When you look at a car you immediately notice its most obvious features. It may have an aggressive bumper design, awesome LED headlights, and that grille? It is just pure awesomeness. The entire aesthetic appeal seems to be dependent on these parts, right? Well…
Have you ever considered how these parts are installed? Where do they hang and how do they fit? If you damage your bumper, your first thought is to change it, but what about what’s behind it? Same goes about the headlights. The thing is that all the mentioned parts from above are somewhat dependent on the header panel – one of the most rarely noticed auto body parts.
What Is The Header Panel?
In essence, the header panel is a piece of the framework of your vehicle. It is not a flashy part by any means, and for you it is likely gone unnoticed. If you have not done any modifications to your vehicle, you shouldn’t even know about the header panel (or how it looks).
In fact, header panels are rarely tampered with. Aggressive vehicle redesigns are not that common and even they may go around the need to modify the panel. But this panel is the platform for all the front auto body parts.
Depending on your exact model, the header panel may be quite the significant piece, or alternatively, it can be quite small and only serve as a connecting block. Either way, it is necessary for the proper mounting of all the parts, such as bumpers, grilles, headlights and others.
What Can Go Wrong With It?
There are a few things, which may cause damage to the header panel and you may not even know about it. Let’s see what these are!
For starters, if you have been in a collision, even a minor one, where your bumper or headlight has been damaged, it is very likely that the front header panel has suffered as well. This is bad, because it jeopardizes the integrity of the vehicle and may lead to further problems. You may have noticed some header panels bent due to hits. If a car’s headlight sits awkwardly or the bumper is a bit tilted, that is likely due to a bent header panel.
Another thing that is often a problem for panels is corrosion. It can affect the part after improper repairs from mentioned collisions. However, if you should not worry too much about this, as it is not a general issues overall. Just make sure you get your car properly and thoroughly cleaned every once in a while, so no corrosive elements damage the front panel over time.
The good news is that these pieces are easy to replace, so you do not need to worry much about replacement costs.
Conclusion
Even though you do not see your header panel all that often, it is still quite an important piece. Therefore, taking care of it is crucial. Remember that you can always give us a call if you need any help with picking the right auto body part!