WASHINGTON - The Technical Committee of the Certified Automotive Parts Association has approved the CAPA 501 Standard for the certification of aftermarket bumper parts which includes steel bumpers (front and rear), steel reinforcements (rebars), bumper brackets and energy absorbers. 

Like all other CAPA Standards, the new CAPA 501 Standard is based on the comparative testing of an aftermarket part to its car company brand counterpart. Standard specifications include material composition, mechanical properties (strength), corrosion resistance, dimensions, appearance, construction features such as welds and fasteners, Vehicle Test Fit (VTF), and full part stress testing, either dynamic or quasi-static. The CAPA 501 Standard was approved by a vote of CAPA's Technical Committee, whose membership includes collision repairers, manufacturers, distributors, insurers and quality consultants. 

The development of the CAPA 501 Standard began well prior to April 2009 when CAPA's Board of Directors officially approved developing the new standard. The standard development process included an extensive examination of various bumper parts, comparative testing, consultation with a variety of industry experts, and input from CAPA's Technical Committee. In addition, CAPA also turned to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), the nation's preeminent crash testing and auto safety authority, to conduct a series of demonstration tests. 

"This wide-ranging approach enables those depending on CAPA Standards to have complete confidence that parts meeting our comprehensive requirements will perform the same as car company brand parts," said Jack Gillis, Executive Director of the Certified Automotive Parts Association. 

In addition to recent industry reports about poor performing bumper parts, CAPA's own testing has identified deficiencies in the quality and performance of independently produced bumpers when compared to car company brand parts. "As such, there is a real need for a certification standard which identifies bumper parts that are truly comparable to the car company brand parts," said Gillis. "The good news, the industry can be assured that bumper parts meeting the CAPA 501 Standard have demonstrated comparable performance across the board to the car company brand bumper parts." 

In addition to all of the critical CAPA tests needed to ensure true comparability to car company brand parts, the new CAPA 501 Standard will require that bumper parts go through CAPA's full part dynamic crash or quasi-static tests. This full part stress testing, conducted on every part number submitted for certification, will further demonstrate true comparability of the aftermarket part to the car company brand service part. The CAPA program also requires comprehensive post-certification inspection and marketplace monitoring. 

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CAPA Technical Committee

The CAPA Standard Development process rests on the shoulders of CAPA's Technical Committee led by Chair Mike Schoonover of Schoonover Bodyworks and Vice Chair Jeanne Silver of Butterfield Bodyworks CARSTAR and includes other collision repairers, insurers, part distributors, manufacturers, and quality experts. This broad-based group ensures that all aspects of the collision repair industry has input into CAPA's Standards, demonstrating CAPA's industry-inclusive and fully public nature. Because CAPA doesn't profit from the manufacture, sales, or distribution of CAPA Certified parts, the public can be assured that CAPA Standards are a legitimate means to identify certified parts that are truly comparable to car company brand parts. "Manufacturers who choose to comply with CAPA's comprehensive quality requirements for bumper parts now have a way to clearly demonstrate their product quality to the public," said Gillis. 

"Looking for the CAPA Quality Seal is crucial because, as the market has learned, it is impossible to determine if an aftermarket part will perform comparably to a car company brand part just by looking at it or depending on marketing programs," said Bob Anderson of Anderson's Automotive Services and Chairman of CAPA's Board of Directors. 

"Approval of this new CAPA standard is a huge step forward in expanding the range of CAPA Certified parts for both repairers and their customers," stated Mike Schoonover of Schoonover Bodyworks and Chairman of CAPA's Technical Committee. 

"Those manufacturers who choose to certify their parts to CAPA's Certification Standards will be making a responsible contribution to overall vehicle repairability," said Jeanne Silver of Butterfield Bodyworks CARSTAR and Vice Chairman of CAPA's Technical Committee. 

"We are looking forward to submitting as many parts as possible for CAPA Certification," said Mike O'Neal, President of Reflexxion/PBSI, the maker of Diamond Standard products. 

There are several manufacturers currently participating in the CAPA program who make various bumper parts. "We look forward to receiving their parts for CAPA certification," said Gillis. 

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CAPA Turns to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)

For over 40 years, the IIHS has been a world leader in auto safety and the study of vehicle damageability and safety. Their work has led to numerous improvements in vehicle safety and they have become a source of advice and expertise for governments, auto companies, other testing facilities, and the national media on a worldwide basis. Their highly respected comparative test results have led to important improvements in many aspects of the vehicle -- from seat belts, to head restraints, to new technology and crash test performance. "In order to demonstrate that the CAPA Standard had the ability to identify parts that would, in fact, perform comparably as their car company brand counterparts, CAPA enlisted the assistance of IIHS in conducting a series of comparative, full vehicle low and high speed crash tests," said Gillis. 

"Competition in the parts area helps keep insurance costs down. But substandard or poor quality structural parts that don't match original equipment can undermine the cost savings and affect vehicle safety. We commend CAPA for pursuing a certification standard for aftermarket bumpers. In tests we conducted, bumper parts meeting CAPA's specifications performed the same as their car company brand counterparts," said Joe Nolan, Chief Administrative Officer of IIHS. 

IIHS High Speed Crash Test Results

Due to additional safety features built into today's vehicles, bumper systems designed to protect the vehicle may also have an impact on the operation of some of the safety items in a car. As a result of this potential, CAPA asked the IIHS to evaluate the crashworthiness of a vehicle equipped with bumper systems that met key features of the CAPA Standard. 

Two vehicles were selected by IIHS for the testing. The serial numbers on the two 2008 Dodge Ram 1500 pickups chosen were within 15 digits. One vehicle was equipped with a car company brand service part and the other with an aftermarket part that met all of the key structural and dimensional elements of CAPA's proposed bumper standard. Both tests were run in accordance with IIHS Crashworthiness Evaluation Offset Barrier Crash Test Protocol (Version XIII). 

The result: "The two vehicles had similar crashworthiness measures in the 40 mph offset frontal test, and both would receive an overall 'Good' rating for frontal crash protection," Nolan said.

To view a detailed summary of IIHS research on aftermarket replacement parts, click here. 

IIHS Low Speed Comparative Damageability Tests

Because the most important role of the bumper is to protect the vehicle in low speed accidents, CAPA also asked the IIHS to conduct low speed (5 mph) tests using its standard bumper testing protocol (Version V) with two Dodge Ram pickup trucks. Following the test, repair estimates were written for each part. The aftermarket bumper meeting the key CAPA 501 Standard requirements performed the same as the car company brand part. Using car company brand parts in repair estimates, the damage and repair costs totaled $1,120 for each vehicle. The total repair cost drops to $1,053 if the estimate assumes an aftermarket part is used. 

"The repairs resulting from low speed collisions come directly out of the consumers' pockets or contributes to the cost of their insurance. That's why it is important to CAPA that a certified part is comparable in a low speed crash to a car company brand part," said Gillis. 

"In low speed tests, the car-company and CAPA-Certified bumpers provided nearly identical damage protection to the vehicle," said Nolan.