Collision Repairs: 3 Types Of Repairs To Expect After An Accident
Collision repair refers to fixing any structural or body damages incurred by a vehicle after an accident or collision. If the accident did not total the car, collision repairs can reinstate the car's functionality and aesthetics.
A car can incur several types of damages due to a collision. The repairs you need will depend on the extent of the damage. Hence, here are three types of collision repairs you might need if your car gets into an accident.
1. Paintless Dent Repair and Color Matching
It is common for a car to incur several dents and abrasions on the paint during a collision. Provided the dents did not tear through the body panels, there is no need to replace the panels. Instead, you can opt for paintless dent repairs as part of the collision repairs.
Paintless dent repairs involve tapping the dents from the inner part of the panel to remove the dent depressions. Paintless dent repair uses specialized equipment to remove depression marks without damaging the paint. Hence, you don't need to repaint the car after the repairs.
If the car's paint incurred abrasions, you don't need to repaint the entire vehicle. Collision repair technicians recommend paint matching instead of repainting. Paint matching involves painting over the bruised or scratched sections of the car's paint with the same paint color as the car.
Paint matching ensures the car retains the same color as before but covers up the bruised and scratched sections of the paint.
2. Panel Replacement
Your car's exterior comprises several panels attached to the frame. Hence, if any body panels rip apart during an accident, you can replace them with new ones.
For example, if you rear-end another car, your bumper may incur severe damage. In such a scenario, all you have to do is buy a new bumper, and the collision repair technicians will install it as a replacement for the damaged bumper.
The same case applies to damaged rear bumpers and door panels.
3. Frame and Wheel Realignments
If your car incurs severe impact force following a collision, several vehicle parts could misalign. In most cases, the wheel axles and the frame will shift in place or compress, resulting in misalignment.
The frame is the car's metallic skeleton, which holds all the car's components in place. If the frame misaligns, your vehicle loses its structural integrity and balance. If the axle misalignments are too severe, then there is a chance your car will not drive in a straight line.
As a result, you need to get frame and wheel realignment services as part of the collision repairs to fix the misalignments.
For more information about collision repair, contact a local company, like Elite Auto Collision.