If your vehicle has recently been involved in a collision around Beverly Hills or Santa Monica, you may be concerned about whether or not there is damage to your vehicle’s frame. What is car frame damage, and what are the signs of car frame damage? The team at Eli’s Collision Repair are here to assist you and ensure your vehicle is safe for the roads of South Bay or Inglewood.
So, what is considered car frame damage? If the structural integrity of the vehicle has been compromised, there is damage to the frame. While in some cases, the vehicle may be fine for normal driving, it could be quite dangerous in the event of a collision. A vehicle with frame damage may not protect you as it should, especially if the crumple zone has been enacted.
What is a Vehicle’s Crumple Zone?
If you drive a unibody vehicle, it will likely have several different crumple zones. The purpose of a crumple zone is that this portion of the frame will fold and absorb energy from the collision. In turn, this minimizes the risk of injury to occupants. Crumple zones are often found at the car’s front end, quarter panel, or back bumper.
Signs of Car Frame Damage
Unfortunately, the car frame damage repair cost can be quite high. However, it is best to leave these significant repairs to a shop that is qualified to handle structural damage. What are the signs of car frame damage? While we highly recommend having car frame damage diagnosed by a professional, the steps below can help you check for structural damage.
- Sway Damage – The car will be misaligned and leaning toward one side. This can happen after corner hits.
- Sagging Frames – If there are gaps in the body of the vehicle, you will see that the frame is sagging. If you have noticed that the vehicle feels unstable at high speeds or that there are problems when turning, it could be an indication that there is car or truck frame damage. If so, truck frame repair or car frame repair will be needed.
- Crumple Zone Damage – If you can see clear crumple zones with obvious damage, it is highly likely that structural damage has occurred.
As mentioned above, there are some cases where it is fine to drive with minimal damage to the vehicle’s frame. However, to ensure optimal safety and to prevent more damage down the road, Eli’s Collision Repair highly recommends having the damage repaired as soon as possible.
Contact Eli’s Collision Repair Today
If you still have questions about signs of car frame damage or the car frame damage repair cost, do not hesitate to contact the team at Eli’s Collision Repair. We’d be more than happy to assist you and ensure that your vehicle is safe to drive around downtown LA.