After an accident- many people are tempted to take their car straight to an auto body shop, or a mechanic’s shop. They seldom get a chance to bring their car to place that has both auto body and mechanical experts. And many people don’t even know the difference.
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But Why Should it Matter?
Auto body repair jobs address the physical damage that compromises the structural shape and the look of your car. Mechanics repair the mechanical, complex systems that make your car function.
Your first thought may be to take your car to an auto body shop that has some mechanical knowledge. Or a mechanic’s shop that has some auto body knowledge. That should be enough, right?
Not quite right.
These are two arms of the auto repair industry, each very specific and important. While you may think “a car shop is a car shop”, they are not close enough to the same that you can go to one shop for both services. Unless that shop has a full-service auto body shop and a fully-equipped mechanic service too.
What Do Auto Body Shops Do Best?
Skin & Skeleton
When a car has been in an accident, it sustains body damage like a crumpled hood, bent fenders, dings, rips, and dents. This damage is both structural and aesthetic. Basically, it’s the skeleton and the skin of your car that receive auto body repair jobs, but not the guts.
Auto body shops have knowledge, certifications and equipment like pneumatic tools, metal-cutting guns and plasma cutters to work on the body and return it to its intended form and function. What they do for your car’s shape, structural strength, and paint job really can’t be done by a mechanic.
What Do Mechanic Shops Do Best?
The Guts
A mechanic’s shop specializes (not surprisingly) in the mechanical aspects of your car. The guts. The things that make your car end up in a different place than it started, safely.
If you need an oil change or brakes repaired or transmission examined or lights checked, you go to a mechanic shop to get the job done. Their people are trained and certified to diagnose and repair all mechanical parts of a car, and have the equipment for the task.
Often, after an accident, both structural and mechanical systems have been affected. If you go somewhere that can’t identify and address both kinds of damage, your car may suffer. That’s why going to a shop like Lafayette German Car Repair is so important. Having both auto body repair jobs and mechanical expertise and equipment makes us able to care for you whole car.
