Structural Sectioning Procedures: Ford/Lincoln

Details Posted on 08 May 2017 | Share:

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Ask I-CAR receives many technical inquiries referring to sectioning. The collision repair industry wants to know where can you section, does the OEM have a sectioning procedure, and where can I find the sectioning procedure? Most OEMs allow sectioning to outer body panels and the front and rear rails. Sectioning reinforcements is not as common, as most reinforcements are replaced at factory seams.

Parts are made from various materials including HSS, UHSS, aluminum, and carbon fiber. These parts also have complex designs to collapse or transfer collision forces in a specific manner. Introducing a sectioning joint to many of these parts will alter how the part reacts to those collision forces. For this reason, sectioning a part is only allowed if supported by vehicle maker repair information. Let’s see what Ford/Lincoln says about structural sectioning.

Vehicle-specific Ford/Lincoln Workshop manuals offer procedures for sectioning of various parts. Many of the newer Workshop manuals include a convenient video guide beside each image in the procedure. This guide demonstrates what each of the color-coded callouts and symbols mean through the procedure. Simply click on the video-camera icon beside the image to launch the video.

The vehicle-specific body repair manual is used to determine the required type of welding and sectioning joint for the repair being performed. Failure to follow OEM procedures will sacrifice the safety and quality of the repair.

Ford/Lincoln has two position statements pertaining to structural sectioning that you should be aware of.

• Structural Repairs for Ford Motor Company Vehicles which states, "Where no Ford supplied repair procedure is available, repairs must be made at factory joints or seams with Ford original replacement parts using procedures that duplicate factory assembly processes and techniques."
• "Clip" Repair (Sectioning of Two Vehicles) Procedure Not Approved which has two key points to be aware of:
• "Ford Motor Company does not approve the use of "clips" to repair collision damage to vehicles."
• "Ford has adopted this position because it cannot be confident "clip" repair procedures return vehicles to pre-accident condition."

Ford/Lincoln vehicle-specific body repair manuals can be found at: www.motorcraftservice.com

For additional Ford/Lincoln information, check out the following pages:
Ford OEM Information
Lincoln OEM Information

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

• Step-By-Step: Accessing Ford/Lincoln Repair Information

Related I-CAR Courses

Course Ford Collision Repair Overview

Course Sectioning Overview

Course Sectioning Scenarios