As new and more innovative technologies enter the automotive aftermarket, advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) stand as the gateway technology most likely to usher shops into the electric future.
Silver Lake Tire and Auto Centers, with four auto repair shops in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, suburbs has embraced ADAS and has effectively implemented the technology within its ADAS-specific location known as the Technology Center.
The Technology Center came as a result of the shop’s need to service ADAS vehicles and needing room to perform the repairs in a spacious environment since the targets needed specific distances for calibration. The center, 4,000 square feet (50 by 80 feet) runs as a standalone facility and is also used to advance other business relations, like with collision repair centers that don’t have the technology and need access.
General Manager Tyler Peartree and ADAS and Automotive Technology Specialist Jim Nawrocki have spearheaded the work at Silver Lake Tire and Auto’s Technology Center. While the shop’s first foray into ADAS was eight years ago, much of the work they do today is two-fold—internal and external engagement.
"We started with a couple of things: 1) educating our own technicians that when you see (ADAS-related repairs), it has to be calibrated and showing them where to look inside service manuals to identify that … and then 2) educating our industry partners and our body shop repair facility relationships that we created on how they also need to be doing this stuff when they're replacing bumpers, windshields, mirrors that have all these sensors and that we are capable of reprogramming that for them,” Peartree says.
For Silver Lake Tire and Auto, having ADAS capabilities as a service has added upwards of 10 cars per week, though Nawrocki says volume climbs in the winter.
“It has its peaks and valleys like any other repair,” Nawrocki says.
As more ADAS-enabled vehicles find their way into independent auto repair shops, one concern shop owners need to consider is the manufacturer’s safety protocol surrounding ADAS. In some cases, moving parts, like a bumper or a water pump to access other parts for repair jobs may seem routine, Nawrocki says manufacturer's guidelines may put shops at risk when a car is no longer calibrated. It’s something he’s engraining into Silver Lake’s technicians.
"If you look at a lot of service information for Toyota, Honda, Audi, Volkswagen … they need to be calibrated after being touched, even if you put it back in the same spot,” Nawrocki says. "It can be as simple as you just bumping that sensor on that camera, and maybe it doesn't go in the exact same place it was calibrated for."
For Silver Lake Tire and Auto, having ADAS has made their shop a more valuable asset with external shops as well as for its new and existing customers. For auto repair shops looking to get started, the pair recommends shops create a minimum space of 1500 square feet (30 by 50 feet) that’s clean, level, has consistent lighting and a strong internet connection for the scan tools. They also add shops should get comfortable with the financial investment—upwards of $35,000 to $40,000. They also recommend setting up your infrastructure for ADAS repair.
"Who's going to be leading the charge on this? Who's going to be your internal expert as far as finding your customers your equipment? The next step is your facility … and then finding your equipment and what ADAS system provider you're going to go with. Who's the manufacturer for the equipment that you're going to purchase? And then of course, your customer base? Those are all things that you would have to consider before we make that jump into the ADAS world,” Peartree says.
