B6 Collision — Damage Analysis & Estimating — practice test

High-yield B6 topics

The material that shows up year after year. If you're short on time, start here.

• Included vs not-included operations (the P-pages). This is the spine of the test. Know that replacement time does not include corrosion protection, cavity wax, weld-thru primer, feather-edge/prime/block, drilling, seam sealer restoration, or clips and fasteners; that refinish time is for a new, undamaged, unprimed part; that clear on a two-stage is calculated at a set percentage of the first panel's refinish time; and that blend into an adjacent panel is roughly 50 percent of that panel's full refinish time. If you can't recite this cold, you will not pass.
• Damage analysis and energy path. Direct vs indirect vs inertial damage - the seat track that popped or the dash cracked from deceleration with no contact is inertial, and it is a real line on the sheet. Know the six structural conditions (mash, sag, sway, twist, diamond, kink) and that diamond is a full-frame condition, not a unibody one. Know that measuring is three-dimensional (length, width, height) referenced to datum and centerline, and that tram gauges alone don't catch height.
• Substrate rules. Hot-stamped boron/martensitic (roughly 1500 MPa) does not get straightened, heated, or sectioned outside an OEM procedure - no exceptions, no 'a little heat won't hurt.' Mild steel repairs, HSS gets limited heat with tight temp and time windows per OEM, and the kink-vs-bend rule of thumb (kinked = replace) is only a rule of thumb - the OEM procedure is the answer. Aluminum requires isolation: dedicated area, separate tools, no steel dust cross-contamination, dedicated vacuum.
• ADAS calibration triggers. Know that a windshield R&I on a camera-equipped car, a front bumper R&R on a radar car, a mirror with blind-spot, a ride-height change, or an alignment can all require calibration, and know static (target, level floor, controlled lighting, measured distances) vs dynamic (drive cycle at speed on marked road) - and that some vehicles require both. This is not included labor; it is a separate line or a sublet.
• Part types and their estimate consequences. OEM, Opt OEM, A/M (aftermarket, CAPA-certified or not), LKQ/recycled, reconditioned, and remanufactured all carry different pricing, availability, fit, warranty, and prep-labor implications. Recycled assemblies bring their own overhaul time; A/M bumper covers commonly need extra fit labor; OEM position statements often prohibit A/M structural or restraint parts. Expect questions where the cheapest part is the wrong answer.
• Total loss and administrative math. ACV vs repair cost vs the carrier's total loss threshold (TLT), plus salvage value. Know betterment vs depreciation vs appearance allowance, prior/unrelated damage documented but not billed to the loss, sublet vs in-house, and that labor is written in tenths (0.1 = 6 minutes) with separate body, refinish, frame, and mechanical rates. Paint materials are calculated by refinish hour or by actual invoice, not guessed.

Where techs lose points on B6

Good technicians miss these — not from lack of skill, but because the question is built to catch them.

• Included vs not-included is the #1 killer. Feather-edge/prime/block, corrosion protection and cavity wax, weld-thru primer, blend into adjacent panels, cover the vehicle, hazardous waste, test drive, and ADAS calibration are NOT in the refinish or replace time. The trap answer is always the one that says 'the labor time covers it.'
• R&I vs R&R vs O/H. Replacement labor already includes removing and installing the part - you do not add R&I on top of R&R. Overhaul (O/H) includes disassembling the assembly and transferring parts, which R&I does not. Look-alike answers hinge on exactly this.
• Overlap and blend. Overlap is deducted once between adjacent refinished panels, not stacked per panel, and it applies to the refinish side. Blend time is roughly half the full refinish time on the adjacent panel, and clear is calculated on the full panel even though you only blended color. Techs who 'just click' get these backwards.
• Betterment, depreciation, and appearance allowance are three different things. Betterment = the customer benefits from a new wear item (tires, battery, exhaust) and pays a share. Appearance allowance = the customer accepts a cosmetic imperfection for money instead of more repair. Also: a deployed airbag is not automatically a total loss, and diamond damage is a full-frame condition, not a unibody one.

A study plan that works for B6

Roughly two weeks of real preparation, in the order that actually builds on itself.

1. Days 1-4: Live in the P-pages (the Database Reference Manual) for whichever system you use daily, then read the other two. Make a two-column list: included vs not-included, for R&I, replace, and refinish. Memorize the not-included column - that is where most of the test money is.
2. Days 5-8: Damage analysis. Direct vs indirect vs inertial damage, energy path through the structure, the six frame conditions (mash, sag, sway, twist, diamond, kink) and which apply to full-frame vs unibody. Then measuring: datum, centerline, dimensions, three-dimensional vs tram-only.
3. Days 9-11: Metallurgy and modern-vehicle rules. HSS/UHSS/hot-stamped boron heat and sectioning limits, aluminum isolation, SRS one-time-use parts, ADAS calibration triggers (static vs dynamic). Pull three real OEM position statements and read them - they are the source of these questions.
4. Days 12-14: Write estimates on paper. Take a photo of a real hit, write the sheet by hand with overlap, blend, clear, part type (OEM/A-M/LKQ/Opt OEM), sublet, betterment, and a total-loss check. Then take practice tests and go back to the P-pages on every miss - do not just reread the rationale.

Sample B6 questions

Straight from the bank — answers highlighted, with the explanation underneath.