What is the purpose of plug welding in collision repair?

What is the purpose of plug welding in collision repair?

• A. To Secure Factory Trim
• B. To Attach Seals
• C. To Replace Factory Spot Welds When Resistance Welding Is Not Possible
• D. To Fill Gaps With Sealant

Answer: (C)

Plug welding is used to recreate the holding power of factory spot welds when resistance welding isn’t possible. In collision repair, you often replace a damaged panel with a patch and may not be able to access the backside or use the original spot-weld pattern. Drilling small holes through the top panel into the underlying panel and welding through those holes fuses the layers together, effectively attaching the patch where spot welds would have been. This method is for joining metal, not securing trim, attaching seals, or filling gaps with a sealant, which is why the best choice is the option describing replacing factory spot welds when resistance welding can’t be performed.

Plug welding is used to recreate the holding power of factory spot welds when resistance welding isn’t possible. In collision repair, you often replace a damaged panel with a patch and may not be able to access the backside or use the original spot-weld pattern. Drilling small holes through the top panel into the underlying panel and welding through those holes fuses the layers together, effectively attaching the patch where spot welds would have been. This method is for joining metal, not securing trim, attaching seals, or filling gaps with a sealant, which is why the best choice is the option describing replacing factory spot welds when resistance welding can’t be performed.