I Car-Gold Class shops? Worthy?

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Is this like ASE certs for mechanics? I-Car Gold Class is just competence testing like ASE Certified?

Got a shop a town over advertising this. They charge a premium on the body work.
 
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It looks like it includes training and competence training which ASE does not. ASE testing is just a multiple choice test plus either 2 years of work experience or 1 year of work experience with 2 years of school.
 
Originally Posted By: bdcardinal
It looks like it includes training and competence training which ASE does not. ASE testing is just a multiple choice test plus either 2 years of work experience or 1 year of work experience with 2 years of school.

Also I-CAR Gold Class shops need to have their bodymen/painters take classes with a affiliated school to keep that certification, in a way like professional development credits.
 
Originally Posted By: skyactiv
There are shops that are I-Car Gold Class certified and use junk aftermarket body parts.


This is a complete non-sequitur. If a car gets aftermarket parts, it's because the customer requested them or the customer bought an insurance policy that requires them. The shop is not Santa Claus, they're not a charity, they aren't going to give out OEM parts for free.
crazy.gif
 
Useless. I took my Jeep to an I-Car gold shop and even though the insurance company wrote for them to pull the quarter glass they didn't. As soon as I went to pick it up, I could see walking to the car they taped it off. They didn't give me a hassle redoing it, but when I went back the next time to pick it up a molding wasn't aligned correctly and there was a rattle from the area. I decided not to go back because anything they touched would make it worse.

So my opinion? Worthless. The same company also botched a windshield replacement twice.
 
Yes I-Car certified shops are well worth the extra expense. I-car classes for techs cover everything from how to measure a car to find how far off it is to refinishing systems to how to weld aluminum AND actual tests where the techs have to weld and each weld is tested. I-car classes also ensure that the tech is following the correct procedures for repair as established by the OEM, this is very important when the repair involves structural repairs. I can tell you from experience (I was I-car certified) that these classes are real and not gimmicky, the instructors have years of real world experience and are serious about what they do. These certifications aren't cheap either, in the end you will pay a bit more because a highly trained tech can ask for that much more $$$
 
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