Blog / Workshop
Why we built a structural aluminium repair bay
Cars are quietly changing. More and more are built from bonded and riveted aluminium rather than pressed steel. It makes them lighter and more efficient, but it means they can't be repaired the same way, or even in the same space. So we built a dedicated structural aluminium bay. Here's why that matters, and what it means if your car is one of them.
Aluminium isn't steel
Steel and aluminium behave completely differently under repair. Aluminium can't simply be heated and pulled the way steel can. It's bonded, riveted and welded with its own dedicated equipment and its own methods, and get the process wrong and the repair won't hold. But the bigger problem is what happens when the two metals meet.
Why the two can't share a workshop
When steel particles, the fine dust thrown off by grinding and cutting in an ordinary bodyshop, land on aluminium, they trigger galvanic corrosion. The aluminium begins to corrode from those contamination points, often invisibly, and often months after the car has left. That is why vehicle manufacturers insist aluminium repair is physically separated from steelwork. That's not box-ticking. Get it wrong and the repair fails later, usually long after the customer has driven away.
A bay of its own
Our structural aluminium bay is a dedicated, purpose-built space with its own tooling, kept apart from our steel repair areas by a curtain system so there is no cross-contamination. Dedicated equipment, dedicated to aluminium and nothing else. It's the controlled environment this kind of work needs, and most independent bodyshops simply don't have it.
Verified, not just equipped
Owning the kit is one thing. Doing the work to standard is another. As of our 2026 BS10125 audit, structural aluminium repair is within our audited and certified scope, passed with zero non-conformances for the third year running. That is independent verification, from the certification body behind the British Standard for accident repair, that we do it properly. Not just that we have the bay.
Is your car aluminium?
It's more common than people think. A lot of premium platforms and many electric vehicles now use aluminium-intensive structures, and the bonded-aluminium platforms coming through our workshop include models from manufacturers like Hyundai. If you're not sure whether yours is aluminium-bodied, ask us, or ask Stan on our website, and we'll tell you straight.
Why it matters to you
A structural aluminium repair done in a general steel workshop can look perfect on the day you collect it and fail later, once that galvanic corrosion has had time to do its work. Done in the right environment, with the right tooling, and to a verified standard, it's safe, sound and built to last. It's why we built the bay.
If your car has been in an accident and you think it might be aluminium, get in touch. Call 01253 735544, or upload a few photos to Stan on our AI estimate page for an indicative figure.