Valeting of repaired vehicles
After repair work has been completed, the vehicle
should be presented to the customer in a first-class,
clean condition. All repaired vehicles should
be thoroughly inspected for quality control. The
repairs should be guaranteed for a specific mileage
or period, as required by the Code of Practice for
the Motor Industry and by the VBRA Code. Many
insurance companies now make an allowance for
valeting within their agreed repair price, and this
provides the opportunity for the bodyshop to produce
a first-class factory finish to both the exterior
and interior of the repair.
Premises, equipment and chemicals used
in cleaning and valeting
When cleaning and valeting a vehicle it is essential
to organize a standard method of working to
ensure that nothing is inadvertently missed. The
ideal premises and equipment should be set out
in separate purpose designed working areas.
The cleaning process should be undertaken in
a wet bay with effective drainage, good lighting
and adequate working space all round the vehicle
when its doors are open. Compressed air and highpressure
cold and hot water should be available
(Figure 14.125).
Figure 14.125Wet bay (Autoglym)
Valeting should be carried out in a well lit, dry
bay with adequate working space all round the
vehicle. Compressed air, electrical power points,
warm water, a workbench and storage cupboards
should be available (Figure 14.126).
Equipment, details are as follows:
1 High-pressure hot and cold washer, 70–100 bar
(1000–1500 psi), with chemical throughput
Major accident damage 479
facility to ensure that engine cleaners and traffic
film removers work quickly and effectively
2 Electric/air polisher, 1500–2000 rpm, with polythene
foam and lamb’s-wool polishing heads
3 Fine grade, 100 per cent cotton, polishing cloths
4 Vacuum cleaner and/or shampoo vacuum cleaner
with assorted upholstery brushes and crevice tools
5 Hand-pumped, pressurized sprays for dispensing
engine cleaners and traffic film remover
6 Trigger spray dispensers for interior cleaning,
together with wheel, engine and carpet brushes
7 Good-quality chamois leather, sponges, polishing
cloths (100 per cent cotton, knitted stockinette
type), steel wool, spatula, glass scraper,
buckets, hot air gun (useful for removing PVC
stickers, self-adhesive design trims).
There are many manufacturers and suppliers of
valeting and cleaning chemicals. The wide range of
valeting and chemical cleaners available is broadly
divided up as follows:
Exterior detergents and solvents
Interior detergents and solvents
Interior/exterior rubber, PVC, plastic cleaners and
conditioners
Glass cleaners, paints, lacquer and protectorants
Paintwork polishes and conditioners.
Cleaning and valeting process
Prior to commencing work, check that the vehicle is
ready. All body repairs, paintwork and mechanical
work should be completed. Be aware of areas which
have been newly painted as they may be chemically
or water sensitive. Individual chemical products
carry their own instructions, and health and safety
procedures must be adhered to at all times.
Autoglym recommend the following step-by-step
procedure for cleaning and valeting.
Cleaning: wet bay
1 Remove spare wheel, rubber mats and wheel
trims if fitted.
2 Protect engine air intake and sensitive electrical
equipment (distributor cap, fuse box) with
plastic sheet.
3 Apply degreaser to engine and compartment.
Brush heavy soiling. Alternatively use hot
pressure washer with appropriate detergent
Figure 14.126Dry bay (Autoglym) (Figure 14.127).
Figure 14.127Degreasing engine (Autoglym)
4 Apply degreaser to door apertures and edges.
Brush heavy soiling. Alternatively use hot pressure
washer with appropriate detergent.
5 Clean wheels, trims, spare wheel with alloy
cleaner. Brush brake dust deposits. Treat
bright metal and motifs. Rinse all items well
(Figure 14.128).
6 Pressure wash engine compartment to remove
degreaser. Commence with lower areas. Work
methodically upwards (Figure 14.129).
7 Pressure wash door apertures and edges to
remove degreaser. Carefully angle water jet
away from the vehicle interior.
480Repair of Vehicle Bodies
8 Apply traffic film remover to engine compartment.
If necessary, sponge or brush to remove
grime.
9 Pressure wash engine compartment to rinse
away traffic film remover.
10 Pressure wash wheel arches to remove mud
and debris. Plain water is normally adequate.
11 Pressure wash and rinse bodywork, grilles,
tyres, mudflaps. Pay particular attention to
difficult to polish areas behind bumpers
(Figure 14.130).
12 Apply traffic film remover to rubber mats.
Clean with high-pressure washer.
13 Use air line to dry engine. Remove plastic
sheeting. Check engine starting. Use water dispersant
if necessary. Run engine to aid drying
(Figure 14.131).
Figure 14.129Pressure washing engine
compartment (Autoglym)
Figure 14.128Cleaning wheels (Autoglym)
Figure 14.130Cleaning bodywork (Autoglym)
Figure 14.131Drying engine (Autoglym)
14 Use air line and chamois leather to remove
excess water from bodywork or trim strips
which may trap water (Figure 14.132).
Major accident damage 481
Valeting: dry bay
1 Finish engine compartment. Clean hoses,
wiring, plastic and paintwork with appropriate
dressings.
2 Repaint deteriorated black areas. Use fine jet
matt black aerosol or small spray gun.
3 Clear lacquer engine if required to enhance
and preserve appearance. Close bonnet.
4 Before interior cleaning, remove all loose
carpets, tools, ashtrays and personal items to
the bench.
5 Use glass scraper to remove all labels from
windows. Residual adhesive can be removed
with adhesive remover or water.
6 Remove all plastic labels from bodywork
using hot air gun. Residual adhesive can be
removed with adhesive remover.
7 Vacuum clean all interior surfaces. Slide front
seats forward. Use brushes with vacuum nozzle
to clean crevices and air vents (Figure 14.133).
8 Clean luggage compartment first. Use interior
cleaner by spraying and wiping clean with
cloth rinsed frequently. Check body channels
and rubbers.
9 Wash interior. Start with headlining and use
interior cleaner. Heavily soiled carpets or
seats may require shampoo vacuum treatment.
10 Removed carpets should be thoroughly
brushed, vacuumed and washed on the bench.
Use shampoo vacuum if necessary. Allow to
dry (Figure 14.134).
11 Tools and jack should be cleaned, and repainted
if necessary. Wash out ashtrays.
12 Plastic coated fibreboard may be painted or
stained to cover damage or scrape marks.
Check body sides for tar, and top surfaces
for industrial fallout. Use appropriate cleaner
before polishing.
13 Restore paintwork. Start with roof panel. Use
paint renovator with polisher, or appropriate
cleaner/polish. Hand polish small areas, corners,
edges (Figure 14.135).
14 Apply protective wax coating by hand, ensuring
total coverage of all panels. Leave polish
applied at this stage.
Figure 14.132Removing water (Autoglym)
Figure 14.133Brushing and vacuuming (Autoglym)
Figure 14.134Cleaning carpets (Autoglym)
482Repair of Vehicle Bodies
15 Clean all external body rubber and plastic
mouldings with appropriate dressings.
16 Check all door apertures and rubber seals.
Polish door aperture paintwork with clean cloth.
Treat rubber seals with appropriate dressings.
17 Check all wheels. If required, clean with steel
wool and thinners. Protect tyres with dressing
or mask. Respray wheels and clean tyres.
18 Glass cleaning. Lower side windows. Clean
top edges completely. Close windows. Polish
outside first, then inside. Clean surrounding
seals and mirrors.
19 Interior plastic can be dressed to enhance and
protect appearance.
20 Replace all carpets, mats, spare wheel, ashtrays,
tools, wheel trims.
21 Check interior for remaining imperfections.
Check under all seats, glove box, door pockets.
Finally vacuum clean. Place protective paper
on floor mats.
22 Remove polish. Methodically check all edges,
valances, glasses, lights, grilles. Crevices and
motifs may be lightly brushed to remove polish.
Checklist
1 Check exterior mirrors, all glass and surrounding
seals. Check reverse of interior mirror.
2 Check polish smears, wheel arch edges, front
and rear lower pillars, side sills, door handles,
grilles. Touch in stone chips.
3 Check windscreen wiper arms and blades, air
grilles.
4 Check all light lenses, motifs, number plates
and spot lights.
5 Check door edges and apertures, engine and
luggage compartment, body channels, and seals.
6 Check control pedals and foot wells, especially
under front seats.
7 Check instrument glasses, switches, control
levers, interior air vents.
8 Check all ashtrays, glove box, door and seat
pockets.
14.5 Estimating and costing
Repair or replacement
The repair of all collision damage can be divided
into three categories:
1 Repairing by realigning and reshaping the
damaged section which can be economically
repaired
2 Repairing by removing sections beyond economical
repair and replacing them with new sections
3 Repairing by using a combination of realigning
and reshaping together with the replacement of
appropriate sections.
Before deciding whether to repair or replace, consideration
must be given to the extent and type of
damage, whether it is possible to repair a particular
panel or not (this fact is influenced by the equipment
which is available), and also whether it will
be cheaper to repair or replace any one section.
A good body repair worker would probably be able
to repair almost any part of a car damaged in a collision;
however, the labour and time cost involved
in attempting to repair extensively damaged panels
would be an uneconomical proposition. Only
experience in body repair work will give the ability
to estimate the time required to do a particular job.
Therefore the final decision depends on what is
possible to repair and what is economical to repair.
As the construction of the modern vehicle
advances, body panel assemblies are becoming
very complicated and therefore their cost is constantly
increasing. The cost of replacement parts
differs between one manufacturer and another, and
even between models. In most cases the following
parts are usually replaced rather than repaired:
1 All chrome exterior trim. Owing to the intricate
design and nature of the materials from which
they are made, trims do not lend themselves
Figure 14.135Polishing (Autoglym)
Major accident damage 483
to restraightening, and the cost of replating is
greater than the cost of a new part.
2 Interior trim which is difficult to clean and
repair, especially tears and gashes.
3 Certain mechanical components which it would
be ill advised to repair and reuse owing to their
critical alignment and strength factors.
On mono constructed vehicles the correct positioning
of new panels, which may incorporate reinforcing
members, becomes increasingly important and
calls for expensive jigging to ensure the accurate
alignment of panels which will have to be fitted
with major mechanical components and suspension
units. The highest proportion of any repair
bill is made up of the cost of labour involved in
stripping out to gain access to the damaged area,
and rebuilding after replacement is effected. In certain
cases, therefore, it can be more economical to
repair a damaged panel than to replace it because
of the time and labour cost involved for the amount
of work over and above that required to repair the
part. Consequently in any body repair workshop
the dividing line between repairing and replacing is
determined not only by what it is possible to repair
and what it is economical to repair, but also by the
availability of the most up-to-date equipment to
deal with all types of major collision damage.
Costing
The determining factor when deciding whether to
repair or replace lies in the comparison between
the cost of repairing the damaged part as against the
cost of a new replacement part. When the owner of
a car is personally paying the cost of repairs the
repairer will need to come to an agreement with
him concerning an acceptable standard of repair
for the amount of money the owner is able to pay.
When it is an older car the extra cost involved in
striving for perfection in the repair is not always
justified, since these costs could be more than the
current value of the vehicle under repair. In cases
of this nature a compromise must be arrived at
between the repairer and owner as to the quality of
repair and cost of repair.
Where an insurance company pays for repairs to
the damage of a new or nearly new car, the quality
of the work must be such that when the repair is
finished there is no indication of the damage having
occurred. When an insurance company is paying
for repairs to an older car, and the condition of the
car (in many cases due to corrosion) affects the
quality of the repair, the possibility of achieving
perfection of appearance is limited and a mutual
agreement must be reached between the owner and
the insurance company on a satisfactory quality of
repair. Time is always an important factor in the
repair of collision damage; however, the majority of
car owners are not willing to sacrifice quality of
repair for speed of repair.
Estimating
The ability to estimate can only be gained through
practical experience in the field of body repair
work. An estimate must be competitive to be
acceptable to both the private car owner and the
insurance company, for the majority of collision
jobs are paid for by an insurance company. In
estimating, the financial gain for the body shop
will depend on the estimator’s skill in assessing the
damage, his knowledge and experience in repair
techniques, and the capabilities of the equipment
available.
Small body repair establishments have no separate
estimator and therefore it is usual for the
man who prepares the estimate to be responsible
for carrying out the repair work as well. The larger
establishments employ one member of staff who
is responsible for all estimating, while the actual
repair work is carried out by the tradesmen on the
shop floor. Consequently there must be no lack of
coordination and understanding between these two
and the jobs they perform. The decisions of the
estimator are all important as they instigate the
organization of work on the shop floor. Moreover,
no matter how skilled the tradesmen are, with bad
estimating the financial profits can be drastically
affected.
In collision work the estimate is considered as a
firm commitment to do the work involved for the
amount of money shown, and should be detailed so
that insurance companies or private owners can
determine from the estimate exactly what it is proposed
to do to the damaged vehicle. The estimate
must include cost of parts and labour costs at the
recognized retail rate of the body shop establishment
(Figures 14.136 and 14.137).
In the preparation of an estimate, the crash damage
should be itemized into the number of damaged
panel sections and assemblies, and therefore
it is important to have a knowledge of vehicle body
484Repair of Vehicle Bodies
Figure 14.136Repair estimate
Figure 14.137Bodywork invoice
486Repair of Vehicle Bodies
construction. The outer panels which make up the
body shell should be referred to by the manufacturer’s
recognized names, such as:
Near-side front door (NSF door)
Near-side rear door (NSR door)
Off-side front door (OSF door)
Off-side rear door (OSR door)
Roof panel
Boot lid
Bonnet
Near-side centre pillar (NS centre pillar)
Radiator grille
Near-side front wing (NSF wing)
Off-side front wing (OSF wing)
Near-side sill panel (NS sill panel)
Off-side sill panel (OS sill panel)
Front bumper bar assembly with valance
Rear bumper bar assembly with valance.
In addition this can be further broken down to all
internal panel structures according to the position
of the damage.
It is essential to determine the exact amount
of stripping necessary for either the repair or the
removal and replacement of a damaged section.
To calculate the actual cost of a job it is necessary
to establish a set rate per hour for all repairs done
in the repair shop, and therefore an accurate total
repair time can be calculated on the time taken to
repair each section of the body. This then provides
the actual cost estimate for repairing each section
or part of the job. The retail rate or set rate per hour
is the amount of money that the repairer charges
the customer for labour, and is made up of; wages
paid to the tradesmen; the cost of overheads, which
should include such items as supervision, depreciation
of equipment, rent, heat, light, electrical
power, advertising, telephone accounts, cleaning,
office staff, stationery and postage, and workshop
materials; and also a reasonable amount of profit.
Computer estimating
Computers are rapidly losing their mystique, and
are becoming as indispensable to the bodyshop as
the spray booth and chassis jig. Offering benefits
in all aspects of bodyshop operation, there are
computers and software packages dedicated to
quick and easy repair estimates, stock control,
invoicing and management accounts, paint and
materials, parts list, mixing and colour matching,
job cards, work-shop loading, booking in, job efficiency
reports, invoice production, reports and letters
(Figures 14.138–14.141). Costs have tumbled
and the benefits can be reaped by all bodyshops,
regardless of size.
The key to success in any bodyshop is the
production of an accurate, well presented estimate.
An estimate has to be a clear, concise statement
of what you consider to be a fair return for the
care and work you carry out on a crash damaged
vehicle. By utilizing the memory capacity of the
computer you will have readily available all necessary
details to help you draw up an estimate
quickly and accurately.
Your computer system will have the facility to
prepare not only a detailed document for the customer,
but also a comprehensive breakdown for the
insurance company. The documents produced will
be tailor made to your own letterhead stationery.
The insurance estimate can often be sent direct by
fax to the company involved, thereby further reducing
the time gap between estimating and authorization
by that company. Apart from the major bonus
of speed, a computerized estimating system will
greatly enhance your company’s image as a professional
organization. You will have instant access
to the progress of any job: most systems include
this as standard. The more time and money you
spend at the outset, the more control you will have
over staff movement and job completion.
Insurance procedure
Under the Road Traffic Act the car owner is obliged
to insure his vehicle either under third party insurance
cover or fully comprehensive insurance cover.
As a direct result of this, most accident damage is
covered by insurance and is therefore repaired in
body work establishments.
The procedure for dealing with repairs carried
out under an insurance claim is in four stages, as
described in the following sections.
Claim form
When involved in an accident which has resulted
in vehicle damage, the owner should obtain and
complete an insurance claim form and immediately
return it to his insurance company, or make a written
report on the accident and damage received.
Major accident damage 487
Figure 14.138Customer’s estimate (Bodymaster UK)
488Repair of Vehicle Bodies
Figure 14.139Engineer’s estimate (Bodymaster UK)
Major accident damage 489
Figure 14.140Vehicle job card (Bodymaster UK)
490Repair of Vehicle Bodies
Figure 14.141Vehicle repair checklist (Bodymaster UK)
Major accident damage 491
Itemized estimate
According to the extent of the damage, and if
the vehicle is still roadworthy, the owner takes
the vehicle for the inspection of the damage. The
repairer will make a visual inspection of the
assessed damage, and from the knowledge gained
complete a written itemized estimate which he
will submit as a tender to the insurance company.
This estimate will show the total cost of repairs,
and where the estimated amount is under a certain
figure set by the insurance company, the owner
has the right to authorize the repairer to do the
work. However, in most repair cases this figure is
exceeded, and the insurance company’s assessor
is the only person authorized to allow the repairs
to proceed.
One of the important factors when estimating for
insurance claim damage is to examine carefully
every section of the vehicle, especially those parts
which are a known weakness in the construction
and therefore liable to be affected directly or
indirectly by a collision. A methodical system of
estimating is essential to avoid missing any damage,
and is usually carried out by noting in order
all removal and replacement items, all repair items,
all respray items and all items to be supplied new
at cost, including mechanical parts and any trim.
Supply items are usually difficult to price because
of the makers’ fluctuating prices, and therefore
they should be listed ‘at cost’. Spray painting can
be quoted either by itemizing each part separately
or by a complete price for the total spray operation.
While in the owner’s presence, the repairer should
point out any rusted sections which may affect the
repair work, or any previous unrepaired damage
which is not covered under this insurance claim.
Authority to repair
It is essential to obtain the authority to repair from
the insurance company involved before any work
is started on the damaged vehicle. On receiving
the repairer’s estimate, the insurance company
will instruct their own engineer assessor or an
independent assessor to examine the vehicle and
satisfy himself that the claim is in order and that
the estimate submitted by the repairer does not
include any labour or material necessary as a
result of any other than the accident report. The
engineer assessor then agrees the cost of repairs,
particularly the labour charges, with the repairer
while inspecting the vehicle, and decides whether
or not damaged parts shall be repaired or replaced.
After this inspection the assessor will send written
instructions on behalf of the insurance company;
these constitute the authority to repair. A condition of
these instructions is that the repairer is restricted to
repairing the damage as seen and estimated for. Any
additional damage disclosed when dismantling the
vehicle must have a separate estimate submitted, and
work cannot be carried out on this damage until the
extra estimate has been agreed and the necessary
work authorized by the insurance company.
Clearance certificate
This certificate is provided by the insurance company
for the vehicle owner to sign when he has
seen that all the agreed repairs have been completed
satisfactorily, and the damaged parts reinstated to
their original condition. When this certificate has
been signed by the vehicle owner, it releases the
insurance company from any liability in respect of
the claim for damage caused by this particular accident.
It is to the repairer’s advantage for him to
ascertain that the clearance certificate has been duly
signed before the vehicle is returned to its owner.
The duty of the repairer is to see that the damaged
car is reinstated to its original condition. He
is expected to make full use of his skill and
knowledge to effect the best possible repair, as
the owner relies on his reputed skill.