International Auto Center Body Shop straightens and tests vehicle frames in Santa Clara. Structural damage is measured against specifications, pulled back into position, and checked again so your car drives straight and the panels line up. Estimates are free.
What frame damage means
Your car's frame or unibody is the structure that holds everything else in alignment: the suspension, the doors, the hood. A hard impact can bend it by a few millimeters, and a few millimeters at the structure becomes a visible gap at the end of a fender. Frame damage is not always dramatic. A moderate hit can leave the cosmetics acceptable while the wheels no longer track together.
How we find it
We start with a visual inspection for kinked rails, buckled floor pans and uneven gaps. Then the car is measured. Reference points on the underbody are compared with the manufacturer's dimensions to see how far each point has moved. That data tells us where to pull and how far.
How straightening works
The car is secured to a frame machine or rack. Controlled pulls move the structure back toward its original position while measurements are repeated during the process. Damaged sections that cannot be pulled safely are replaced per the repair procedure. When the measurements are back in tolerance, bodywork, paint and mechanical checks follow.
That last phrase is the testing in frame straightening and testing: the car is measured after the pull, not assumed to be right.
Why it affects steering and tires
A frame out of position changes suspension geometry, which shows up as pulling to one side, a crooked steering wheel and uneven tire wear. Alignment alone does not cure those problems if the structure is still off. That is why steering and suspension repair after a crash is on our service list, and why we check geometry after structural work.
Safe, honest assessments
Some vehicles should not be repaired, and sometimes an insurer will declare a vehicle a total loss. California Vehicle Code section 544 defines a total loss by comparing repair cost plus salvage value with the vehicle's value. We will tell you plainly what we see and what the estimate involves.