Now if you're not all that technical when it comes to body work, one of the first things to know about steel and aluminum is that both metals require different skill sets to work on them. Each have different properties and characteristics that require individual training on each.
This had plenty of potential owners, body shops and insurance companies concerned when Ford announced how much of the all-new F-150 was aluminum. Consider that this is one of the top sold vehicles on an annual basis.
If you read the previous thread, ALG has officially cleared the F-150's resale from being penalized due to its aluminum construction. Now a technical expert is speaking up on the matter on how it dealt with the very first 2015 F-150 that rolled in needing repair work on its body.
Essentially, the Cliff Notes are this: the shop was prepared in advance for aluminum work, the techs were excited to learn about working with the new metal, Ford actually made it easy to repair the F-150, and voila(!) the repair was a cake walk, relatively speaking.
**IF you're skeptical, read the FULL account by clicking "Read Article" below!
The 2015 Ford F-150 caused a lot of hype, worries, cost and pressure. Was it all worth it? I say yes. I have a shop and a technician who would probably agree.
The shop and tech were well prepared for what they had to do. They had all the equipment and were ready to go. And surprise! The first damaged one came in the door. There were some minor glitches in the process as the electronics package surprised us a little, but overall everyone had a great experience. This led to a lot of confidence in the shop on new procedures...
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Bring It On
So, as far as repairs go, the technician was happy with his training and tools and the shop was pleased that no real surprises or problems popped up with this pickup. Ford did our industry a very good service in preparing us and putting a lot of forethought into the repairs. I wish all of the automakers would do that. So, on behalf of the industry, all I have to say to the automakers is: “Bring on the aluminum!"
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