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Home / Collision Repair News / Body Construction And Material Repair Guidelines: Toyota/Lexus - UPDATE

Body Construction And Material Repair Guidelines: Toyota/Lexus - UPDATE

Posted on 30 September 2025 | Share:
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What is the MPa of the front lower rail? What is the outer uniside made of: steel, aluminum, or composite? Can heat be used to straighten or is it cold straightening only? What are the repair limitations? These are just some of the questions that the RTS team fields on a daily basis.

As we know, today’s vehicles can be constructed from a wide variety of materials. Knowing if the OEM provides information on body construction materials and repair guidelines is a crucial step in providing a complete, safe, and quality repair. Let’s see what Toyota/Lexus has to say.

Toyota/Lexus provides a construction material breakdown on various vehicle components. This information is typically found in vehicle-specific body repair manuals (BRMs) under: Introduction ➤ About This Vehicle ➤ Structural Outline. Within this area, there are illustrations showing various highlighted components with a table providing the MPa and steel types.

Per our contact at Toyota: "Parts that are not labeled or shown in the structural outline are considered Mild/Rephosphorized Steel."

Also located under Introduction are other areas to aid you in the repair process. These areas include When Removing, Installing, Repairing or Replacing Parts and Work Notices and Precautions.

Along with the information provided in the BRM, Toyota/Lexus has Collision Repair Information Bulletins (CRIBs) pertaining to repairability, see below.

  • CRIB #161 - Collision Damage Repair Precautions
  • CRIB #176 - Approved Collision Repair Methods

Always refer to Toyota/Lexus service information for the most up-to-date CRIB information.

For additional Toyota/Lexus information, check out the following pages:
Toyota OEM Information
Lexus OEM Information

Additional I-CAR Collision Repair News you may find helpful:

Related I-CAR Courses

Course Toyota Collision Repair Overview

Course Vehicle Construction Material Types


Original article published August 17, 2017

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