When Alex Halmaghi was ready to start an automotive business in 1986, he first made a list of every auto business he didn't want to be in. General collision repair was on the list because he didn't like the idea of being dependent on other companies for his work. 

One aspect of collision repair, however, appealed to him - frame work. His brother, John Vulcu, is in the business of buying and selling salvage vehicles, and he thought a lot of frame work could be had from the salvage auctions. Many rebuilders don't have the equipment or skill to fix the frame, and so will pay more for the vehicle if the frame has already been fixed.

The idea of doing frame work for auto auctions was a good one and today Forest Imports, located in an industrial area of Northwest Houston near the race track and Willowbrook Mall, is one of the busier frame shops in Texas. And while Forest Imports has expanded over the past 15years to include complete collision repair and refinishing, most of the work is still pulling twisted frames and bodies back into shape.

Most of the cars and trucks - "lots of trucks in Texas," said Halmaghi - come from auction yards, although alignment shops and body shops also refer a steady stream of customers.

Forest Imports straightens and squares 25-30 vehicles a week, from frame to roof, on five Chassis Liner frame machines.

"We do so many cars and trucks here that when I first see a damaged vehicle I can just close my eyes and picture what the damage will be, how to best repair it, and what it should look like when it's done," said Halmaghi. The shop's capacity is for up to 50 frame jobs a week.

Chooses Chassis Liner

With that type of volume, Halmaghi is very dependent on his Chassis Liner frame machines. "I had another machine in the beginning, and we were limited in what pulls we could do. I knew what we needed to do, and when I talked to Bob Olson from Chassis Liner at NACE '93 in Dallas, I knew their equipment was right for me. And you know, because you buy direct from Chassis Liner, the price is right, too. "

Halmaghi said that one of the biggest advantages to his Chassis Liners is the ease of setting up a car or truck to be pulled. "You can drive right onto the bed, or for a badly damaged vehicle we can winch it or load it with a forklift. I can setup a car in five minutes, and a little longer for a truck. A lot of frame machines claim to do most everything, but you find out that they're either too complicated to train new people on or they take forever to set up for a job.

"Chassis Liner has tower extensions that allow me to straighten and square roofs easily. We also get a lot of dual cab pickups, and Chassis Liner built its first 22' rack to meet my needs with those long truck frames. The towers also roll around the bed so I can get 360 degrees of pulling angles. You can pull up, and down, and there's a pusher to push a frame. And they've got a lot of clamps and adapters to fit almost any car or truck.

"When I do have a problem or a question, I can pick up the phone 24 hours a day and get help. They'll replace the hard parts forever, and they do things like double the manufacturer's warranty on the pump. I can't find anything wrong with the equipment."

Rebuilds high-end cars and trucks

While 90% of the vehicles go back to the auction after being straightened, there is another important part of Forest Imports business - repairing and reselling "totaled" European luxury cars and high-end SUVs and trucks. "My brother John travels all over Texas and Louisiana looking for the right vehicles," said Halmaghi, a licensed salvage rebuilder, who pointed out that many cars written off by insurers as total losses have easily repairable damage. "Some, like recovered stolen vehicles, have very minor damage, maybe $3000. We don't rebuild on speculation; only for special orders. Our customers tell us what type of car they want, and if we can find it, we repair it 100% for them." The goal is to sell the car for between trade and loan value without adding for mileage or options, according to Halmaghi, who noted that most of the rebuild business comes from repeat and referral customers.

Collision repair to expand

Forest Imports will be expanding later this year on adjacent land in order to accommodate more insurance work. "We have a good relationship with several insurance companies, and once we can set up the main building and move the frame equipment to a new building out back, we'll be in a position to pursue DRP programs."

To get ready for more collision work and to accommodate the 18 wheelers he repairs for Delta Truck Lines, Forest Imports will add a new building on the existing property. Halmaghi recently put in a new AmeriCure paint booth (which he bought factory direct, just like the Chassis Liners) where he sprays exclusively PPG paint. The refinish department relies on one painter, one prep man, and a detailer.

The three frame men are also fully-trained body men - 80% of the employees are I-CAR certified in multiple collision repair skills - because Halmaghi believes that a good repair starts with the frame. "If they know they're going to do the body work, they'll be more careful and do the best possible job on the frame." And despite being a high-volume frame operation, Halmaghi says he follows one I-CAR recommendation very strictly: "If a frame rail is crushed or kinked, we don't try to straighten or repair it. We replace it. We do it right."