Aluminum bodies
Aluminum Repair in Lavon for Pickup Beds, Hoods and Fenders
A full-size pickup that met a deer on FM 6 may look like an ordinary steel repair. If the hood and fenders are aluminum, the whole approach changes.
(000) 000-0000 — find out if the panel is aluminumWhy Aluminum Takes Its Own Approach
A good many trucks around Lavon wear aluminum on the hood, doors, fenders or bed, and plenty of cars hide aluminum in the bumper beams and suspension. It is tough for how little it weighs, yet it acts nothing like steel under a hammer. It does not hold its shape memory the same way, it cracks if it is worked cold too far, and it pits and corrodes when stray steel grit settles on it. We keep a separate set of hammers, dollies, sanders and a dedicated welder for it, and aluminum work is done in its own corner, away from the steel jobs. Before anything is bent back we check what is behind the panel. A deer strike on an aluminum front end often reaches the radiator support and the headlamp mounts too.
Inside an Aluminum Panel Repair
Here is what fixing an aluminum panel properly involves.
Magnet test on every panel
A magnet sorts the steel parts from the aluminum ones, and that matters, since plenty of trucks hang a light skin over a heavier steel chassis.
A tool set kept off steel jobs
The hammers, dollies and sanding discs for aluminum live on their own cart, so no steel grit gets carried onto the panel.
Heat watched with a gauge
Aluminum gets softened with measured heat and checked with a temperature gauge so it moves without cracking.
Welded studs for low spots
Small studs welded to the surface give us something to pull on when we cannot get a tool behind the dent.
Glued and riveted joints restored
Many aluminum joints were built with adhesive and rivets, and we put them back that way when the procedure says to.
Bed and tailgate straightening
Pickup beds bent by a shifting load or a jackknifed trailer are worked back true and checked for fit at the tailgate.
Looking behind the front end
Behind an aluminum front end we check the support, cooling stack and lamp mounts for cracks a hit leaves behind.
Primer made for aluminum
Exposed aluminum gets a pretreatment and a primer meant for it before color goes on, which keeps the finish from blistering down the line.
Steps in an Aluminum Panel Job
- 01
Look it over and decide
We find out which parts are aluminum and how far the damage runs. Some dents can be worked out, and some panels are cracked or stretched past repair. You hear which panels fall in each group and the reason. The estimate reflects the extra care aluminum work takes.
- 02
Repair it away from steel
The truck moves into the area we keep for aluminum. Panels are warmed, pulled and shaped with tools that have never touched steel. Seams the factory glued or riveted are restored the same way. We check fit against the doors, bed and hood as we go.
- 03
Seal, paint and fit up
Once the shape is right, the metal is cleaned and sealed against corrosion, then painted. Trim, lamps and sensors are reinstalled and the panel gaps are checked. We look over the truck once more and walk you around it at pickup.
Why Aluminum Owners Come to Us
Steel grit stays out
Steel dust on aluminum leads to corrosion under the paint. Keeping the tools and the work area separate is the simple way to stop it.
Repair gets the first try
Aluminum can often be saved with patience and controlled heat. When it cannot, we say so plainly and order the part.
We go deeper than the skin
A dented aluminum hood can sit over a cracked radiator support. We open it up and look before anything gets signed off.
Is Your Pickup Wearing Aluminum?
Most owners never find out until something bends. Ring the shop with the make, model and year, and you will get a fair idea of what the repair involves.
Describe the bent panel — (000) 000-0000