Car accidents, regardless of their severity, can leave a lasting impact not just on you, but also on your much-loved vehicle. Unpredictable and unfortunate, these incidents can lead to significant damage to various components of your car. While no two accidents are exactly the same, there are some components that, statistically, tend to bear the brunt more often.
Here is an analysis of the most commonly damaged components in a car accident to help you better understand what damages to look out for after a collision and potentially help you with insurance or repair considerations.
Headlights and Taillights
The front and back lights generally consist of plastic or other substances that are easy to break due to automobile impacts. This makes them more likely to get damaged in an accident. If your automobile has been in an accident, double-check the headlights and taillights immediately to ensure they are still working.
For the safety of everyone using the road, replace any broken lights without delay. Keeping your vehicle compliant with local regulations is as simple as installing new headlights and taillights.
Fenders
Fenders prevent debris from damaging your vehicle, or from being thrown up at other vehicles or passing pedestrians. Your fender protects the sides of your car in a crash.
The fenders are among the first parts of a vehicle to take damage in the event of an accident. The fender is prone to become bent or damaged after being hit. Auto specialists may straighten the fender, fill any holes, sand with an appropriate sealant, and paint with a suitable coating to remedy this problem.
Hood and Trunk
Most automobile hood damage consists of creases in the protective cover that sits over the engine. The entry of foreign items or severe weather damages might exacerbate this damage when a significant impact ensues.
If this isn’t addressed, rust will form where oxidation occurs on the exposed metal. If you see any dings or scratches on your car, it’s best to get them checked out immediately by a professional auto body shop or technician.
In most cases, scrapes and discoloration are all that result from damage to automobile trunks. However, the lock may break in more severe circumstances, allowing the trunk or hood to prop open even as the car moves. This emergency requires immediate attention and, in most cases, a new component.
Most technicians use a method called paintless dent removal for quick repair. The auto body shop uses pads or suction points to force the dent back to its original position without damaging the metal in any way that could lead to cracking in the future. If you want to keep the vehicle looking and feeling like new, this is much more effective option than panel pounding.
Grille
Air enters the engine through the grille, which is placed at the front. Grilles help maintain the engine’s optimal temperature and performance. However, due to its exposed position in a frontal accident, the grille is usually among the first components to sustain damage.
Damage to the grille prevents air from reaching the engine. Get a new one as quickly as possible after an accident.
Bumper
When an accident occurs from the direct front or rear, the bumper is the first part of the vehicle to feel the force of the crash. They serve to dampen impact and prevent catastrophic damage to the car. The front bumper takes the brunt of every front-end collision and is the most likely to sustain damage. The rear bumper suffers considerable damage when a vehicle impacts another from behind.
Bumper replacement, nitrogen welding, new paint job, plastic fillers, dent removal, and removing paint transfers can be used to fix the damage.
Visit or contact Best Collision Center in Houston, TX, and surrounding cities, for auto collision repairs.
