May 2013 Western Edition by Autobody News

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I-CAR Responds to Associations’ Questions on Repair Standards, Clarifies Stance on OEM Procedures Gaps I-CAR responded to questions posed by repairer associations regarding the training organization’s position on repair standards, as they relate to OEM repair procedures, and I-CAR’s ultimate decision not to take an active role in the identification of gaps in OEM repair procedures and forming a council to foster closing those gaps, something the association’s had requested of ICAR in 2011. In an April 12 letter to I-CAR, the three repairer organizations had questioned I-CAR’s reasons for not accepting this expanded role in the development of repair standards, and questioned statements made by I-CAR

that “seem to suggest a belief within ICAR that not all industry segments support using OEM repair procedures as a standard of repair.” I-CAR responded in the form of a letter addressed to representatives of the Alliance of Automotive Service Providers (AASP), the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS), and the Assured Performance Network. In the latest official response, ICAR reiterated its position that it “firmly believes that OEM collision repair procedures are the industry standard for complete and safe repairs” while acknowledging that, “UnfortuSee I-CAR Clarifies, Page 70

VOL. 31 ISSUE 5 MAY 2013

Top California Collision Repair Students Compete at SkillsUSA in San Diego by Melanie Anderson

The top 29 California collision repair and auto refinishing students competed at the 46th annual SkillsUSA California State Leadership and Skills

Second of 2 Issues

GM Wants Dealers to Stock More Service Parts, Parts Managers and Dealers Debate Costs and Discounts

pact of the Service Lane Parts program. GM estimates that the majority of dealerships will spend $6,000 to $10,000 to buy the additional inventory, but worried dealers also believe it may result in buying parts that won’t move as quickly as GM believes, wasting valuable shelf space as well as money. See GM Dealers’ Parts, Page 30

Change Service Requested

P.O. BOX 1516, CARLSBAD, CA 92018

General Motors is revamping its service parts program and giving incentives to dealerships to increase their inventory for more same-day repairs and to buy more of those parts directly from the factory, Automotive News recently reported. However dealers and their parts managers have expressed serious concerns about the inventory cost and im-

See SkillsUSA in San Diego, Page 22

Fernando Arce, Eden Area ROP

PAINT AND REFINISH TECHNOLOGIES

Conference in San Diego April 4–7. These top 29 students came from both northern and southern California high school and post secondary schools to showcase their skills at Mossy Toyota’s collision repair shop off Lovelock Street in San Diego. SkillsUSA is the largest competition for career and technical education students. The California event involved over 2,100 student, educator and business and industry representatives. Students showcased their skills and abilities through competition and live demonstrations of their technical trade, including automotive, construc-

• Custom Painter Stories, p. 32, 42, 50, 54 • Training and News, p. 4, 16, 29, 44, 48

Suit Filed Against Safelite and Toyota After DoubleFatality Rollover, Safelite Says Not Repairer of Record

A Houston, Texas-based personal injury attorney has filed suit against Safelite and Toyota on behalf a Montana woman who he says lost both her husband and young daughter in a rollover crash, in which the windshield allegedly separated from the vehicle. The attorney, Rob Ammons, contends Safelite had replaced the windshield on the vehicle involved, while Safelite argues its claims division processed the claim on behalf of another glass shop. “While traveling on a North Dakota highway one December afternoon, the family’s 2005 Toyota Tundra contacted an icy patch and went out of control. The pickup crossed the highway’s median and rolled over,” Rob Ammons said in a news release. “Safelite, who had installed a windshield on the Tundra, was also named as a defendant,” the document

continues. “According to the lawsuit, the windshield separated from the pickup in this crash and exacerbated the movement of the roof’s pillars. As a result, the driver and rear seat passenger were partially ejected from the pickup, despite the fact that they were wearing their seatbelts.” Ammons listed Safelite as a defendant because he contends the company installed the windshield on the pickup, according to the release. Safelite’s senior corporate counsel has another take: “Safelite typically does not comment on pending litigation. However, in this tragic case, after a preliminary investigation we determined that Safelite AutoGlass did not perform the windshield replacement,” says Brian DiMasi, Safelite’s senior corporate counsel. “Rather, Safelite Solutions, the See Safelite Glass Suit, Page 23

Presorted Standard US Postage PAID San Bernardino, CA Permit #2244

2 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Contents

COLUMNS Attanasio: Is ‘Reactionary’ Marketing Too Little, Too Late? Maybe Not . . . . . . . . . . . 26 Franklin: Using Signage to be Unique in the Digital Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Hey Toby: Glass and Windshield Installs Must Be Handled by the Book. . . . . . . . . . 40 Insider: Shops Should Be Able to Offer Whatever Discounts They Want . . . . . . . . 68

NATIONAL $250,000 Donated Towards Operation Comfort . 46 1940 Ford Coupe Wins Ridler Award in Detroit . 35 Aaron Clark Named VP at Assured Performance . 65 ASA President Ron Pyle Has Resigned from ASA, Dan Risley Appointed as Interim Executive Director . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 59 Automaker, OEM and Recall News . . . . . . . . 38 Automotive Body Parts Association Hires Edward Salamy as New Executive Director . 60

PAINT SPECIAL AkzoNobel’s Stickerfix DIY Paint Solution . . . 16 Crazy Painter Mitch Kelly, Father & Son Keep on Truckin’ in SoCal. . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 Custom Shop Masters Pro-Spray to Make an Artistic Statement. . . . . . . . . . . . 42 Glasurit Introduces Comprehensive, 2-Clears Solution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 KBS Coatings Adds ‘Safety Blue’ Color to Line-Up of Non-Porous Colors for Rust Prevention . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 RDA’s First Collision Solutions Training Seminar Gets Excellent Reviews . . . . . . . . 29 Renowned Painter Mickey Harris Co-Designed the SATAgraph 4 . . . . . . . . . 54 Six Tips to Finding Success in Process Analysis. 44 Third Generation Custom Painter Was Born Into the Business . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 50

and selling hundreds of false certificates of insurance. RJC Insurance Brokerage and Optima Staffing were allegedly selling forged certificates of insurance for workers’ compensation insurance coverage. According to detectives, the suspects facilitated the theft by establishing three payroll service companies, Optima Staffing, United Employer Services (UES) and National Employer Services (NES), in the effort to provide a legitimate facade for their fraudulent scheme. In addition to the insurance fraud and forged certificates of insurance, Optima also allegedly evaded income and unemployment insurance taxes. In addition to the failure to pay taxes, EDD also discovered that Robinson Yang was collecting unemployment benefits while being compensated by the Optima, UES and NES.

Publisher & Editor: Jeremy Hayhurst General Manager: Barbara Davies Assistant Editor: Melanie Anderson Contributing Writers: Tom Franklin, David Brown, John Yoswick, Rich Evans, Janet Chaney, Toby Chess, Ed Attanasio, Chasidy Sisk Advertising Sales: Joe Momber, Sean Hartman, Jay Lukes (800) 699-8251 Sales Assistant: Louise Tedesco Art Director: Rodolfo Garcia

Audi Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . .54 Automotive ID . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Axalta Coating Systems . . . . . . . . . . .5 Bill Luke Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge . . . .28 Bill Luke Fiat . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28 BMW Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . .57 Bob Smith BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 Bob Smith MINI . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12 BSFco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 Car-Part Pro . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .39 Chief Automotive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29 Classifieds . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .70 Completes Plus . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20 Downtown Motors of LA (Audi, VW, Porsche) . . . . . . . . . . .43 Drew Hyundai . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 East Bay BMW-MINI . . . . . . . . . . . . .31 Elk Grove Toyota . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .24 Enterprise Rent-A-Car . . . . . . . . . . .16 Equalizer Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . .14 Ford Wholesale Parts Dealers AZ, CA, & NV . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .51 Galpin Motors . . . . . . . . .10-11, 18, 23 Garmat USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8 Glenn E. Thomas Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge .27 GM Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . .66 Honda-Acura Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36-37 Hyundai Wholesale Parts Dealers . .60 Innovative Tools & Technology, Inc .45 KBS Coatings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4 Kearny Mesa Subaru-Hyundai . . . . .59 Kia Motors Wholesale Parts Dealers .55 Levan Group, Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48 LKQ . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71

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Autobody News on Facebook Serving California, Nevada and Arizona, Autobody News is a monthly publication for the autobody industry. Permission to reproduce in any form the material published in Autobody News must be obtained in writing from the publisher. ©2013 Adamantine Media LLC. Autobody News P.O. Box 1516, Carlsbad, CA 92018 (800) 699-8251 (760) 721-0253 Fax www.autobodynews.com Email: news@autobodynews.com

Western

Axalta Offers Courses . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 65 Big Changes Coming for ASRW, Shorter Schedule, Possible Partnership. . . . . . . . . 67 Boyd Group Acquires Four Repair Centers in NC and FL . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Car Theft Drops by 88% in Massachusetts . . 46 CCC Donates $25,000 to Education Foundation . 65 Chicago Pneumatic Gives $10,000 in Tool Grants . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Collision Education Makeover School Grant Applications Due by May 31 . . . . . . . . . . . 65 David Brunori Promoted to Division President at Matrix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Education Foundation to Offer Free 1-Year I-CAR Curriculum Grants to 100 Post-Secondary Schools . . . . . . . . . . . . . 60 Foundation Says 91 Cents of Every Buck Went to Schools. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 GM Wants Dealers to Stock More Service Parts, Parts Managers and Dealers Worry About Costs, Discounts . . . . . . . . . . 1 Hoffman Auto Body Fined $54K for OSHA Violations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 I-CAR Declines Facilitation of OEM Repair Standards . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 62 I-CAR Makes Milestone $200,000 Donation to Collision Repair Education Foundation. . 61 I-CAR Responds to Associations’ Questions on Repair Standards, Clarifies Stance on OEM Procedures Gaps. . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 Industry Veteran Michael Quinn Joins uParts . 62 Insurers Rated for Best and Worst Customer Experiences; USAA Ranked “Good” . . . . . 60 Kadel’s Wins Regional Award . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Kentucky Approves eProof . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 Malco’s TurboShears Quickly Becoming Tech’s Go-To Cutter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Martin Senour Color Manual Features Actual Paint Chips . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 Mitchell Releases New RepairCenter Connect, Which Allows Insurers to Send Assignments to Any Shop . . . . . . . . 59 Most & Least Expensive States for Car Insurance. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 34 NABC’s Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit Available . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 NADA Says Rising New-Vehicle Sales Lifted Dealer Profits for a Record Year in 2012 . . 64 New TV Pilot, “Auto Body Avengers” Coming to Spike. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 70 Nissan Names O’Hara Director . . . . . . . . . . . 35 NJ Man Arrested for Body Shop Burglary After Storm Sandy . . . . . . . . . . . 63 PARTS Act Reintroduced in U.S. House of Representatives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Pro-Spray Launches YouTube Channel. . . . . . . 34 Refinish Distributors Alliance Adds New Member. 34 SEMA Board Candidates. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Service King’s Bonner to Speak at PBES Conference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 46 Suit Filed Against Safelite and Toyota After Double- Fatality Rollover, Safelite Says Not Repairer of Record . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 1 VT Couple Charged With Arson. . . . . . . . . . . 35 WIN Announces Scholarship Winners for Conference . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 63

The California Department of Insurance (CDI) arrested Robinson Yang, 44, Roland Yang, 43, and Sotheany “Teny” Hul, 42, of Diamond Bar, CA, on multiple counts of theft, fraud and forgery. The three suspects are accused of producing and selling hundreds of false certificates of insurance for workers’ compensation insurance. All three were booked between March 22 and April 3, 2013 and are being held pending bail hearings. The CDI said, after a four-year investigation, the counterfeit workers’ compensation insurance leaves injured workers without benefits, hundreds of victims in 19 states and losses exceeding $700,000. “The greed and deception of these three individuals is egregious,” said Commissioner Dave Jones. “This illegal activity not only left honest businesses unprotected, but also put the health and recovery of legitimately injured workers in jeopardy.” In April 2009, the CDI Fraud Division and the Employee Development Department (EDD) began investigating Optima Staffing for defrauding their clients by producing

Indexof Advertisers

REGIONAL ‘51 Mercury Wins Goodguys 2013 Mother’s Custom of the Year . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 ABRA Auto Body & Glass Expands in Utah . . 48 Bakersfield, CA, Shop Displays Wrecked Vehicle . 6 BASF Sponsors East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa, Arizona . . . . . . . . 20 Bellingham, WA, Shop Closes as Owner Retires. 12 Blueprinting is Topic of May 15 CAA Meeting in Pasadena . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 CA Da-Les Auto Body Plans Expansion. . . . . . 8 CAA Instrumental in New Insurance Regulation . 31 CAA San Diego Raises $2,400 for CARPAC . . 6 Capitol Collision Adds Star Rent-a-Car to Phoenix Shop . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 4 CAWA Appoints Traci Quick . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 CDI Uncovers Elaborate Workers’ Comp Insurance Fraud in 4-Year Investigation . . . . 3 Cerritos, CA, Cashes In On Rebounding Auto Sales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 49 Cutting Edge Opens Newest Facility Designed for RV Collision Repair in Tucson, Arizona . 12 FinishMaster/PPG San Diego Roundtable Group Awards 2012 Winners . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Four Suspects Charged in Death of Nevada Official . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13 Goodguys 13th Annual Del Mar Nationals Showcases 2,500 Cars . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Industry Continues its Support of Linda Holcomb. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 58 Kadel’s Provides Uniforms to Portland Students . 8 Larry Miller Group Adds 7 Dealerships in AZ . . 9 Los Angeles-CAA and San Diego-CAA Host Toyota’s Rick Leos . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Mike Rose Opens 11th Shop in No. California. 49 MSO Service King Acquires Three AZ Shops. . 4 No Hands Cell Phone Law Applies to Map Reading as Well, Fresno Court Rules . . . . 13 Northern California Man Pleads No Contest to Selling Counterfeit ALLDATA Products . 64 Oceanside’s Terry’s Auto Body Added to CARSTAR. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 48 Sacramento, CA, Celebrates 100th Electric Vehicle Charging Station . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 San Diego CAA Golf Tournament will be Saturday June 8th . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 San Diego CAA Swears in New Officers and Board . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6 Sherwin-Williams Offers Body Shops Digital Marketing Seminar in San Francisco on May 23 . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Single Source Opens 3rd So. California Location . 4 Special Trade Show in So. California on June 26 . 4 Sprinklers, Not Fire, at AZ Shop . . . . . . . . . . 31 TGIF Body Shop in Fremont, CA, Earns Business Award . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 8 Top California Collision Repair Students Compete at SkillsUSA in San Diego. . . . . . . 1 Two Northern California CAA Chapters’ Substantive Meetings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 18 Vallejo Body Shop Gets Barkitectural for Homeless Dogs & Cats . . . . . . . . . . . . 24 Valley-Ventura CAA Presents ‘Got a Good Lawyer?’ May 29 . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Yucaipa Auto Body To Give Away Car to Needy Family . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6

CDI Uncovers Elaborate Workers’ Comp Insurance Fraud in 4-Year Investigation

Los Gatos Luxury Cars . . . . . . . . . .30 Maita Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .26 Malco . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .17 Mazda Wholesale Parts Dealers . . .64 MINI Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . .56 Mitsubishi Wholesale Parts Dealers .68 MOPAR Wholesale Parts Dealers . .47 Moss Brothers Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge .15 Nick Alexander BMW . . . . . . . . . . . .25 Nick Alexander MINI . . . . . . . . . . . .72 Nissan/Infiniti Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52 North County Kia . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61 Power Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge of Arizona . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22 PPG . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2 PreFab Ads . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6 Pro-Spray . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7 Replica Plastics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .34 Riverside Metro VW-Honda-HyundaiNissan-Mazda . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 SATA Spray Equipment . . . . . . . . . .19 Shingle Springs Nissan-Subaru . . .67 Sierra Chevrolet-Honda-MazdaSubaru . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53 Subaru Wholesale Parts Dealers . . .63 Timmons VW-Subaru . . . . . . . . . . . .41 Toyota Wholesale Parts Dealers . . .65 Urethane Supply Company . . . . . . .13 VIM Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .58 Volkswagen Wholesale Parts Dealers .69 Volvo Wholesale Parts Dealers . . . .62 Walcom USA . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9 Weatherford BMW . . . . . . . . . . . . . .21 Women’s Industry Network . . . . . . .35

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 3

Special Trade Show in So. California on June 26

A special trade show and evening of training for advance vehicle technology repairs will be held in Cerritos, CA, for Southern California shops on Wednesday, June 26. The event will be held at the Sheraton of Cerritos, 12725 Towne Center Drive in Cerritos, from 2â&#x20AC;&#x201C;6 p.m. with dinner from 6â&#x20AC;&#x201C;7 p.m. The OEM training sessions will be held from 7â&#x20AC;&#x201C;9 p.m. According to organizers Lillian Maimone and Toby Chess, 400 shops will attend and 50 vendors will display. In all, they expect about 500 people to participate. Attendees will include vendors, single-owned shops, MSOs, consolidators, franchises, insurance field appraisers, OEMs (Toyota, Audi, Porsche, BMW have signed up so far). Cost for attendees is $25 per person and cost for a trade show booth is $500 per 6-foot display. Attendees MUST book and pay by credit card in advance. Tickets are not available at the door. Register and pay at collisiontradeshow2013.eventbrite.com, or email to collisiontradeshow2013 @gmail.com.

MSO Service King Acquires Three Arizona Shops

The collision division of Greulichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Automotive Services of Arizona was recently acquired by multi-shop operator Service King Collision Repair Centers. Service King will take over the ownership and operation of Greulichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s three collision repair locations in Scottsdale, Mesa and Peoria, AZ. Greulichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Automotive Service has been a provider of automotive services throughout the Phoenix metro area since 1977. The acquisition officially closed March 26. Service King now operates more than 80 collision repair locations throughout Arizona, Arkansas, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We are very excited to work with a company with as much history in Arizona as Greulichâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Automotive Services,â&#x20AC;? said Chris Anderson, market vice president for Service King. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Both companies share a similar commitment to continued innovation, quality repairs and customer satisfaction, which will make this partnership successful,â&#x20AC;? he said.

Single Source Opens 3rd Southern California Location Single Source Inc., a PPG platinum distributor, recently held the grand opening of its new store location in Riverside, CA. Guy Gagne, Southern California regional manager for Single Source, said the new location will offer a mobile store strategyâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;which includes automated purchasing, inventory control and on-time deliveriesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;to address the operational needs of larger collision centers in the region. The store will also offer monthly vendor and manufacturer clinics to give customers hands-on opportunities to learn about new products, accessories and application techniques. Single Source said it is the largest PPG Platinum distributor in the U.S. The Roswell, GA-based company operates more than 50 locations throughout the country, and serves shops in 18 U.S. states. To celebrate the opening of its third store in the Southern California market, Single Source will raise proceeds to benefit Olive Crest, an organization that focuses on treating and educating at-risk children and preventing child abuse.

Capitol Collision Adds Star Rent-a-Car to Phoenix Shop

Capitol Collision Repair Specialists of Phoenix has added Star Rent-ACar as a satellite rental car location. Capitol Collision Repair is one of the largest independent body shops in Phoenix and recently celebrated their 25th anniversary in business. Star Rent-A-Car was founded to provide an alternative to traditional car rental agencies whose main insurance replacement customer are those with proper credit and financial backing to rent a vehicle. Star Rent-A-Car business model is different in that their target market are those insurance replacement customers who need a replacement vehicle but may not have the credit card for a deposit or do not have full coverage on their damaged vehicle due for repair. In selecting Capitol Collision Repair as their first satellite location in Phoenix, General Manager David Abramson stated that their selection was based up the volume of the collision center, their number of years in business and overall business philosophy.

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KBS Coatings Adds â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Safety Blueâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; Color to Line-Up of Non-Porous Colors for Rust Prevention

Rust is caused by moisture coming in contact with bare metal, producing a chemical reaction known as oxidation. The effect is to significantly weaken the metal and cause blistering underneath paint or primer. KBS Coatings offers its customers the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s top rated rust preventive coatings but now KBS Coatings has raised the bar even higher with the addition of Safety Blue to the ten color line-up of RustSeal colors, according to Ben Bonkoski, Operations Manager of KBS Coatings. People battling rust problems with their cars, farm equipment, industrial equipment, and in so many other places, now have 10 choices of color, all of which are completely non-porous. Rust is one dilemma everyone seems to understand. Corrosion protection is really only as good as the products you choose. The power to protect lies in the details of a stop rust paint. KBS Coatingsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; 3-Step system of KBS Klean (an industrial strength water-based cleaner & degreaser), KBS RustBlast (a powerful rust remover and metal etch) and RustSeal

(an exclusive rust preventive coating) is the newest and most effective rust prevention system available today. KBS preparation products of KBS Klean and RustBlast are specifically enhanced with a revolutionary Oxygen-Block Technology that offers unique metal corrosion protection. RustSeal is a single-component, high-solid content, moisture-curing urethane. These exceptional properties make RustSeal the ideal stop rust paint choice for chemically bonding to metal for the purpose of stopping and encapsulating existing rust and corrosion caused by the damaging effects of water penetration. RustSeal protects and seals bare metal from moisture with a permanent coating that is actually strengthened by continued exposure to moisture. This non-porous, flexible coating that now comes in Safety Blue is also incredibly tough and extremely resistant to abrasion and impact. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s technology thatâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s simply unbeatable. For more information, visit www.SHOPKBS.com or call 877548-9323.

4 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 5

Los Angeles-CAA and San Diego-CAA Host Toyota’s Rick Leos

Rick Leos, Toyota Motors Sales Collision Business Development Consultant, continued to make the rounds visiting several California Autobody Association chapters over the past several weeks. Leos has been visiting and speaking at association meetings since the system was introduced at NACE last November. On April 10 he was the guest speaker at the Los Angeles CAA chapter in Torrance, CA. The meeting took place at the Toyota USA Automobile Museum. The San Diego CAA chapter hosted Rick on April 23 at the Hilton San Diego Airport on Harbor Island in the Marina Ballroom at 1960 Harbor Island Dr. At both meetings Leos gave his overview of the advancements Toyota is making to provide comprehensive estimate data to aid in the preparation of repair blueprints that reflect the OEM recommended procedures. The Toyota “Predictive Estimating System” is being called a ‘game changer’ in the industry because the system begins with a complete estimate and allows the user to omit unnecessary items. Predictive Estimating allows repairers a convenient way to get all the information they need to repair the vehicle.

The system requires the user to select the damaged portions of the vehicle (left front fender, for example), and all items related to that section of the vehicle are automatically listed, including such items as one-time use fasteners, necessary information labels, and procedures such as color sand and polish (with a link to Toyota’s bulletin indicating that it is a procedure necessary even at the factory). Repairers simply click on a button to pull up a PDF file that provides all the documented detail needed to repair the vehicle. This is the exact same information that can be retrieved from the information provider databases. Toyota is in discussions with the other vehicle manufacturers to get on board with this approach so they can provide a comprehensive, industry-wide solution that ensures quality and safe repairs.

A Bakersfield, CA, auto body shop is sending a visual ‘Don’t Drink & Drive’ message to teens and the community Rosedale Collision Center displayed a vehicle that was in an accident to raise awareness about the dangers of drinking and driving.

A Yucaipa auto body shop is preparing to give away a car this summer to a local family in need. Ben Clymer’s The Body Shop has partnered with Auto Club of Southern California, Spreen Honda, Yucaipa Mayor Denise Hoyt, Martin Auto Colors, PPG and Community Connect to provide one family the gift of a car. The gift will come complete with one year of registration and insurance, a trunk full of groceries and possibly car seats. Community Connect will be collecting the applications and making a recommendation for the recipient selection. The staff at Ben Clymer’s will make the final selection from the applicant who most demonstrates the need and life change that a car would bring to their family. Applications can be submitted by potential recipients, a friend or family member or an agency. Applications must be received no later than 5 p.m. on May 17. The car will be given in a presentation set for June 19 at 11 a.m. at Ben Clymer’s The Body Shop, located at 32247 Dunlap Blvd., Yucaipa.

Bakersfield, CA, Shop Displays Wrecked Vehicle

The vehicle is in their lot off Rosedale Highway next to a flashing sign that reads ‘Be Safe, Don’t Drink and Drive.’ They said their main goal is to reach out to teenagers during Spring Break to not drink and drive. The body shop has been doing this for several years now during holidays where drinking and driving is an issue.

San Diego CAA Swears in New Officers and Board

The California Autobody Association San Diego chapter swore in its new chapter officers and board members at its April 23 meeting. 2013 officers are: President, Shon Craft, Rancho Jeep Chrysler VW Collision Center; Vice President, vacant, volunteer needed Treasurer, Hop Sanchez, FinishMaster; Secretaries, Amanda Smith and Angie Hernandez, both of Mitchell; Sergeant at Arms, Kurt Liobl, Mossy Collision Escondido; State Board rep, Monte Etherton, Fender Mender Auto Body 2013 board members are: Larry Houk, Drew Ford Collision Stacey Landry, DuPont; Larry Haley, Enterprise Rent-a-Car; Hilary Castro, Sherwin-Williams; Martin Munguia, PPG; Maria Carrillo, Carrillo and Son’s Collision; Paul Amato, Amato’s Auto Body

San Diego CAA Golf Tournament will be Sat. June 8th

The 19th Annual Golf Tournament is scheduled for Saturday, June 8th, 2013. As with the past 18 tourneys, a great day filled with a lot of fun and prizes with all the good people in our industry is expected. The tournament is CAA-SD’s major fundraiser and al-

Yucaipa Auto Body To Give Away Car to Needy Family

6 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

lows the chapter to do CARPAC fundraiser, donations to causes like Linda Holcomb’s and Mission Of Life Van, etc. Sponsors, please register by Friday, May 17th. Contact Hop Sanchez at sanchezh@finishmaster.com or by phone: 760-275-9246.

CAA San Diego Raises $2,400 for CARPAC

The California Autobody Association San Diego Chapter hosted a CARPAC fundraiser on March 26 with a special one-day class on ‘Estimating Solutions for Profit (ESP) Workshop’ with Michael Pellet, Regional Training Center Manager at Sherwin-Williams Dallas Automotive Training Center. The class qualified attendees for 12 AMI Credits and 1.75 I-CAR points. The workshop raised $2,410 for CARPAC and 33 attendees from San Diego, El Centro and Coachella Valley attended the workshop. CARPAC (California Autobody Repair Political Action Committee) is a political action committee (PAC) started by the California Autobody Association, which makes campaign contributions to statewide candidates for public office. CARPAC has a separate board of directors and gives money to help elect candidates who are concerned with the needs of the Autobody Industry. Many of the CAA chapters hold fundraisers to contribute to the CARPAC fund. These fundraisers provide a way that individual members can make a small contribution that will provide overall support for PAC.

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TGIF Body Shop in Fremont, CA, Earns Business Award

A Fremont, CA, auto body shop called To Get It Fixed (T.G.I.F.) Body Shop Inc., was recently awarded the Mission Valley ROP Platinum Educational Business Partner Award. Kathy Mello, owner of T.G.I.F. Body Shop, was recognized for her unwavering support of Mission Valley ROP through her support of instruction and providing industry-relevant feedback to maintain program curriculum. T.G.I.F. Body Shop has also created a student scholarship in memory of an instructor’s family member, competed in the annual Toys for Tots charity event, donated numerous equipment, and served as an active advisory member for nearly 20 years. The Platinum Educational Business Partner Award highlights relationships that contribute to the success of career technical education programs, and the positive benefits that result for the students, community and local economy. Kathy Mello accepted the award at the Mission Valley ROP’s Spring Career and Technical Education Advisory Meeting on March 14.

www.autobodynews.com

Kadel’s Provides Uniforms to Portland Students

Kadel’s Auto Body in Portland, OR, has provided collision repair students at Portland Community College with uniforms as they prepare to finish their two-year certificates. The donations were provided in partnership with the Collision Repair Education Foundation.

“It is very important for our industry to foster the growth of skilled technicians,” said Don Braden, president and CEO of Kadel’s Auto Body. “This is one of the ways that Kadel’s contributes to this goal.” Added George Warneke, auto collision repair instructor at Portland Community College, “On behalf of all 20 students in my Technical Skills course and the PCC Auto Collision Repair Program staff, I want to give a huge thanks to Kadel’s Auto Body for the generous sponsorship of uniforms for my students through the Collision Repair Education Foundation.”

8 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

CA Da-Les Auto Body Plans Expansion Da-Les Auto Body in Sunnyvale, CA, is resuming its proposal plans to expand to a neighboring city. With the opening of its new location in Mountain View, Da-Les Auto Body plans to hire approximately 15 employees to work at the shop. Since the day Da-Les Auto Body opened for business 35 years ago, it has strived to offer its customers and their vehicles top-notch service. Recently, the company has seen a strong need for high quality auto body shops near Sunnyvale. As the shop has gotten busier helping clients from neighboring cities, the owner of Da-Les Auto Body has responded by offering free rental cars with qualified repairs, as well as shuttle services to his customers. Da-Les Auto Body has been named the number one collision repair facility for the past four years by Consumer Business Review, and it has also received an award from the City of Sunnyvale for ‘Outstanding Commitment to Environment Protection.’ “Da-Les Auto Body collision repair uses the most advanced techniques and equipment, as well as materials to bring your vehicle back to pre-accident condition,” an article

on the company’s website noted, adding that the employees of Da-Les Auto Body are highly skilled and trained in methods of repairing and refinishing today’s technical vehicles. Da-Les Auto Body recently posted a screencast to its website that walks clients through the process of creating a Yelp review. The Sunnyvale and Cupertino, CA, auto body repair and collision specialists serve the San Jose and Sunnyvale areas, specializing in foreign and domestic vehicles. As a certified green investment shop, Da-Les Auto Body has amassed many clients. Although many of these clients want to write reviews and post them to Yelp, the shop found that they’re hampered by a lack of understanding on how to do it. The shop’s new screencast will aid them in this process. “While we have gained a strong customer base across all demographics and ages, we have a significant portion of our client base that is a bit older and unfamiliar with how to use Yelp,” said a Da-Les Auto Body spokesperson. “This new screencast walks them through the process of how to make a Yelp account and Yelp review, and is posted on our website’s blog page so that it is easy to find.”

FinishMaster/PPG San Diego Roundtable Group Awards 2012 Winners

This group photo is a combination of the north and south San Diego FinishMaster/PPG Roundtable Group

On February 19, the FinishMaster/PPG San Diego Roundtable Group awarded its 2012 winners. The group is comprised of refinish technicians from some of the top shops in the San Diego area who are FinishMaster customers using the PPG EnvirobaseHP paint line. The groups meets for breakfast every other month to discuss issues, suggestions, and successes. As a technicians’ meeting, painters share techniques, color information, how they overcame certain issues and also gives them the

opportunity to network with other refinish technicians. The three award winners are: David Collins of Courtesy Chevrolet in Mission Valley (South Group) who won a Participation Leader Plaque); Fransisco “Chico” Valdovinos of Mossy Collision Center in Escondido (North Group) who won a Participation Leader Plaque; and Javier Castaneda of FIX Auto/Carter Collision in Mission Valley who won a Participation Leadership Award.

The three award winners are: (left) David Collins, Courtesy Chevrolet, Mission Valley (South Group - Participation Leader Plaque), (right) Fransisco “Chico” Valdovinos, Mossy Collision Center, Escondido (North Group – Participation Leader Plaque), and (center) Javier Castaneda, FIX Auto/Carter Collision, Mission Valley (Participation Leadership Award)

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Larry Miller Group Adds 7 Dealerships in Arizona

Larry H. Miller Group Dealerships has acquired seven dealerships in Arizona for an undisclosed price. It is the privately-held group’s largest acquisition to date. The newly acquired stores bring the Sandy, UT, group’s dealership total to 55 in seven western states. Four of the new stores are located in Tucson: Tucson Dodge Ram, Tucson Chrysler Jeep, Tucson Fiat and Tucson Volkswagen. The other three are in Avondale, a western suburb of Phoenix: Avondale Chrysler Jeep, Avondale Dodge Ram and Avondale Fiat. Doug Moreland and John Grant are stores’ former owners. Steve Starks, executive vice president for the Larry H. Miller Management Corp., who is in charge of dealership acquisitions, said the new stores double the group’s presence in Arizona with mostly Chrysler Group brands, on which the group is ‘bullish.’ He said dealership values are increasing but his group is still very much interested in growing its portfolio. It is doing so by cultivating relationships with dealers who are looking for exit strategies, he said. “Revenue and profit have gone up the last couple of years and there

are more buyers than there are sellers. That’s driving values up,” said Starks. “When a dealer considers selling, we hope we’re the first people they call.” Before the latest acquisitions, the Miller group operated six dealerships in the Phoenix area. The Miller group ranks No. 10 in the Automotive News list of the top 125 dealership groups in the United States with new retail sales of 39,596 units in 2012. It also had used sales of 36,063, and reported revenue of $2.93 billion last year. Starks said the new dealerships are expected to increase the group’s annual unit volume by 12,000 units, about evenly split between new and used. “It was the right market for us, they are good stores and the sellers have done a good job of running them,” Starks said. “So the combination of all those forces coming together really made them attractive to us.” Over the last four years, the Miller group has added 23 dealerships and sold five. In addition to the stores in Arizona, the Miller group owns stores in Colorado, Idaho, New Mexico, Oregon, Utah and Washington.

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Bellingham, WA, Shop Closes as Owner Retires

Duane Stewart closed his long-time auto body repair business, D&L Body and Plastics, Inc., in Bellingham, WA, on March 29. Stewart and his father, Les, opened the business at 1421 N. Forest St. in 1962. Now 79, he started working in the industry as a teenager. After 50 years in the business, Stewart retired from the business he loved and from which he operated at the same address in Bellingham for more than 50 years, the Bellingham Herald reported. Stewart already had quite a bit of experience in auto body repair and fiberglass work even before founding D&L with his father. Now nearly 80, he started working in the industry as a teenager when Les started Superior Autobody in 1949. “I’ve enjoyed a good run,” Stewart said. “I knew that I loved this work as a teen and didn’t want to do anything else. I remember I was making $100 a week and would ask, ‘Why do I need any more than that?’” Long-time employee, Tom Gates, has worked at the shop for 48 years, starting when he was 15. Duane’s daughter, Lori Beyerlin, has been handling the financial books for the company since 1986. Gates hopes to work a

few more years in the industry locally, while Beyerlin is going to take some time to decide what she wants to do next. D&L could store up to 20 cars. With his background in fiberglass, Stewart established a niche, working on, and designing a few dune buggies, then becoming well known locally for his work on Corvettes. With such a long span in the business, Stewart has seen plenty of changes in the industry. As vehicles became safer with the development of air bags and body design, Stewart more often had to advise customers to scrap a damaged car and buy a new one because it’s more expensive to repair the vehicle. One other big change is how damaged cars are handled. Early on in D&L’s history, if someone damaged a car the owner would pick a place to get it repaired. Today the insurance company advises the customer where to take it, and many customers don’t realize they have a choice. Beyerlin said it was the customers and the former employees, many of whom are now longtime friends, who made the biggest impact. “We will miss the customers coming in with a problem and being able to say, ‘Let’s do this right,’” Beyerlin said.

Cutting Edge Opens Newest Facility Designed for RV Collision Repair in Tucson, Arizona Cutting Edge Refinishing in Tucson, AZ, recently opened their new shop, featuring the space and equipment to work on multiple recreational vehicles at the same time. The facility has a drive-through estimating canopy that is large enough to accommodate full-size class A motorhomes. Also in the new shop is a 45’ spray booth, which allows for RV body and paint repair for the greyhound bus sized class A to the customized van size class B, and all sizes in between. The shop is big enough so that it can accommodate several RVs at the same time, allowing them to stay parked indoors while being worked on. The parking area for the 4th Avenue shop was designed to allow a full turning radius for recreational vehicles, facilitating ingress and egress of the facility, and avoiding the complication of being cramped and having to move other vehicles. Gary Hagen of Cutting Edge Refinishing said, “We have been doing RV body collision repair for several years, but now we finally have a facility that will better accommodate our needs and enable us to

work on several recreational vehicles simultaneously. We do all we can to facilitate the experience for our customers, and this shop is just another step in that direction.” Because of the size of the facility, Cutting Edge is able to offer office space for rent for other automotive industry-related businesses. It is Hagen’s vision that one day the new facility will become a one-stop shop where all of the customer’s automotive needs, from auto repair to auto insurance, can be addressed through the cooperation of each service provider. Cutting Edge Refinishing has been serving the collision repair needs of the recreational vehicle community for over six years.

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Four Suspects Charged in Death of Nevada Official

Police say they suspect robbery was the motive behind the suspected murder of Nevada’s chief insurance examiner. The body of William McCune, 62, was bound by duct tape, wrapped in a blanket and dumped in the Carson River in Carson City, NV. He was found April 6. The cause of death has not been determined, but police arrested four adults and charged them with murder. The alleged crime was apparently not related to his work. Authorities suspected foul play after finding evidence of a bloody, violent struggle in McCune’s apartment in Carson City. Deputies were called to the apartment after McCune failed to board a flight with a co-worker and other employees found no sign of him when they went to his residence. Named Nevada’s chief insurance examiner in 2009, McCune was head of the division’s corporate and financial affairs section. “Bill was a kind and gentle man who touched the lives of everyone who met him,” Insurance Commissioner Scott Kipper said in a statement. “The impact his personality and intellect made on the Division of Insurance will be felt for years to come. We are truly saddened by this loss.”

The department says McCune’s passing would impact the insurance industry because he was “nationally recognized and appreciated as a vigilant and innovative regulator.” Carson City Sheriff Ken Furlong said authorities charged four suspects with allegedly robbing and murdering McCune. Police suspect the stolen property was to be used to buy drugs. Initially, Michael Evans, 23, and Anthony Elliot, 20, were booked on murder charges, while Raul Garcia, 22, and Makyla Blackmore, 20, were arrested on burglary charges. Garcia and Blackmore were later booked on murder charges as well. All four suspects were spotted near McCune’s apartment around the time of his disappearance, and businesses frequented by the suspects provided important tips that led to their arrests, Furlong said. McCune may have known two of the suspects, but it is not certain how long they knew one another, authorities say, adding that they found evidence of a violent struggle inside McCune’s apartment as they investigated a missing-person complaint filed after McCune failed to show up for work that day. There was no sign of forced entry at his home.

No Hands Cell Phone Law Applies to Map Reading as Well, Fresno Court Rules

A Fresno resident who was ticketed for using his cell phone’s map function (only) while stopped in a traffic jam has lost his Superior court appeal. About a year ago the driver paid $160 plus court costs, then appealed but judges have rejected his argument that they were expanding the law by refusing to toss out the ticket he got in January 2012. Fresno County Judge Kent Hamlin, writing on March 21 for the three-judge panel upholding the commissioner’s ruling, said “The primary evil sought to be avoided is the distraction the driver faces when using his or her hands to operate the phone. That distraction would be present whether the wireless telephone was being used as a telephone, a GPS navigator, a clock or a device for sending and receiving text messages and emails.”

“It may be argued that the Legislature acted arbitrarily when it outlawed all ‘hands-on’ use of a wireless telephone while driving, even though the legal use of one’s hands to operate myriad other devices poses just as great a risk to the safety of other motorists,” the judge wrote in the March 21 ruling. “It may also be argued that prohibiting driving while using ‘electronic wireless communications devices’ for texting and emailing, while acknowledging and failing to prohibit perhaps even more distracting uses of the same devices, is equally illogical and arbitrary.” But the judge said it’s up to the Legislature to amend the law. Until then, Hamlin wrote, courts are compelled to deem illegal nearly all uses of hand-held phones by motorists. The ruling doesn’t apply outside of Fresno County. www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 13

‘51 Mercury Wins Goodguys 2013 Mother’s Custom of the Year by John Drummond

Nick Rogers’ radical 1951 Mercury custom won the Goodguys 2013 Mother’s Custom of the Year award. On a sun baked afternoon in Pleasanton, CA, at the Goodguys 31st All American Get-Together presented by Specialty Sales Classics, Rogers’ sleek candy blue Merc beat out a stellar national field of customs, collecting its second major award this spring. The car also won the coveted Custom d’Elegance crown at February’s Sacramento AutoRama. Finished and produced for the show season by Bill Ganahl’s South City Rod & Custom, Rogers’ Merc started with humble beginnings. “I wanted a thirty thousand dollar flat black Merc custom,” he said. “That’s how this car started out. But once things got rolling and I began to dream, the project took on a life of its own. I’ve never really done things half speed so it’s not too surprising we went all in. We saw the possibilities of what it could be and Bill was the man to take it there,” said Rogers,

a financial advisor on the San Francisco peninsula. Ganahl, a second-generation hot rodder, spent many years as an apprentice working long hours at Roy Brizio Street Rods, honing his craft. He was introduced to traditional hot rods & customs at a very young age growing up in Southern California. His daily drive to and from Brizio’s

1951 Mercury custom. Photo Courtesy of Goodguys

shop all those years was a ’50 Ford sled. Indeed, it’s as if he was born to build this car. He’d be the first to admit however, he had a lot of help along the way. Upon first glance, the Merc’s perfect, radical 4-inch chop grabs you and

Sherwin-Williams Offers Body Shops Digital Marketing Seminar in San Francisco on May 23

The Sherwin-Williams Automotive Finishes A-Plus™ Network University, together with Summit Software and Marketing, will conduct their successful Digital Marketing advanced business class on May 23 in San Francisco. Designed specifically for collision repair facilities, the class will be held in the afternoon from 1-5 pm, at the Courtyard San Francisco Airport Hotel at Oyster Pointe Waterfront. The workshop is recommended for all collision shop owners and managers, and those involved with marketing shop services to their customer and prospect base. Facilitated by Frank Terlep, CEO and Lead Sherpa of Summit Software and Marketing Solutions, the program reviews the challenges body shop decision-makers face in today’s rapidly changing digital and information age. Key takeaway items from the workshop include an emphasis on determining the value of the long-term collision repair customer, and then how to contact and retain them utilizing the following digital and social media strategies and tactics: • What is digital marketing? • Why is digital marketing a requirement for success in today’s world?

won’t let go. The top, forward-slanted B-pillars and the addition of a ’50 Merc rear window (among other subtle cosmetic enhancements) were artistically executed by Matt Townsend (Townsend Customs & Hot Rods). The addition of an evil ’53 DeSoto grille,’49 Merc dash and ’55 Ford side trim (featuring Packard spears) only enhanced the Merc’s curb appeal. The

• What is a shop’s potential digital marketing audience? • What benefits can a shop expect to receive from digital marketing? • What’s the importance of a digital marketing database? • What digital marketing tools are available? • Why your website is your on-line lobby. • SEO, PPC, SEM, and other on-line marketing tools. • Using e-mail, text messaging, smart phones and phone apps. • Mobile internet marketing. • Social media: Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Google+, Yelp, others. • Using digital marketing tools to generate revenue and profit from previous customers. • Who in the shop should “do” the digital marketing? • How much time and money should a shop spend on digital marketing? To register online for the upcoming San Francisco digital marketing workshop, contact Francine Schaefer at (216) 332-8524. For more information the A-Plus Network, call (800) 386-3881 or go to http://www.sherwin-automotive.com/customer-programs-services/a-plus-network/.

14 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

rich, mile-deep candy blue House of Kolor paint was sprayed by Joe Compani. The engine bay, long ignored by most custom stylists, is just as beautiful as the car’s sleek exterior. The hand-fabricated engine compartment

panels house the painted and lettered “Chevrolac” (Chevy small block with custom made Caddy valve covers). Underneath it all is a full Art Morrison chassis. It drives just as well as it looks, requiring nothing more than a “pinky on the steering wheel” according to Ganahl. He should know—he drove the Merc 60 miles from his shop in South San Francisco to Pleasanton for the show. We’re guessing the ride back home across the San Mateo Bridge was a sweet one with the Custom of the Year trophy riding shotgun on the periodperfect blue & white tuck & roll upholstery. When reflecting after the big win, Ganahl summed up the project simply, saying “A lot of talented people had a hand in building this car. In the end, we tried to build a classy, subtle Merc custom that didn’t have flaws. One that could be driven long distances. That became the ultimate focus of this car.” As for the car’s plans? “Oh, I’ve got big plans for the car,” said owner Nick Rogers. “I plan on loading up the family, and cruising the El Camino to go get ice cream.”

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 15

Malco’s TurboShears Quickly Becoming Tech’s Go-To Cutter by Ed Attanasio

Don’t be fooled by their sleek, stylish appearance and be sure not to be confused by their attractive price. Malco’s TurboShears metal-cutting tools are easy on the eyes, but their high carbon steel blades are not easy on 20-gauge steel. For that reason and many others, the TurboShear by Malco is quickly becoming the body repair technicians’ go-to metal cutting tool. Four years ago, Malco entered the automotive tools market and has already made a significant impact, led by top reviews from body shops all over the country. With a selection of dent removal tools (known as the Raditap Rapid Dent Removal System); door skin tools (TurboX Tools Door Hemming and Door Skin Removal Tools); hole punches/flange air tools, the aforementioned TurboShears (with five models); pliers, riveters, scratch awls, tube benders, slicers, seamers, snips, socket-drive Torx Bits, sockets and related accessories, Malco’s line of auto body tools is impressive for the three big reasons every collision tech wants—cost, performance and

durability. And the fact that they look good while performing their respective jobs surely doesn’t hurt either. Mike Janey, Malco’s Creative Services Specialist, discussed the manufacturer’s emergence into the collision repair field. “The TurboShears really took us

Malco’s TurboShears cut easily through auto body panels and profiles, including layered metal, rocker panels and plastic bumpers

into the automotive market, because we saw a need for this tool back in 2003 and saw how it could help body techs and companies or individuals

AkzoNobel’s Stickerfix DIY Paint Solution Following a highly successful debut at the SEMA 2012 show in Las Vegas, NV, AkzoNobel’s newest DIY coatings innovation, stickerfix™, announces it will soon be available in automotive aftermarket distribution outlets. Partnering with a network of independent manufacturer’s representatives servicing key regions within the US and Canada, AkzoNobel is ready to place stickerfix in the hands of automotive retail consumers. To date, AkzoNobel has selected 13 manufacturing representatives including: • Consumer Sales & Marketing–New England, US • KAM Marketing–Northeast and Eastern Canada • TASCO–Southeast, US • United Sales–East Midwest, US • Foster Babcock–West Midwest, US • Strategic Marketing–Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Louisiana • Evan Mecham Sales–Rocky Mountain States • SS Sales–West Coast, CA, Alaska, Hawaii • Holm Hicks White–West Canada • Marland Group–Canadian Tire • Key Sales–Toyota POE • Innovative Marketing and Sales Concepts–OEM

• Joe Zeiser–Aftermarket Partnerships The stickerfix DIY paint solution is a unique commercial offering that harnesses advanced ultra-thin adhesive film technology together with the superior color match capabilities of AkzoNobel’s premium Sikkens coatings, to provide the industry’s first quick, clean, and easy method of helping car owners conceal paint scratches and chips any time they need it. “The feedback from SEMA show attendees was very favorable, and we’ve even won the praises of industry trade media,” said Troy Russell, Commercial Manager North America, Stickerfix Vehicle Refinishes. “All indications point to a successful 2013 entrance into the retail aftermarket and we believe the expertise of our skilled manufacturer’s representatives will help us achieve that goal.” Stickerfix is available in 79 premium refinish colors, including select pearls and metallics. Each stickerfix package contains one sheet with 22 pre-selected decals of various shapes and sizes. For more information about the stickerfix™ DIY paint solution, visit www.stickerfix.com.

16 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

that restore vehicles. But the huge attraction is the maneuverability and versatility it offers. It’s easy to control and operate and it won’t fatigue the user’s hands, wrists and arms, because it doesn’t require a lot of force to operate. Starting at $99, while other comparable tools retailing normally around $300, the TurboShear offers a double whammy—quality and price.” Available as a drill attachment and in air models, Malco’s TurboShear metal-cutting device can perform highly accurate straight cuts and left circular or square cuts in automotive steel. The TurboShears’ wide jaw opening allows the tool to easily make cuts in auto body panels, rocker panels and plastic bumpers effortlessly. Malco Products, Inc. in Annandale, MN, was founded 1950 when a young steel supply salesman, Mark W. Keymer, decided to manufacture and market a pipe crimper he had invented for use in sheet metal ductwork used with forced air heating systems. More tools soon followed and the business that started in a garage soon became a national enterprise. Sixtythree years later, the name Malco is

still associated with quality and reliability, as well as being known for regularly introducing exciting new hand tool designs and modifications for the various industries it serves. Malco’s website (www.malco-

Malco’s 18-gauge Heavy Duty Metal-Cutting TurboShear that can make straight cuts as well as left circular or square cuts in automotive steel

products.com) is packed with useful information about its automotive tools, complete with easy-to-use intuitive videos, a useful blog (Tool Talk) and a dealer locator. In the United States, Malco’s auto body tools can also be purchased through two main online distributors, Summit Racing Equipment and Auto Body ToolMart.

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Two Northern California CAA Chapters’ Substantive Meetings by Ed Attanasio

If you’ve ever attended or hosted any I-CAR classes in northern California, you probably know the name Kurt Money. Literally hundreds of I-CAR Instructor body shop techs, Kurt Money was the keynote estimators, manspeaker at the agers, painters and East Bay CAA’s associated personMarch meeting. nel have yelled He discussed “Show Me the I-CAR’s newest class, Blueprinting Money!” more than Process and once, because Kurt Damage Discovery Money helps collision professionals by offering his extensive knowledge in classes that are both thorough and easy to understand. An I-CAR instructor and a collision tech at Larkfield Body & Paint in Santa Rosa, CA, Money was on hand when the California Autobody Association’s East Bay (EB-CAA) chapter hosted its March meeting in Pleasant Hill, CA. For the 60 people in attendance, Money outlined I-CAR’s newest blue-

printing course (BLU01: Blueprinting a one-day, five-hour class that is Process and Damage Discovery) that hands-on and really geared for estiprovides interactive training and de- mators,” he said. “You can always enfines the blueprinting process in a counter unforeseen things while body shop environment. The course you’re blueprinting, but by doing it uses actual vehicles to teach students right, you can prevent problems behow to properly disassemble and effi- fore they present themselves. This ciently blueprint actual vehicles to class will put you in a new mindset help students uncover hidden damage and will reduce your cycle times while that can impact the repair process. performing more accurate repairs the Students learn how the blueprint- first time.” ing process can improve quality, increase efficiency and productivity and reduce supplements through a standardized approach to repair planning. The successful completion of this four-credit training component will fulfill Gold Class business requirements for non-structural technicians in I-CAR’s newest technology knowl- Hertz was well-represented at the March EB-CAA meeting edge area. I-CAR said it also by Concord Store Branch Manager Dan Zenzano (left) fulfills ProLevel 3 training and Mt. Diablo Area Manager Collis Hankin After Money’s presentation, Tim requirements for estimators and auto Brusher from Honda talked about the physical damage appraisers. Money gave the EB-CAA mem- automaker’s OE parts programs and bers some valuable information about discussed his job as a collision sales marketing manager and how he can the new class and its curriculum. “It’s

help body shops in northern California. “We’re here to support shops and get more Honda parts in your repairs,” Brusher said. “By using our tools, such as CollisionLink and the things offered through our ProFirst program, we can make you a better business while including more and more Honda OE parts.” Jeffrey James from GM was also on hand to roll out some new programs, including the GM Fascia and Lighting Core Program. Effective since March of this year, the program encourages body shops to return damaged lighting assemblies and fascias to GM for credits. “We’re offering $75 for fascias and $50 for headlight and tail lamp assemblies,” James explained. “This way these parts can’t enter the aftermarket and get sold later as recycled or re-manufactured.” James also urged the body shop owners in attendance to work with their local GM dealerships, because they want to be price competitive with the aftermarket. For more information about any GM parts promotional programs, visit

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people in attendance were enthralled by Risdon’s presentation, which was followed by a spirited question-andanswer session. The University of Toyota trains approximately 8,500 collision professionals every year at their three locations in Los Angeles, Jacksonville, FL, and New Jersey. The cost for the training is nominal and most classes last no more than two days. The University’s mantra is “FixIt-Rite/Fix-It Smart” and Risdon explained that its one of the few institutions of its type in the world. Rick Leos, a body & collision business development consultant for Toyota, also spoke to the SC-CAA members about Toyota’s new preTrainee Brian Anderson (left) and Assistant Manager Tom Lehman from George V. Art & Son in Oakland, CA, were dictive estimating concept, on hand to learn about I-CAR’s newest blueprinting class which was unveiled at last Risdon shared his deep knowl- year’s SEMA Show and is being edge about the manufacturer’s newest called a “game changer” in regard to models and latest important technical how estimates are going to be writbulletins. He’s an amazing source for ten in the future. Leos is the creator valuable technical information about of this system, which is based on folevery Toyota manufactured within the lowing OE repair procedures and last 20 years—from the popular Prius putting the safety of the consumer all the way to the Yaris. The 50-plus first. www.GenuineGMParts.com. The Santa Clara chapter of the CAA (SC-CAA) hosted its March meeting in San Jose, CA. One of the two speakers was Chris Risdon, a senior product education and development administrator for the University of Toyota’s product education department.

When writing an estimate on a damaged Toyota vehicle, predictive estimating will assume repair procedures and parts related to the type and location of the damage. This proactive approach assumes that the types of damage will require corresponding sets of repair functions, related parts and specific repair procedures, Leos explained. “It’s definitely going to change the way estimates are done,” Leos said. “Instead of a blank estimate that you fill in, now you’re working in Chris Risdon, reverse, because a senior product the data is already education and there. Everything development administrator for is there to fix the the University of car, so it’s a matter Toyota’s product of omitting rather education than populating department, spoke the estimate’s inat the Santa Clara CAA’s March formation. We meeting about the have also included newest Toyota all of the repair repair techniques, procedures next to focusing on the line item so the carmaker’s hybrid vehicles that critical steps

won’t be missed. In addition, you have all the documentation you need supporting the safe repair of the vehicle, while adhering to Toyota’s OE standards.” Leos said that more than 10 car manufacturers are currently interested in getting involved in this cuttingedge form of estimating after seeing positive reviews with Toyota. “Ford, Chrysler and GM are coming on board and others are lining up, because they can see that predictive estimating is going to become the norm in this industry.” SC-CAA President Randy Greenblat was pleased by the two presentations and thought the membership agreed, he said. “Toyota is offering some exceptional free OE training and shops should really take advantage of it. You have to be sponsored by your local dealership, but I feel it’s invaluable to any shop, because we call get a lot of Toyotas coming through our doors all the time. As far as the presentation by Rick Leos about predictive estimating, I think it really opened our eyes and got our attention. If we can find anything that will make us more effective and save time, we’re more than just a little interested.”

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 19

Goodguys 13th Annual Del Mar Nationals Showcases 2,500 Cars by Melanie Anderson

The Goodguys Rod & Custom Association held their 13th Meguiar’s Del Mar Nationals April 5–7 at the Del Mar Fairgrounds near San Diego, CA. The event included over 2,500 vintage rods, customs, classics, muscle cars and trucks, a popular southern California surf-themed woodies–only exhibit, the Goodguys AutoCross speed and agility course, and a meet-andgreet with drag racing legends Don “The Snake” Prudhomme and Tom “The Mongoose” McEwen. Enjoy the show!

BASF Sponsors East Valley Institute of Technology in Mesa, Arizona BASF recently announced its sponsorship of the East Valley Institute of Technology (EVIT) in Mesa, AZ, and the official opening of its newest National Training Center. “EVIT is not your typical highschool technical training program,” said Vitor Margaronis, Marketing Director, Coatings Solutions, North America. “BASF is committed to the future of the collision repair industry.

Twenty collision repair painters from the Phoenix, AZ, area participated in BASF’s R-M certification class at EVIT

The vision for the new collision program, created by Leading Edge Auto Refinishes, BASF’s ColorSource distributor in Arizona, and Dr. Sally Downey, Superintendent at EVIT, is directly aligned with BASF’s vision.” “The partnership and new training facility bring additional, invaluable expertise to EVIT’s collision and

automotive technology programs,” said Downey. “Business and industry play a central role in the development of EVIT programs, thus providing our students with the best possible training and our community with highly skilled workers.” Working closely with Leading Edge, EVIT and other industry manufacturers, BASF has helped renovate two collision shops to create a one-ofa-kind, national training facility. The first collision building is designed for high school students who are interested in a career in collision and automotive technology, while the second shop is dedicated to the collision industry and will be used to provide advanced training for professionals. “It’s hard to believe that the vision of Leading Edge and EVIT became a reality in less than 12 months. Our first BASF Painter’s Certification class was held in February,” said John Jury, BASF Sales Representative in Arizona. “Having the opportunity to introduce junior and senior high school students to the industry is gratifying and having a second shop dedicated to advanced industry training to educate experienced painters and technicians is invaluable.”

20 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

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Continued from Cover

SkillsUSA in San Diego

tion, cosmetology, culinary, drafting, electronics, firefighting, graphic communications, health, manufacturing and leadership. These students are the future of Americaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s workforce. More than 50 businesses and labor unions worked with SkillsUSA California to help make it happen. This is the fourth year that SkillsUSA CA has met in San Diego, and

the conference is scheduled to remain in San Diego through 2017. Activities during the conference were hosted at

Erica Criley, representing Central County Occupational Center, masking off

SkillsUSA California Award Winners Collision Repair Technology College/Post-secondary Gold: Victor Dyachuk, American River College, Sacramento Silver: Travis Livingston, Cuesta Community College, San Luis Obispo, Bronze: Dshawn Washington, Los Angeles Trade Tech College, Los Angeles Collision Repair Technology High School Gold: Adam Scull, Ramona High

School, Ramona Silver: Kyle Rash, Ramona High School, Ramona Bronze: Devin Taylor, Eden Area Rop, Hayward

Automotive Refinishing Technology College/Post-secondary Gold: Niall Ix, American River College, Sacramento Silver: Erica Criley, Central County Occupational Center, San Jose

22 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

the Town & Country Resort and Convention Center facilities along with six offsite locations. The opening ceremony was held April 4 in the Atlas Ballroom of the Town & Country Convention Center. The Leadership Championships were held Friday and Saturday with over 1,700 students competing in more than 100 skills contests. The banquet dinner was held on Friday night and Awards Ceremonies were held on Sunday. Tony Coelho, a junior, and Juan Hernandez, a senior, were two of the

Bronze: Gary Griswold, Cuesta Community College, San Luis Obispo Automotive Refinishing Technology High School Gold: Justin Henderson, Victor Valley High School, Victorville Silver: Derrick Deo, Eden Area Rop, Hayward Bronze: Raul Magana, Eden Area Rop, Hayward

collision repair students who competed at Mossy Toyota. Both are from Eden Area ROP in Hayward, CA.

Adam Scull and Jeff Faaborg, both juniors, represented Ramona High School

Tony was getting ready to compete in the paint booth and had already tested his skills in color matching, fender and primer and masking. Tonyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s interest in collision repair comes from his grandpa, who worked 45 years in a

Francisco Cedillo from Palomar College

body shop. Erica Criley, 20, was the only female competitor in automotive refinish this year. She represented Central County Occupational Center in San

Instructor Daniel Pareja brought 10 students from Eden Area ROP. Seven students competed in refinishing and three students competed in auto body. Pareja has been a teacher for over

a junior back in 1996 and 1997. Ryan Swanson, 24, an estimator with Fix Auto in Mission Valley, CA, and an I-CAR instructor in north San Diego county, participated in this

nine years and wants to be a good role model and mentor to students. He uses himself as an example that the industry is a good career path and often shares with students that he makes

Judges Jesus Jaimes and Luis Cardenas, auto body techs at Mossy Toyota

Krystopher Heredia, senior, Eden Area ROP

Ryan Swanson with his mentor and former Ramona High School teacher Mickey Nielsen

Jeff Faaborg, Ramona High School junior

claims management business, processed the plaintiff’s vehicle glass claim on behalf of another glass shop who per-

formed the replacement,” he adds. “We are hopeful that we will be voluntarily dismissed from the case.” When asked about how “The Safelite Advantage” warranty comes into play, Melina Metzger, the company’s public relations manager says,

“Safelite’s warranty is for Safelite AutoGlass. Safelite Solutions doesn’t warranty other shops’ work.” Ammons and his law firm have successfully sued Ford, GM, Continental Tire and Cooper Tire in rollover cases in the past year.

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$70,000 yearly as an estimator to help prove that the industry can pay well. “If you work hard, you can make a lot of money in this business,” agreed Hilary Castro, manufacturers representative with Sherwin-Williams.

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year’s event as a judge for the color tint and color matching section. He is also a former SkillsUSA contender from Ramona High School who went on to nationals and placed 8th. He’s been involved with SkillsUSA the past

Continued from Cover

two years and is a former SkillsUSA winner. He said, back in his day, they had to compete in both auto body and painting. Pareja, as a student from San Lorenzo High School in San Lorenzo, CA, placed first as a senior and third as

Jose, CA. Erica, who has an art background and comes from a family of mechanics, wants to become a custom painter and have her own shop someday. She graduates in May. Criley won a silver medal in the contest.

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Vallejo Body Shop Gets Barkitectural for Homeless Dogs & Cats Candy in Concord, CA, when he isn’t running the production at Regal. A Vallejo, CA, body shop does a lot of Kapfenstein dedicated more than 50 charity work every year, helping peo- hours of his time to help the pets’ ple in the East Bay with re-furbished cause, as a passionate artist/painter and the owner of two dogs and one cat. Although his creation didn’t land an award, Kapfenstein’s cat tower was a crowd pleaser and an eye-catcher at the Barkitecture party. “We got a lot of posThis beat-up old kid’s car from the 1950s was sitting in Kapfenstein’s itive comments and yard for roughly 15 years before he decided to turn it into a sharpit sold for $525, all looking cat tower for Vallejo’s 2013 Barkitecture fundraiser of which goes to the cars through the Benevolence Pro- Humane Society of the North Bay,” gram and also participating in other Kapfenstein explained. “Making it was giveaways and fundraisers. fun and by helping the community, it This year, Regal Collision Repair made it even more enjoyable. The Boy backed up its bark to help local homeless cats and dogs by entering a cat tower/car in the 10th annual Barkitecture Gala and Auction held at Sonoma County Fairgrounds on April 5 to raise money for the Humane Society of the North Bay (HSNB). The theme this year was “There’s No Place Like a Home,” featuring a Wizard of Oz motif, complete with a Yellow Brick Road, tin man, cowardly lion, the wizard himself and more than a few Dorothy’s. Kirk Kapfenstein, the production manager at Regal Collision Repair, took a 1950s children’s toy car and turned it into a spectacular cat tower, titled “Cruisin’ Down the Yel- After some serious dent removal and body shaping, a candy red paint job made this low Brick Road.” Known for his na- children’s car a beautiful thing to behold tionally-acclaimed paint jobs on literally hundreds of motorcycles, Scouts beat us with their doghouse, but Kapfenstein owns and operates Killer maybe next year we can come up with something more spectacular that can win first place.” Jim Boyle, the owner of Regal Collision Repair, loves doing community work and Barkitecture is just another way to give back to the City of Vallejo, he said. “I have a dog and a cat and we’ve always been giving to this cause for many years,” he said. “But this was the first time where we made our own entry and it was a great experience. I’ve always believed that if you do good things it comes back in one form or another, but we don’t do it for those reasons. We do it because it’s the right thing to Kirk Kapfenstein poses with his creation right do and if we get more business as a after its completion at Regal Collision Repair, result, so be it.” where he’s the production manager by Ed Attanasio

24 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Like Oz’s Emerald City, the the animals and for outreach to Barkitecture Gala and Auction was build awareness of the plight of the a magical celebration consisting not many homeless dogs, cats, other only of great fundraising events but also competitions in which local businesses, community and/or neighborhood groups, and individuals create custom designed ‘creature’ comforts such as: Dog dens, dog and cat furniture, bird roosts, bunny boudoirs, lizard lairs and other pet domiciles. Barkitecture’s “There’s No Place Like a Home” evening included festive music, food from local restaurants, a premium raffle, a silent auction and a live auction of On the big night, Regal’s owner Jim Boyle (left), Controller items generously doShellie Malone and Kirk Kapenstein pose with “Cruisin’ Down nated exclusively for the the Yellow Brick Road,” a restored children’s metal car event. containing a cat tower customized for scratching The goal of Barkitecture’s “There Is No Place Like a animals available for adoption at Home” program is to raise much- the Humane Society of the North Bay. needed operational funds to care for

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Social Media for Shops

Ed Attanasio is an automotive journalist based in San Francisco, California. He can be reached at era39@aol.com.

Is ‘Reactionary’ Marketing Too Little, Too Late? Maybe Not. with Ed Attanasio

by Ed Attanasio

A body shop owner came up to me at a California Autobody Association meeting recently and shared his tale of woe. A Multi-Shop Operator (MSO) had opened a location in his hometown, where he had been doing business since the 1970s. The presence of the MSO caused him concern, especially when he lost a DRP to his new neighbor and several of his top techs as well. His first instinct, he said, was to step up his marketing, social media and advertising efforts. When he then told me that he had borrowed $50,000 Alan Suftin had to for marketing and implement some marketing wanted my opinion strategies quickly on where the when an MSO money should be with a similar name spent, I was a little moved into his flabbergasted. hometown and threatened the My first quessurvival of his tion for him was, 23-year-old shop “Why did you wait so long?” It surely wasn’t what he wanted to hear at the time and he certainly didn’t like what I told him next. “It might be a little too late.” I always tell people that marketing is a churn—an ongoing endeavor. You need to do several forms of marketing all the time to some degree. I ask body shops how many hours are you or your staff willing to dedicate to marketing, which includes social media, public relations, advertising and the Internet? I explain to them that marketing is not something you do when your car count drops or when you have a couple slow months in a row. The biggest mistake body shops make with marketing is having unrealistic expectations. I have heard these statements from body shop owners more than once. “We did some cable advertising, but it didn’t work.” (It turns out he tried it for one month and when the phone wasn’t ringing off the hook, he got out of his contract.) “We didn’t get any new customers from our radio advertising.” But when I asked him how did you track the results (or lack of them) he didn’t have an answer.

But, fear not. If you’re in a tight situation and want to fast track your marketing, you can still save the day if you work smart and jump in with both feet immediately. It’s not the best way to do it because the majority of any marketing won’t probably show any significant positive returns until you’ve been plugging away for six months to a year. When you embark on a marketing plan, it’s like planting a little seedling. It’s going to take some time before it will grow roots and eventually produce fruit. Here is a scenario where a body shop owner moved quickly and did all the right things to save his 23-year-old shop from folding when an MSO came to town. Allen Sutfin, 54, the owner of Golden Valley Auto Body, was surprised when a shop with a name similar to his moved into his hometown of Yuba City, CA. Only a couple miles apart, the two shops were immediately being confused with each other. (The name of the MSO is being withheld). Suftin quickly realized he had a problem on his hands. “People started coming in here asking me When did you open the new shop?” Suftin said. “I told them it’s not my shop! Right then and there I knew I was in trouble, especially when I learned that some of my customers mistakenly brought their cars to be fixed there, thinking it was my shop.” Suftin has built a strong foundation and a large customer base in Yuba City, where he was born, so when he saw what was happening to his business, he didn’t get mad—he got even. “I came to the conclusion that my main advantage over this new shop was my longevity in town,” Suftin said. “We’re a locally-owned and operated business and we’ve been here since 1990. We have second-generation customers coming here. Hey, competition is always going to be present and it can get pretty intense in this industry. But in this case, I was losing cars not for my reputation, but because of a mistaken identity. We lost a few jobs right off the bat and that’s when I asked myself, what can I do?” Rather than taking the time to carefully contemplate his next move, Suftin acted definitively and started

26 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

making things happen literally overnight. “I started doing larger ads in our local newspaper, the Yuba City

As part of his ongoing community outreach efforts, Suftin has helped his hometown wherever and whenever he can. When the Yuba City Fire Department’s Dalmatian statue was vandalized, the staff at Golden Valley Auto Body got the mascot looking doggone good once again

Appeal Democrat,” he said. “We only have one newspaper here, so I wanted to be in there as often as I could. We’ve been picked as the best body shop in town for the past three years by this publication, so we starting leveraging

that. In all of our ads, we began incorporating the phrase ‘locally owned and operated’ and started emphasizing our location, to avoid further confusion.” Ramping up his community outreach also became a priority, Suftin explained. “We’ve always been involved in our chamber of commerce and have hosted charity fundraisers here at the shop over the years. But now, these efforts took on a whole new importance. Charity events are a win-win, because we’re helping those in need and getting a lot of free publicity in the process, from the Appeal Democrat and the local radio stations here in Yuba City.” To complement all his other marketing efforts, Suftin devised a broadcast plan that involved both local radio and cable TV advertising. “We got on the air and made a statement,” he said. “It was our way of telling the community that we’re not retreating and things are still the same. We kept stressSee Reactionary, Page 28

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Sacramento, CA, Celebrates 100th Electric Vehicle Charging Station The City Sacramento recently reached a significant milestone with more than 100 electric vehicle charging stations installed in and around the California State Capitol. Many of the 100 installed EV charging stations were made possible by a State and Federal grant funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act through the Transportation Electrification Initiative administered by the Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission. This project has served to accelerate the development and production of electric vehicles to substantially reduce petroleum consumption, reduce greenhouse gas production, and create jobs. There are more than 500 electric vehicles registered in Sacramento including the Nissan LEAF, Chevrolet Volt, Prius Plug-in and Ford Focus Electric. Public electric vehicle charging infrastructure has made it possible for Sacramento to migrate to a cleaner form of transportation. “Today’s milestone is emblematic of the city of Sacramento and the region’s commitment to encouraging our residents and businesses to be ecofriendly,” said Mayor Kevin Johnson. “Being green both helps our environ-

ment by cutting carbon emissions and creating economic development opportunities that often translate into more jobs and more revenue to our region.” To support the growing number of EV drivers, many public parking garages, businesses and retail locations have EV charging stations in the Sacramento area. Organizations and businesses including Walgreens locations throughout the area, the Roseville Galleria, the Old Sacramento School House, Capitol Mall shopping center, Renaissance Building, Esquire Plaza, Capitol Garage, Ace Parking, and city-owned garages throughout the downtown Sacramento have all joined the world’s largest EV charging network. On April 16, the City of Sacramento and ChargePoint celebrated with a media event at Cathedral Square in downtown Sacramento. Speakers included: Richard Lowenthal, founder and CTO of ChargePoint, Angelique Ashby, Vice Mayor City of Sacramento, Julia Burrows, Greenwise Joint Venture and Christine Kehoe, Executive Director PEV Collaborative. “Early in 2010, before any mainstream plug-in electric vehicle had

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been introduced, both the Department of Energy and the California Energy Commission allocated funding for public electric vehicle charging infrastructure,” said Pat Romano, president and CEO of ChargePoint. “The investment provided thousands of public Level 2 EV charging stations throughout the United States, thousands of charging stations in California, and more than 100 in Sacramento. That infrastructure is fueling local adoption of EVs, with more than 500 EVs registered in Sacramento to date,” Romano said. For EV drivers, ChargePoint-enabled locations are included on all ChargePoint mobile phone applications for iPhone and Android. These ChargePoint mobile apps provide an easy way to locate stations near any specified address, get turnby-turn directions, and start and stop a charging session directly from a smart phone. Additionally, these apps allow drivers to utilize ChargePoint’s station reservation feature. Drivers can locate reservable stations, and then make, view and cancel a reservation directly from a smart phone.

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Reactionary

ing we’re Golden Valley Auto Body and you know us—we’ve been here for more than two decades and there’s a good chance that you or someone you know has had their car repaired here.” By pushing his exemplary track record and the quality of his work, coupled with an avalanche of marketing, Golden Valley Auto Body was able to stay busy, while most of the name confusion was alleviated. Suftin is looking at a profitable 2013 and his role in the business community is stronger than ever. What advice can he offer to other body shops all over the country whose business is threatened for one reason or another? “Fight it, any way you can,” Suftin said. “Marketing was the key for us, because it was our way of telling our story and clarifying who we are. Now the message is out there, and the advertising we’re doing today is simply supporting that. Any company is going to run into competition and adversity, but by using your resources and not panicking, you can survive and keep your good name intact.”

RDA’s First Collision Solutions Training Seminar Gets Excellent Reviews by Melissa Jolls, Marketing Director

On March 16 in Dallas, TX, Bernie Blickenstaff, President and CEO of Pro Finishes Plus, presented an electrifying training seminar to 105 RDA members, their sales people and key employees.

Blickenstaff gave an engaging presentation on understanding the need to continually differentiate ourselves to remain successful and competitive. He stressed the importance of setting ourselves apart not by selling price, but by using the value added programs we offer. This was an opportunity to demonstrate “it’s not just the deal” that sells in the collision market today. Value added programs distinguish us against our competition.

Adam Duersch of Industrial Finishes & Systems summed it up by saying, “Bernie gets it.” Everyone came away with valuable information and new programs they can use with their customers. The objectives at this meeting were to explain and show first-hand to the individuals who directly interact with the end user how to implement and make these programs work for them. These are the individuals who execute sales and marketing strategies at the shop level. We would like to thank our sponsors: Evercoat, Saint Gobain and PPC for helping to make this event the success it was. The only question left unanswered at the end of the day was, when is the next training seminar? Everyone will be there!! For more information on RDA/IMPACT visit their website at www.impactcollisionsolutions.com or contact Melisa Jolls at 908-251-5713 or email: meljolls@earthlink.net.

GET THE TRAINING ING THA THAT ATT HAS EQUIPPED PPED 50,000+ TECHSS TO PROFIT TABL ABLLY REPAIR REEPAIR PROFITABLY TODA AY’S VEHICLES. LES. TODAY’S Learn complex Learn complex structure structure rrepair epair w with ith comprehensive, comprehensive, hhands-on ands-on ttraining raining ffrom rom teach CChief hief University. University. Chief Chief instructors instructoors te ach the the llatest atest design-based design-based repair repair procedures procedures today’s oonn to day’s vvehicles. ehicles. Fully Fully certified cer tified aand nd associated associated with with tthe he I-Car I-Car Training Training AAlliance, lliance, tthere’s here’s nnoo better better ttraining raining ssystem ystem for for accurate accurate – and and profitable profitable – collision collisioon repair. repair.

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 29

Continued from Cover

GM Dealers’ Parts

GM rolled out the program April 1 as an incentive designed to improve service times and make customers happy. The program is voluntary, but dealers risk losing the discounts they get from wholesale distributors, who could curtail or eliminate their discounts because so much of their business is being shifted to GM. The automaker’s 4,400 dealerships can earn bonus money if they stock the parts GM recommends and if they buy those parts from the automaker rather than from AC Delco wholesale distributors. Parts Managers’ forums such as that at DealersEdge.com, are debating the impact of the program compliance on other programs such as Delco wholesalers and on GM’s Retail Inventory Management (RIM). Several parts managers at smaller dealerships were focused on the 10% Customer Special Order (CSO) surcharge which they felt would impact their body shop parts orders. However, the biggest immediate impact is likely on AC Delco’s Whole-

sale distributors, who are concerned they could lose 30% of their volume from GM dealers. If so, it means Factory Motor Parts stands to lose about $25M per year as a result of this program. “We are going to drop our prices and go after your wholesale customer. GM has left us no choice,” said a rep quoted in the DealersEdge.com forum. Some parts managers are becoming very concerned that “using experience, intelligence and common sense to create a system that works to manage obsolesence, return on investment, maximizing gross profit, phasing in the right parts and days of supply,” are becoming devalued. Worried dealers elsewhere say GM’s incentive payments won’t be enough to offset the higher cost of buying more parts from GM and fewer from wholesalers, which typically sell at a 10–20% discount from the factory’s price. Some dealers also have doubts that it will improve same-day service rates because the new system will reduce their flexibility to search for needed parts ‘on the fly’ from local distributors or other dealerships because doing so would hurt their chances to earn bonus cash.

Steve Hill, vice president of customer care and aftersales for GM North America, acknowledges some trepidation among dealers, but he says many who have studied it see the advantages for their bottom lines and for retaining service customers. Hill says the combination of offering in-and-out service and more original-equipment parts will help differentiate GM dealerships from independent mechanical shops. Similar to GM’s facility-renovation program, GM wants uniformity in parts and service. Some dealerships have high same-day service rates, but many don’t, says Tim Turvey, executive director of customer care and aftersales. “We wanted to have more of a ‘McDonald’s approach’ to make sure we have a certain core group of parts available to the consumer to fix their vehicle right then,” Turvey says. Under the new system, GM has added dozens or hundreds of parts to the list of items that dealerships are expected to keep on the shelf for sameday repairs. The list varies by store, based on past ordering. Items range from radiators and shocks to spark plugs and weatherstripping. GM says it has overhauled its parts-

distribution warehouses to get supplies to dealers faster and on the same day they’re ordered. If the order can’t be filled that day, GM will pay for overnight delivery. A number of dealers consulted believe they’ll break even because their end-of-the-month bonus payments will outweigh the higher inventory and purchase costs. Others think they’ll lose money. To earn a bonus, dealers must purchase at least 70% of the dollar volume of service-lane parts from GM. And they must use at least 70% GM or AC Delco parts on repairs to GM vehicles. Hitting those thresholds pays a bonus equal to 0.25% of the dealership’s total parts purchases. For example, a store that orders $100,000 in GM parts during a month would get $250. Dealerships that crack 90% on both purchases and repair-order sales can max out at a 4.25% bonus, or $4,250 a month on $100,000 worth of parts. Most dealerships that hit the 4.25% level should come out ahead, says Steve Hurley, dealer principal at Stingray Chevrolet in Plant City, FL, and co-chairman of the Chevrolet National Dealer Council. Hurley’s store See GM Dealers’ Parts, Page 42

866.381.7223

Fax: 408.356.8245

www.lglcparts.com e-mail: parts@losgatosluxcars.com 620 Blossom Hill Rd., Los Gatos, CA 95032

30 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Business Hours: Monday - Friday, 8:00 am to 5:30 pm

Blueprinting is Topic of May 15 CAA Meeting in Pasadena The Glendale, Foothill and Pasadena chapter of the California Autobody Association will meet May 15 to discuss blueprinting, what it is and how it can help improve your business. Guest speaker is Daniel Panduro, of J&L Body and Paint Shop, who uses blueprinting in his shop to improve cycle times and his bottom line. Panduro is a second generation shop owner operating J&L Body and Paint Shop in the Los Angeles, CA, area. He is an economics and business management graduate from the University of California, Irvine. He is now in his 11th year as president of business operations at J&L, which is a 30-year-old family business. He has plans to open a second location in the near future. The meeting begins at 6 p.m. with social hour. Cost is $40 for members or $100 for non-members. The meeting will be held at Brookside Country Club, 1133 Rosemont Ave. in Pasadena, CA. To RSVP, call Cindy Shillito at (714) 944-4028 or email her at radiatorgirl@socal.rr.com. See p. 58 for an update on Chapter President Linda Holcomb.

CAA Instrumental in New Insurance Regulation by CAA staff

On March 31, 2013, the new Insurance Regulation, Subchapter 7.5, Article 1, Fair Claims Settlement Practices Regulation, Amended Section 2695.8, took effect. This regulation addresses the issues that were discussed with the Department of Insurance by the California Autobody Association when the Insurance Commissioner took office. The CAA has been working with the department to assist in clarifying the areas of aftermarket parts usage and claims settlement. This regulation addresses a number of issues for the collision repair industry. The regulations: ● Require the current insurer’s warranty be expressly stated in the estimate of repair generated by the insurer; ● Require an insurer to cease use of a part known to be non-compliant, and notify the part distributor within thirty (30) days. ● Require an insurer to pay for an amount to repair the damaged vehi-

cle to its pre-loss condition in a good and workmanlike manner, based upon the repair standards required by auto body repair shops licensed to the BAR; ● Require an insurer to pay for the costs associated with returning a defective part and the cost to remove and replace the defective part with compliant non-OEM part or an OEM part; ● When insurers prepare an estimate, it cannot deviate from the standards, costs, and/or guidelines provided by the estimating software used by the insurer. ● Require insurers to reasonably adjust any written estimates prepared by the repair shop of the claimant’s choice and provide a copy of the adjusted estimate to the claimant and the claimant’s repair shop. The DOI is also in the process of reviewing and updating regulations pertaining to labor rate survey standards for conducting surveys; and clarification on steering, after a consumer has specifically selected a shop to have car repaired.

Valley-Ventura CAA Presents ‘Got a Good Lawyer?’ May 29

The Valley-Ventura chapter of the California Autobody Association will present “Got a Good Lawyer?” on May 29. Body shop managers and owners are invited to hear featured guest speaker Cory King, parter of the San Diego firm of Fine, Boggs & Perkins. His employment law practice focuses on both the prevention side of employment claims, as well as litigating all types of employment matters. King will give an update on the recent case law regarding wage and hour compliance. The program begins at 5:30 p.m. RSVP to Cindy Shillito, southern California CAA representative, at (714) 944-4028.

Sprinklers, Not Fire, at AZ Shop

The sprinklers were activated, but there was no fire at an Arizona auto body shop, Black Hills CARSTAR Auto Body in Cottonwood, AZ. Reportedly, the fire sprinklers were activated when a heater unit in a paint spray booth overheated. The fire department says the sprinklers worked correctly to spray when the temperature threshold was reached. But the heat was caused by a malfunction in the heater rather than an actual fire.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 31

Crazy Painter Mitch Kelly, Father & Son Keep on Truckin’ in SoCal by Melanie Anderson

Crazy Painters Mitch Kelly, 53, his father Tom Kelly, 73, and son Thomas Kelly, 22, might be a little crazy with the schedule they keep. Based out of Bellflower, CA, the three-generation trio don’t have much free time between painting custom hot rods, Harleys, semi tractor trailers, race haulers, motor homes and, recently, even a plane. Owners of Kelly & Son The Crazy Painters, Mitch and his dad Tom still have yet to add “& Grandson” to the sign, but the younger generation is holding his own with his computer-

Goodguys Builder’s Choice Top 10 at the Goodguys 2nd Fall Del Mar Nationals in Del Mar, CA. In December it won ‘Best in Show’ at the 15th Annual John Force Holiday Car Show in Yorba Linda amongst approximately 3,000 cars in the show. In January, Blue Heaven came home with the ‘Best Paint’ award in their division from the Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, CA, and in March, the car was selected as a Vintage Air Custom Rod of the Year Finalist at the Goodguys 4th Spring Nationals in Scottsdale, AZ. Upcoming shows include the Long Beach Grand Prix and Cruising

new TV show called “Rock My RV” which will begin airing on the Travel Channel in May. Legendary rocker Bret Michaels, a long-time RV devotee, will host the all-new “Rock My

Blue Heaven at the Goodguys Del Mar Nationals

Mitch Kelly’s 1957 Bel Air Chevy, called “Blue Heaven” has won several awards

generated design and logo work. You might say painting is in their blood. Mitch’s great great grandfather was striping horse-drawn wagons on the Ford line before motors were even invented. Tom Kelly’s grandfather did pinstriping back in the ‘40s, and Tom, who started in the business at age 13, is well-known for working with Von Dutch as well as Ed ‘Big Daddy’ Roth. Mitch also started in the business at age 13, painting wheels for his dad. Mitch says his dad and grandfather named the shop “Crazy Painters” because of the airbrush work they did back in the ‘50s involved a lot of monsters, flames and ‘crazy’ graphics and lettering. Blue Heaven At SEMA 2012, Mitch unveiled his 1957 Bel Air Chevy called ‘Blue Heaven’ and since then the car has won several awards. In November, it was selected as

for the Cure in Orange County. The car will also be featured in an upcoming issue of Hot Rod Magazine. Despite the car’s popularity and award-winning looks, Mitch says it’s time for the car to go and he is looking for a buyer. Mitch is eager to start his next street rod project and has a ‘61 Impala and ‘57 Chevy Bel Air convertible awaiting his attention.

RV” series. According to their website, Michaels leads a team of skilled, custom RV designers and fabricators to transform ordinary RVs into “outrageous, badass, hooked-up mobile mansions on the road.” The Kelly’s have recently painted two motor homes for the show, a

all-time favorite red—PPG’s Red—and then added a black gold pearl belly stripe while Thomas created an awesome logo for the owner’s business.

Hot and son 3D

“This was a three-Kelly effort,” said Mitch. Thomas did the design and logo work, Mitch did the mask off, and base painting and stencil graphics, and Tom Kelly, with his phenomenal airbrushing talents, added depth and shine with candies and pearls and created a 3D affect.

“Rock My RV” Mitch, Tom and Thomas Kelly also have been busy taping episodes of a

A slice of heaven

32 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Kawasaki team trailer painted by Mitch Kelly

GMC for a gourmet sausage entrepreneur and a Fleetwood for a Midwest family who travels the California coast. The GMC, Mitch said, looked like it had been in a hurricane with broken fiberglass and rusted screws, nuts and bolts. Kelly and crew repaired the fiberglass, replaced all hinges, sanded, base coated with his

Mitch painted the 30-foot Fleetwood motor home belonging to the Midwest family black with gold stripes and red candy with graphics in a threelayer design in red and gold with drop shadowing done in stages. Three sets of graphics lay on top of each other. Tom finished it off with a custom 3D mural painted in the back of the motor home to commemorate the wild and

scenic California coastline that the traveling family loves to visit.

turned out to be his all-time favorite. Today, custom paint jobs on a semi run about $50,000. It takes about a week of prepping and another four days to paint a semi, Mitch said.

Kawasaki Motocross Race Trailer Another recent project the Kelly men have worked on includes a Kawasaki Volvo tractor with a race trailer. Truck for Brian Deegan Painting extravagant tractor-trailer Mitch completed another recent tracrigs is a Kelly specialty. Clients in- tor-trailer project for Brian Deegan clude professional motocross and supercross teams and manufacturers. These jobs are great calling cards for the Kellys as the trucks travel across the country on nationwide tours with riders giving TV interviews and doing commercials in front of the Kelly custom-painted trucks. Brian Deegan’s truck What’s different about this new project is that Thomas is who races off-road trucks. Thomas solely responsible for creating all the created the designs, incorporating all design work. Proud Papa Mitch says the sponsors’ logos and Mitch painted his son presented his design ideas to the rig using his favorite PPG Hot Red, the corporate Kawasaki race team de- Titanium Silver and created a bright yellow to match the “Rock Star” yellow. Mitch completed the black, red, silver and yellow look with red and gold micro sequence flakes. Deegan of Temecula, CA, is a former freestyle motocross racer who founded Metal Mulisha, a freestyle motocross FMX team, and is a Rally Car Gold Medalist and winner of ten X-Games 1955 Cessna 172 before paint job medals. cision makers who loved his work and agreed to the concept within five min- And a Plane utes. The semi is painted black with Motorcycles, custom vehicles, motor white and lime green and a heavy homes, semi trucks. So, why not a metallic blue, with a green and blue plane? Mitch’s friend Dana Pontious pearl for sparkle. Mitch says you can’t lives on an airport in the Mojave Desert see the glitter until the sunlight hits it and owns a 1955 Cessna 172, the secjust right and then the paint job “winks at you.” Mitch is able to paint semis in a huge 63’x19’x19’ paint booth, but he didn’t start in a fancy, monster-size paint booth. He got his first semi-truck custom paint job back in 1992 from the Association of Volleyball Professionals (AVP). They wanted an image of a 30-foot volleyball player diving for the ball on the side of the truck. Preparing to paint the plane Mitch said yes before he even knew they could do it. Mitch recalls they set ond oldest Cessna 172 still flying up a projector in the driveway and today. Dana has owned the plane for a parked the truck on the street. They few years and she’s been flying it bare projected the image they wanted on aluminum. The plane needed a paint side of the truck to sketch it out. Out job. Who better than her good friend of hundreds of custom paint jobs com- Mitch? The father of Dana’s fiance, pleted over four decades, this job Adam, happens to be a mechanic and

rated with FAA to work on planes, so Florida to pick up her sister to go to they tore the plane apart and they an air show and have some fun girl hauled it in a trailer in 104 pieces to time. Dana’s plans included showing Mitch’s Bellflower shop. the plane and flying in a showcase. Mitch met Dana years ago as a fellow dirt bike rider. “Dana is the kind of girl who hooks up a trailer to the motor home by herself, hauls it out to the desert, gets out her bike and rides with the boys at the same speed we did,” Mitch said. Mitch recently spent a long weekend prepping, sealing and painting the Cessna. He used PPG’s base colors, a Mitch Kelly and son Thomas Kelly titanium silver and white, to create a light gray with slight pearl “I have waited a very long time to metallic sheen. Of course, he added get this paint job,” Dana said. “As I sit his favorite Hot Red and then they back and look at it now, it was well covered the plane in black and silver worth the wait. It is better than I could have ever imagined. I can’t believe this is my airplane!”

Mitch Kelly prepping plane pieces

graphics. Mitch said his son went a bit crazy on the graphics and after three long days of adding color and graphics all over the body, tail and wings,

Can’t Move Without It One of the products that Mitch finds invaluable in his shop is his mobile car dolly built by DJS Fabrications Inc. The dollies can be bolted to disk brakes, tires aren’t necessary, and it allows a tech to work beneath the car and works well for low-sitting cars that can be put right on the dolly. “They are invaluable for pushing a dead car around the shop,” said Mitch. “Currently, we have a 1982 low-rider Cadillac getting customized and it wouldn’t push anywhere, so we have it on one of Doug’s dollies. We can move it wherever we want to work on it. If you can’t move it, you can’t work on it. They are vital to getting the job done.”

1955 Cessna 172 (after paint job) won “Grand Champion” in a recent air show

Mitch was completely worn out. Adam put the plane back together and Dana made immediate plans to fly to

For more information about Mitch and Tom Kelly Crazy Painters, go to: www.kellyandsoncrazypainters.com.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 33

Martin Senour Color Manual Features Actual Paint Chips

The Martin Senour Company has introduced its new 2013 Global Color Manual. The new manual offers color compatibility guides as well as larger paint chips—actual chips, not ink—which include larger viewing holes making for easier color identification. The new Martin Senour manual enables painters to improve their efficiency, accuracy, and speed in the color-selection process. The manual also provides color chips and detailed information for exterior body colors, accent, interior, and even those available underhood colors. The 2013 guide’s new layout is also more user-friendly in that it includes larger and bolder type fonts, comes on thicker and more durable printed pages, and features paint chips that are twice as large as those in previous manuals. Presenting information on more manufacturers than in previously published manuals, the comprehensive Martin Senour 2013 Global Color Manual is available at a cost that is 36% less than last year’s edition. When ordering, please use part number: MA5289.

Refinish Distributors Alliance Adds New Member

The Refinish Distributors Alliance (RDA) has added new member Redshaw Paint Supply, Inc., with headquarters in Omaha, NE. Redshaw Paint Supply, Inc. is owned by four individuals with Andy Weissinger as principal owner. Redshaw has four locations in Nebraska—two in Omaha, one in Lincoln and one in Fremont. The company has been in existence since 1954 and is a single line Axalta Coating Systems (formerly DuPont) distributor. They carry the DuPont, Spies, Nason, DIC and Aviation lines of paint. Robert McKenzie Jr., Executive Director of RDA, said, “We are excited to have Redshaw Paint Supply as part of the RDA/IMPACT group and know they are a great fit with our organization.” RDA/IMPACT is the largest national group of refinish jobbers dedicated to providing quality services and products to their collision shops. RDA has 16 members, which represents 180 locations and cover 27 states. Members service over 3,500 collision centers throughout the United States and represent a crosssection of all major refinish brands.

Most & Least Expensive States for Car Insurance

Louisiana has the highest average car insurance rates in the nation, followed by Michigan and Georgia, according to Insure.com’s annual state-by-state comparison of insurance premiums. Maine enjoys the least expensive car insurance rates, followed by Iowa. Georgia rose from the No. 10 position in 2012 to this year’s third-place spot.

2013 state rankings of car insurance rates Avg. annual premium* 1 Louisiana $ 2,699 2 Michigan $ 2,520 3 Georgia $ 2,155 4 Oklahoma $ 2,074 5 Washington, D.C. $ 2,006 6 Montana $ 1,914 7 California $ 1,819 8 West Virginia $ 1,816 9 Rhode Island $ 1,735 10 Kentucky $ 1,725 11 Connecticut $ 1,723 12 New Jersey $ 1,697 13 Alabama $ 1,667 14 Missouri $ 1,638 15 Massachusetts $ 1,625 16 Pennsylvania $ 1,604 17 Delaware $ 1,586 18 Hawaii $ 1,583 19 Texas $ 1,545 20 Arkansas $ 1,545 21 Maryland $ 1,528

National average 22 North Dakota 23 Wyoming 24 Alaska 25 Utah 26 Kansas 27 Minnesota 28 New Mexico 29 Tennessee 30 South Dakota 31 Oregon 32 Nebraska 33 New York 34 Florida 35 Mississippi 36 Nevada 37 Virginia 38 Illinois 39 South Carolina 40 Colorado 41 Wisconsin 42 Arizona 43 Washington 44 Indiana 45 Vermont 46 Idaho 47 New Hampshire 48 Ohio 49 North Carolina 50 Iowa 51 Maine Source: Insure.com.

34 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

$ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $ $

1,510 1,501 1,496 1,455 1,438 1,435 1,432 1,431 1,408 1,397 1,387 1,384 1,369 1,364 1,345 1,341 1,322 1,322 1,288 1,271 1,228 1,227 1,226 1,183 1,176 1,133 1,112 1,106 1,085 1,028 934

Pro-Spray Launches YouTube Channel Pro-Spray Automotive Finishes recently released a branded YouTube channel to help Pro-Spray users improve the quality and efficiency of their jobs. The URL is http://www.youtube.com/prosprayautofinishes.

Pro-Spray YouTube Home Page

Visitors to the site can view a library of resourceful, high-quality videos featuring veteran Pro-Spray technical trainer and instructor Bill Warner. The channel’s current playlist includes: • Pro-Spray in Action: Awesome rides with Pro-Spray paint • Basecoat Tips and How To’s: Best practices to improve your paint job and bottom line • Bumper Repair and Refinishing: Review of the six simple steps • Spray Gun Essentials and Tips: Simplifying the process • Tech Tips and How To’s: Application tips from the pros

“Pro-Spray’s passion for our industry, product and people drives our content decisions,” explains Laura Yerkey, Pro-Spray marketing manager. “With the Pro-Spray YouTube channel in place, we now have the opportunity to share our knowledge and expertise with refinishers around the world.” YouTube is the leading online video community that allows people to discover, watch and share originally created videos. The video-sharing website allows people to easily upload and share video clips on youtube.com and across the Internet through websites, blogs and e-mail. Future plans for the Pro-Spray YouTube channel include regularly delivered original content focused on tech tips, how-to’s and FAQs, as well as introductions to new Pro-Spray products and discussions of industry events and trends. To stay abreast of all the latest news and content, viewers can become a youtube.com/prosprayautofinishes subscriber. The Pro-Spray product line delivers a comprehensive, versatile, and high performance waterborne and solvent intermix color system supported by a full range of primers, clearcoats, hardeners, thinners and support products to body shops worldwide.

Boyd Group Acquires Four Repair Centers in NC and FL

The Boyd Group recently acquired and opened four new collision repair centers: In North Carolina, the three centers are Wilmington Paint & Body Works, Factory Finish Collision Center and CBS Quality Cars. The company also acquired Express Auto Body in Lakeland, FL. Each of the shop locations will operate under the Gerber Collision & Glass trade name. With these additions, The Boyd Group now operates 22 shop locations in North Carolina and 38 in Florida. The company has a total of 185 collision repair locations throughout 14 U.S. states. “The opening of these new locations is in line with our stated growth strategy of achieving 6-10% of growth in number of centers through single location additions,” said Tim O’Day, president and chief operations officer of The Boyd Group. “These centers allow us to better serve customers and insurance partners in these markets and we plan to continue to focus on expanding our presence in similar attractive U.S. markets.”

1940 Ford Coupe Wins Ridler Award in Detroit

A 1940 Ford Coupe featuring PPG paint and custom painted by Charley Hutton won the 2013 Ridler Award at the Detroit Autorama. The Ridler Award is presented to the most outstanding car or truck making its debut appearance at the Detroit Autorama, held March 8-10 in Detroit. This is the third time in six years that a PPG-finished entry has won the award. The coupe, named “Checkered Past,” is owned by Ron and Deb Cizek of Bennington, NE, and was built by Andy Leach of Cal Automotive Creations in Omaha, NE. Hutton, a noted painter in the custom car world, did the paint work at his shop, Charley Hutton’s Color Studio, in Nampa, ID, where he created and mixed the red and gold custom colors using PPG waterborne Envirobase products.

Nissan Names O’Hara Director

Nissan North America named Kent O’Hara as senior director of after sales for the U.S. and Canada, and parts and service (P&S) projects and strategy for the Americas. O’Hara previously served as Nissan’s director of P&S and marketing and sales. His new role will include oversight of after sales for Canada, and a focus on the revenue growth of the company’s overall P&S strategy. O’Hara’s new position took effect April 1.

www.autobodynews.com

Kadel’s Wins Regional Award C

Farmers Insurance has presented Kadel’s Auto Body with the 2012 North American Regional MSO Group of the Year award. The award recognizes Kadel’s commitment to service and excellence. “As in the past, Kadel’s continues to provide outstanding customer service and timely, quality vehicle repairs,” said Pete Hickey, national MSO claims manager for Farmers. “Congratulations to everyone at Kadel’s Auto Body for their outstanding efforts and the well-deserved recognition.”

VT Couple Charged With Arson

A Vermont couple have been charged with burning down their own auto dealership business. Ed and Tammy Davis of Fair Haven, VT, were charged with arson following the fire at Ed Davis Auto and RV. Following the fire, investigators with Vermont State Police and the Division of Fire Safety searched the scene and determined the fire was set deliberately. The investigation alleges the Davises were responsible. Ed Davis, 49 and Tammy Davis, 46, are scheduled to appear in court May 20.

Kentucky Approves eProof

Kentucky is the 11th state to permit drivers to use electronic versions of their insurance cards to show proof of coverage. Kentucky now permits drivers to use either paper or their cell phone to show proof of insurance during a traffic stop. Regional Vice President for the Property Insurers Association of America, Jeffrey Junkas, calls the new law good news for consumers and the courts because it will avoid unnecessary fix-it tickets for drivers who did not have their insurance card at the time of a traffic stop.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 35

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559-435-5000

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 37

AUTOMAKER, AU A UTO OM MA M AK AK ER OEM OEM AUTOMAKER KE R,, OEM, M,, AND AND RECALL RE R E C AL CA ALL LL EC Autobody News

Volvo Recall for ID Labels

Volvo recalled only seven model-year 2013 S60 sedans and XC60 crossovers due to identification labels with an incorrect manufacture year, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Affected vehicles were manufactured on Jan. 7. An incorrect date of manufacture on the certification label means the vehicles are noncompliant with regulation requirements, and owners may not be able to determine whether their vehicles are affected by future recalls. Volvo quarantined the affected vehicles and will install correct labels before sale.

Toyota Recalls 209,000 FJs for Seatbelt Flaws

Toyota Motor Corp. is recalling 209,000 certain FJ Cruiser sport-utility vehicles from the 2007 through 2013 model years due to a problem with the driver and front passenger seat belts. The retractors for the vehicles’ front driver and passenger seat belts are mounted in rear-door panels, where cracks can form if the rear doors are forcefully closed repeatedly over a long period. If this happens, the seat belt retractor could detach, which would increase the risk of injury in a crash. The car maker said it is developing a remedy for the problem and will begin the recall as soon as it decides on the necessary repairs.

2012 Subaru Outback, Legacy Recall for Wipers

Subaru is recalling 16 2012 versions of the Outback and Legacy due to a problem with the windshield wiper motor, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It’s an expansion of an earlier recall that affected 2010-11 versions of the cars. The affected vehicles were manufactured from April 6 through May 12, 2011 and use a wiper motor cover that may overheat. This could lead to a fire.

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Honda Wins Best Brand Image Award

Honda Motor Co. has the best brand image of any major auto maker, according to a study released by Kelley Blue Book. The study takes results from 12,000 people who were shopping for a new car and using its Web page to do research. The 2013 Brand Image Awards say Honda was the most trusted brand and considered the best value of all car brands in the survey. Honda’s U.S. sales rose 24% in 2012 and have risen a modest 4.4% in the first two months of the year. Its redesigned Accord sedan is selling well and the company is investing heavily in plants in the U.S. and Mexico to meet anticipated demand.

Japanese OEMs Recall 3.4 Million Vehicles for Airbags

Japanese automakers, including Toyota, Nissan and Honda, are recalling about 3.4 million vehicles worldwide due to defective airbags supplied by Takata Corp. Toyota is recalling about 1.73 million vehicles produced between November 2000 and March 2004. Honda is recalling about 1.14 million vehicles, while Nissan said it may call back 480,000 vehicles. Mazda said it recalled 45,463 units. This recall underscores the risk of huge global supply chain problems as automakers increasingly rely on a handful of suppliers for common or similar parts to cut costs. Some airbags at the front passenger seat may not inflate correctly because of a problem with the propellant used in the airbag inflator, Toyota spokesman Ryo Sakai said. Takata has also supplied the faulty airbags to non-Japanese carmakers, said Toyohiro Hishikawa, spokesman for the components maker, declining to identify them. Tokyo-based Takata supplies airbags and seatbelts to major automakers including Ford Motor Co. and Daimler, as well as the Japanese brands. No injuries or deaths have been reported as a result of the faulty airbags, Toyota said.

38 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Chrysler Issued 6 Separate Recalls for 215,000 Vehicles

According to the automaker, the recalls stem from a variety of different problems involving the tunnel shield, parking brake, fuel-tank transfer tube, warning light, rear brake calipers and engine cover. The recall includes 78,500 older-model 4x2 SUVs for a heat shield that can loosen and contact the driveshaft, causing wear and possible breakage over time. Officials explained the action follows fewer than 40 complaints of broken driveshafts on the 2007 and 2008 Dodge Nitro, Jeep Liberty and the Liberty’s sister model sold outside NAFTA. Chrysler will recall approximately 9,300 trucks, more than half of which are in currently in dealer inventory, to inspect their parking brakes and, if necessary, reset them according to specification. A routine internal audit of 2013 Ram 1500 pickups discovered a small number of vehicles whose parking brakes did not comply with mandated performance standards. Chrysler also will recall approximately 30,000 model-year 2012 SUVs to improve fuel flow when the vehicles are subject to certain driving conditions. Affected are Jeep Compass and Patriot models assembled between Oct. 18, 2011 and May 7, 2012. Chrysler will recall approximately 139,000 sedans to prevent improper warning-light illumination for model-year 2011 and 2012 Chrysler 300s, Dodge Chargers and Dodge Challengers assembled between April 11, 2011 and Dec. 14, 2011. Chrysler will recall 52 compacts to correct an issue that may compromise parking brake function. Affected are model-year 2013 Dodge Dart models built over 24hour period in November with brake calipers that do not meet specification. Chrysler will recall approximately 7,000 model-year 2013 heavyduty pickups—almost all of which are still in dealer inventory—to replace their engine covers. Affected are Ram 2500 and 3500 pickups.

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May 2013

2013 Dodge Challenger Recall for Wiring Issue

Chrysler is telling owners of certain V-6-equipped Dodge Challengers to stop driving their cars until a wiring issue can be fixed. The automaker is voluntarily recalling approximately 2,500 of the 2013 vehicle models to address possible short circuiting. “This condition could cause a wire harness to overheat and possibly lead to fire. Chrysler Group is aware of seven such incidents. None caused injury,” the automaker said. The automaker also advises owners not to park affected vehicles in or near any structure. According to Chrysler, a total of 4,459 vehicles are affected, but 1,900 are at dealerships. The Challengers that are part of the recall were built during an eight-week period ending Jan. 24, 2013.

Hyundai, Kia Recalls 1.7 Million Vehicles for Switch

Hyundai Motor Co. and Kia Motors Corp. are recalling about 1.7 million vehicles in the United States to replace a faulty switch that can prevent brake lights from illuminating and trigger other problems. When a driver presses the brake, the switch is supposed to turn on the brake lights and turn off the cruise control. A defective stop lamp switch could cause the brake lights not to illuminate, the cruise control not to deactivate or the push-button start to work erratically, Hyundai and Kia said. As many as 1,059,824 Hyundai models could be affected. The recall covers the 2007 to 2009 Accent and Tucson; the 2007 to 2010 Elantra; the 2007 to 2011 Santa Fe; the 2008 to 2009 Veracruz; the 2010 to 2011 Genesis Coupe; and the 2011 Sonata. The Kia vehicles with potentially faulty switches are the 2007 to 2010 Rondo and Sportage; the 2007 to 2011 Sorento; the 2007 Sedona; the 2010 to 2011 Soul; and the 2011 Optima. As many as 623,658 of those models could be affected.

Ford Focus Outsells Corolla

182,800 Honda, Acura Vehicles Recalled

Ford said it sold more than one million copies of its Focus for the first time last year. More than 1.02 million compact Focus cars were sold worldwide in 2012, outpacing Toyota’s Corolla, of which close to 873,000 were sold, according to data compiled by Polk. China accounts for one-quarter of all sales, and the Focus was the best-selling passenger car in China in 2012 for the first time ever. Ford’s F-Series pickup truck, which has been the top-ranked U.S. pickup for close to four decades, rounded out the top three with 785,630 sales. The Fiesta, with more than 723,000 sold, came in sixth on the list, making it the world’s best-selling subcompact car. Honda’s Civic and CR-V rounded out the top 10 with 651,000 and 625,000, respectively.

Honda is voluntarily recalling 182,800 vehicles due to an electronic stability system malfunction, according to a statement from the automaker. Affected vehicles are 101,000 Honda Pilot crossovers, 60,000 Acura MDX SUVs and 21,000 Acura RL sedans, all from model-year 2005; 800 model-year 2006 Acura MDX SUVs are also affected. According to Honda, if an electrical capacitor on the system’s control unit was damaged during the manufacturing process, the system could malfunction and apply a small amount of brake force for a fraction of a second outside the driver’s control. If the driver applies the brakes during a system malfunction, a crash could result.

Mitsubishi is issuing two recalls for its 2013 Outlander Sport compact crossover, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The first is to address a fuel pump problem that affects 3,724 all-wheeldrive-equipped Outlander Sports manufactured from June 11- Dec. 11, 2012. These vehicles may be missing a fuel sending unit harness, which could re-

sult in a false fuel tank level reading. The second recall affects 4,539 Outlander Sports with faulty brake stop lamps manufactured June 11- Sept. 11, 2012. NHTSA reports that the brake lights may illuminate intermittently and the shift lever could also be moved out of park without pushing the brake pedal. This condition could cause a crash.

Mitsubishi Issues 2 Recalls for Outlander Sport Crossover

Ford Recalls 3,500 Cars for Possible Fuel Tank Leaks

Ford Motor Co. is recalling about 3,500 Taurus and Lincoln MKS sedans and Explorer SUVs. The Dearborn automaker said it is recalling 2,537 of its 2012 Ford Taurus sedans, 968 of its 2012 Lincoln MKS sedans and 30 of its 2013 Ford Explorer SUVs because their fuel tanks may leak at the seam in the event of a severe accident. About 3,000 of the vehicles were sold in the U.S. Others were sold in Canada, Mexico, Europe and other markets. The vehicles are all built at Ford’s Chicago Assembly Plant.

2013 Buick LaCross, Cadillac SRX Recalled

General Motors recalled 26,582 of the 2013 Buick LaCrosse sedans and Cadillac SRX crossovers due to a transmission problem, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Affected are LaCrosses manufactured April 25, 2012-March 6, 2013, and SRXs built May 29, 2012- Feb. 18, 2013. A software problem could cause the transmission to inadvertently shift to Sport mode.

2012 Subaru Outback, Legacy Recall for Moonroof

Subaru is recalling just 14 2012 Outback wagons and Legacy sedans due to a problem with the moonroof glass that could cause it to detach, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Affected vehicles were manufactured between April 6 and May 12, 2011. An inadequate amount and position of adhesive between the glass and retainer of the moonroof could cause the glass to loosen and detach while driving, creating a potential road hazard and increasing the risk of a crash, according to NHTSA.

2013 Buick Encore Recalled

General Motors is recalling 144 of the 2013 Buick Encore compact crossovers because of a steering wheel malfunction, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The affected vehicles were manufactured Dec. 9 to Dec. 28, 2012, and are equipped with a heated steering wheel. NHTSA reports that in these vehicles, the steering-wheel fastener may not have been installed properly, causing the steering wheel to become loose and separate from the steering column.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 39

Hey Toby! with Toby Chess

Toby Chess is an I-CAR program instructor, Training specialist, and former salvage yard operator. Toby is universally known in the collision industry for his work with first responders and advocacy for body shops and consumers. He can be reached at tcspeedster@yahoo.com

Glass and Windshield Installs Must Be Handled by the Book

The other day I heard about a lawsuit that I would like to share with you (see article starting on the cover). A Toyota dealer contacted Safelite to install a windshield into a 2005 Toyota Tundra. The vehicle was involved in a rollover accident and the windshield allegedly “separated from the pickup” resulting in two fatalities. Safelite contends that they only handled the claim and contracted with a independent class company to handle the installation and they should not be named in the multi million-dollar lawsuit. I’m not going to comment on the merits of the case but it reminds us of the importance of correct windshield and glass installs. Barrett Smith, President of Auto Damage Experts wrote: “This is why it is so very import to be very careful and selective when choosing a sublet glass replacement company and other outside vendors to provide services

for your business. Just because you engage another’s service doesn’t exempt you and your company from liabilities that may arise from a tragic loss such as this. Even recommending another service could land you in enough trouble to cost you tens of thousands in dollars proving you have no liability!” Let’s take a look at the basics of glass and windshields in particular. 1) What is the function of a windshield? The main function of today’s windshield is ■ It is part of the vehicle structure

■ It is part of the frontal air bag system ■ It restrains the passengers in vehicle ■ And yes, it keeps the bugs off your face. One reason rollovers are so dangerous is that, when a vehicle rolls over, its roof can crush down on the occupants, causing head injuries, paraplegia and death. Today’s vehicles are engineered so that the windshield provides much of the stiffness neces-

sary to keep the roof from collapsing. In fact, some experts say that the

windshield accounts for up to 60% of the cabin’s structural integrity in a rollover. Some vehicles, the passenger’s side frontal air bag is deflected off of the windshield and is aimed at the front passenger seat. Just these two examples should serve to remind us that installing a windshield takes more than a phone call to your local vendor and you are finished. Not by a long shot. 2) Before going any further, let’s look at how glass is categorized. All windshields are marked with two letters: AS stands for American Standard. The number indicates the position in the vehicle where the glass may be used, based on its optical quality. AS1 is the clearest glass (at least 70% light transmission), is laminated, and can be used anywhere in a motor vehicle (typically just the windshield). AS2 is tempered, with at least 70% light transmission, and can be

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used anywhere except the windshield, and— AS3 can be used in certain locations in certain vehicles (it can be laminated or tempered, and has less than 70% light transmission.) AS3 is also known as Privacy Glass.”

We deal with 2 types of glass: laminated and tempered. Laminated glass is a type of safety glass that holds together when shattered. In the event of breaking, it is held in place by an interlayer, typically of polyvinyl butyral (PVB), between its two or more layers of glass. The bonding process takes place under heat and pressure. When laminated under these conditions, the PVB interlayer becomes optically clear and binds the two panes of glass together.

manufactured and tested to meet federal and industry standards, but they are not regulated by the government, which means that you better do your due diligence when subletting your glass. (See form on page 56.) If you are not familiar with the safety standards here they are:

Once sealed together, the glass “sandwich” (i.e., laminate) behaves as a single unit and looks like any other glass. Tempered glass is a type of safety glass processed by controlled thermal or chemical treatments to increase its strength compared with normal glass. Tempering creates balanced internal stresses which cause the glass, when broken, to crumble into small granular chunks instead of splintering into jagged shards. These two pictures and examples of the marking on the glass. They are known as “bugs” and will be found on all automotive glass and to identify what type of glass it is. Vehicle manufacturers must meet Federal Motor Safety Standards 208, 212, 216 & 219 for glass and vehicle occupant safety. Aftermarket installers use urethane and primers that are

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FMVSS and Autoglass FMVSS205, FMVSS212, FMVSS216, FMVSS219 See below for a look at a few of the popular Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards pertaining to auto glass, including a brief summary of each standard.

571.205 Standard No. 205; Glazing Materials Scope. This standard specifies requirements for glazing materials for use in motor vehicles and motor vehicle equipment. Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to reduce injuries resulting from impact to glazing surfaces, to ensure a necessary degree of transparency in motor vehicle windows for driver visibility, and to minimize the possibility of occupants being thrown through the vehicle windows in collisions.

571.212 Standard No. 212; Windshield Mounting Scope. This standard establishes windshield retention requirements for motor vehicles during crashes. Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to reduce crash injuries and fatalities by providing for retention of the vehicle windshield during a crash, thereby utilizing fully the penetrationresistance and injury-avoidance properties of the windshield glazing material and preventing the ejection of occupants from the vehicle.

571.216 Standard No. 216; Roof Crush Resistance Scope. This standard establishes strength requirements for the passenger compartment roof. Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to reduce deaths and injuries due to the crushing of the roof into the occupant compartment in rollover crashes.

571.219 Standard No. 219; Windshield Zone Intrusion Scope. This standard specifies limits for the displacement into the windshield area of motor vehicle components during a crash. See Windshield Installs, Page 53

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Custom Shop Masters Pro-Spray to Make an Artistic Statement by Ed Attanasio

While most teenagers were playing Little League and going to summer camp, John Wargo, the owner of The Custom Shop in Flanagan, IL, spent his spare time restoring and painting cars. Now 43 and a highly-acclaimed car fabricator, builder and painter, Wargo uses Pro-Spray paint on all his creations, many of which appear at major car shows nationwide and sell for as much as $80,000.

John Wargo, the owner of The Custom Shop in Flanagan, IL, uses Pro-Spray on most of his award-winning vehicles

Every year, he wins an average of 25 best paint awards for his show cars. And even though he’s worked on literally hundreds of cars and motorcycles during his highly successful career, Wargo still vividly remembers the first vehicle he ever painted. “It was a 1975 Firebird and I was 15, so I couldn’t even drive it,” Wargo said. “I worked on it for about six months and that’s where it all started. I wanted to have a nice car when I was old enough to drive, so I did all the body work myself and then did a twotone paint job on it. It wasn’t anything spectacular, but I thought it was pretty cool when I was 15.” After completing two years of vocational training and learning the basics of mechanical repair, Wargo turned down a college football scholarship and pursued his passion for customizing cars. “I got involved in it right after high school but I couldn’t afford to do it full-time. In 1988, I took a job working the night shift at a Continued from Page 30

GM Dealers’ Parts

should come out $40,000 to $50,000 ahead under the new system, he says. Rowerdink Inc. is a Grand Rapids, MI, wholesale distributor to GM deal-

printing company producing full-color magazine covers and then I opened my shop during the day. It worked out very well, because I learned a lot about PMS colors, as well as tinting and mixing and blending them through my exposure to the printing processes we used. I wasn’t planning it like that, but it just worked out that way.” Wargo switched over to ProSpray seven years ago and he’s happy he did. “Pro-Spray gives us our best bang for the buck, and that’s why we changed over in 2006. With all the primers, sealers, hardeners, reducers—it can really add up. With ProSpray I am getting a real value per every sprayable pint, because we use less and the coverage is exceptional.” With six vehicles and three motorcycles in different stages of completion currently sitting in his 12,000 square-foot shop that includes a modest showroom, Wargo is passionate and driven to build amazing creations. But, he’s also passionate about customer service as well. To get a large project ready for this year’s Detroit Auto Rama, Wargo worked 16 hours every day for an entire month to deliver a spectacular 1967 Karmann Ghia with a Viper V-10 motor to his customer just in time for the show.

and 15-20 motorcycles every year, including one show-class car done inhouse annually. Wargo’s signature style has been described in many ways, but the one word most associ-

finished product. As his #1 critic and a true artist, Wargo is always searching for that perfect paint job and ProSpray has been answering the call time and again.

Named “Project Grand Sport,” this 1968 Convertible Camaro Grand Sport is a custom monster that has received a ton of awards for The Custom Shop at major shows

ated with his work is simply, “Wow!” His love of colors is evident in everything he paints and he isn’t afraid to use as many as it’s required in order to fulfill his vision. In fact, one of his creations (a Ford pickup) was painted using 53 colors! To achieve that wow factor each time on every car or motorcycle he paints, Wargo uses Pro-Spray’s Solvent Basecoat System. And even

With a crew consisting of three multi-talented techs, The Custom Shop builds roughly a dozen vehicles

though it’s a British product, Wargo paints American cars with it all day long and is always ecstatic with the

As a painter who covets new, exciting custom colors, Wargo was immediately attracted by the color library Pro-Spray features, he explained. “Pro-Spray’s custom line is exceptional, which is ideal for someone like me who does custom paint work. I originally found the company when I discovered their line of ‘Outrageous Custom Finishes,’ and used a few of them on some cars I was painting. From there I decided to go with the Pro-Spray and it has worked out great ever since. “I also really appreciate the atomization I get with the Pro-Spray,” Wargo said. “In a perfect world, the solvent is supposed to evaporate in the air, so that it doesn’t get trapped into the paint job. That prevents us from getting that die back. With the Pro-Spray, it’s easy to go back and make a repair on the car or on the paint job down the road, because it’s easy to match up and simple to blend into, which many painters don’t think about until two years later when they have to go back and fix something.”

erships in Michigan. In the Detroit area alone, the company expects to lose roughly half of the $10 million revenue it makes from more than 50 GM stores, says Chris Mauro, Rowerdink GM dealer account manager. “It could force us to change our discount program,” Mauro told Automotive News.

A large Midwest Chevy dealer says he figures the new system will cost his store more than $100,000. He has traditionally bought a large amount of inventory from local wholesalers. The dealer also says he’s not willing to let a repair drag into the next day as he waits on an overnight deliv-

ery from GM. His parts manager will continue to buy those last-minute parts through distributors, which will count against his purchase loyalty. Hill says that even if a parts manager can run down that out-of-stock part on the same day, it’s not as good as having the part already on hand.

Wargo named this creation “SSAWD”— a play on words because he chopped the vehicle and it’s an SS model— a 1969 Camaro Roadster, with all-wheel drive and a wide body air ride

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Six Tips to Finding Success in Process Analysis by Susan Guyer, Marketing Manager

Audit is a scary word—tax audits, financial audits, and process audits often conjure images of mounds of paperwork. There are different approaches to running an audit, many of which are cumbersome, completed one time and forgotten, or too complicated from the first step. Simplifying the process and moving away from a process audit to a Process Analysis will help you with continuous improvement. FinishMaster has built a system to help shop owners improve processes by getting the entire team involved, applying small changes, and monitoring success over time. Jeff Smith, FinishMaster District Sales Manager in West Central Florida, discusses shop audits he has seen in the past. “I have seen audits that are 30 pages long with 100+ boxes to check off. People are ready to be done before they start. Our experience shows that less is better and it is more about observing and asking questions than checking boxes.” Smith said they have built a process

focused around six key points that lead to an effective and successful Process Analysis. Take off the blinders. Look at the shop from a fresh perspective and do not assume that anything is perfect. FinishMaster helps remove the blinders by tailoring the process analysis to what each shops needs. Chris Shrewsbury, Collision Director for Ferman Acura and

individual basis and they help implement the changes. Being able to constantly see ways to improve allows us to adapt to an ever-changing industry.” Even if a process is documented, review it using the Process Analysis plan, there might be additional opportunity for improvement. Keep it simple. Smith said he starts with one area that needs improvement, such as color match. Having a “road map of questions” in advance and asking more that come to mind while walking through the process allows you to uncover opportunities for improvement. Smith continued, “It is important to take pictures while you are conducting the process analysis. This is not only a great reminder Chris Shrewsbury, Ferman Acura and Chevrolet with of each step, but it is also an Jeff Smith, FinishMaster important visual aid when Chevrolet in Tampa, FL, talks about compiling the analytics. Here are his experience with audits. “Instead some of the basic questions specific to of one size fits all, FinishMaster’s color match asked during a Process Process Analysis really looks at our Analysis. facilities for ways to improve on an • When is color matching done?

• Is it done in the spray booth? • Do you use all color documentation including variant chips? • When do you do spray outs? Keeping it simple and walking through one process from start to finish, rather than tackling an entire list, enables the group to more easily identify points of opportunity for change. Gain more input from Management and Technicians. Focusing on the questions and answers gathered during the Process Analysis is the best opportunity to gain insight about current process and ideas for change. If you ask the right questions, in most cases, both the management and the technicians will give you more than enough opportunities for improvement. Building the Process Analysis through documented conversation leads to solutions. To set up new processes and implement change, there has to be buy-in from all participants. Match changes/Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) to material movement. Think back to the color match issue reviewed during the

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step outside the defined SOPs, you have a very high success rate on both profitability and productivity,” said Smith. Monitor for success. Smith reinforced, “Making major changes is why we see other audits fail. Focusing on small changes has the most impact, and monitoring those changes is the only way to be successful.” There are two simple steps once you have identified an opportunity and set new SOPs. Step 1 is to build a followup check list. Basically, this is a small analysis custom built to monitor compliance on all the agreed changes and Chris Shrewsbury, Ferman Acura and Chevrolet with new SOPs with key performJose Bezares, FinishMaster Account Manager ance indicators (KPIs). Most gested improvement is to complete the of the time audits are performed, the initial spray out when jambing parts. results go in the back of the desk When implementing a small change, drawer and implementation is rare. this is the perfect opportunity to set up With a follow-up check list perSOPs. formed at preset intervals, the same “During the SOP setup, we use issues will not come up six months or the data collected to match all materi- a year later. A check list has to be cusals, storage, and distribution to the tom built with each Process Analysis technicians so there is complete com- conducted at the shop. pliance. When you can match proce“Setting up procedures that match dures to materials with no options to only materials in our facility has inProcess Analysis. Once the current process is understood through questions and photo documentation, digging through the data is the next step. Identify areas that the smallest changes will have the greatest impact. For example, with color match a sug-

creased both profitability and produc- lision in Brandon, FL, discusses his tivity. With FinishMaster’s unique experience with FinishMaster’s KPI tracking methods we monitor our Process Analysis. “Most companies progress to ensure the procedures are claim to have a lot of tools to help followed and the changes are posi- you, but you rarely see them used. To tive,” said Shrewsbury of Ferman my surprise, FinishMaster came in Acura and Chevrolet. Step 2 is to monitor performance. Again, everyone has KPIs and spreadsheets with more numbers than most can digest. Keep it simple. Have only pertinent KPIs and build a custom tracking calculator that can monitor the effectiveness of the changes implemented. This takes some creativity and some Larry Lampinen, Nu Finish Collision with Jeff Smith help from FinishMaster, but when you sit down to review KPIs it day one doing a Process Analysis and will include very specific measures of has not stopped bringing me ideas for implemented change that show prof- improvement. The data the Process itability and productivity results. Analysis provides ties material usage Understand that the process to an individual technician in correlanever ends. The continuous improvetion to their hours produced. This ment model is a key component of gives us a very precise way to see making the Process Analysis success- profitability by technician so we can ful. By removing blinders, all areas in identify opportunities for improvethe shop can be reviewed over time ment right down to a technician. Their and check lists can be updated if betimplementation of best practices has ter process ideas are identified. Larry been a benefit to my overall performLampinen, Owner of Nu Finish Colance.”

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 45

David Brunori Promoted to Division President at Matrix

Matrix System recently promoted David Brunori to division president of Quest Automotive Products (QAP). Brunori has 30 years of experience in the collision repair and restoration market and has been with Matrix System Automotive Finishes for 20 years. Brunori currently serves on the Board of Trustees for the Collision Repair Education Foundation, the Oakland Schools Education Foundation, and as an adviser for the Oakland Schools’ Technical Campus–Southwest. He holds a bachelor’s degree in chemistry and a graduate degree in business management. “Being named division president is an honor and a major accomplishment in my professional career,” said Brunori. “I have always tried to follow very simple guidelines: have a vision, lead people and stay focused. I am looking forward to see what the future has in store.”

Car Theft Drops by 88% in Massachusetts

Car thefts in Massachusetts have dropped by 88% since the mid1970s, when the state had the dubious distinction of being the country’s car theft capital, the Claims Journal recently reported. Insurance experts and law enforcement officials credit the dramatic drop to anti-theft features, from transponder keys and immobilizing devices and vehicle tracking systems, and to vigorous enforcement by police. The Boston Globe reports that there were 1,575 reports of stolen vehicles in Boston last year, compared with 28,000 in 1975. In Massachusetts, car thefts have dropped every year since 2001. The state now ranks near the middle of the pack nationally, a drop that has helped stabilize insurance rates. The bad news is that these days stolen vehicles are less likely to be found. Many are shipped overseas or are driven to Mexico.

Free Twice Monthly Newsletter $250,000 Donated Towards Operation Comfort The National Auto Body Council (NABC) has received nearly $250,000 in pledges and donations towards its $1.5 million Capital Campaign for Operation Comfort’s AutoMotivation program. The Capital Campaign goal is to purchase, renovate and equip a 30,000 sq. ft. training facility in San Antonio, TX, that will serve as a permanent home for Operation Comfort’s AutoMotivation program. Wounded service members in the AutoMotivation program benefit from occupational and rehabilitative therapies as they work on automotive projects. NABC-led efforts take the program to the next level by providing opportunities for participants to simultaneously recover and heal while acquiring certified I-CAR curriculumbased training for new career paths in the collision industry. “We are thrilled with the momentum and support coming from all corners of the industry to support this cause,” said Chuck Sulkala, NABC Executive Director. “Many companies, regardless of size, are joining our fundraising efforts and finding ways to engage their customers and employees to support this great program for our wounded troops.” Companies that have already

launched their fundraising initiatives include: Hertz launched a fundraising effort over Presidents’ Day Weekend that raised $50,000 in a two-day promotion. The company’s sponsorship of Operation Comfort is part of its Hertz for Heroes program, a project initiated by Hertz employees with military backgrounds. 3M Corporation is pledging $50,000 based on sales of selected products through the Automotive Aftermarket. Sterling Autobody Centers has pledged a $30,000 corporate donation and anticipates an additional $30,000 will be raised through efforts from its individual body shop locations. Keenan Auto Body is collecting donations at each of their 11 shops and are matching every donation until the Capital Campaign goal of $1.5 million has been reached. “Our heartfelt thanks to the many companies and individuals who have already donated and pledged their support. There are many more companies with fundraising efforts in the works and we look forward to sharing more exciting news on their contributions towards our Capital Campaign goal,” said Sulkala.

46 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Service King’s Bonner to Speak at PBES Conference

Cathy Bonner, chairman of the board at Service King Collision Repair Centers, will be a featured speaker at the 2013 Paint, Body & Equipment Specialists (PBES) Spring Conference, May 14–16 at the Embassy Suites Phoenix-Scottsdale. Bonner will present “Service King’s Vision for Expansion and Outlook for the Industry.” In addition, she will share her view of the Carlyle Group’s entry into the industry and her outlook on multishop consolidation. Bonner is a business entrepreneur with more than 35 years’ experience in leading a variety of multi-million dollar organizations in both the public and private sector. Fortune Magazine named Bonner one of the 25 most influential women entrepreneurs in America, calling her “…smart, gutsy, and innovative—as interested in making a difference as in making money.” In 2010, Bonner was hired as Service King’s president to develop a strategic growth plan for the company. In August 2012, the Carlyle Group, an investment firm, purchased Service King.

SEMA Board Candidates

The following slate of eight candidates are vying for four open seats on the SEMA Board of Directors.

Chairman-Elect Category 1. Doug Evans, Source Interlink Media 2. Tim Martin, K&N Engineering Manufacturers Category 3. Al Azadi, Omix-ADA, Inc./Rugged Ridge 4. Kyle Fickler, Weld Racing 5. Steve Matusek, Aeromotive, Inc. 6. Tim Watts, Superlift Suspension Systems Manufacturer’s Representative Category 7. Jeff Bates, Bob Cook Sales 8. Greg Bernheisel, Considine Sales & Marketing This year the voting will take place online between May 15–June 11, 2013. Voting is open to current SEMA member companies and votes must be cast by the member’s designated primary contact. Winners will be announced in June, and formally inducted in July. For more information about the 2013-2016 SEMA Board of Directors election, contact Arlene Wood at arlenew@sema.org or call 909-978-6678.

Chicago Pneumatic Gives $10,000 in Tool Grants

Chicago Pneumatic has announced that it is providing ten $1,000 tool grants to the Collision Repair Education Foundation. These grants will allow students entering the workforce to have the best pneumatic tools available to enhance their new skill sets. Secondary and post-secondary collision students attending career and technical schools and colleges have the opportunity to apply for more than $300,000 in available scholarships and tool grants available through the Collision Repair Education Foundation and its industry supporters. Other sponsored awards include: • 3M Hire Our Heroes Veteran Scholarships & Tool Grants • Alliance of Automotive Service Providers Massachusetts (AASPMA) Tool Grants • ABRA Auto Body & Glass Tool Grants • Alcoa Foundation Aluminum Training Grants • CCC Michael Salvatore Memorial Student Repair Technician Scholarship.

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Foundation Says 91% of all Dollars Went to Schools

The Collision Repair Education Foundation recently announced that 91 cents out of every dollar donated went towards assisting the future professionals of the industry. Charity Navigator, America’s leading independent charity evaluator, advises that “the most efficient charities spend 75% or more of their budget on their programs and services and less than 25% on fundraising and administrative fees.” The Collision Repair Education Foundation having a 91-9% giving ratio displays its’ commitment to the industry’s future, while staying lean in its’ operational expenses. Collision Repair Education Foundation Director of Development Brandon Eckenrode noted, “It is important for charities to be accountable and transparent to their donors. We are grateful to our 175 donors in 2012 for their record breaking $4.9 million in giving, and it is our responsibility as a not-for-profit organization to ensure that the industry’s support reaches those in the most need. On behalf of the organization’s staff and Board of Trustees, we thank our supporters and look forward to making 2013 a year to remember.”

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 47

Glasurit Introduces Comprehensive, 2-Clears Solution Redefining an entire category in an industry is a rare thing, but the next generation of clears has certainly arrived with the new Glasurit® Multi-Purpose Gloss and Rapid Repair Clears. Together, they form a streamlined clearcoat system you can use to perform any size repair while increasing quality, productivity and customer satisfaction.

Multi-Purpose Gloss Clear 923460 for non-regulated areas and low VOC 923-220 Multi-Purpose Gloss Clear have been formulated by Glasurit chemists to improve on their highly regarded predecessors. According to BASF Market Segment Manager Tony Dyach, they reflect the latest advances in coatings technology. “These new clears overcome the typical trade-off between appearance, performance and ease of

Oceanside’s Terry’s Auto Body Added to CARSTAR

CARSTAR recently added Terry’s Auto Body CARSTAR based in Oceanside, CA, to its network of collision repair centers. CARSTAR said Terry’s Auto Body, owned by EJ Terry and managed by his grandson, Corey Terry, is its first location in the Oceanside market. “We are excited to see EJ Terry and Corey Terry join the CARSTAR network,” said David Byers, CEO of CARSTAR. “We are thrilled to expand our presence in California to Oceanside, and welcome Terry’s Auto Body CARSTAR as our newest top-notch collision repair center in the area.” The shop now has access to CARSTAR’s management system, new repair technology, national warranties, and several corporately managed direct repair and purchasing programs. “Terry’s Auto Body has always strived to provide the highest level of customer service,” said Corey Terrey. “We pride ourselves on utilizing the best technology available to get the job done right the first time. We became a part of the CARSTAR network in order to continue to provide the same quality of service that our customers are expecting when they bring their vehicle in.”

application,” said Dyach. “They are better in every way that matters to our customers, and will delight their customers with superior gloss and durability.” The Multi-Purpose Gloss Clears join the equally ground-breaking nobake Rapid Repair Clears to give you a comprehensive clearcoat system that covers everything from small panel and tight-space applications to large areas and overalls. Just when you thought the most stunning finish had been achieved, Glasurit has once again raised the bar with these next-generation clears, delivering the ultimate European wet look.

New gold standard for premium clears Since being introduced by Glasurit in 2011, innovative Rapid Repair Clear 923-140 for non-regulated areas and low VOC 923-240 Rapid Repair Clear have redefined small panel repair performance with no fuss, no-bake convenience. After months of extensive, in-market testing, the Multi-Purpose Gloss Clears have also proven themselves. Together, they offer a new gold stan-

ABRA Auto Body & Glass Expands in Utah

ABRA Auto Body & Glass continued its national expansion with the opening of a new location in American Fork, UT. The new location increases the total number of corporate ABRA repairs centers in the state to eight. With this recent opening, ABRA now operates 101 corporate and 49 franchises nationwide in 16 states. “We’ve reached a substantial milestone with the opening of our 150th repair center,” said Duane Rouse, President and Chief Executive Officer of ABRA. “Our uncompromising commitment to superior processes and operational excellence consistently rates us high in customer satisfaction. We’re serious about being the best and leading the way in the industry. We have every intention of not only continuing our growth, but accelerating it.” The company celebrates its 30th anniversary next year. Tim Adelmann, Executive Vice President said, “We’re all very proud of the hard work, dedication to excellence, and loyalty we’ve built with our customers and business partners over the years. We look forward to pursuing our mission of being the best auto body and glass company in America.”

48 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

dard for shop managers, paint technicians and owners: • Glasurit Multi-Purpose Gloss and Rapid Repair Clears meet or exceed all OEM standards, and are fully approved for your warranty work over 90-Line waterborne or 55-Line solventborne basecoats. • Spraying is effortless with the same great flow and distinctness of image; while cure, ease of application, and polishing have been significantly enhanced. • The “Multi-Purpose” moniker is well deserved as the new formulations are designed for large areas and overalls, while also flexible enough to handle smaller areas or blend panels. • The resulting finish is truly

spectacular, providing unparalleled depth and gloss that will separate your work from the rest.

• The new Multi-Purpose Clears are the perfect complement to the no-bake Rapid Repair Clears, which are the ideal choice for small panel repairs, door jams and other tight-space applications. • The no-bake Rapid Repair Clears allow you to buff and polish in just 30 minutes at 68°F, while also giving you the option to bake at 120°F for 15 minutes, if added speed is needed.

Put to the test The Glasurit Multi-Purpose Gloss and Rapid Repair Clears have been put to the test by your peers and the results have exceeded BASF’s high expectations. Here are some of the comments we heard from our customers: (Regarding Multi-Purpose Gloss Clear) “Our customers love the high gloss, and our painters love how easy it is to apply and to buff. We were up and running in no time since the new clears work seamlessly within our existing Glasurit system.” “Glasurit Rapid Repair works great. It’s the perfect choice for small individual parts like fenders and moldings.”

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Cerritos, CA, Cashes In On Rebounding Auto Sales

Car dealers at the Cerritos Auto Square sold 49,563 cars and trucks last year, an increase of 10,173 vehicles, or 26%, over the prior year, according to the city’s marketing manager, making it the biggest auto mall in the country. The Los Angeles Times reported that included 35,698 new vehicles and 13,865 used cars and cemented the center’s position as the biggest auto mall in the nation ranked by total vehicles sold, according to auto industry executives who were consulted. The city of Cerritos collected more than $7 million in tax revenue from the mall during the first three quarters of 2012, and while the fourth-quarter number isn’t in quite yet, it’s likely to push car sales tax revenue to roughly $10 million, a 12% gain over the prior year. In addition to their own employees, the dealers at the auto mall also provide work for about 500 contractors. The mall is home to some of the largest auto dealers in the U.S., including Norm Reeves Honda, which is the biggest Honda dealership nationally.

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Mike Rose Opens 11th Shop in Northern California

Mike Rose’s Auto Body in Concord, CA, recently opened its 11th location of the family–owned business. According to Mike Rose’s daughter, Ragen Rose Ortland, CFO, “We are excited to be in the Richmond area. This was a great move for us to be able to expand our presence in Contra Costa County. The shop enhances our visibility to the entire East Bay Area with easy access on a major freeway corridor. The Richmond acquisition completes the triangle for the Contra Costa, Solano and Napa Counties.” “Mike Rose’s Auto Body’s success has been built on our uncompromising commitment to the highest customer satisfaction, technology, equipment modernization and great people focused on our operational process and culture,” said CEO, Brennan Rose. Celebrating over 40 years in business, Mike Rose’s Auto Body will continue to grow in the surrounding market areas. Mike Rose’s Auto Body continues to seek quality companies for acquisition. Interested owners are encouraged to contact Brennan Rose, brose@mikesautobody.com.

CAWA Appoints Traci Quick

CAWA Chair of the Board, Ed Jimenez, has appointed Traci Quick of Star Distributing in Phoenix to the CAWA Board of Directors. Quick is the Director of Sales & Marketing for the warehouse distributor. Her background covers 20 plus years in the aftermarket as a manager and service writer at a repair facility and nearly all departments of an independent warehouse distributor. She serves on the Education Committee for the Automotive Aftermarket Parts Alliance and served as the Executive Secretary for the Automotive Wholesalers of Arizona. “We are pleased to welcome Traci to the CAWA leadership and look forward to her participation and contributions to the automotive aftermarket industry out west,” said Jimenez. “We are pleased she has stepped forward to give something back to our industry, through her commitment to CAWA”. CAWA is a regional automotive aftermarket trade association, which represents auto parts jobbers, warehouse distributors, retailers, manufacturers and manufacturer representatives in California, Nevada and Arizona. The Association provides education, legislative, regulatory and business support.

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Toll Free: 800-752-8141 www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 49

Third Generation Custom Painter Was Born Into the Business by Melanie Anderson

Darryl Hollenbeck, 45, of Vintage Color Studio in Concord, CA, is a third generation custom painter and car restorer. His grandfather owned one of the first body shops in Oakland back in the late ‘30s and early ‘40s

Custom painter Darryl Hollenbeck pictured here in the rearview mirror

and later sold his shop to Hollenbeck’s uncle. Darryl’s father worked in the shop as well, with Darryl joining the family business at age 21. With 25 years experience, Hollenbeck has owned Vintage Color Studio restoring hot rods and custom cars

for painting John Mumford’s 27 T Roadster, built by Roy Brizio Street Rods, which won “America’s Most Beautiful Roadster” at the recent 2013 Grand National Roadster Show in Pomona, CA. He’s won that award twice. The first time he won the award was in 2005 for painting Paul Hansen’s Moal Built 1932 Roadster called ‘Seduced.’ Over the course of his career, Hollenbeck has custom painted well over 100 cars, many of which have graced the covers of hot rod and custom car magazines. Several of those magazine covers are featured on his website at www.vintagecolorstudio.com. He owns three hot rods himself—a 1950 Mercury from his late father, a 1957 Chevy Wagon and a 1932 Roadster that he’s still working on. Some of Hollenbeck’s favorite projects include restoring historical cars that were originally customized back in the ‘30s and ‘40s. For example, Hollenbeck restored a 1949 Mercury that belonged to Sam Barris (George Barris’ brother). Hollenbeck said this car was the first Mercury to be chopped and customized and it was a new car when Sam Barris did it in 1949. Hollenbeck also restored the 1936 Ford Jack Calori Coupe, which was the November 1949 Hot Rod

Ford Pickup and cost $15,000 to build. Peters and Gejeian built the undercarriage. It won the prestigious “America’s Most Beautiful Roadster”

Hollenbeck said the average project takes about three months, from start to finish, with the paint work itself taking about 10 days. Some of

This 1932 Roadster was owned by Vic Edelbrock Sr

award at the Oakland Roadster Show two years in a row in 1958 and 1959. The Ala Kart is known for being the first show rod that turned into a model car kit. The Ala Kart was restored by Roy Brizio Street Rods in 2011 and Hollenbeck did the paint and body work on the car with Art Himsl doing the graphics. Another favorite project Hollenbeck worked on was Vic Edelbrock’s father’s 1932 Roadster that was restored by Roy Brizio Street Rods in 2004. Otis Victor Edelbrock, who died in 1962, was an American automotive aftermarket performance parts engineer, racer and is considered one of the founders of the hot rod movement. The 1932 Roadster was the per-

Hollenbeck’s famous customers include English rock guitarist Jeff Beck, singer Eric Clapton, and James Hetfield of Metallica.

1936 Ford coupe

The recent change from solvents to waterborne paint isn’t something Hollenbeck is thrilled about. Like

Hollenbeck painted this 1949 Chevy truck for Eric Clapton

for the past 10 years. Most of the vintage cars he works on date back to the ‘30s, ‘40s and ‘50s, with the ‘newest’ car he’s ever worked on being a 1966 Shelby Mustang. “I love cars. I was born into it,” said Hollenbeck. “I love the challenge of taking something old and rusty and turning it into something beautiful and award-winning.” Hollenbeck has won several awards, including the award he won

Magazine Cover Car, and was Best in Class Winner at Pebble Beach in 2005. Another famous historical car that Hollenbeck has worked on is the Ala Kart, originally customized by George Barris and owned by Richard Peters. The car survived a fire that destroyed Barris’ shop in 1957. The car, named from a menu at the time George Barris, Richard Peters and friend Blackie Gejeian met at a local coffee shop to discuss the car, is based on a 1929

50 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Hollenbeck restored this 1932 Roadster

sonal car of Edelbrock Sr. and was also as a test vehicle back in the ‘40s at the El Mirage Dry Lakes in southern California.

many painters, he appreciates routine and using the new water-based products has changed up the way he’s used See Third Generation, Page 52

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Continued from Page 50

Third Generation

to doing things. “Now we gotta try to make water base work for what we do, and it’s geared more toward the collision industry,” he said. “It does have its advantages in what we do, but you get used to doing something a certain way, then all the sudden the EPA changes everything on you.”

He says waterborne is easier to use, but takes longer to dry between coats. For example, he said it used to take him eight hours to paint a Roadster with solvent and now that same size car takes about 12 hours to paint using waterbase. He also acknowledges that the water-based paint colors are more vibrant, but adds that a custom line of water-base products for custom work doesn’t exist yet. Hollenbeck has been using PPG for nearly 30 years, since he was “in high school and just starting

1932 Ford 5 window coupe

The famous Ala Kart originally customized by George Barris won “America’s Most Beautiful Roadster” in 1958 and 1959

to mess around with paint,” and says the PPG brand is very user-friendly. “There isn’t a custom line of water base,” he said. “For instance, Candy Apple Red isn’t available in water base so you have to figure out how to make it and that takes more time.” According to Cindy Schauer, Segment Communications Manager with PPG, the company is not launching a new waterborne platform for the custom painter, but over the last few

years, PPG has made some products that work well with their current waterborne brands, Envirobase High Performance and Aquabase Plus, that make it easier to use in a custom finishing situation. Darryl Hollenbeck’s Vintage Color Studio, 2330 Bates Ave, Suite B-1 Concord CA 94520 Phone : 925.671.7773 www.vintagecolorstudio.com

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Continued from Page 41

Windshield Installs

Purpose. The purpose of this standard is to reduce crash injuries and fatalities that result from occupants contacting vehicle components displaced near or through the windshield.

Do you know what the black strip in the photo is called and what’s it for?

It’s called a Frit and it serves two roles on the glass. First, as a cosmetic feature that is used to hide interior trim and pinchweld details. Second, the frit inhibits UV degradation of urethane adhesives. While the frit will not completely block the UV rays from passing through the glass, it does significantly reduce UV light transmission. Most urethanes are not UV stable. If urethane is left exposed to

sunlight for prolonged periods of time, it will yellow and turn chalky. Presence of the frit will extend the lifetime of the urethane adhesive system. Many of today’s vehicles have been specifically designed to utilize the windshield as a structural component of the vehicle body by providing increased torsional stiffness. Vehicle manufacturers are careful to select special, high-modulus polyurethane (PUR) adhesives to bond the windshield to these specific vehicles. Relying on the windshield as a structural member, the high-modulus adhesive also allows the OEM to minimize the thickness of the steel used to build the car, thus reducing weight and costs. The high modulus urethane is more rigid when completely cured, and the properties of the non conductive urethane do not interfere with the newer sophisticated electronics in vehicles Each urethane has its unique set of primers which are an integral part of the bonding process. Each urethane also has a cure time (the time that it takes for the urethane to harden) before it is safe to drive the vehicle. It is important for the collision repair facility to know what that cure time is. If the urethane is not cured, the safety

of the vehicle will not have been restored. The pinch weld that has been repaired or replaced, needs am epoxy primer or a similar product applied to the bare metal surface. Some vehicle manufacturers allow refinishing the

surface, while others want only epoxy primer applied. All OEMs state that there should be no body filler applied to the pinchweld where urethane is used due the fact that the urethane will not adhere to the substrate. Let’s take a quick look at adhesion failure. Adhesive failure: The inability of an adhesive to stick to a surface. During adhesive failure, the adhesive cannot bind two surfaces together and separates from the substrate. Cohesive failure: The inability of an adhesive to resist internal separation. During cohesive failure, the adhesive sticks to both surfaces, but can not hold them together.

Many windshields and backlites have antennas and defroster grids embedded in the glass. A non-conductive adhesive should be used if the adhesive will contact the antenna or deSee Windshield Installs, Page 56

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 53

Renowned Painter Mickey Harris Co-Designed the SATAgraph 4 by Ed Attanasio

If you know anything at all about airbrush art, you’re familiar with Mickey Harris. He’s a household name in the airbrush world, known most for his military art, but also renowned for his realistic style, his patriotic zeal and his willing to use his art to raise money for charity and just makes people happy. By teaching other fledgling artists about airbrush techniques and creating breathtaking scenes that have appeared at car shows all over the globe, Harris is enjoying his busy life as a painter, consultant, artist, teacher, inventor and mentor.

Legendary airbrush artist Mickey Harris uses the SATAgraph 4 on all of his creations. In this photo, Harris is painting a scene from the Vietnam War on a motorcycle

Harris, 56, has been painting for 34 years and has produced thousands of murals on metal, including cars, trucks, motorcycles and assorted mediums. He embarked on a career as an airbrush artist at the age of 19, in Ft. Walton Beach, FL, painting on tshirts to learn the trade. After absorbing as much as he possibly could about airbrush art and refining his skills, Harris made a significant impact on the car paint art industry and today he is considered one of the finest airbrush artists in the entire world. As a publisher, Mickey founded Airbrush Magazine in 1994, and as a respected industry leader he was elected President of the International Airbrush Association twice in the 1990s. Mickey’s work has appeared in more than 100 publications, including on the covers of King of the Road magazine, Truckin’ and Airbrush magazine, just to name a few. Mickey has also appeared on a wide range of TV shows including appearances on Overhaulin’, Gearz, Car Crazy, Drag Race High and is currently working with an investment group for his own television show

and has also been a guest on numerous talk shows and news broadcasts over the years. He was featured on the Travel Channel’s show called King of the Road, in which he was shown painting the world’s most detailed 18-wheeler, with more than 2,000 man-hours, and over a million strokes of the airbrush in 1999. One of Mickey’s show trucks captured 22 “Best of Show” awards and he also won the prestigious “DuPont Top Gun” award four times. Harris’ images can sell for as much as $100,000 and celebrities such as Jay Leno covet his work. Traveling to shows, seminars and public appearances year-round, Harris doesn’t have a retail store or a studio where people can see his work. He works out of body shops in different parts of the country to complete his ongoing list of projects. “I have a home in Tennessee and another one in South Dakota, so I work out of body shops in each area. I do 2-3 large projects every year, which are basically complete vehicles, but I also do 10-12 smaller projects every month—primarily motorcycles, tanks and hoods, for example.” Mickey’s painting style is heralded for its incredible depth and detail, complemented by his knowledge of color, form and perspective. In addition to his artwork, Mickey has been teaching the art of airbrushing for over 20 years, through seminars for the United States Sign Council, Airbrush Magazine, SATA, the International Airbrush Association, Airbrush Action Magazine, BASF and Sign Business Magazine. Mickey has also painted numerous murals for the United States Air Force and painted nose art on nine B-1 Bombers. Mickey Harris is known for many things, but his seven aviationrelated paintings currently hanging in the Pentagon are probably some of his best-known, he said. “I’ve got two new paintings for the Pentagon—they’re ready to go. But I’ve really made my career doing the automotive stuff I do. That’s what I pursue and that’s where I really make my living. I’m an artist, but in the end it’s also a business, so I pursue the projects where I can make money and feed my family. The rest of the things I do, such as donating my art for fundraising charity efforts for the

54 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

military, are also very important and meaningful to me.” In 2002, Mickey’s Heroes truck gained a lot of media attention and that’s when he started being known for doing amazing, real-life military scenes on cars and motorcycles, he said.

Mickey’s Tribute to the Heroes of 9/11 is known as his First Responder Tribute Silverado

“The Heroes truck was a tribute to 9/11 and it got a ton of exposure. So after that, people who were looking for that type of art started finding me on the Internet. All of a sudden, I received a lot of referrals for more memorial type stuff. There wasn’t any conscious effort to get into the military art, but it just happened after the Heroes truck. Don’t get me wrong, I

love doing this type of work. My father was a fighter pilot, so I was an Air Force brat and that’s why I have a close bond to the military and appreciate the sacrifices that our soldiers make.” Harris greatly values his decadelong relationship with SATA, he explained. “I started working with SATA back in 2003, when I met the Dan-Am Company people from Spring Valley, MN, and immediately liked Tony Larimer at SATA. I was doing seminar programs and we started a relationship and Tony and I eventually became very good friends. Dan-Am has really good people there and I like working with them because their word is gold, and that’s hard to find. SATA and Dan-Am invited me to go to Germany for the SATA 100th anniversary and I did a painting demonstration there at the SATA factory in 2006. They had a James Bond theme at the party, so I dressed up like Bond and walked out with a couple of mini-jet guns under my jacket and painted on a canvas to the James Bond theme song. It was a blast!” See Mickey Harris, Page 56

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 55

Continued from Page 53

Windshield Installs

froster lines when the part is installed. Non-conductive adhesives prevent interference with antenna systems and heated defroster systems that are contained in the glass. Many new glass parts have the antenna, defroster connections or buss bars around the edge of the glass in the same area that the adhesive is applied to install a glass part. Using a conductive adhesive will affect the performance of the electrical system. Several adhesive manufacturers offer a non-conductive product for these glass applications. A broken heated grid line on a backlite will affect the operation of the antenna. Many new radio and cellular phone antenna designs are incorporated into the heated grid design in the backlite. If a heated grid line is broken it will affect the performance of the antenna. The line break will become more noticeable with the general public as diversity antennas gain popularity and reduce the need for traditional mast antennas. There are aftermarket grid line repair systems available which can restore both the heating and the antenna characteristics of the grid line. Does the rain sensor module come on the replacement windshield? No. At this time, none of the rain sensor de-

signs require the sensor to be applied by the manufacturer on the replacement windshields. The electronic sensor that is on the existing windshield in the car must be removed and re-mounted onto the replacement windshield. How is the rain sensor attached to the replacement windshield? There are special re-attachment kits for the replacement industry, available through your local dealer, which can be used to re-attach the electronic rain sensor to the new windshield. The Cadillac kit consists of tape, cleaners and primers for replacing the Cadillac module. The Mercedes/BMW kit contains the tape and a new lens. Instructions for application are included in all the kits.

Encapsulated Glass has the molding permanently attached to the glass. Most of the time when the glass is removed, the molding is damaged and a new glass and molding is necessary.

As I promised earlier, here is my idea of a release form:

Date and Time of Install __________________________________ Repair Order # _______________________________ Make of Vehicle _________________ Model___________________ Name of Company that is supplying the glass ___________________ Name of Installer__________________________________________ Brand Name of Adhesive and number _________________________ Expiration Date ____________________________________ Primer Applied and Type ____________________________________ Drive Time _______________________________________________ Type of Glass Installed _______________________________ Location on Vehicle of Glass Installed _________________________ Remarks ________________________________________________ ________________________________________________________

Free Twice Monthly Newsletter at www.autobodynews.com 56 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

Continued from Page 54

Mickey Harris

Hooking up with SATA to develop a new airbrush has been an exciting and fulfilling experience, he said. “I sat down with the people from SATA to develop the SATAgraph 4. It took two years of development to get it where it needed to

One of Mickey’s most celebrated vehicles is this 100th GM Anniversary Chevrolet Suburban that was unveiled at SEMA 2011

be. It was introduced at this year’s SEMA Show and people immediately liked it. We wanted to come up with an affordable airbrush that was a good airbrush that can work well in the trenches. I call this the AK-47 of airbrush guns, because you can beat the hell out of it, throw it in the mud and it keeps working. It retails

for $149, so it’s absolutely competitive. It’s got good German engineering in it, but one of the things I like the most about it is we’re able to make it here in the good old USA. I tell people it’s German engineered and American made.” Harris uses SATA airbrushes almost exclusively for many reasons, he explained. “I really like all of SATA’s airbrushes, but the SATAgraph 4 has some great features. It’s got a tip protection cap that’s reversible, so you’ll never lose the cap, which can be a problem with other airbrushes out there. We believe it’s going to be the #1 selling airbrush within the next four years, because it’s a better product.” Passionate about every aspect of his life, Harris describes himself as someone who is “old, but still running around like I’m 20 year-old.” He added, “I love what I do, but I’m starting to realize that it’s a little harder now to operate at a high level. I just hope I can live long enough to do everything I want to do. Right now, I’m very happy, because I’m really enjoying my life; working harder now and producing better stuff than ever. So it’s a good time!”

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 57

Industry Continues its Support of Linda Holcomb by Melanie Anderson

As Linda Holcomb, President of the Glendale/Foothill/Pasadena California Autobody Association chapter, fights her battle with breast cancer, industry members continue to rally behind one of the first female pioneers in the business. Holcomb recently underwent a minor surgery, followed by her third round of chemotherapy treatment. In addition, her treatment will include surgery, radiation and breast re-construction, followed by a year of herception therapy and five years of hormone treatment. “You have your ups and downs,” said Holcomb. “That’s part of this program.” She said the support and well wishes she’s getting from the industry really means so much to her. “This is truly what keeps me in very high spirits and what will get me through this.” Holcomb has about 10 more months of treatment. “I can’t tell you how grateful I am for all of the cards and checks industry people are sending me. We are up to close to $19,000,” Linda said. “This has allowed me to pay for a lot of medical bills, and has taken away so much anxiety. After my third chemo treatment, my tumors have shrunk by 50%. That is pretty good progress. But I’m far from finished. I am about a third of the way through this treatment.” Holcomb, of J.R. Sandoval Enterprises in Monrovia, CA, began working in the auto equipment sales industry in 1968, right out of high school. In 1970, Wilson Sales Co. assigned Linda to a “Paint Your Car in 24 Hours” concept body shop, in Caracas, Venezuela, where she also became the first woman Chamber of Commerce member. In 1973, Linda returned to Long Beach, CA, and started J.R. Sandoval Enterprises, which distributes body shop equipment and manufactured paint spray booths. In 1975, Linda met Maureen Holmes of Holmes Body Shop in Pasadena, CA. At the time, not many women were intensely involved or truly engaged in the auto body business. This mutual passion provided the communality for friendship along with another female body shop coowner, Linda Murphy from Glendale, CA. In those days, the three women were the only women at industry association meetings.

“I have known Linda Holcomb to be extremely active in the collision industry for over 30 years. She has continuously been an advocate for collision repairers at Linda resting at home with her dog after chemo treatment many different levels of involvement. Through local association chapters, state associations and national associations, Linda has participated as a committee member, advisor, and active volunteer to address the issues important to those who toil within the shops. She has supported us and in turn it is now our opportunity to

In 2011, Linda Holcomb was voted ‘Best Chapter President’ in the California Autobody Association. She has participated in the CAA, CIC, SCRS, Write It Right Committee, Best Practices Committee, Environmental Committee and more. She has spent enormous amounts of time with the SCAQMD, South Coast Air Quality Management District, on behalf of the interests of shop owners in southern California and elsewhere. Ben Mendoza, Orange County chapter president of the CAA, recently praised Linda for all the time she spent going to the SCAQMD board meetings and how valuable that has been. He said how unusual it was that they actually listened to the industry due in no small part to the efforts of Linda Holcomb. He also said Linda was at least partially responsible for getting the delay on implementation of AQMD Rule 1147. After her husband’s death, Holcomb raised her son alone and he recently moved to start a new job in Brooklyn, NY. Linda has always prided herself on being independent and self sufficient. Now, stricken with cancer, without family to help, and the necessity of taking time out of work for doctors and hospitals and treatments, she finds herself in a position of needing financial assistance, Holmes said. To donate to Linda’s health care fund, please contact Lillian Maimone at lillianm@marcoscollisioncenters.com or mail a check made out to Linda Holcomb at 317 Linwood Avenue, Unit B,

58 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

support her.”—Jeff Hendler, CIC and JD Hendler/Associates

“Linda has been very generous with her time, talent, and energies in supporting the collision repair industry in southern California. Quick support from good friends like Maureen Holmes, Lillian Maimone, and Linda Murphy, provides good example to the rest of us to do what we can to help Linda during this difficult time.”—Joe Hayes, GMG EnviroSafe “Having the pleasure of knowing Linda Holcomb for over 20 years, I can say that she has done more things behind the scenes for the betterment of our industry than most of us will ever know. I do not remember ever seeing her without her big smile. She is always there when you need her. I am honored to know Linda and to be able to call her my friend.”—Farzam Afshar, CEO of VeriFacts Automotive

Monrovia, CA 91016. “I’m so honored and grateful for all of the industry support,” Holcomb said. “It makes me feel so proud that so many people care about me and my path to recovery. Thanks to everyone for their help.”

For more information about Linda’s background and biography see our August, 2008 story “Linda Holcomb Plays Hand She Is Dealt, Hits a Grand Slam in Life” at www.autobodynews.com. Search ‘Linda Holcomb’for the story and to read about her other contributions.

ASA President Ron Pyle Has Resigned from ASA, Dan Risley Appointed as Interim Executive Director Ron Pyle has resigned as president and chief staff executive of the Automotive Service Association (ASA), the organization announced April 22. Pyle, who has served as president of the ASA since November 2002, said the “transition of executive leadership has been in process for several months.” He will continue to work with the association in an advisory role through the end of the year. “We know Ron’s decision to step down was made with mixed emotions. We understand his choice and appreciate his efforts to ensure a smooth transition,” said Ron Nagy, immediate past chairman of the ASA. “Consulting with the ASA leadership in the months to come will be of tremendous value to the board and staff of this great association. We thank Ron for his decade of service to the members of ASA.”The Automotive Service Association (ASA) appointed Dan Risley as interim executive director. The announcement comes following Ron Pyle’s decision to step down as president and chief staff executive. Pyle joined the national staff in July 2002 and assumed the role of president in November 2002. Risley, who joined ASA in

March as executive vice president, said, “I’m grateful for the opportunity to serve an association with the storied history of ASA. The ASA board of directors is committed to strengthening the association through open communication and collaboration. I intend on helping them fulfill that commitment.” “Dan’s leadership and presence within the auto repair industry are just a few of the underlying reasons we believe he is a perfect complement to ASA,” said Darrell Amberson, AAM, ASA chairman and vice president of operations at LaMettry’s Collision in Minneapolis. “The board looks forward to collaborating with him and leveraging his strengths to better the association and the value our membership receives.” Risley, who has served the industry in many roles throughout his career, came to ASA after six years at Allstate Insurance Co. where he was a market claims manager. Prior to that, he served as executive director of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists for seven years, from 20012008. Pyle will continue to work with ASA in an advisory role until the end of the year.

Mitchell recently released RepairCenter Connect, a new solution that the company says streamlines communications between insurance companies and collision repair shops by allowing any shop, even those outside Direct Repair Program (DRP) networks, to receive an appraisal assignment from an insurance company. By simplifying assignment retrieval and automatically consolidating the important artifacts into Mitchell WorkCenter, RepairCenter Connect contains all the functionality necessary for insurers to expand their body shop network to include non-DRP shops. As a result, Mitchell says work can be shifted to more cost-effective channels, without the manual communications that often increase chances for error and create more inefficiencies. “Two important industry drivers—efficiency and cost—played a major role as Mitchell sought to improve the often slow, manual communications required when insurers work with out-of-network shops on a claim,” said Jesse Herrera, Senior Vice President, Product Management

and Customer Experience. “With RepairCenter Connect, the same tools work for any shop, allowing even low-volume and out-of-network shops to receive assignments and upload artifacts. It is part of Mitchell’s ongoing commitment to increase efficiency within the claim and repair process.” Mitchell says that for shops already using Mitchell software for communication with insurance companies, the experience will be seamless. They can receive assignments and upload estimates and supporting documents in their current platform. Shops not using Mitchell software are directed to an intuitive, web-based portal for assignment needs, allowing for a simple transition that improves overall processes for insurers’ needs. RepairCenter Connect is fully integrated with Mitchell WorkCenter, an open, modular, and end-to-end physical damage claims settlement solution. To learn more about Mitchell’s shop program management capabilities, please visit mitchell.com/workcenter/repairmanagement.

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 59

Education Foundation to Offer Free 1-Year I-CAR Curriculum Grants to 100 Post-Secondary Schools

The Collision Repair Education Foundation will offer free one-year I-CAR® curriculum grants to 100 public postsecondary schools in 2013. This will assist post-secondary schools with budget constraints, allowing these schools to offer their students the new I-CAR® Professional Development Program™—Education Edition. The application for the curriculum grant will be part of the Education Foundation’s 2013 Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant. The grants are being funded by a donation from I-CAR as result of a new initiative that began in 2012, where I-CAR pledged $1 for every ICAR class attended in 2012. This resulted in a $200,000 donation to the Collision Repair Education Foundation; the largest monetary donation the Collision Repair Education Foundation has received since its founding in 1991. Half of these funds will be used to support the broad and important work the Foundation performs, and half will be reinvested specifically into post-secondary schools to help them access much needed curriculum. “Curriculum is the foundation to any collision repair training program,

and it is very unsettling to see that when school budgets get cut, curriculum budgets also get cut,” said Clark Plucinski, Executive Director of the Collision Repair Education Foundation. “If schools do not have even the basic curriculum to teach, students are missing out on a consistent and thorough learning experience. I applaud ICAR for taking the initiative in getting curriculum in the hands of the colleges across the country. This will benefit the collision students studying in those programs greatly.” To be eligible, public post-secondary schools must complete the 2013 Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant, which is available on the Collision Repair Education Foundation website at www.CollisionEducationFoundation.org. As part of the application, a school must submit an additional statement on why they would like to be considered for a curriculum grant. The application is due on May 31, 2013. Any questions about the application can be directed to Melissa Marscin, Director of Grant Programs for the Education Foundation at Melissa.marscin@ed-foundation.org.

Insurers Rated for Best and Worst Customer Experiences; USAA Ranked “Good” The 2013 Temkin Experience Ratings ranked 246 companies across 19 industries based on the customers’ experience. In its third year, the survey of 10,000 U.S. consumers found the insurance industry—comprised of 14 carriers—showed steady improvement from an average experience rating of 59% in 2011 to 65% in 2013. Bruce Temkin, managing partner of Temkin Group, said the survey began with a much larger group of the nation’s largest insurance carriers. The 14 insurers were chosen based on a minimum of 100 responses to the survey. The survey measured three components of customer satisfaction: • Functional—can customers do what they want to do. • Accessible—how easy is it to work with the company. • Emotional—how consumers feel about their indications with the company. USAA: Ranking: 29/246 Experience Rating: 77% Ranked with an overall carrier experience considered “Good” was USAA. USAA’s score improved from last year by four points.

Automotive Body Parts Association Hires Edward Salamy as New Executive Director

The Automotive Body Parts Association (ABPA) recently hired Edward Salamy of ETS Management Group, Inc. as their new Executive Director. He will officially join the association on April 1 to begin the transition phase from retiring Executive Director, Stan Rodman. Salamy brings to the position 15 years of experience in the alternative parts supply channel with the last seven years serving as the Director of Industry Relations for member company, KSI Trading Corporation. He remains a distributor member of the CAPA Board and will continue to help the association to promote the usage of certified parts—a long standing position of the ABPA. “Having served as a sales manager, regional manager and industry liaison, he is well aware of the many challenges our members face and I am excited to have him help lead the association into this new era of parts distribution,” said Nick Scheid, President of the ABPA Board of Directors. Stan Rodman, who has served as the ABPA’s Executive Director for over 30 years, informed the Board in

2011 of his intentions to retire in 2013 which lead to a 12-month national search for his successor. Through Rodman’s leadership and guidance, the members have enjoyed many years of insight, product and distribution advancements, market awareness and enjoyable conferences. “It has been the Board’s honor to work with Stan as he finishes his tenure and we are excited to now work with Ed as the new challenges we face have matured just as the industry itself has. At our upcoming annual convention, we will pay tribute to Stan Rodman as he passes on the baton to Ed Salamy in a joint celebration of where the ABPA has been and where we are going. We expect to see all our members at this historical event where they can say goodbye to a great friend and hello to their new leader while also meeting with peers, suppliers and other industry representatives,” said Scheid. The ABPA will hold its next business conference in Charleston, SC, May 1– 4. For more information, visit http://www.autobpa.com/.

60 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

State Farm: Ranking: 64/246 Rating: 73%. State Farm improved by 1 point from last year. Liberty Mutual: Ranking: 203/246 Rating: 56% In second-to-last place is Liberty Mutual, down 3 points from 2012. Another insurer that received a poor rating is American Family, which ranked 191 and received a rating of 58%. 21st Century: Ranking: 242/246 Rating: 49% In last place is 21st Century, a drop of 7 points over its 2012 rating. The company did poorly in all three of the rating components compared to the overall industry average with Functional the worst followed by Accessible and then Emotional. Nine insurers ranked in the midrange, with industry average rating between 60% and 70%. Nationwide ranked 100 with a rating of 68% and came in third among all the insurers. The other 10 insurance companies on the list, which ranked in the mid-range, are: GEICO, Allstate, Progressive, Metlife, Travelers, The Hartford, Farmers, and AAA.

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Hoffman Auto Body Fined $54K for OSHA Violations

An body shop in East Hartford, CT, is facing federal fines totaling $54,300 for repeated workplace safety violations, according to a statement from the U.S. Department of Labor’s Occupational Safety and Health Administration. The Hoffman Auto Group includes three dealerships and two auto body shops. The violations are specific to the company’s auto body repair facility at its East Hartford location. The shop was cited for unsafe storage of chemicals and flammable materials. The auto body shop was cited after an inspection that began on Dec. 6 to “verify correction of hazards cited during a 2011 inspection,” according to the statement. The inspection revealed that hazards identified during the 2011 inspection were still present a year later, including storage of flammable equipment and materials near paint spraying booths and electric panels. The stored materials “limited access to extinguish potential fires, presented fire and shock hazards and impeded cleaning around the booths, which allows potentially combustible materials to accumulate,” according to the statement.

Two citations, carrying $40,000 in proposed fines, were issued due to the repeat violations. Three other “serious violations” resulted in $14,300 in proposed fines, according to the statement. The statement went on to say that serious violations occur when “there is substantial probability that death or serious physical harm could result from a hazard about which the employer knew or should have known.” Those violations stemmed from improper storage, disposal and cleanup of combustible materials, as well as unlabeled containers of hazardous chemicals and an improperly located electrical outlet. OSHA said Hoffman had 15 business days from receipt of the citations to comply or contest the findings. The company is not contesting the citations. “The Hoffman family considers the safety of our employees a top priority and all issues identified by OSHA regulators in December of 2012 at the East Hartford body shop were rectified immediately and completely,” the company said in a statement. “Additionally, we will make whatever changes are appropriate to continue to ensure a safe workplace for our employees.”

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NABC’s Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit Available The National Auto Body Council recently announced that an Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit—complete with camera-ready artwork for posters, flyers, donation cards and envelopes—is now available on its website to make it easier for collision industry related companies to participate in the NABC’s $1.5 million Operation Comfort Capital Campaign. The NABC is spearheading industry-wide efforts to raise funds to purchase, renovate and equip a 30,000-sq-ft. training facility in San Antonio, TX, for Operation Comfort’s AutoMotivation program. Wounded soldiers in the AutoMotivation program benefit from occupational and rehabilitative therapies as they work on automotive projects. NABC-led efforts take the program to the next level by providing opportunities for disabled soldiers to learn new job skills and acquire certified I-CAR curriculum-based training for new career paths in the automotive industry. “Our industry also benefits in the long-run because the outcome will be an increased pool of skilled, trained technicians,” said Chuck Sulkala, NABC Executive Director. Suggested fundraisers that com-

panies could implement include: • Donating a specified dollar amount for each repair or product sold. • Matching each dollar donated by customers and the local community, and • Offering a special promotion with proceeds to benefit Operation Comfort. Creative development of the Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit was donated by Enterprise Rent-A-Car, which is also sponsoring a grand prize trip to Walt Disney World® Resort for the local shop that raises the most funds. “We wanted to offer a fun incentive and challenge to encourage as many companies as possible to join in our fundraising efforts for Operation Comfort,” said Mary Mahoney, Vice President for Enterprise. The Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit can be accessed via the NABC website at www.autobodycouncil.org. The Enterprise-sponsored contest runs to June 30. The awarding of the grand prize will be based on funds received by July 4, 2013. The winner will be announced at the NABC Board meeting July 23 in Boston. For more information about the Operation Comfort Fundraising Kit, contact Mary.F.Mahoney@ehi.com.

I-CAR Makes Milestone $200,000 Donation to Collision Repair Education Foundation I-CAR®, the Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair, recently donated $200,000 to the Collision Repair Education Foundation. The donation made by I-CAR is the largest monetary donation that the Collision Repair Education Foundation has received since its founding in 1991 and it will support the organization’s commitment to philanthropic and collision repair education activities that promote and enhance career opportunities in the industry. In 2012, I-CAR committed to set aside $1 for every I-CAR class attended in 2012. In effect, this donation was made possible by the Inter-Industry that trained with I-CAR throughout 2012. In 2012, I-CAR delivered just under 2,000 “student units,” which equates to just under 600,000 credit hours of training. Due to the goodness of the cause, the I-CAR Board made the decision to round the donation to $200,000. John Van Alstyne, I-CAR CEO & President said, “Thank you, InterIndustry. Without your commitment to training, I-CAR would not have been able to provide this level of support to the Collision Repair Education

Foundation! Together, I-CAR and the Collision Repair Education Foundation are working closely to reinforce the future sustainability of the industry.” The Collision Repair Education Foundation and I-CAR foster a partnership that supports education for the entire Inter-Industry. I-CAR serves as a provider of technical training curriculum to the education sector, whereas the Collision Repair Education Foundation’s objective is to advance Collision Repair secondary and post-secondary education by supporting funding for both schools and students. “Our collective goals are to help effectively equip secondary and postsecondary schools. We aim to help them attract aspiring students and to properly prepare graduates to add immediate value as future employees of our industry. Independently and together, we have a number of initiatives under way to accomplish this goal. This donation on behalf of the Inter-Industry will greatly help the Collision Repair Education Foundation advance its mission,” Van Alstyne said.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 61

I-CAR Declines Facilitation of OEM Repair Standards by I-CAR staff

During the Collision Industry Conference meeting in November 2011, I-CAR received a joint request signed by representatives from SCRS, ASA, AASP and Assured Performance Network, requesting that I-CAR support various OEM repair procedure initiatives in connection with the requesting organization’s associated position statement that OEM repair procedures are the recognized industry repair standard. Over the past seventeen months, I-CAR has worked towards defining processes, capabilities and resources to enable the organization to support the request in a manner that aligns with the organization’s vision, mission and duty to represent the interests of the InterIndustry with neutrality, and for the collective unbiased benefit of the InterIndustry. Despite the significant effort put forth by the I-CAR Board and Staff, given the organization’s duty to the Inter-Industry, and the reality that there are open disagreements on the related topic of standards across the Inter-Industry, the I-CAR Board of Directors decided that I-CAR will not proceed with implementation of a solution in response to this request as originally presented. The I-CAR Board of Direc-

tors enacted this decision at its March 7, 2013 I-CAR Board of Directors Meeting by unanimous consent of those board members in attendance at the meeting. In terms of the organization’s duty to the Inter-Industry, on the basis of neutrality, the following three points were important in the Board’s decision: ● The need for I-CAR to represent the best interests of the industry in an unbiased manner, avoiding the possible perception that I-CAR may be catering to the interests of any particular industry sub-segment(s) to the possible disadvantage of others. ● Potential difficulties constructing and managing the requested “Council” that met both the needs of the requestors and I-CAR’s Inter-Industry charter. ● The fact that although OEM procedures are widely recognized as the industry baseline for repairs, and I-CAR points to OEM procedures as such, there are opportunities to define recommended repair processes that would support and/or supplement OEM procedures given the span of possible repairs, consumer and insurer interests; while maintaining an unwavering commitment to complete & safe repairs. The I-CAR Board of Directors thanks the requesting organizations for

Industry Veteran Michael Quinn Joins uParts uParts, Inc., a leading provider of cloud-based electronic parts procurement solutions, recently announced the appointment of Michael Quinn as Senior Vice President of Business Development. “I am thrilled to join the uParts team. They have developed a stateof-the-art cloud-based parts procurement platform that has been long overdue for shops and parts suppliers,” stated Quinn. “Streamlining inefficient parts procurement processes will benefit these long-time trading partners as well as vehicle owners and auto insurers through improved repair experience.” Quinn is a repairer at heart who has become one of the most trusted leaders in the collision repair industry with many prestigious awards and distinctions. His most recent position was Senior VP of Industry and Community Relations for Caliber Collision. Prior to Caliber, he was co-founder and CEO of 911 Collision Centers, where he and his partner built seven successful repair facilities in Arizona and Nevada. In 2012, he completed a two year term as Chairman of the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) and was also inducted into the industry’s Hall of Eagles.

Through the NABC he helped to spearhead numerous charitable efforts including Katrina Relief, Recycled Rides, First Responder Emergency Extrication, and Operation Comfort. He has brought forth the generous side of our industry by uniting people for these philanthropic causes. “I’m excited to welcome Michael to our company,” said Alex Adegan, Founder and CEO of uParts. “His decision to join uParts is a testament to our vision and shared values with repair professionals and our mission to streamline their interactions with their suppliers. There’s no better indication of our commitment to help collision shops than having one of their most trusted advocates join our team.” uParts has been in stealth mode during the past three years, developing the next generation part procurement platform based on extensive collaboration with its charter member collision shops and parts suppliers. Repairers benefit by having immediate pricing and availability information from participating suppliers, enabling them to order all of their repair parts with a single mouse-click. Suppliers benefit by receiving electronic orders directly into their management systems.

62 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

bringing forth the request. As I-CAR identified early on, much of the proposed solution that was developed builds on work that I-CAR already does to serve the industry. And certain elements of the solution are closely linked to I-CAR’s strategic initiatives for 2013 and beyond. Thus, seeing value in certain elements of the proposed solution that would benefit the Inter-Industry, the I-CAR Board will work with staff to reframe and evaluate these elements as independent projects for implementation as follows: ● I-CAR recognizes an opportunity to expand its technical processes and resources to better support the industry’s interest to improve repair procedures and related repair process definition, and to provide real-time repairability technical support for the industry. This was a key part of our proposed solution and remains under consideration. ● OE Linking Pin—I-CAR maintains technical relations with OEM’s today. Our plan was to further expand this activity linked to expansion of our technical processes and resources, and this remains under consideration. ● Technical ISAC’s—I-CAR runs ISAC’s (Industry Segment Advisory Councils) today, our plan was to expand these to include an OEM Techni-

cal ISAC and various technology focused ISAC’s, and this remains under consideration. ● Repairability Summits – I-CAR runs Repairability Summits today, our plan was to expand these, and this remains under consideration. ● Knowledge Portal—The primary goal with the knowledge portal was to provide enhanced Inter-Industry accessibility to the knowledge required to perform complete and safe repairs. There were 5 key elements to the knowledge portal, each adding unique value; therefore, each element will be considered on its own merit. ● All related initiatives will be subject to further Board review considering alignment with I-CAR’s charter, impact versus Inter-Industry defined needs, prioritization versus other ICAR initiatives, and funding requirements. I-CAR’s goal is to be of greater service to the Inter-Industry while being true to its Inter-Industry charter. The Board and Staff of I-CAR remains confident that these initiatives hold great promise as steps forward for both I CAR and the Inter-Industry. See I-CAR’s most recent statement and John Yoswick’s article on the cover of this issue for reaction from collision industry participants at CIC.

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WIN Announces Scholarship Winners for Conference

The Women’s Industry Network (WIN) announced its scholarship winners for the 2013 WIN Educational Conference to be held May 5–7, 2013. In keeping with its mission to support and encourage women who are entering or are already in the collision industry, WIN has offered nine scholarships to attend the event being held at the Ritz Carlton in Phoenix, AZ. Receiving student scholarships are: Zoe Gorow, studying at Lake Washington Institute of Technology,

Kirkland, WA; and Kaitlyn Lease, attending Lexington Technology Center, Columbia, SC. The shop employee winners are: Lindsey Hassevoort, Customer Service Representative, Holland Auto Body Xperts Carstar, Grand Rapids, MI; Myssee Grysen, Customer Service Representative, Holland Auto Body Xperts Carstar, Grand Rapids, MI; Melissa Kaboos, Collision Repair Teaching Assistant, Kent Career Technical Center, Hudsonville, MI; and Amanda Bolton,

Estimator, Gerber Collision and Glass, Jessup, MD. For more information on WIN Scholarships, visit womensindustrynetwork.com/Scholarships.aspx or contact Teresa Bolton at tbolton@ase.com.

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NJ Man Arrested for Body Shop Burglary After Storm Sandy

Police arrested a 66-year-old Asbury Park, NJ, man who they say burglarized a body shop in the aftermath of superstorm Sandy. Andray Glover was arrested on charges of burglary and possession of burglary tools. Glover burglarized Samuel’s Auto Body on Nov. 4, said Police Chief Robert Adams. He said Glover was connected to the burglary after a thorough investigation, which included physical evidence. Glover is being held at the Monmouth County jail, Freehold Township, in lieu of $52,000 bail.

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www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 63

PPG Appoints Frank Sklarsky as VP of Finance

PPG Industries announced Frank S. Sklarsky will join the company as executive vice president, finance, effective April 15, reporting to Chairman and CEO Charles E. Bunch. “David’s detailed understanding of PPG’s global businesses and deep financial management expertise are invaluable, as demonstrated recently in his role supporting our strategic initiatives to separate PPG’s commodity chemicals business and to acquire AkzoNobel’s North American architectural coatings business,” said Bunch. Also, effective August 1, Sklarsky will be named PPG executive vice president and chief financial officer. David B. Navikas, currently PPG senior vice president, finance and chief financial officer, will continue in his current role until August 1, and will then continue as senior vice president in a senior leadership role that will be announced later. “We are pleased to welcome Frank to PPG. His deep financial management expertise and executive leadership experience guiding strategy and operations with large, global enterprises will be an asset to PPG as we continue to grow and expand our

positions around the world,” Bunch said. “Frank, David and I will work closely together with PPG’s global finance organization and the entire leadership team as we carry out this important senior leadership succession,” Bunch said. Most recently, Sklarsky was executive vice president and chief financial officer of Tyco International, Ltd., a global provider of security, fire protection and flow control solutions with revenues that exceeded $17 billion. Prior to joining Tyco, Sklarsky served as executive vice president and chief financial officer at both Eastman Kodak Co. and ConAgra Foods, Inc. Previously, he spent 20 years with Chrysler in a series of senior financial leadership roles. He also held finance positions with Dell, Inc., after beginning his career with Ernst & Young. Sklarsky is a member of the board of directors of Harman International Industries, Inc., and of Rochester Institute of Technology. He holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Rochester Institute of Technology and an MBA from Harvard Business School, and he is a certified public accountant.

Northern California Man Pleads No Contest to Selling Counterfeit ALLDATA Products

ALLDATA LLC, a provider of manufacturers’ automotive repair information and solutions for the professional automotive service and collision repair industries, recently announced the successful arrest and prosecution of a software counterfeiting operation. The company has a long-standing program dedicated to tracking down illegal sales of ALLDATA products, an effort which routinely results in prosecution. In the most recent case, William Edwin White, III, was arrested in December 2012, following a fivemonth investigation by the Stanislaus County Sheriff Department and Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force. The two law enforcement agencies worked with the ALLDATA Antipiracy team to investigate the illegally copied ALLDATA products that White had advertised for sale. “We aggressively pursue software piracy,” said ALLDATA President Jeff Lagges. “It’s theft, and it hurts our customers by driving up costs. But it’s not the same as downloading a pirated song—it’s potentially a consumer safety issue because counterfeiters don’t care if the infor-

mation is correct. We do care, because incorrect information should never be used to repair vehicles. People who don’t realize they bought pirated software often call us to complain that the product isn’t working correctly, which is why it’s so important to purchase ALLDATA Repair through our sales team or our company website.” ALLDATA licenses vehicle repair, diagnostic and maintenance information directly from manufacturers and provides it to customers through a secure, Web-based portal. “Manufacturers often add, remove and change information,” said Lagges. “Offering our products through online subscriptions allows us to get changes to our customers quickly. So buying counterfeit ALLDATA products not only wastes money, it’s a risky business that we’re working hard to stop.” Following the investigation and December arrest, White was found guilty, sentenced and ordered to pay restitution to ALLDATA.

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64 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

NADA Says Rising New-Vehicle Sales Lifted Dealer Profits for a Record Year in 2012 Rising new-vehicle sales lifted average dealership pre-tax profit to a record $843,697 last year, a National Automobile Dealers Association survey shows. The average store’s 2012 profit rose 6% from the previous record set in 2011. NADA began the annual survey in 1970. Dealers’ average return on sales held steady at 2%, but profit rose because of a sharp increase in demand for new and used vehicles. Total revenue rose 9% at the average store to $38,359,930, Automotive News reported. The rising profit has given dealers a reason to cheer this tax season, said John Bachle, an accountant at Sartain Fischbein & Co. in Tulsa, OK. “They’re always fun to deal with, but they’re much more fun if they’re making money,” said Bachle, whose firm has about 50 dealer clients. The new-car department provided 56% of the average dealer’s revenue in 2012, up from 54% in 2011. The used-car department provided 32% of revenue last year, unchanged from 2011. Parts and service business fell from 13% of the average dealer’s revenue to 12%.

In 2007, the last full year before the economic downturn, new cars provided 59% of the average dealer’s revenue, while used cars provided 29% and the parts and service business provided 12%. Dealers again benefited in 2012 from low interest rates and factory floorplan assistance programs. Last year, the average dealer made money on floorplanning: a $72 credit per new car sold, according to the NADA data. That was up from $48 per vehicle in 2011, accounting for nearly half of the total increase in pretax profits. Typically, the interest paid to keep cars and trucks on the lot has been a major expense. In 2007, the average dealer paid $103,708 for floorplan interest, or $167 for every car sold. Last year, dealers made money because they took advantage of programs in which factories repay them for interest. Brisk sales left dealers with tighter-than-usual inventories, so cars and trucks did not sit on lots very long and dealers profited from the incentives, said Carl Woodward, a dealer accountant at Woodward & Associates Inc. in Bloomington, IL.

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Collision Education Makeover School Grant Applications Due by May 31 The Collision Repair Education Foundation is encouraging collision industry businesses to take an active part in their local collision school programs by assisting them in applying for the 2013 Ultimate Collision Education Makeover $50,000 school grant. Two $50,000 grants (one secondary, one post-secondary) will be awarded this year, as well as several secondary prizes of $10,000. Below are the top 3 reasons why industry members should be working together with their local collision school programs on the 2013 Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant application: #3. Establish connection with local collision school, instructor, administration, and students. Now is the opportune time for industry businesses to become fully engaged with their local collision school programs. By meeting with school administration, the collision instructor(s), and their students, local businesses can view firsthand what their collision program needs are and coach them on what skill sets collision students should have by graduation to ensure for the most efficient and capable professional possible. #2. Makeover applicant schools at the top of Education Foundation’s

support list in 2013. The schools that apply for 2013 Makeover grant receive top priority for support by the Collision Repair Education Foundation in the coming year. Since the Makeover grant’s inception in 2009, the non-winning schools have received over $1 million (total) in donations and support. Makeover applicant instructors are also provided exclusive opportunities to attend technical training and receive other donations from industry supporters. #1. Congrats, your local school has won and their $50,000 collision wish list will be fulfilled. There will be at least two selected Makeover winning schools this fall and local industry members taking an active part in the application process can help enhance a school’s application. Many collision schools are facing severely reduced budgets and this grant will transform the winning collision programs for many years to come. An industry member’s guidance and support of helping a local school apply for the Makeover grant could lead to that school being selected as one of the winners. Instructors are advised to begin the application early which is available online at CollisionEducation-

Foundation.org. The Makeover grant is available to secondary and post-secondary collision school programs nationwide, with priority going to not-for-profit/public schools. The application is due May 31, 2013 and the winning schools will be announced during an industry reception to be held at SEMA 2013. As part of the Makeover grant application, schools provide their own itemized wish list, which can include any tools, supplies, and equipment that are needed by the collision program. Each of the winning schools will have their $50,000 wish list fulfilled through the Collision Repair Education Foundation and industry donors/supporters. The goal of the Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant is to honor a school that has been doing an outstanding job in educating students in collision repair, but needs some financial assistance to improve their program’s teaching materials and equipment. With strained school budgets, the Education Foundation and industry supporters have the opportunity to bridge the program’s financial gap and to make a difference in the lives of the students studying collision repair.

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CCC Information Services recently donated $25,000 to the Collision Repair Education Foundation to help support collision school programs and collision students. The funding will allow for four collision student scholarships, which will be given away in May 2013 as part of the $300,000 in awards the Collision Repair Education Foundation is offering. CCC information Services will also award a collision program with a $10,000 “Classroom Makeover Grant” in order for the school to be able to purchase needed classroom material such as curriculum, computers, audio-visual equipment, or other related items needed for a school’s collision classroom area. The winning school will be selected from the schools that apply for the 2013 Collision Repair Education Foundation Ultimate Collision Education Makeover grant. The application for the Makeover grant is available at www.CollisionEducationFoundation.org and is due on May 31. Schools who apply will be eligible for one of two $50,000 Makeover grants, and an additional six $10,000 awards.

Axalta Offers Courses

Axalta Coating Systems is offering new damage analysis and production management courses for the heavy duty truck market. The HDT Damage Analysis course provides a standard damage analysis approach to write more complete estimates and increase consistency of estimates to raise repair center’s gross profit and increase the percentage of closed repair orders. This one-day class includes numerous hands-on exercises related to the commercial vehicle collision industry, which emphasize the principles taught during the course. HDT Production Management course focuses to assist implementation of lean principles relating to blueprinting, proper parts management and production controls in a commercial vehicle repair center. Key techniques to improve technician efficiency, reduce cycle time and improve customer satisfaction are examined in this one-day course. Industry experts from Team Marketing Group are the main content contributors and will provide the primary instructors for these courses. For additional information or to register, contact your local Axalta Coating Systems representative or call 1.800.438.3876.

Aaron Clark Named VP at Assured Performance

Aaron Clark has been named Assured Performance Co-Op Network’s vice president of national certification and network development and will be based at corporate headquarters in Irvine, CA. “We are thrilled to have Aaron joining our executive team to work closely with our staff and member shops driving the Certification program. He has the perfect background to help expand the impact and value of body shop Certification for all involved,” said Scott Biggs, CEO of Assured Performance. Clark has worked in the automotive and collision repair industry for more than 25 years as a body shop owner. Clark previously operated five body shop operations in the Indianapolis area, which he sold to ABRA Auto Body & Glass. Clark founded the Indiana Auto Body Association (IABA), served as chairman of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS) for the past two years, and served on Assurance Performance’s board of directors for four years. “This new position fully leverages my knowledge as a former shop owner, and interests in the well-being of the collision industry,” said Clark.

www.autobodynews.com | MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS 65

On Creative Marketing

Tom Franklin has been a sales and marketing consultant for fifty years. He has written numerous books and provides marketing solutions and services for many businesses. He can be reached at (323) 871-6862 or at tbfranklin@aol.com. See Tom’s columns at www.autobodynews.com under Columnists > Franklin

Using Signage to be Unique in the Digital Age with Thomas Franklin

Are signs still relevant in this digital age of websites, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and more? The U.S. Census Bureau says 18% of households relocate every year. It’s well known that many people choose a place of business by the attractiveness of its appearance and signs. People who move into the vicinity of a collision repair facility are likely to only know of the shop if they see a sign and like it. The Small Business Agency reports that businesses that add, improve or enlarge signage enjoy an average revenue increase of about 5%. Signs in this digital age should also have a broader focus. In addition to the usual location and services message, today’s sign should also drive viewers to the shop’s website, Facebook page, and other on-line locations like Twitter, Pinterest and YouTube. This is especially true of signs not on the shop’s physical property. Shop vehicles with printed information, or a

magnetic sign, should definitely emphasize on-line connections in larger type. The same is true if the shop invests in bus bench ads, bus ads, taxicab ads or billboards. All of the signs and ads should have the same look and feel with a prominent logo and any other images used. Some shops like to use a photo of the shop but this space could be much better used. Signs with an emotional appeal always do better. Charities use photos of handicapped children or handicapped older people to reach viewers emotionally. Sympathy may work for them but fear is a much better target emotion for body shop sign messages. One survey found 9% of vehicle drivers text or talk on a cell phone while driving. A dramatic photo of an inverted crashed vehicle could capture attention with a message like, “This could be you. Don’t text and drive or you might be paying us a visit,” or

“Don’t read this sign if we’re interrupting your text message. We’ll see you at the shop.” One key to an effective sign is uniqueness. Check out your competition’s signs to see what you shouldn’t do. You don’t want to be sending a “me too” message. It’s pointless to emphasize quality. Everyone expects that. Emphasizing cost for self-pay prospects is fine, but is unlikely to motivate those who expect insurance to pay. One approach that isn’t often used is the collision prevention emphasis. It takes a tip from dentists who emphasize tooth care but know they’ll be fixing the teeth anyway. A shop with an adequate facility to hold a small weekly or monthly class could provide information on collision aversion and prevention. Insurance agents would be glad to speak to young drivers or students just for the exposure to new potential customers. The sign invitation message would be truly unique.

The size and location of a sign generally determines how many people see and read it. Today’s huge, digital moving signs are astonishing but also very expensive. Ten years ago I priced out a Las Vegas style moving neon sign for a shop. The cost was over $500,000. It’s probably much less today but still prohibitive for any regular sized shop. But this type of sign is worth checking out. In a location by heavy street or highway traffic this kind of sign would capture continual viewers. A while back one group of shops in the same general area pooled their resources and invested in large signage. They called themselves “Gold Class Collision Shops” and listed all locations on the signs. I was surprised by the cooperation of shop owners who were actually competing for business in that area. There is one final concern about the message on signs and related media. Any shop with a website

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would like to have their site appear on Google’s or Yahoo’s first page when someone searches for a collision repair facility in their area. The search engine that weighs and evaluates the site determines in what order their site appears. My web-savvy sources tell me content on a site is very important and the keywords used in that content may determine the fate of the site when it is evaluated. If a shop has done its homework, the best keywords that people look for are known and used frequently in the site’s content. The problem is that all of the other shops doing a professional site will be using most of the same key words. Here is where a shop seeking uniqueness in signs and ads can multiply the benefit by incorporating key words and images that most other shops wouldn’t use. By approaching the content for a sign using the same basic keyword and image idea used to attract search engine recognition, it is also likely to attract a sign’s viewer and drive that viewer to look for the shop’s website.

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Big Changes Coming for ASRW, Shorter Schedule, Possible Partnership The Automotive Service Association (ASA) will make several fundamental changes to the 2013 NACE Expo to create a different experience for both attendees and exhibitors, ASA’s Executive Vice President Dan Risley announced during the Collision Industry Conference (CIC) meeting held in Phoenix in early April. Risley said the goal of the changes to NACE is to promote unity in the industry, and reaffirm the event as the place where the collision repair industry comes together. “Many exhibitors and regular supporters of NACE expressed concern with supporting two national trade shows several weeks apart. Many of those individuals have asked ASA to help play a role in facilitating a resolve to the issue,” Risley said. “ASA and its board of directors are committed to addressing many of those concerns and playing a role in unifying the industry.” Risley said significant effort was made this year to change the dates of the NACE event, which is scheduled for Oct. 17–19 at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center in Las Vegas—less than three weeks prior to the 2013 SEMA Show in Las Vegas. Risley said the ASA was unable to change the

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dates due to several factors, so the organization opted to implement new changes to the trade show instead. For example, the MSO Symposium—which to date has been reserved solely for multiple-shop operators—will be opened up to all independent, single-location repairers. In addition, Risley said the traditional NACE Welcome Reception will no longer be a stand-alone event. The Welcome Reception will be incorporated into the trade show to further promote networking and unity in the industry. Risley said more information regarding changes to NACE will soon be announced. “Significant additional announcements that further illustrate our commitment to improve the overall experience will be made in the weeks and months leading up to NACE,” Risley said. Darrell Amberson, chairmanelect of the ASA’s board of directors, said there will be a major announcement made later this year regarding the 2014 NACE event. He said the ASA is considering “a full range of options,” including partnering with other shows or changing the date to a different time of the year. “We have not worked through all

the details, but are certain the changes will be viewed positively by the industry,” Amberson said. “The industry has strongly supported NACE for more than 30 years. Based on that, it is clear to us that the industry deserves to have a show solely dedicated to the auto mechanical and collision repair industries. As part of this industry, it tears my heart out when we’re so fractured and dysfunctional. We’re really serious about creating unity. We’re here to take action and bring [the industry] together,” Amberson said. The ASA also asked the CIC to consider switching its fall meeting dates from November to October in order to coincide with NACE rather than SEMA. CIC’s fall meeting has been held during the week of SEMA since 2010. The ASA offered the CIC free meeting space if it opted to alter its dates. Jeff Hendler, administrator of the CIC, said the organization has a contractual commitment to SEMA through 2016. The ASA’s request will not be considered until that time.

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Inside Insurance

The Insider is a corporate-level executive with a Top 10 auto insurer in the U.S.. Got a comment or question you’d like to see him address in a future column? Email him at Auto.Insurance.Insider@gmail.com

Shops Should Be Able to Offer Whatever Discounts They Want with The Insurance Insider

There is enough controversy in the industry today to write three or four different stories on the hot topics. I will not contribute to the proliferation of propaganda and conspiracy theories by discussing parts or insurance company direct repair programs. I have another controversy for shops to rally around.

Due to my executive position and the company I am employed by, I have not been able to share my views publicly or within the confines of my corporation. Don’t feel bad for me. That’s why I write these articles. I can share my thoughts and experience without placing my job in jeopardy. I can only imagine what would happen if I decided to challenge “The Institution” and talk about what is widely considered heresy amongst insurance executives. Several decades ago, it was common practice for shops to help customers with their “out-of-pocket expense.” Shops would attract and assist their customers by paying a tow bill or a portion of their rental car expense. Some shops went further and decided to cover the customer’s deductible. How was this possible? It was because there weren’t a lot of laws and regulations strictly prohibiting the behavior of cost-shifting. Insurance companies knew about it, although we

didn’t take direct action to address it. It was easy to cost-shift 40 years ago because OEM sheet metal parts were very expensive. Parts were three times the price they are today. They were also three times the size and weight. OEM parts were expensive because there wasn’t any real competition. (The aftermarket parts industry

was still only in its infancy.) If you had to replace a fender, you ordered a genuine OEM part from the dealership. Because parts were expensive, shops could write for a new part and repair the old one. This allowed shops to make a lot of money on labor, save the customer money and still do a safe repair. Life was much easier for body shops back then. Direct repair programs didn’t exist, which facilitated the body shop industry accepting the widespread adoption of cost-shifting. Now, because of legislation, costshifting is considered fraudulent. What about deductibles? There is legislation in many states that prohibits a shop from “saving” or “reimbursing” the customer’s deductible. Here is where I am going to stray from the herd: I believe shops should be able to advertise and implement deductible saving programs. Shops should be able to decide whether or not they want to offer incentives to their consumers as a means of gaining

68 MAY 2013 AUTOBODY NEWS | www.autobodynews.com

business. I think we refer to that as competition in the marketplace. I do not believe I would find a colleague here in the insurance industry to support my ideology. The problem is trust. I suppose this cunning old wily insurance veteran still believes that shops have some integrity. But every piece of legislation ever proposed or enacted was put in place because generally my industry doesn’t trust shops to do the right thing. Nobody will publicly make that statement, but it is fact. Insurers believe that it is impossible for a shop to offer a significantly discounted deductible without cost-shifting. I agree to some extent because the profit margins in the shops are certainly not what they were in the 70s or 80s. But if a shop decided they wanted to reduce their profit margin to gain a customer, why should it be illegal? Isn’t that the true definition of a direct repair program? I am not sure how

providing a discounted deductible is any different. After all, shops agree to provide a parts discount or reduced labor rate in exchange for being on a direct repair program in order to gain business. I am not advocating for “costshifting” or committing fraud. I am not supporting shops writing all OEM parts so they can repair them or replace them with aftermarket parts. I am suggesting that shops should be able to offer whatever discount they want to customers, up to and including reduced deductibles. Considering today’s economy, customers may be more apt to have their vehicle repaired rather than cashing out. If it was up to me, I would trust you to do the right thing. You should also know that I do not employ enough adjusters to reinspect every vehicle we insure, thus rendering my opinion moot. But I trust you.

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PARTS Act Reintroduced in U.S. House of Representatives Reintroduced legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives on April 22 is designed to amend patent law regarding automotive parts. House Judiciary Committee members Rep. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Rep. Zoe Lofgren (D-CA), and Senate Judiciary Committee members Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse (D-RI) and Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) introduced H.R. 1663, Promoting Automotive Repair, Trade and Sales Act of 2013 (PARTS). Search “PARTS Act” at autobodynews.com for previous analysis of this legislation. The PARTS Act would amend U.S. design patent law to reduce the exclusivity period car companies hold on design patents for collision repair parts from 14 years to 30 months (or two-and-a-half years) during which time other suppliers could test, research and develop parts on a not-for-sale basis. The current 14-year design patent monopoly prevents aftermarket manufacturers from making or selling external collision repair parts on newer vehicles. “The decision to purchase an automobile is one of the biggest invest-

ments a family makes,” Rep. Issa said. Issa personally holds about 12 automotive patents, many related to automotive alarms, and has amassed a personal fortune of many millions based on his family’s aftermarket parts business. “With the average sticker price of a new car now exceeding $30,000 and repair costs continuing to rise, hardworking American families deserve access to as many repair part options as possible. The PARTS Act will not only increase consumer choice therefore reducing aftermarket costs but encourage innovation and competition among other aftermarket parts manufacturers.” “This bipartisan bill is aimed at helping Americans who depend on their cars to be safe, reliable and on the road so they can get their kids to school and drive to work every day,” Rep. Lofgren said. “By increasing fair competition in the auto parts market, consumers will ultimately benefit by getting the best value for their dollar when they need to shop for safe, high quality replacement car parts to keep their cars running.” “Having to replace a car part is

frustrating enough; drivers shouldn’t have to pay artificially high prices set by car manufacturers,” Sen. Whitehouse said. “This bill will preserve competition in the car-parts market and ultimately allow consumers to get safe replacement parts at lower prices.” “The PARTS Act keeps competition in the marketplace, ensuring that consumers have access to affordable parts they need for their vehicles,” Sen. Hatch said. “I’m hopeful we can get this legislation passed by the House and Senate and signed into law soon.” Critics of the legislation argue that reducing patent protection to 30 months would make the design of a real car significantly less important than the image of a car as portrayed in cartoons, for example, where copyright patent protection applies for 120 years. Further, opponents argue that designing and engineering the original part is far more costly than copying it and that automakers rely on the profits from sales of these parts to help offset this cost. If the automakers lose more sales of replacement parts to the aftermarket this loss of profit will only be passed onto the consumer with higher

new car prices. Repairers in general are strong proponents of OEM parts except on saving costs for older vehicles. At a March 16, 2010 hearing in front of the House Judiciary committee, Damian Porcari, attorney and director, Enforcement and Licensing, Ford Global Technologies, said, “The copyists want to eliminate design patent protection because that’s what they make. As soon as their business model includes engines, brakes and air bags, we will likely hear the call for the elimination of patent protection on all types of replacement parts. And it won’t stop with cars. The denial of intellectual property rights will always reduce copiers’ costs.” Porcari also accused insurers of basing insurance premiums on OEM parts pricing but pushing repairers to install cheaper, non-OEM parts to save money. The PARTS Act mirrors legislation introduced by Reps. Darrell Issa and Zoe Lofgren in the 112th Congress. It would take effect 90 days after enactment and apply to design patents issued prior to, on, and after the date of enactment.

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Continued from Cover

I-CAR Clarifies

nately, not all OEMs offer collision repair procedures in the U.S. market, nor do all OEMs offer consistent levels of collision repair information,” and that “I-CAR is committed to helping the industry close these gaps by working closely with the industry and the OEMs to research, develop, and deliver collision repair procedures where none

exist.” I-CAR also acknowledged that work in these areas must be performed “from a perspective of neutrality with an uncompromising priority on complete and safe repairs for the consumer.” In an email, I-CAR stressed that its focus is on “complete and safe repairs for the ultimate benefit of the consumer,” and said, “We believe the position and intentions stated in this letter, which complement those conveyed speak directly to this.”

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Cable’s Spike TV is planning the development of several non-scripted pilot shows, including one about investigating body shops. “Auto Body Avengers” from Matador, an independent media company best known for travel-related productions, features a group of operatives who go undercover to spotlight auto body garages suspected of fraud. The pilot description explains

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