asTech

  Headquartered in Plano, TX, asTech™ focuses on providing OEM diagnostics to collision repair shops nationwide. Our service enables shops who may not have expert level electronics technicians to work on any vehicle, no matter how complex, and receive advice from a master technician.

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How to avoid costly repair delays

Let’s face it: delays in repairs cost you money. Your customers want their cars back in a reasonable amount of time. If your shop doesn’t get the job done quickly—and done right—your customers certainly won’t refer you to their friends.

Their insurers, too, don’t want added labor costs and have to pay for more days on a rental vehicle. It’s up to you, then, to find a quick, efficient way to target every problem on every vehicle your customers bring in.

That way certainly isn’t the old-fashioned way—relying on the MILs (Malfunction Indicator Lights) to find problems. MILs only show that there’s a problem. What you need is all of the trouble codes that identify precisely what problems the vehicle has.

Diagnostic scans uncover hidden problems

With a diagnostic scan, however, such as the one you can perform with an asTech™ device, you receive a complete report from each scan. These reports identifies each DTC (Diagnostic Trouble Code) that has been triggered. That way, you can begin the repairs immediately with no guesswork.

Pre-repair scans can discover fault codes

Because of the way vehicles process fault codes, a pre-repair scan can discover all of the fault codes on the vehicle. If the car has a system in which the DTC is stored in its onboard computer’s memory, the scan can bring up the code. If it has a system that regenerates the code when put under a scan, the diagnostic scan will regenerate and report that code to your technicians. 

If you can’t identify all of the DTCs, your repairs will not be complete. That means you’ll have to delay returning the car to its owner until you discover all of the problems. That can take days.

Instead, with a diagnostic scan with the asTech™ device, your technicians will have a full report with each of the fault codes listed on it. They can then order parts, if needed, and begin repairs right away.  

Trim time off repairs with a post-repair scan

MILs usually stay lit until the problem that triggers the DTC has been repaired. They may remain lit for a few minutes after a problem has been repaired, but go off after a few minutes of driving. To ensure that the MIL isn’t lit due to a problem your techs forgot to repair, do a quick post-repair scan to make sure that your customer’s car has been repaired completely. 

Save money and earn referrals by using an asTech™ device to scan your customers’ vehicles before and after repairs. For more information about the advantages of a diagnostic scan from asTech™, contact the technicians at asTech™ today.

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Diagnostic Scan Tips That Help Your Repair Shop Speed Up The Claim Approval Process

After your customer’s vehicle has been in a collision, the only thing on his or her mind is to get the car back in its pre-collision condition. S/he’ll likely enlist the help of an insurance company to pay for all or part of the repairs. To speed up the claim approval process, your customers—and their insurance companies—will appreciate your handling every detail smoothly and quickly.

When you do both pre-repair scans and post-repair scans, you can hand the keys back to your customers in record time, knowing that you have restored their vehicle to its pre-collision state. Here’s how:

Do Pre-Repair Scans With an Accurate OEM Tool

With an accurate OEM tool that detects even hidden damage, you can begin repairs with confidence, knowing that you won’t make any mistakes that can cost you time and money, such as fixing a car that ends up being totaled.

Oops! You don’t want that on an online review. With an asTech™2 device in your technicians’ hands, though, you can determine the entire extent of damage from the get-go. Insurance companies will appreciate knowing all of the damage, so they can approve the repairs or declare the vehicle a total write-off.  

When you conduct a pre-repair scan with the asTech ™2 device, you’ll see at a glance which damage was collision-related and which was not.  These devices’ advanced diagnostics can tell you why each problem occurred, whether it is repairable, and which part you will need to replace to fix it. Insurers will appreciate knowing that they don’t have to repair that bumper dent that occurred months earlier, and your customers will appreciate the speed with which you can get their car back into their hands.

Post-Repair Scans a Huge Advantage

Pre-repair scans aren’t the only benefit when you use one of these high-tech diagnostic scanners. When you use one after you make all of the repairs, you’ll have a virtual technician looking over your technicians’ shoulder to make sure that all of the car’s systems have been restored to health. Hidden damage can’t hide from one of these scanners.

Don’t risk a customer or their insurance company claiming that you forgot an important safety check before you returned their vehicle to them. Make accurate, timely repairs a priority for your repair shop, and customers and insurance companies alike will write glowing reviews of your work.

For more information about the advantages you’ll have over your competition when you use an asTech™2 device for both pre-repair and post-repair scans, contact a master technician at asTech today.

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How to Streamline Post-Collision Repair

When you streamline the repair process, you can get your customer’s car back into her or his hands quickly. That will make your customer sing your shop’s praises. Yet if you do so without finding every problem spot, you’ll discover that your customer has written a scathing online critique of your shop. Oops. You should have used a diagnostic scan. Diagnostic scans—done right—get your customers vehicles back into their hands quickly, and in better condition than they were before the collision. Here’s how:

Do a pre-repair scan with an OEM factory tool

Only an original equipment factory scan tool is equipped to detect hidden damage. You can’t count on the malfunction indicator lights. They often miss key components that need to be repaired. If you use the cost-effective asTech™2 device, you can connect your customer’s vehicle to the OEM factory scan tool using its on-board diagnostics. You’ll also have the advantage of CDS’ master automotive technicians’ years of experience repairing cars of every make and model.

With our asTech™2 device, you’ll have all of the diagnostic trouble codes, which can help you create the repair plan—a blueprint for success.

Help from our experts

Our certified master technicians can help your techs pinpoint every problem and suggest a solution. You can order replacement parts and begin the repair process, knowing that you have identified every bit of damage to the vehicle.

Post Scans 

When you’ve finished the repairs, replaced all of the damage, and reassembled the vehicle, do a post-repair scan. This quick check will double-check your work to make sure that you have completed all of the repairs. The result? A happy customer. With this factory scan device at the ready, you might want to think about adding an extra repair bay or two, once the referrals start to pour in.

To discover all the advantages your shop will have over the competition when you use the asTech™2, contact the master technicians at CDS today. 

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In Collision Repair, Details Count

Not Just a Vehicle’s Appearance

Most collision shops get the details right when it comes to restoring a vehicle to the same—or better—appearance it had before the accident. Yet there is one detail that many collision shops don’t always pay attention to when they repair a car. That detail is the car’s intricate array of electronic equipment. The reason they often miss repairing these sensors, modules, and wiring is that they don’t have an up-to-date diagnostic scan tool that can detect even the slightest hidden damage in the vehicles they work on.

New Electronics Demand Updated Diagnostics

Because vehicle manufacturers constantly add new, high-tech equipment every year—sometimes even mid-year—it’s crucial that collision repair shops have updated their diagnostic scan devices. That, however, can add up to a lot of cash outlay every year for the shop. New technology, though, is available that allows repair shops to conduct diagnostic scans remotely. These scans, conducted using the OEM’s exacting standards, can detect trouble codes that reveal that a car might have suffered more damage than the technicians suspected. What looks like a simple bumper job may turn out to be a major headache, since the adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitors, and other electronic equipment are connected to the bumpers on many vehicles.

Pinpointing Damage

Because the parts of today’s cars are so intricately connected with their electronic systems, it’s often the case that a repair shop can’t just repair the part in question. Most of the time, when it comes to sensitive electronic components, replacement is the only solution.

A car may also have had pre-existing malfunctions. With a diagnostic scan conducted with a factory tool, technicians can determine whether repairing a given trouble spot will be covered under the customer’s collision insurance or not.

These remote scans can uncover the car’s history through freeze frame data that the car stores in its system. This information tells when a fault code was triggered—whether by date and mileage—or by how many key cycles ago the malfunction occurred.

With this information, your repair shop can allow the customer to choose whether to go ahead and have the pre-existing condition repaired. That way, there won’t be any surprises when the customer receives her or his bill and discovers that certain repairs weren’t covered under insurance.

Here’s How Your Shop Can Create Happy Customers

Combine the power of choice with a perfectly-repaired car, and your customers will walk out of your shop satisfied. They, in turn, will recommend your repair service to their friends and colleagues. You may even find yourself in the position to hire more technicians to keep up with the demand for your service.

If you’d like to give your customers stellar service, contact asTech, an auto repair technology provider for more information on how a remote scanning device can help propel your shop to the top of its field.

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Identify Trim Levels With These Tips

Manufacturers create varying trim levels for any given model of a vehicle in order to appeal to various classes of customers. For example, a luxury-minded person may want leather seats and a lush stereo sound, while a sports car fan might want a car with a sportier feel. For repair shops, however, these various trim levels mean that they must correctly identify the trim level when a customer brings in his or her vehicle, since each of the trim levels usually carries different software, which in turn can impact the repair process.

First, Identify the Trim Level

Some vehicles have the trim level written on the vehicle itself. Usually these are one-or two-letter designations, such as LX, L, LE, etcetera. You may also find these on the cover of the owner’s manual. If a car has been in a crash, though, both the logo and the owner’s manual may be missing.

Repair shops can also consult the vehicle’s unique identification number (VIN) to try to nail down the trim level. The best way, however, to correctly identify the trim level is with a remote scan using a factory tool. With such a high-tech device, the trim level can be easily identified, along with all of the fault codes that can help the shop prepare a comprehensive repair plan.

Next, Determine Whether to Replace or Repair

The Diagnostic Trouble Codes (DTC) that the scan reveals will enable the technicians to order the right parts if replacement is needed. If the DTCs indicate that repairs would be an adequate fix, the technicians need to note that as well in the repair plan. With that plan in hand, the technicians’ job becomes easier. Customers will receive their cars back more quickly with properly-done repairs. In time, those satisfied customers will lead to more business for the repair shop as they spread the word about the shop’s efficiency.

Finally, Recalibrate

After the repairs have been completed, technicians should run another diagnostic scan to make sure that all of the needed repairs have been done and that all of the systems have been recalibrated properly. Before handing the keys back to the customer, though, be sure that your technicians take the vehicle out for a road test to make sure that the car operates properly.

To discover more about the advantages of using a remote diagnostic scan to make your repair shop the best choice for customers in your area, contact asTech today

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Uncover Hidden Collision Damage With These Tips

Damage May Be Difficult to Detect

With the delicate array of electronic components in today’s vehicles, a collision can trigger small changes that can cause big trouble unless repair technicians identify the problem. Problems arise when technicians just can’t pin down the problem because they rely on their eyesight instead of a diagnostic scan.

When a vehicle has been involved in a collision, a diagnostic scan ought to be the first thing that a collision repair staff performs. Instead of guesswork, the technicians can discover what damage the car has suffered and create a repair plan that can get the car back into the customer’s hands—running smoothly—in the shortest possible time.  

With a remote diagnostic scan performed by OEM scan tools, a collision repair shop will have access to all of the latest developments in each vehicle’s components, since the technology is constantly updated. This cutting-edge diagnostic scan can help repair technicians determine the extent of the damage and the best way to repair that damage.  

Consult Diagnostic Experts for Best Repair Solution

With a remote diagnostic scan, a repair shop has access to mechanical technicians with expertise in automotive diagnostics. Having such expertise available immediately can speed up the repair process. When your technicians know exactly how to proceed while making repairs, you can be confident that your customers’ vehicles will be restored to perfect working order in less time than you might have thought possible before remote diagnostic scans became available.

With remote diagnostic scans, your collision repair shop can provide cutting-edge technology even if your shop is in a rural, remote location. If you’d like to learn more about how these scans can help you take your business to the next level, contact asTech today.

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Check the Vehicle Sensors that Trigger Malfunction Indicators

When a car owner sees a malfunction indicator lamp, he or she knows there’s something wrong. To determine what problem needs to be fixed, the customer will bring it to a repair shop. Repair shops that want repeat business and referrals will take the time to do a complete diagnostic scan of all the car’s sensors before repairs begin and after they are completed.

Vehicle sensors have become more sophisticated, more numerous, and more complex since auto manufacturers began to include them in cars to comply with the Federal Clean Air Act in 1963. At first, they only monitored the car’s emissions. Now Federal law requires that all vehicles contain OBD (on-board diagnostics) to regulate emissions and other aspects of vehicle performance.

Federal law requires that OBD systems monitor the following components:

Catalyst efficiency

O2 sensor response and the heater

Exhaust gas recirculation system

Fuel delivery system

Engine misfires

Evaporation system

Secondary air system

If the vehicle uses R-12, the A/C system

Powertrain control module and its inputs and outputs

Both the USA and Europe require that the OBD systems detect electrical and plausibility failures on all emission-related components. These components and their subsystems include the following:

Catalytic converter for the pollutants HC, CO and NOx

02 sensors

Fuel system

Misfires

Refrigerant loss in air conditioners

In the USA, evaporation system leakage detection, secondary air system, crankcase ventilation, and coolant thermostat sensors must be checked

In Europe, particulate filters and the electronic diagnostic for the evaporation system must be checked

Cars built in model year 1996 or after must include a universal connector that accesses standardized diagnostic codes. This protocol, called OBD-II, helps technicians analyze any car from any manufacturer quickly and efficiently for problems. The first sensors technicians should check are those essential to the car’s most basic functions:

Manifold absolute pressure

Mass airflow

Engine block temperature

Crankshaft and distributor position

Other sensors covered by the OBD-II include:

Coolant, BARO, and MAP sensors

Throttle position, vane airflow, Karmen vortex airflow, and mass airflow sensors

Knock, air temperature, and EGR valve position sensors

Crankshaft and camshaft position sensors

Vehicle speed sensors

Steering angle sensors

G-force sensors

Airbag collision sensors

For vehicles with ABS systems, wheel speed sensors

Because these complex systems of onboard computers are so complicated, repair shops should use a diagnostic scan with the factory tool. Remote services are available. For more information about these services to help with diagnosis and repair, call asTech today.

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Repair Bumpers Right the First Time

Carmakers design bumpers to lessen damage to vehicles’ front and rear ends when they are involved in low-speed crashes. They cushion the grill, hood, and cooling system in a car’s front end, while protecting the trunk, the fuel system, and the exhaust system in a car’s rear end.

Before repair technicians disassemble a damaged bumper after a crash, they need to perform a thorough diagnostic scan to pinpoint which parts are damaged and where they are located.

Note the Connected Systems

Today’s bumpers have electronic connections to many of a vehicle’s key components. To repair a bumper properly, technicians must take the extra time to disconnect the bumper from these systems before they disassemble the bumper.

Take Precautions With Connected Parts

If technicians take a few precautions with these intricate systems that connect to the bumper, it will save them time and effort in the long run and result in a happy customer.

Lights: Fog lights and turn signals may connect to the bumper. Disconnect and remove these lights before you replace and reinstall them.

Blind Spot Monitoring System: Even slight damage can cause this system’s radar system to go out of alignment. This will cause the MSM system to work improperly.

Parking Assist System: If the bumper becomes misaligned in a collision, it will cause the parking assist system to shut down.

Trim: Bumpers usually also have some trim built into them. Remove them carefully before you begin the repair process.

Vehicle Safety Systems: Backup cameras and sensors, as well as lane-change warning systems and airbag sensors are all wired into most bumpers. Take care to disconnect them before you begin the repair process.

When you replace parts, do your customers a favor and use OEM parts.  If you don’t, you run the risk of weakening the system that the part connects to.

Recalibrate all Systems

Your diagnostic scan will identify each of the malfunctions that occurred as a result of the collision. Damaged sensors need to be replaced, because most of them cannot be repaired.

Remove all of the sensors before you begin the repair and replacement process. Even if a sensor doesn’t have apparent damage, if there is any chance that it has been damaged, replace it. Be sure to recalibrate all of the sensors once you have replaced them. 

The condition of crash sensors cannot be known from their appearance because they are in sealed units. They can be opened electronically when they are in a resting condition. You can use an ohmmeter to check for continuity. If the sensor’s contacts stay closed, it has not reset. You need to replace it.

Air bag control modules automatically self-check every crash sensor when the engine starts. If the air bag warning light doesn’t come on, the sensors judge that the sensor is working properly. If a malfunction shows up during the diagnostic scan, it will trigger a malfunction warning light and will automatically deactivate the system.

Perform Post-Repair Scans

After you have repaired the vehicle, you should conduct another diagnostic scan before you reassemble the bumper. That way, you’ll know if all of the damaged parts have been repaired or replaced. If you reassemble the bumper before you do the scan, you will have to disassemble it again if you discover any malfunctions. Save time and money by waiting to reassemble the bumper until the diagnostic scan indicates that all is well.

If you would like to know more about diagnostic scanning devices that can save you precious time when you repair your customers’ vehicles, contact asTech, an auto repair technology provider, today

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Tips to Keep Your Car’s Electronics Safe This Winter

Your car’s underbody isn’t the only thing that winter can take its toll on. Your car’s electronic system can be just as vulnerable to winter damage as more visible components. If you have battery trouble during cold weather, it can damage your car’s computerized control modules. Here’s how to keep your car’s electronic components safe this winter:

Battery Loss Causes Loss of Optimum Function

When your battery dies or needs to be replaced, the disconnection process causes the car’s PCM (powertrain control module) to lose power. When it loses power, the values in the keep alive memory chip (KAM) are lost. Because this chip contains the results for the PCM’s diagnostic self-tests for key components, such as the transmission, the emission controls, and the charging system, the car will not function properly.

A diagnostic scan at your local repair shop, though, can diagnose all problems caused by the PCM’s voltage loss. Then the PCM itself can be replaced.

Other Systems Affected by Battery Power Loss 

When you disconnect your battery, it may affect your car’s climate control system, its anti-lock brake system, its anti-theft system, its radio, and its clock. If you or your repair shop do not disconnect your car’s battery before working on your vehicle, you run the risk of causing key systems to short out, which can damage your car’s modules or wiring.

Instead, when you replace your battery, maintain the voltage to the PCM and other electronic components during the replacement process. Hook up a 12-volt power supply, such as another 12-volt battery or a 9-volt KAM saver to its 12-volt power outlet. This will avoid the risk of damage to your car’s electronic system. After you replace the battery, reset the codes and then check to see that all systems are operating correctly by performing another diagnostic scan.

Tire Pressure Affected by Cold

With every 10-degree (Fahrenheit) drop in temperature, your tire pressure goes down by one psi. In the spring, summer, and fall, this might not cause any problems, but in the winter, severe temperature drops can trigger TPMS (tire pressure monitor system) warnings.

Even on cold days, when your car is driven down the road for more than a few miles, the friction from contact with the road raises your tires’ temperature to 90 degrees or more. When you come home, the tires assume the same temperature as the area in which the car is parked. If that temperature plummets to the low 40s, you may see a TPMS warning the next morning. Usually the warning light turns off after the car’s tires heat up again after a drive.

If you have just had your tires serviced or replaced, make sure that the repair shop resets your TPMS system before you leave. With a diagnostic scan done properly with factory equipment, you will leave with a car that is working properly. Otherwise, you may have to return to have the TPMS reset.  

If your repair shop doesn’t have a remote diagnostic scan tool to ensure that every problem has been properly diagnosed and repaired, contact the master technicians at asTech, a top-quality automotive repair technology provider, today.

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Don’t Rely on Malfunction Indicator Lamps for Collision Repairs

With Pre-Repair Diagnosis, Don’t Rely on MILs

Malfunction indicator lights (MILs) were never designed to assist repair facilities to diagnose a car’s problems. MILs are designed to alert customers about problems that arise due to daily wear and tear. After a collision, repair shops must take advantage of all of the latest technology to diagnose damage to the sensitive electronic components in the car, many of them safety-related, such as active head restraints, tire pressure monitoring systems, and traction control systems.    

Yet many collision repair shops rely on MILs to ferret out hidden damage to car’s mechanical and electronic components. Here are some of the problems with such an approach:

No Dash Light, No Problem—Wrong

Accidents can themselves set off a variety of malfunction codes. If you only rely on a dash light, you may miss some key issues in the vehicle. Only a thorough diagnostic scan can turn up some kinds of hidden damage.

Why Scan? There Was Hardly Any Damage—Wrong

Even a small bump from a fender-bender can damage sensors  and other electronic components, such as parking and blind spot sensors. If these components fail your customer during an emergency situation, you and your shop could be held liable for your failure to detect the damage.

PDR  Jobs Can Cause Malfunction Too

Even a simple collision repair job such as a PDR can set  off DTCs. If a tech removes a vehicle’s door panels or disconnects its sensors to conduct repairs, she or he may inadvertently set off DTCs, causing damage to some of the car’s key components. Use a diagnostic scan before and after you perform repairs to ensure that the customer leaves with a car in perfect working condition.

Use High-Tech Solutions to Build Customer Loyalty

When you use the latest technology to diagnose problems  before and after repairs, you’ll send your customers home with cars that work as good or better than they did before the collision. This kind of attention to detail creates a lot of word-of-mouth publicity for the quality of your work. Loyal customers, in turn, create new customers through referrals. For more information on diagnostic scan equipment which duplicates the factory’s own  scan, contact asTech today.

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How New Technology Benefits the Auto Insurance Industry

New developments in automotive technology have provided major advances in protecting a vehicle’s occupants during a crash. Other new technologies have focused on crash prevention. Either way, the auto insurance industry—and their clients—will benefit greatly from these improvements.

In the Near Future, Driverless Cars Will Increase Safety

With carmakers partnering with technology firms, the advent of self-driven cars is just over the horizon. Actually, there are already several working models that are in the midst of extensive testing. Those tests show that these cars, compared to human-driven ones, are less likely to become involved in a collision. The complex arrays of cameras and sensors, together with the equipment’s faster reaction time, have produced a vehicle that can detect hazards and evade them, protecting the car’s occupants from harm. They’re not on the market yet, but when they do arrive in dealers’ showrooms, insurance companies can breathe a sigh of relief. Claims will plummet, and profits will rise.

Better Safety Features, More Security

This year and in coming years, vehicles are becoming safer. Unavailable until now, cutting-edge sensors make it possible for the car to alert the driver when to brake. Cameras automatically project the rear view of the vehicle when a driver backs up, alerting her or him of the presence of hazards. Blind-spot monitoring technology prevents drivers from pulling into another lane when another car is fast approaching. If your clients have vehicles equipped with this technology, it diminishes the chances that they will be involved in a collision.

Diagnostic Scans Prevent Accidents

If a car has been damaged in a collision, a mere inspection by the auto body shop may not detect all of the damage to sensitive internal components. Remote diagnostic scans detect hidden damage so that all of the parts of the vehicle are restored to perfect working order. Because the repair process often causes changes to sensitive electronic components, repair shops should re-check the car with a post-repair diagnostic scan to make sure that the vehicle’s safety and other systems work properly.  

These improvements in automotive technology will bring a welcome change to the auto insurance industry. If you would like to discover more about how diagnostic scans can increase automotive safety, contact asTech today.

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Reduce Errors: Check for Hidden Damage

Estimates Fall Short

Most estimates miss some damage that repair technicians do not discover until well underway into the work. Instead of only an estimate, you need to consider the necessity of a complete repair plan for each customer who brings his or her to your shop. The goal should never be just getting the sale. The goal should be the complete satisfaction that comes with a vehicle that returns to its owner in perfect working condition. To do that, you need to create a plan that is more detailed, more comprehensive than most estimates.  

A complete repair plan will outline every problem that your customer’s vehicle has, even if the issues are unrelated to the collision that brought your customer to your door. Given the choice, most customers will want to pay a little more to restore their vehicles to perfect working order. After all, the customer’s safety is at stake.   

Locate Hidden Damage With a Five-Point Plan

Follow this five-point plan to identify and correct damage that may not be obvious at first glance. Your customers will appreciate the extra attention to detail.

1. Document all of the vehicle’s problems.

Even if the main problem is collision-related, document all of the problems the vehicle has. Ask your customer to examine the car alongside you as you take detailed notes. Differentiate which problems are from the collision and which are wear and tear issues. Take plenty of photos. Photos provide powerful evidence to customers and create a visual blueprint for your technicians as they repair the vehicle.  

2. Diagnostic scans are a must to nail down every problem, before and after you make repairs.

Because vehicles have intricate electronic systems, the only way you will be sure to find every problem is to perform a diagnostic scan. If you can locate a technician that who has expertise in OEM diagnostics, it will be well worth the investment of time and money.

After you finish the repairs, perform another scan to make sure that all of the systems and sensors are reset and recalibrated properly. That way, if the repair process itself changed the settings on one of the sensitive electrical components, you can locate the problem and repair it before you send the car back to its owner.  

3. Every vehicle, every job requires a 100% teardown.

Even for the smallest jobs, tear down the vehicle completely to locate any hidden damage that you could never find without such a teardown. Remember, your customer trusts you—the expert—to find all of the damage that needs to be repaired if the car is to be safe to drive.  

4. Measure every vehicle.

Many types of structural damage reveal themselves by measurements that do not conform to the manufacturer’s specifications. Measuring the vehicle will help you locate problems that would otherwise be difficult to detect.

5. Use OEM repair documentation as your blueprint for every vehicle.

OEM repair documents outline the procedures you need to follow to repair each vehicle that comes into your shop. Without this documentation, you rely upon guesswork. That’s not why your customers bring their cars to your shop. They depend upon you to follow the manufacturer’s guidelines to the letter.

After You Create the Repair Plan, Follow It

After you create the repair plan and have informed your customer what you plan to do, make sure that your team of technicians follows the plan so they can work quickly and efficiently to get a properly-working vehicle back in the hands of its owner. Grow your reputation quickly by sending your customers home with vehicles that work as well as the day they came off the assembly line, and you’ll succeed in the auto repair business.

To find out more about how you can employ high-tech diagnostic scans to make your repair shop on the cutting edge of the industry, contact asTech today.

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OCS Tips for Collision Repair Shop Owners

Passenger  Safety System Terminology 

Passenger safety systems are called by various names, depending upon the manufacturer. All of them function by classifying passenger seat occupants by weight and position; hence, the general name OCS (Occupant Classification Systems).Other names for these key safety components in vehicles are ODS (Occupant Detection Systems), SOS (Seat Occupant Sensors),and PWS (Passenger Weight Systems). Even though they  function similarly, each original equipment manufacturer (OEM) has its own procedure to repair these sensitive components after a collision. Naturally, a repair shop needs to include OCS repairs in every vehicle repair plan it creates for its customers.

How  Do OCSs Keep Passengers Safe?

These high-tech sensors can detect if a seat contains a passenger, the passenger’s position, and his or her approximate weight. During a collision, these sensors send a signal to the airbags to determine if they need to deploy, and, if they do, the velocity at which they will deploy. Larger passengers will need a more rapid velocity to protect them in a crash, while children might become seriously injured at such a deployment velocity.

OCS  Repairs Are a Key Component of Collision Repair

Because OCSs are essential to the safety of a vehicle’s passengers, they need to be checked during the collision repair process. Without these sensitive components functioning at their full capacity, a repair shop has not completed its job.

Each manufacturer’s repair guidelines differ.To locate  the guidelines for each vehicle, don’t rely on your estimating system’s P-Pages. You must consult the manufacturer’s own guidelines, which are  published on the OEM’s official website. Some third party sources may also have the official guidelines from the OEM.

For all vehicles in which your techs have to remove and replace the car’s passenger seat, they must recalibrate the OCS with the factory scan tool from the OEM. Furthermore, some manufacturers require that  in the event of any collision, regardless of how small, repair shops must recalibrate the OCS, even if the passenger seat was not involved. Because these systems are so finely tuned, why take a chance with your customers’ safety? Check the OCS of every vehicle before and after you perform repairs.

Use  Factory Scan Tools to Identify Problems

The only way to catch all hidden damage to a vehicle after an accident is to use a diagnostic scan with the factory’s scanning tools. There are automotive repair technology companies that have remote interfaces that allow them to scan vehicles from a remote location using the factory’s own scanning tools. Scan the vehicle before you begin the repair process. The tool will provide you with all of the DTCs that were set during the collision. That way, you’ll have a checklist of all of the things you need to take care of during the repair process. Then, after you finish the repairs, perform another diagnostic scan to make sure that the repair process itself did not set DTC codes.

To discover more about the potential of remote diagnostic scans for your collision repair shop, contact asTech today.

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5 Reasons Your Auto Repair Shop Needs a Diagnostic Scan Unit

Diagnostic scan units are machines that auto repair technicians can hook up to a vehicle to check to see if all of its components are working correctly. Here are five reasons why a diagnostic scan unit can be of great benefit to auto repair shops of all kinds.

1. Diagnostic Scans Assess Problems More Quickly

Before the advent of diagnostic scan technology, auto repair shops could take hours just to locate the cause of a problem, particularly if the symptoms could have more than one cause. A diagnostic scan takes the guesswork out of the process, which save both time and money for busy auto repair shops.  

2. Diagnostic Scans Can Find Why a Warning Light Turned On

When warning lights turn on, technicians may have to resort to guessing if they haven’t a diagnostic scan to help them pinpoint the problem. Often sensors need to be reset, safety features need to be recalibrated, or the technicians may have missed something. A diagnostic scan can solve the mystery of what is causing a warning light to turn on even after the obvious repairs have been completed.

3. Diagnostic Scans Are a Key Component in Hybrid Repair

Because hybrids and all-electric vehicles have more electrical systems than do gasoline- and diesel-powered cars, not all malfunctions will show up on warning lights. With a diagnostic scan, however, it is easy to detect if the car’s systems are working properly. If certain systems or components need to be reset, the diagnostic scan will reveal them. If the vehicle has been in a collision, it will not perform in drive mode until it is reset. A diagnostic scanning tool will pinpoint the problem and help technicians reset it in drive mode.

4. Diagnostic Scans Can Help Detect Problems with Deployment Devices

Not only are modern vehicles loaded with air bags, but they also have other deployment devices that protect the occupants of the car during a collision or a near-collision. Deployable headrests and seat belt pre-tensioners also present problems to repair technicians after an accident. With a scan, however, technicians can tell at a glance which of the devices needs to be replaced if it no longer functions properly after deployment.

5. Use Diagnostic Scans After Repairs to Check Your Work

Even if you have done a perfect job repairing a vehicle, your repairs themselves may have caused some changes that require recalibration, resets, or extra repair. If you perform a diagnostic scan after you have finished, however, you will be able to detect if any extra work needs to be done. Your customers will thank you for your extra attention. No customer likes to spend a whole afternoon waiting for her or his car to be done, only to have to return to have additional work. A little extra time spent in post-repair diagnostic scanning can help you increase your customers’ loyalty.

If you would like to incorporate diagnostic scans into your repair workflow, contact asTech for a consultation.

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What is asTech?

asTech is poised to change the collision repair industry by making accurate remote diagnostics accessible to shops of every size. Here is a look at how asTech works and what information you can expect to get from an asTech unit.

The asTech device is a remote diagnostic tool that allows collision shops and repair technicians to have a vehicle scanned before or after repair work is done. This will ensure that all of the vehicle’s issues have been fully addressed and all systems are working properly.

How Does it Work?

The technician connects the asTech unit to the vehicle, puts the key in the car, turns the ignition to ON, and connects a battery support- this will keep the car battery from dying during a scan.

The technician goes to the asTech website to submit a service request

An OEM master technician will send a message to the asTech unit informing the shop that the scan is about to begin

Once the scan is completed, the asTech master technician transmits a full report to the shop

What Information Do You Get?

Find out what issue is causing the dashboard warning lights to stay lit

Ensure all sensor systems are functioning properly

Identify any hidden damage due to collision

Information about hidden problems that do no cause a warning light

Where Can You Get One?

Visit our Get an asTech page to order your asTech unit today.