that is enough for getting your quotes from almost all the insurance companies.  You should not forget that auto insurance is quite expensive but you can not take out your vehicle without it.  If you drive your vehicle without an insurance coverage, you are being reckless not only towards your life and vehicle but you are a threat to the pedestrians and other vehicle owners also. If unfortunately a mishap occurs and your vehicle is not insured, you will be forced to settle a lot of bills. You should also attend the courts several times spending your valuable time.

Further, if you are caught on road without an auto insurance coverage, it will cost you heavily because you should pay hefty penalties for this lapse and also legally you may be summoned to appear before the authorities, which process again robs you of your time.

After all the free quotes are available with you, you can study them thoroughly to compare their costs as against their features.  When you compare the costs, the point you should remember is that you should not compare costs of dissimilar clauses.  Only if you compare policies with similar clauses, your comparative study will be accurate and precise.  Otherwise they may be misleading and you may take a wrong decision.   You have chances of saving enormously by making such scientific comparisons.

There are two types of auto insurance policies. The first one is the Standard Policy that offers you some coverage and the premium is also low. The second one called Full Coverage Policy offers full protection covering even the legal liability, accidental damage and other clauses. You can also change features like the amount of your deductible and your level of liability and add extra coverage like glass coverage or coverage for free rental cars. The cost may increase or vary according to the additional coverage or changes made. http://www.247autoinsurancequotes.com