Got a newer Ford? Dont dent it....

[lamanated]

Our Fleet mechanics were at an updater today, and it was mentioned that the new pickups will be more expensive to fix dents etc. Ford is saying if there is a crease in a panel, you cant hammer it out, just replace it,which = more $$, Aluminum wont retain its strength I guess when its creased. Not a lot of shops will have fluency on fixing aluminum I bet either..
Quarter panels are 6 months behind backordered presently as well..

 

[MrWhippy]

Aluminum work hardens and then cracks. That's probably what they're referring to.

 

[clemsonfor]

im sure you can still fill it. There will be plenty of repairs to aluminum. There have been aluminum hoods for years right?? And I thought it was the frame, I guess the body is aluminum too?

 

[Poke]

im sure you can still fill it. There will be plenty of repairs to aluminum. There have been aluminum hoods for years right?? And I thought it was the frame, I guess the body is aluminum too?

The body is aluminum the frame is steel.

 

[Rustyiron]

I was under the impression that most body shops, (and mechanic's for that matter) are all just parts replacers anyway.
What's not plastic or fiberglass on most over the road heavy trucks are aluminum also, the cab that is.

 

[ClaySlayer]

I've got a 2016 and insurance didn't go up much at compared to my 2011. Maybe $15/mo...but obviously I hope I never have to use it! As Poke stated the body is aluminum and the frame is steel.

 

[clemsonfor]

The body is aluminum the frame is steel.

right??? I had it reversed? Not sure how I did that , I knew that, thinking when it first came out how thick the AL frame would have to be if that was the case.

 

[KennyG]

Seems like we regularly see posts like this but until someone can show that insurance costs are higher, it really won't matter to most of us.

 

[sklunk]

Actually Ford requires you to become certified to fix the aluminum F150's. Rumor is that the tools alone are around $25,000. The insurance companies are probably going to force you to take the truck to a certified shop to be repaired. Some companies are even refusing to write new policies on private owners with F150's (not fleet). My wife is an insurance broker representing numerous companies and has been dealing with these headaches since the new F150 was announced.

 

[roadhunter]

This has been discussed in other threads. Essentially there are 2 opinions.

The vast majority of people can see that there are some differences in working with aluminum which will likely result in higher costs to repair as well as limit the number of shops which can handle the repair. That is on top of the fact that aluminum panels will cost more as well.

Then there is another group, much smaller, who denies any of the above is true and maintains that the costs will be similar.

Most people who weld realize there is a pretty big difference in working with steel as opposed to aluminum. I tend to think we will see increased costs in the short term but those will continue to drop if more manufacturers move to aluminum panels which will cause the body shop industry to increase training and equipment for working on aluminum vehicles.

 

[turbo36]

Actually Ford requires you to become certified to fix the aluminum F150's. Rumor is that the tools alone are around $25,000. The insurance companies are probably going to force you to take the truck to a certified shop to be repaired. Some companies are even refusing to write new policies on private owners with F150's (not fleet). My wife is an insurance broker representing numerous companies and has been dealing with these headaches since the new F150 was announced.

Can you provide names of the insurance companies that won't insure the F150? My agent has not heard a word about any problems insuring the truck.

 

[sklunk]

Can you provide names of the insurance companies that won't insure the F150? My agent has not heard a word about any problems insuring the truck.

I'll see what my wife can find out. I know most of the "bigger" names were okay with writing policies but she said they were forcing you to go to certified shops for the repairs (and we are in PA where you are supposed to be allowed to choose your shop so the companies are still arguing about it).

 

[CJONE]

Lots of rumors and BS out there on these F-150's. They are considerably harder to dent than the steel ones were. The GM commercials would have you believe otherwise but as far as denting they are stronger. Piercing a hole in them is a different story as the commercials prove but who slams a sharp corner of a tool box into the side of their truck. We have 6 or more of them and have seen them take hits with no damage that the steel ones would crease or dent. Living in the rust belt, it is nice to know you won't be patching holes in 4-5 years. No issues with insuring any of our trucks or any of my friends that own them. CJ

 

[Ford850]

Since Ford has sold 600,000 F-series so far this year, I think we would have heard more if there was a problem insuring them, or repairing them. There were several of these doom and gloom, 'aluminum is the devil', type articles a year ago. Guess what, the high insurance costs and repair fears didn't come true. There are just as many issues repairing the tissue paper thin steel panels as there are for aluminum. Methods are different between models and materials, but they all can be repaired.

 

[KennyG]

Just to keep this from being a "brand" argument, it appears GM will go to aluminum truck bodies as early as 2018 if they have been able to get a reliable aluminum supply.

 

[roadhunter]

Just to keep this from being a "brand" argument, it appears GM will go to aluminum truck bodies as early as 2018 if they have been able to get a reliable aluminum supply.

Unfortunately many of these discussions end up being based on band and not facts. Ford guy gets defensive and it goes downhill from there. It's really about the body shops, not brand.

It really doesn't make much difference what brand it is at this point. The first companies to transition to aluminum will have a more difficult time as the body shop industry catches up with training and technology as well as investments in equipment to repair aluminum bodies. The companies who wait for 5-10 years will have an easier time as the repair industry will be more equipped to handle the aluminum at that point. I suspect we will see more manufacturers moving that way now that Ford has gone that route.

This paragraph sums it up quite nicely.

But whether your vehicle is made of aluminum or traditional steel, it’s important to take it to a qualified facility for collision work. “There’s roughly 33,000 known repair shops in North America today,” Richman said. According to him, about 15 percent of them have been certified by an OEM or I-CAR (Inter-Industry Conference on Auto Collision Repair) for working with aluminum.

 

[CJONE]

Just to keep this from being a "brand" argument, it appears GM will go to aluminum truck bodies as early as 2018 if they have been able to get a reliable aluminum supply.

That is the thing with GM. They knock what others are doing then a few years later do it themselves. Remember the GM commercials slamming the "man step" in brand X's tailgate? Guess what they have in their bumpers. How about the "retro" look performance cars, Guess what they have now. I can think of a few more but why? To date I have owned more new GM vehicles but the way they are advertising now makes them look like a bunch of politicians. CJ

 

[rustyshakelford]

That is the thing with GM. They knock what others are doing then a few years later do it themselves. Remember the GM commercials slamming the "man step" in brand X's tailgate? Guess what they have in their bumpers. How about the "retro" look performance cars, Guess what they have now. I can think of a few more but why? To date I have owned more new GM vehicles but the way they are advertising now makes them look like a bunch of politicians. CJ

Same way ram and Cummins slammed ford and gm for using urea and now they use it too. It's just instant ad tools with no consequences down the road

I think the AL will be of little concern in a few years and it'll be harder to find shops that do quality work on steel vehicles

Brett

 

[tractorshopper]

Not so worried about the aluminum strength in the Fords. If buying one, I'd just make sure to get a rubber bed mat. The main turn off for me is really about the $. Was looking at 250's and 350's this weekend and was told at the dealership they are starting to bring in the '17's and they will be aluminum like the 150's. I'm thinking that has to drive the price up even more than they already are.

I recently did build your own on Ram, GMC, and Ford sites. I built all 3 with same specs pretty much and same trim levels. I found the 250/2500's in as close to apples/apples comparison as possible a little surprising. MSRP on Laramie Longhorn and Sierra Denali were almost identical. The Lariat was significantly higher than the other two.

 

[adventure bob]

Im totally confused by this thread... Do people think shops are beating panels to repair them? The closest thing your going to get to that without going to a custom car shop is the dentless guys. There are few if any accident repair shops that are going to have a guy panel beating with a hammer and dolly fixing dents in either AL or FE panels or reskining doors and beds. It simply costs WAY too much for a panel guy to do that kind of work on a common vehicle. In most cases their hourly charge is more than the new panel if they go more than about 45 minutes. If you have a very rare or very very old vehicle you MAY see a panel beater; your going to pay for it though. Your insurance is certainly going to balk at the hourly cost for a panel beater of even moderate skill versus simply replacing the panel. When the repair parts cost increase is considered with the increased cost of the vehicle they are not outrageous and are not significantly worse than they've ever been. With trucks approaching $60 to $65K parts cost have to go up.