In case you missed it, David Reed, FCA US LLC and Paul Belanger, Gestamp presented: Hot Stamped Steel One-Piece Door Ring in the All-New 2019 Ram 1500 at Great Designs in Steel 2018.

A new issue of the General Motors (GM) publication, GM Repair Insights, Spring Issue 2018, is now available. This issue is packed with information on the new 2018 Buick Regal Tourx, GMs new training requirements, new Service Parts Identification (SPID) labels, and information on impact resistant structural adhesive.

Honda and Acura use keyword searches to find repair information on the Service Express website. These keywords allow you to efficiently get to the repair information you are researching. There are many options when personalizing a vehicle, but Honda and Acura make it easy with their model-specific “Personalized Settings Worksheet.” This document can be accessed with a subscription to the Service Express website and one keyword.

As repairs become more and more complex, technicians can no longer solely rely on just the information provided in the body repair manual. OEM websites also provide supporting reference documentation in other areas. Let’s see where to look on BMW.

In case you missed it, Joe Riggsby from Honda R&D Americas, Inc. presented: 2019 Acura RDX World’s First Inner & Outer Door Ring System at Great Designs in Steel 2018.

One of the top technical inquiries received at Ask I-CAR is “Is there a sectioning or partial replacement procedure available?” To help answer this question, RTS has an OEM Partial Part Replacement Search available. Here you will find information on if these procedures are available on a specific vehicle. Let’s take a closer look at the 2017 Lexus RX 450h.

As a collision repair technician, there is one part of a service manual that houses all of the information you would ever need…right? This is not the case with modern vehicles. You may be required to look in numerous manuals to find the information required to safely repair the vehicle.

In case you missed it, Jeff Sulik, Engineering Group Manager and Joy Geeraerts, Senior Design Release Engineer from General Motors Company presented: The All-New 2019 Chevrolet Silverado at Great Designs in Steel 2018.

The collision repair industry has recently received a lot of position statements around a variety of topics. There is a tendency to treat these position statements as the end all, be all of what needs to be done. However, there are a few things that must be understood about position statements to use them appropriately.

Vehicles equipped with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) change the repair process before they even enter the repair facility. Knowing what systems the vehicle maybe equipped with will keep you ahead of the game when it comes to laying out your repair process. There are many different ways of figuring out what ADAS the vehicle may be equipped with, but a tool on the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) website can help simplify this.

One of the top technical inquiries received at Ask I-CAR, "Is there a sectioning or partial replacement procedure available?" To help answer this question, RTS has an OEM Partial Part Replacement Search available. Here you will find information on if these procedures are available on a specific vehicle. Let's take a closer look at the 2017 Tahoe/Suburban.

A simple bumper repair on a modern vehicle may not be as simple as it seems. New technologies like blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, and other advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) utilize sensors behind the bumper covers. The ability for these sensors to be able to see clearly normally requires special caution when considering a bumper repair. Many OEMs have different levels of warnings when it comes to repairing bumper covers with ADAS. So, what does Toyota/Lexus say on the subject?

The upcoming 2019 Subaru Forrester is part of the new Subaru Global Platform, which looks to improve upon safety and driver comfort. The Forester is a big seller for Subaru, second only to the Outback. This means that technicians will inevitably be seeing the Forester in the future.

If you are planning on competing in this year’s 2018 SkillsUSA competition, there will be a new knowledge area being included, nitrogen plastic welding. This segment was introduced last year but did not count toward the competitors final score. This year the nitrogen plastic welding will be scored.