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Award Winning Northside Lexus Improves Color Matching with PPG Waterborne System - Autobody News

2/16/2017

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Written by Autobody News Staff

Many shops can boast about their excellent repairs, but Northside Lexus in Houston, TX, has the awards to back up their claims.

Northside Lexus
Houston, TX
www.northsidelexus.com
(
281) 569-3481
Type: Dealership Collision Center
Number of Employees: 26
In Business Since: 2004
Number of Locations: 1
Number of DRPs: 2
Combined Production Space: 19,000 square feet

In 2016, the shop was designated as the Lexus Certified Shop of the Year for the third time in a row and the fourth time altogether. Shop Manager Rob Ochoa commented, “It feels great to receive four national awards – no other Lexus dealer has more than one! Our processes and the commitment to quality that our team shares are what separate us from the competition. It all comes down to our people, and I am extremely proud of the ladies and gentlemen who serve our clients. Take care of your employees because they are your second family, and if you sincerely treat them that way, you’ll get the results you’re looking for!”

Northside Lexus added its collision center in 2004--eight years after the dealership opened--due to a high demand for repairs, and the shop repairs over 200 vehicles monthly. As a Certified Lexus Collision Center, Northside Lexus requires all 26 employees to pass tests pertaining to the manufacturer’s models, past and present, and many of their technicians possess multiple ASE Certifications related to their job descriptions.

Additionally, 60% of the shop’s technicians are Master Certified. “To be a Master, you must be with the company for at least three years, and you must attend specific training during the course of the year related to proper repair methods for Lexus vehicles," Ochoa explained. "All body techs must have current welding certifications, while painters must have taken color matching classes and advanced color matching.”

Northside Lexus Collision Center Awards
Color matching is a key component to customer satisfaction, so it’s imperative that Northside Lexus relies on the best refinishes available. “In 2009, we were the first Lexus dealer in Houston to start spraying PPG Envirobase® High Performance waterborne paint, thus helping the environment with less pollution," Ochoa stated. "We knew it would be mandated one day, so we wanted to get ahead of the curve. From a color match perspective, it has made the largest difference; when we sprayed with solvent, we would redo bumpers for color match problems more than 50% of the time, but now, it’s extremely rare to hear that we have to redo a bumper for color issues. It definitely helps profitability when you get paid to paint a bumper once and don’t have to paint it again. PPG made the process that much better!”

Northside Lexus is no stranger to process improvements. According to Ochoa, “We don’t operate our business as most shops do. We have distinct processes to help output and ensure that once we start on a vehicle, we don’t stop until the car is complete. We simply put paperwork before production. Before starting on a car or ordering parts, we obtain a solid estimate that has been approved by our estimator and technicians so we don’t have to repeatedly restart the repair because we don’t have what we need to properly fix the car. Why start on a car that doesn’t have what you need to fix it? This process has made all the difference in the world.”

Of course, change is never easy. “We all know most technicians don’t like change – you simply have to make them understand the benefits, and after they see the potential, you’ve got them," Ochoa pointed out. "Now, our technicians love the Envirobase High Performance waterborne paint, and would never go back to the old system.”

Excellent customer service also helped make the transition easier. “Customer service with our PPG Platinum Distributor, Tasco Auto Color, is outstanding," Ochoa said. If I experience a problem, all I have to do is make a phone call, and it’s handled – it’s that simple. They take care of our needs as we do for our customers, and that’s all we can ask for.”

Northside Lexus using PPG Waterborne
Northside Lexus also recognizes the value of caring for their community. The shop is involved with over 300 charitable organizations including the Ronald McDonald House, the American Diabetes Association, Helping Hands, Autism Speaks and many others.

Unfortunately, every industry also faces its set of challenges, and the collision repair industry nationwide has been experiencing a shortage of incoming qualified technicians. “There is a need for repair technicians and not many are available since there aren’t many young people getting into the collision industry,” Ochoa lamented. “This will continue to be a problem as more units get sold and more people are on the road. We’ve taken a proactive stance to hire people that we feel are trainable; however, this does take time and dedication. That said, once they’ve been trained, they only know your way. Typically, that employee tends to have a stronger commitment to us for training them and giving them a chance. After all, our people make us… or break us.”

Read more from Autobody News >

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2016 Airbrush Class

4/11/2016

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Airbrush Class
Check out Chris "Bones" Tolson's last visit to Tasco Auto Color back in 2013!
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Tasco Goes to SEM School

11/12/2015

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SEM Products
Team Tasco (Corey from #24, Christie from #25, Sonia from #1, Mario from #2 and Adam from #17) made the trip to SEM School in Rock Hill, South Carolina to do some training. The SEM training class was so beneficial in product knowledge and usage allowing team members to learn and have some fun. The training consisted of bumper repair, adhesives, vinyl prepping and more.


The team was able to do some go-karts and take in the local scene involving Stewart Haas Racing (Tony Stewart, Danica Patrick, Kurt Busch and Kevin Harvick).
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Tasco Auto Color puts its Stamp on the 2015 Hot Rod Power Tour with the School of Automotive Machinists and their 57 Chevy Bel Air

6/10/2015

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Tasco Sponsor - 57 Chevy

Hot Rod Power Tour 2015
Tour Dates and Cities
June 6 – Alliant Energy Center, Madison, Wisconsin
June 7 – Parkland College, Champaign, Illinois
June 8 – Gateway Motorsports Park, Madison, Illinois (St. Louis)
June 9 – Memphis International Raceway, Memphis, Tennessee
June 10 – Hoover Metropolitan Stadium, Hoover / Birmingham, Alabama
June 11 - Centennial Plaza, Gulfport, MS
June 12 – Lamar Dixon Expo Center, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
more info from Hot Rod Network >



The 57 Chevy Story

Houston, Texas - Tasco Auto Color is proud to be a sponsor of the The 57 Chevy Hot Rod Power Tour 2015 car built by a team from Houston's own School of Automotive Machinists. The School of Automotive Machinists (SAM) is an accredited career college with Block, Head, & CNC Machining and Associates Degree Programs. The graduates work for the racing industry's best.

The SAM '57 Chevy Build Team has worked for 2 months to build a resto-mod '57 Chevy Bel Air for the 2015 Hot Rod Power Tour. Check the tour dates above as the team left Texas to begin their tour nearly 3,000 mile journey in Wisconsin on June 7th and will conclude their journey on June 12th in Louisiana. More information, media and updates can be found at their SAM Racing facebook page.

This 1957 Chevy Bel Air, owned by Judson Massingill (who is the owner of The School of Automotive Machinists right here in Houston), has been sitting for 15 years. A previous school team had attempted to build this car and did not pull through. This year, with a strong team and not a lot of time (two months to be exact), this car has been completely transformed.

Tasco Auto Color/Landmark Marketing Company's own Jackie Perry was a key contributor in the 57 Chevy Build. Jackie (JAX Art & Design)
helped with everything but the main things she did in her spare time was the production photography, designing the paint/color scheme, laying out the flames, designing vinyl layouts, setting up files for Redline and installing the vinyl.

The 57 Build Team Members

Michael Wilson from VA, John Gwinn from Michigan, Matt Petz from California, Oscar Zabek from New Jersey

Sponsors

Holley, Mahle and Clevite, MSD ignition, Muscle Rods, Tasco Auto Color, SPC Rods and Classics, LizardSkin, Bad Company Inc, JAX Art & Design

Stages of Production

Stage 1: First Steps
The chassis and rear end housing along with a number of other parts have been powdercoated by SPC Rods and Classics. SPC Rods and Classics let the team use their facilities for all the bodywork.

Going with an old school hot rod look, the team decided to leave the car in primer and lay flat black flames over it.

Tasco Auto Color donated high end products including PPG Hot Rod Black, PPG JP285 Urethane Surfacer (primer), PPG DCC9300 Acrylic Urethane, PPG DCX61 High Solids Hardener, Evercoat Rage Extreme lightweight body filler, 3M 1/8” vinyl fine line tape, 1 1/2” and 3/4” 3M masking tape, roll of masking paper, a SATA spray gun rebuild kit, 34 oz DeVilbiss spray gun cup liners, pack of 1/8” and 1/2” spot weld drill bits.

Stage 2: Sanding and Prepping for Paint
Steps include taping and masking the trim off so it doesn’t get damaged, sanding the clear off to get to the underlying layer of paint unless there’s rust underneath that. In that case, it has to be sanded down to bare metal in order to remove the rust. Upon some sanding, the team found a huge crack in the rear quarter panel and turns out it was about a pound of body filler! We sanded it all out and reapplied Overcoat Rage Extreme lightweight body filler.

Plenty of hours went into bodywork and sanding. Much of the 19-20 hour days went into this car, all the way til the end. The team had a strict deadline to make — the morning of June 4th.

Stage 3: Painting
The team painted the inside of front fenders and inner fender wells separately since they were already off the car. They gave the car three coats of primer and then wet sanded it so it would appear smooth and has a sheen when viewed at an angle, yet remains flat when looking directly at it.

Stage 4: Taping Flames
Jackie did a quick rendering of the car and then hand drew flames on it to be sure they looked exactly how she wanted them to. Starting these flames was semi-challenging, she had to get used to the 3M 1/8” blue vinyl fine line tape as she says "I’d never used it plus I’ve never done anything like this before. But the whole process was super smooth, it came very naturally to me." She started on the driver’s side, then traced it on paper, flipped the paper to the passenger side, and transferred the flames to the passenger side then taped them off. It took her a good 8 hours to do this entire flame layout process. Then they used the paper she traced to cut two stencils out of the paper to mask the body off for painting the flames.

Stage 5: Paint Flames and the Big Reveal
There are Real Flames!
Jackie put down the first coat of PPG Hot Rod Black but passed the gun on because it was a first time painting through a spray gun and she admits to not moving quick enough. Three coats of black and 45 minutes of drying time later, they removed all the tape and masking and —VOILA! There are flames! They were ecstatic with the PPG Hot Rod Black paint and the way the flames turned out. FANTASTIC paint! Jackie says, "We also love the Dusty Rose color of the primer with the black. It really reminds us of a hot wheels car."

Stage 6: New Floorboards, Lizardskin Prep and Application
LizardSkin is a water-based spray-on insulation. The crew used Sound Control on the interior and Ceramic Insulation on the undercarriage. They installed new floorboards, primed them and seam sealed them with 3M Seam Sealer prior to LizardSkin application.

Stage 7: Engine Assembly and Install
The engine going in is an LS3 (came in Corvettes and 5th Generation Camaros), with cam swap and new heads, and a custom intake manifold built by the school. The only thing we kept stock was the bottom end (crankshaft and pistons). This car needed everything from the engine to the exhaust. New brake master cylinder, brake lines, transmission, driveshaft, rear end, fuel tank, etc. EVERYTHING is new. This lucky 57 is getting a new lease on life after sitting unloved for years.

Stage 8: Wiring and Final Installations
Start Your Engines!
Along with new engines assembly, also has to come with wiring. The team got an entire wiring harness along with the new Holley EFI Dominator ECU (computer). When that was all done, they reinstalled the front fenders, hood, put all necessary fluids in, put the interior back in, installed the bumper and headlights.

Stage 9: Finishing Touches
The team had a few final adjustments to make but overall she’s looking great and ready to go! The new custom wheels finally came in and mounted them the same day. Then she was taken to get an alignment.

Stage 10: Vinyl Install
Vinyls were cut/printed by Redline Graphics in Houston. The team had agreed they couldn’t spare three hours for it to be at Redline for an install, so Jackie installed all of the vinyl graphics at the school. The gold vinyl is perfect and ties the entire color scheme together. Successful build? I’d say absolutely. 

Tasco Vinyl
Photography by Ric Vega
'57 Chevy Hot Rod Power Tour 2015
Photography by Ric Vega
Articles


Meet the Students of the School of Automotive Machinists - The ’57 Bel Air that Wouldn’t Have Been - theblock.com

Welcome to Power Tour 2015 - Hot Rod Network

The SAM 1957 Long Hauler - MSN, Hot Rod Magazine

SAM Racing Students Took This '57 From Heap to Pro Tourer in 8 Weeks - LSXtv


Gallery
Check out the latest photos, brought to you by Ric Vega.

Cars of the Hot Rod Power Tour
Sam Racing Day 0
Hot Rod Power Tour Day 1
Hot Rod Power Tour Day 2
Hot Rod Power Tour Day 3
Hot Rod Power Tour Day 4



#PowerTour2015
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DeMontrond RV Collision Center at NRG Center

1/7/2015

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Please visit our friends from DeMontrond RV Collision Center at the Houston Boat, Sport, and Travel Show at NRG Center January 5 -11, 2015. Visit houstonboatshows.com for more information.
Houston Boat, Sport, and Travel Show at NRG Center
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View the Tasco #23 Open House Media

11/3/2014

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The third Tasco Auto Color Open House coming from Texas featured a Mothers Buffing Class and a presentation from Beacon Equipment Resources on the Aluminum Repair.

Check Out the Media Now >

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Meet the Fast 100: Family-owned body shop to add fourth location in just two years

9/11/2014

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Steve Guinn - Hodges Collision Centers
"We're still locally, family-owned and -operated. We're not some big corporate entity; we don't slam you in and slam you out. We go the extra mile," said owner Steve Guinn.

Hodges opened its doors in 2001 at its original location off Rayford Road in Spring, Texas. Typical year-over-year growth for the company was 3 percent to 5 percent, but business has exploded. Guinn decided to expand from two to four locations in 2013, creating its Tomball Parkway and Magnolia presence. The company reported $6.6 million in revenue that year, double its 2012 revenues. And its two-year revenue growth was enough to rank the company on Houston Business Journal's 2014 Houston Fast 100 List."

Read More from the Houston Business Journal >


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Tasco #23 Open House is September 15th

9/10/2014

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Tasco University
Tasco Auto Color 1214 College Ave South will be hosting the next Tasco Open House. Stop on by Tuesday, September 15th for door prizes, free food, raffles, and key presentations and demonstrations from Mothers and Beacon Equipment Resources.

Tasco #23 Open House, BBQ, Presentations and Demonstrations

Beacon Equipment Resources
Topics Covered:
  • Aluminum Repair
  • Buffing
When: 9/15/14
Where: Tasco Auto Color Store #23:
1214 College Ave South, Houston, TX 77587
Who Should Attend?: Owners, Managers, Body Men, Estimators, Painters, Anyone interested in Aluminum Repair or Buffing
RSVP: Contact your Salesman or Store #23
Time: 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Aluminum Class Time: 12:30 p.m.
Mothers Buffing Class Times: 12:00 p.m., 1:00 p.m.

The 2015 Ford F-150 and Aluminum Repair: Presented by Beacon Equipment Resources brings you a short 30 minute presentation on the new 2015 Ford F-150, Ford requirements for their Dealership body shops, and basic information on aluminum and aluminum repair.
2 Steps to the Perfect Finish on Dark Vehicles: Presented by Mothers Polishes-Waxes-Cleaners brings you a presentation on learning how to obtain a perfect, no swirls finish on dark colored vehicles using the Mothers 2 Step Process.

Open House Official Flyer
File Size: 2312 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

Mothers Polishes/Waxes/Cleaners

View Media from Tasco #1 Open House >

View Media from Tasco #10 Open House >


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View the Tasco #1 Open House Media

8/26/2014

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Tasco University
The second Tasco Auto Color Open House featured a Mothers Buffing Class and a presentation from Beacon Equipment Resources on the Aluminum Repair.

Check Out the Pictures Now >

Mothers Buffing
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Tasco #1 Open House is August 19th

8/1/2014

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Tasco University
Tasco Auto Color 10323 Veterans Memorial Drive will be hosting the next Tasco Open House. Stop on by Tuesday, August 19th for door prizes, free food, raffles, and key presentations and demonstrations from Mothers and Beacon Equipment Resources.

Tasco Auto Color Location #1 Open House, BBQ, and Seminar

Beacon Equipment Resources
Topics Covered:
  • Aluminum Repair
  • Buffing
When: 8/19/14
Where: Tasco Auto Color Store #1:
10323 Veterans Memorial Dr, Houston, TX 77038
Who Should Attend?: Owners, Managers, Body Men, Estimators, Painters, Anyone interested in Aluminum Repair or Buffing
RSVP: Contact your Salesman or Store #1
Time: 11 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Aluminum Class Times: 12:30 p.m., 1:30 p.m.
Mothers Buffing Class Times: 12:00 p.m., 1:00 p.m.
View Media >

The 2015 Ford F-150 and Aluminum Repair: Presented by Beacon Equipment Resources brings you a short 30 minute presentation on the new 2015 Ford F-150, Ford requirements for their Dealership body shops, and basic information on aluminum and aluminum repair.
2 Steps to the Perfect Finish on Dark Vehicles: Presented by Mothers Polishes-Waxes-Cleaners brings you a presentation on learning how to obtain a perfect, no swirls finish on dark colored vehicles using the Mothers 2 Step Process.
Mothers Polishes/Waxes/Cleaners
Open House Official Flyer
File Size: 2323 kb
File Type: pdf
Download File

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