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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
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