Frame repair in Tulsa
Measured, straightened, inspected.

Frame damage is the repair most people cannot see and most need to understand. A car can look fine from the driveway and still be out of shape underneath, and when it is, it will not drive, wear or protect you the way it was designed to. This page explains how we find structural damage, how we repair it, and how we check the work before you get the car back.

Frame or unibody?

Most cars and SUVs on the road today do not have a separate frame. They are built as a unibody, where the floor, the rails, the pillars and the roof are joined into one structure. Pickups and some larger SUVs still sit on a separate frame. Either way people call it frame damage, and either way it means the same thing: the part of the car that holds everything else in position has been moved.

Signs of structural damage

• Gaps around the hood, doors, fenders or trunk that are wider on one side than the other
• Doors, the hood or the trunk that are hard to close or no longer line up
• The car pulls to one side, or the steering wheel sits off center since the accident
• Tires wearing unevenly soon after a hit
• Wind noise or water leaks that started after the accident
• Any hit hard enough to set off the airbags

None of these proves the structure is damaged, and not having them does not prove it is fine. The only way to know is to measure.

How structural measurement works

Every manufacturer publishes the dimensions of its body structure: the distances between fixed reference points on the underbody and in the engine bay, such as suspension mounts and factory holes. Before anything structural is repaired, the car's reference points are measured and compared against those published dimensions. That shows where the structure has moved, in which direction, and by how much.

Measuring is also how the repair gets checked. The structure is measured again as it is pulled, and again when the work is done, so the result is a set of numbers, not a guess by eye.

Straighten or replace

A structure that has been pushed out of position can often be pulled back, carefully and in stages, until the reference points measure where the manufacturer says they should. Some parts should not be straightened, though. When a part is kinked or torn, or the manufacturer calls for it to be replaced, replacement is the right repair. Your estimate spells out which parts are being repaired and which are being replaced, and why.

Why it matters for safety

Your car's structure is designed to crumple in some places and hold firm in others, so the force of a crash is absorbed before it reaches the people inside. A rail that was bent and left bent, or straightened when it should have been replaced, will not behave the way it was designed to in the next accident.

It matters day to day as well. The suspension and steering bolt to the structure, so if the mounting points are out of position the alignment will not hold, the car can pull and the tires wear early. Doors and glass that no longer seal let in wind and water. And many newer cars have driver-assist cameras and sensors that depend on being mounted where the manufacturer put them.

The post-repair inspection

A structural repair is not finished when the panels go back on. Before we call you to pick the car up, it gets a post-repair inspection that covers:

• Final measurements of the structure, compared against the manufacturer's dimensions
• Panel gaps and alignment around the hood, doors, fenders and trunk or tailgate
• Doors, hood and trunk opening and closing the way they should
• Lights, dash warning lights and the electrical items near the repair
• A test drive to check the car tracks straight with the steering wheel centered

Then we walk around the car with you at pickup, so you can see the finished work and ask anything you want before you drive away.

Does frame damage mean the car is totaled?

Not necessarily. Whether an insurer declares a car a total loss depends on what the repair costs compared with what the car is worth, not on the words frame damage. Plenty of cars with structural damage are repaired properly and go back on the road. We give you the full picture on the estimate so you and your insurer are working from real numbers.

Frame damage and your insurance claim

Structural damage is often found, or confirmed, once the damaged parts come off, which is after the insurer's first estimate was written. That is normal, and it is what a supplement is for. We document what we find with photos and measurements and send it to the adjuster for approval. In Oklahoma you choose the shop that repairs your car, not the insurance company. See how a claim runs with us.

Get it checked

If you have been in an accident and something does not feel right, bring the car in. The estimate is free and no appointment is needed, Monday to Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Saturday, 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. We are at 5014 E Pine St in Tulsa, and customers come to us from Owasso, Turley, Sapulpa, Broken Arrow and Sand Springs too. If the car is not safe to drive, call (918) 951‑1473 first and we will talk it through. Hablamos Español.