CWB Automotive Repair Technician Welding Program NOW AVAILABLE

Get the training and welding qualification you need to stay ahead of the game.

Automotive Welding Qualification is a must-have for all technicians that repair and weld vehicles in your collision repair facility. To achieve the highest quality repair, utilize best practices, and ensure vehicles are properly and safely repaired, choose the CWB Automotive Repair Welding Qualification program for your team. For over 70 years, the CWB Group has provided training and testing services to companies across Canada seeking Certification and Welder Qualification.

CWB Automotive Welding Qualification Benefits

• Automotive Welding Training and Qualification at your own facility with your own equipment

• Ensure all your technicians have the training and skills needed for welding

• Increased skill levels = quality assurance for Collision Repair Facilities

• Satisfies welding certification requirements for most OEM Certification programs

• Third party oversight and onsite training by certified welding specialists

• Enhanced credibility provided by CWB Automotive welding certifications

• Savings when you register multiple technicians to participate

• Technicians receive CWB Automotive Welding accreditation after completing training and testing

Gone Too Soon

Tesla has been talking big about its in-house insurance platform recently, but some recent reporting from Reuters has found that far too many of the electric automaker’s vehicles are turning up as salvage prematurely. In a compilation of 120 Model Y vehicles found on salvage auction listings, Reuters found that a “vast majority” of the listed vehicles had less than 10,000 miles (approx. 160,000 km.) on the odometer, according to data obtained from Copart and IAA.

Aluminum Exclusivity

BMW North American has restricted more than 100 aluminum structural parts for its vehicles “due to complexity of repair and the requirement of highly specialized tools, training, and repair procedures.” Going forward, parts on the list can only be ordered by facilities with technicians who have completed the required BMW paint and body training courses, including instruction on the OEM’s specific list of approved frame benches, belt sanders, glue cartridge gun, riveting tools, welders, oscillating tools and saw blades. The automaker wrote in its bulletin that it “will be restricting certain aluminum structural parts to ensure the correct repair process is followed and crash performance is not compromised.” The bulletin states that, to be considered eligible to order from the restricted parts list, the technician completing the repair must have completed the BMW Bonding and Riveting Techniques online course (OL5510) and the in-class Aluminum Structural Repair course (SB061), or the BMWi Body Repair Level 2 and 3 courses (SB026E), which are no longer offered but are still recognized.

Oe Clarity

General Motors has issued an updated position statement on its standards for aftermarket glass replacements, hammering home the opinion that non-OEM glass could compromise the safety standards of their vehicles. The legacy automaker asserts that any glass but its own will cause problems with sensor systems that are housed within the windshield. “With the safety of our customers at the center of everything we do, it is critical a service point calibration/learn to be performed whenever a front view windshield camera or sensor is removed and reinstalled or replaced, or when a windshield is removed and reinstalled or replaced,” the statement said.

Body Watch

A new patent secured by Ford aims to record and report vehicle body damage instantaneously from the point of impact for immediate communication directly to partners such as insurance and rental companies, according to reporting from Ford Authority. Filed on October 6, 2020, published on January 24, 2023, and assigned serial number 11562570, this latest patent from the Ford Motor Company describes a system that uses cameras integrated into a vehicle’s body to capture damage, from a large collision to a small parking lot door ding. In this way, it will both open immediate dialogue with insurers and emergency services in the case of larger collisions, but also alert drivers to smaller damage they may not have otherwise noticed.

Battery Status

Canadian repairers are becoming more capable when it comes to complex EV repairs, according to the debut “Plugged-In: EV Collision Insights” report by Mitchell. The Canadian collision industry has seen EV repairable claims frequency rise to a rate of 2.26 percent in Q4 2022, along with the average percentage of EV parts repaired, which climbed from 11.05 percent to 12.16 percent quarter-over-quarter, demonstrating an improved capability on the part of repairers to fix the lighter weight materials commonly found on EVs. On a model-by-model basis, the Tesla Model 3 makes up 45 percent of the EV repair mix for Canadian collision shops, followed by the Model Y at 17.29 percent, the Nissan Leaf at 7.24 percent, the Hyundai Kona EV at 6.91 percent and the Chevrolet Bolt at 5.19 percent. Concerning repairable claims frequency in various North American EV markets, British Columbia leads the way with an average of 4.47 percent, followed by California with a rate of 3.37 percent and Quebec, which sits at 2.75 percent.

WHO PAYS FOR WHAT?

Of the more than 400 U.S. repair shops that responded to the annual “Who Pays for What?” survey from industry expert Mike Anderson, two out of five reported that they never bill insurers for safety inspections. Among those who do bill, 38 percent say that these charges are either “always” or “most of the time” paid out by one of the U.S.’s eight major insurers, while a nearly equal portion of respondents say they are only paid “some of the time.” Progressive and USAA were found to be the most reliable insurers, in terms of tendency to pay for safety inspections, followed by GEICO, Nationwide and State Farm. Concerning in-process scans, 36 percent of shops that bill for them say they “always” or “most of the time” receive payment. American insurance companies do appear to be mostly on board with pre and post-repair scans, however, with 88 percent of billing shops saying they are always or usually paid for the former, and 91 percent in the case of the latter.

MIRROR, MIRROR

The penny tread-checking trick won’t work here. The original poster specified that the vehicle owner had to sign a waiver to release the car back into their care. What’s better, yet—it was clearly pouring rain that day.

INSTANT DRIVE-THRU

Some people like car shopping, but two people took it literally when they drove an Audi through the front doors of the Vaughan Mills shopping mall on February 1, 2023. According to Global News, York Regional Police said the break-and-enter happened after 1 a.m., when two suspects used a stolen black 2011 Audi A4 from Quebec to enter the mall and steal from an electronics store.

Headlight Handicraft

Headlights are expensive nowadays—and customers are getting craftier with DIY replacement methods. Illusions are the latest tactic, as a Reddit user posted a DIY repair involving an orange prescription pill bottle zip-tied to the headlamp housing, accompanied by a clear Tupperware container. As long as you stick to driving during the day, you might be in the clear.

Pedestrian Psa

A threatening bus advertisement recently went viral for seemingly provoking Virgina, United States, drivers to hit jay-walking pedestrians to “let them learn a lesson.” Fear not, Virginia-based pedestrians; the ad was allegedly first seen on TikTok and is believed to be fake.

Previa Pickup

Toyota fans of yesteryear often ask themselves: whatever happened to the Previa? Well, to answer their question, people did stuff like this to them. That’s why the Japanese OEM stopped making them. We can’t have anything nice.