“All the sheet metal lines up  and we can paint panels off the car and fit them perfectly.” Moeckel chose Car Bench because of the ease of set up. Although operator error can be a factor, he says, “with Car Bench it’s hard to get it wrong.”

“Paying, say $700, for dedicated jig rentals can be an issue, but on a bigger repair it’s worth it.”

Similar insight comes from Autobody News columnist, Lee Amaradio, who has 65 employees in his state of the art shop in Murrieta, California. He calls Car Bench’s technology “spot on. It’s a fabulous company which makes great equipment.” In addition to the insurers balking at costs to set up, a cost-related issue is that the tolerances achieved by the jigs exceed factory tolerances found on most domestic cars.

Company History
Car Bench was founded in 1967 by Mr. Giuseppe Pietrelli in Massa, Italy, and 2007 marked Car Bench’s 40th year in business. The company is still owned by the Pietrelli family, with Giuseppe’s son (Silvano Pietrelli) and daughter (Paola Pietrelli) serving as President and Vice President, respectively.

From its beginning, Car Bench has worked very closely with dozens of vehicle manufacturers around the globe. This includes not only the production of OEM-approved equipment for collision repair, but also the manufacture of equipment for the automakers themselves. This equipment consists of benches and jigs for the prototyping and production of vehicles. Today, dozens of automakers – including Porsche and Ferrari – use Car Bench jigs to prototype and produce their vehicles.

Car Bench equipment is extremely popular in Europe and throughout the globe. In fact, Car Bench sells its repair systems to more than 60,000 body shops in more than 70 countries. In the United States, all Car Bench sales, service, and training is coordinated by Car Bench North America.

Car Bench North America, based in Minnesota, is the exclusive U.S. and Canadian importer of Car Bench frame straightening systems from Car Bench International in Italy.

Car Bench North America supplies and services body shops throughout the US and Canada, and provides technical support to OEM factories and training facilities. The full line of products is stocked in Car Bench’s 18,000-square-foot Minnesota warehouse. They also stock dedicated jigs at numerous jig rental banks throughout the U.S. and operate training centers in Minnesota, Florida, and Washington. Body shop personnel are always welcome at Car Bench’s training centers, where they can learn the latest repair techniques using Car Bench’s newest, most advanced equipment.

Car Bench North America actively supports I-CAR and is a corporate member of the Society of Collision Repair Specialists (SCRS). The company believes in the mission of SCRS to educate, inform, and promote collision repair professionals in all aspects of the industry.

How to Get Car Bench Products
Body shops can buy Car Bench equipment through their local Car Bench distributor or through Car Bench’s in-house sales team. Their distributors and in-house sales personnel will travel to meet interested customers on site and work with them to provide the best equipment for their shop. When you invest in Car Bench products, they deliver and install the equipment and provide in-shop, hands-on training. To learn more, interested shop owners, managers, and technicians can visit www.carbenchna.com or call 1-800-564-5790.