Body & Frame Specialists
Collision repair, frame straightening and paint on Lafayette Street in Santa Clara.
About
Lafayette Street runs through the light-industrial side of Santa Clara, and Body & Frame Specialists has worked out of 2590 Lafayette St since 1999. Manuel Ramos is the owner. The shop is an independent auto body and restoration business, not a dealer body centre, and its own website describes the trade plainly: collision repair, painting and frame straightening for everyday cars, alongside custom paint, vintage restoration and RV work.
Collision, paint and frame work
The core of the business is accident repair. A car that has been hit gets its frame measured and pulled back to specification, damaged panels replaced or reshaped, and paint matched using the PPG, Cromax Pro and DuPont colour systems the shop lists on its site. The same booth handles custom paint jobs, and the shop notes that the booth is large enough for oversized vehicles, which is why motorhomes and trailers appear on its services list.
Beyond the everyday work, Body & Frame Specialists takes on vintage vehicle restoration and aluminum welding repairs. It runs its own tow truck and offers vehicle storage, so a car can be collected from the roadside, held on the lot and repaired without changing hands between companies.
Bringing a car in
If the repair is an insurance claim, bring the claim number and the adjuster's contact; ask the shop whether it will deal with the insurer directly and whether the estimate will be written from a teardown or from photographs. For restoration or custom paint, expect a longer conversation about scope, and ask for the work to be staged in writing so you can see what each phase covers. Parts availability sets the timeline on older cars, so ask early which parts are being sourced and from where. Frame work should come with printed before-and-after measurements; ask for them.
Where the shop draws customers from
Santa Clara is the home base, and the Lafayette Street location on the San Jose side of the city makes it a short drive from San Jose, Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Milpitas, Campbell, Mountain View and Los Altos. Anywhere in Santa Clara County is reachable by the shop's own tow truck.
The directory lists the shop's phone as 408-492-1617; the company website prints a different number, so if one line does not answer, try the site. The shop is open Monday through Saturday and closed on Sundays.
Services
VerifiedAccident damage repaired at the Santa Clara shop, from replacing a bumper cover to the structural work behind it, with insurance claims coordinated and an estimate written before the job starts.
Bent unibodies and full frames measured against factory specifications and pulled back into alignment on the shop equipment, with the measurements available on request after the repair.
Factory colour matching using PPG, Cromax Pro and DuPont systems for repairs, plus custom colours and finishes for owners who want something the factory never offered.
Older cars brought back to presentable or show condition: rust and panel repair, refinishing and reassembly, staged and scoped in writing because parts sourcing sets the timeline.
Welding on aluminum body panels and components, which needs different equipment and technique from steel work and which many general body shops decline to take on.
The shop runs its own tow truck around Santa Clara County, and cars can be held on the lot before, during and after repair rather than moved between companies.
Body and paint work on motorhomes and trailers, handled in a spray booth the shop says is large enough for oversized vehicles that most body shops cannot fit indoors.
Details
Location and service area
Santa Clara, CA 95050-2602
Common questions
Typical for this type of businessCan I choose my own body shop after an accident?
In California you can. Your insurer may suggest a shop from its network, but you are free to take the car to any shop you choose. Ask the shop whether it will work directly with your adjuster and how supplements are handled if hidden damage turns up.
How long does collision repair take?
It depends on parts and the extent of structural damage. A cosmetic bumper job can be days; a car needing frame pulls and several panels can take weeks, especially if parts are back-ordered. Ask for a written estimate of the timeline and for updates if it changes.
Will the paint match the rest of the car?
A shop with a computerised colour-matching system blends the new paint into adjacent panels so the transition is invisible. Ask which paint system the shop uses and whether it blends into neighbouring panels rather than painting only the replaced part.
Does the shop handle RVs and older vehicles?
This shop lists RV repair and vintage restoration among its services. For any oversized vehicle, confirm booth size and lot space when you call; for a classic, ask how the work will be staged and how parts will be sourced.
Before you hire
- Ask for the shop's Bureau of Automotive Repair registration number and look it up online.
- Get a written estimate before work starts and ask how supplements for hidden damage are handled.
- Ask whether the shop deals directly with your insurer and who is responsible for the deductible.
- For frame work, ask for printed before-and-after measurements.
- Ask whether replacement parts are new original-equipment, aftermarket or used, and which the estimate assumes.
- Confirm the timeline in writing and whether a rental or storage is arranged if it slips.
Resumen en español
En la calle Lafayette de Santa Clara, Body & Frame Specialists repara carrocerías desde 1999: choques, enderezado de chasis, pintura con sistemas PPG y DuPont, restauración de autos clásicos, soldadura de aluminio y trabajos en casas rodantes. El taller tiene su propia grúa y ofrece almacenamiento de vehículos, así que el auto puede recogerse, guardarse y repararse sin cambiar de manos. Atiende de lunes a sábado a clientes de Santa Clara, San José, Sunnyvale y el resto del condado. El propietario es Manuel Ramos. Llame al 408-492-1617; el sitio web muestra otro número, por si esta línea no contesta.
Details marked Verified were checked on September 29, 2026 against bodyandframespecialists.com. Other details come from public business records or describe what is typical for this type of business, as marked. Not yet confirmed by the business.
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