Page 52 - Australasian Paint & Panel Jan-Feb 2020
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PAINT&PANEL JANUARY / FEBRUARY 2020 WWW.PAINTANDPANEL.COM.AU
THINK YOU DON’T NEED USE A SCANNER? THINK AGAIN SAYS I-CAR’S MARK CZVITKOVITS
WHY PRE AND POST SCANNING IS ESSENTIAL
THE TECHNOLOGY BEING PLACED INTO
vehicles as standard equipment has in- creased substantially over the last three years, yet as an industry the awareness of how to access critical systems information is not being well utilised.
OEMs are increasingly requiring pre and post-scans and this important process should not be ignored. A checklist of Diag- nostic Trouble Codes (DTC) is only a small section of information that can be accessed to ensure the repair is performed complete- ly. The concepts of blueprinting, repair planning and quality control checks should be routine in any modern collision repair facility to ensure processes are followed to deliver faster repairs.
Blueprinting highlights damage that has not been seen during the initial estimate and is aimed at completely analysing the damage after an initial teardown and in- spection to minimise delays. In many in- stances further damage is discovered that may have resulted in additional delays waiting for additional parts and/or sublets. If these are unexpected and discovered during the repair process, this disrupts workflow and customer delivery times.
Pre-scans are simply an electronic blue- print of unseen damage and highlight not
only DTCs but also the level of Advanced Driver Assist Systems (ADAS) within a par- ticular vehicle. It should also be under- stood that not all electronic faults will bring up a Malfunction Indicator Lamp (MIL) on the dashboard of a modern vehicle.
A number of OEMs have released posi- tion statements on the recommendation to pre and post-scan their vehicles. Even with- out a position statement from an OEM, a pre-scan is the only way to determine what systems have been damaged in the event of a collision. It is true that older DTCs will also be included in a report but this can also assist the repairer if additional con- cerns arise after the completion of a repair. Instances can often occur where a custom- er can insist that a function ‘was working before the repair’. A pre-scan can deter- mine if it was a pre-existing condition, therefore providing a level of security.
Another positive is being able to explain to the customer with certainty that the sys- tems have been returned to the original specification. Being able to provide a diag- nostic blueprint enhances the quality of the repair process and provides the customer with a complete, safe and quality repair.
As every repair is different, a consistent pattern is impossible to determine by sim-
ply looking at the repair. Each and every OEM repair procedure will have diagnostic steps along the way if the vehicle is so equipped. The diagnostic blueprint or pre- scan is a necessity and is fast becoming a standard operating procedure when repair- ing modern vehicles.
This is a huge process change that will impact collision repairs at every level in- cluding repairers, consumers and insurers. The onus is on the industry to understand that this process is required whether a posi- tion statement is available or not. In simple terms a complete, safe and quality repair cannot be completed without repairing all of the vehicle, including the electronics.
Visual indicators will not necessarily provide an estimator with a complete pic- ture of the repair especially with electron- ics. Previously, visual indicators included ABS, airbag and other fault lamps were provided in the dashboard, but with the complexity and numerous systems now linked and involved in the vehicle, this is not possible. The only guaranteed method to determine damaged systems is to scan the vehicle. Consumers have been buying vehicles with ANCAP 5-Star safety ratings for many years now. The current ANCAP 5-Star rating is different to that of five years
Scanning will tell you the level of Advanced Driver Assist Sysments (ADAS) within a particular vehicle.


































































































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