Industry Data: Collision Shops Are Missing Most Required ADAS Calibrations—Glass Shops Face the Same Gap

Nick Dominato, Repairify's senior vice president of product, told a December 7, 2021, CIECA webinar titled "ADAS Trends: Implications for the Future of Diagnostics & Calibrations" that collision shops were missing the majority of required ADAS diagnostic operations and calibrations on vehicles arriving for repair. He urged shops to integrate OEM calibration procedures into their standard workflows.

Dominato was emphatic: "We've got a huge influx of vehicles being produced with emergency braking systems and other ADAS technologies, and the collision industry is not ready for it. We're not up to snuff yet, and it really does matter." He cited NHTSA data showing that two-thirds of vehicles shipped in 2021 included at least automatic emergency braking as standard equipment—a figure that makes ADAS-related calibration an everyday issue, not an occasional specialty.

Dominato identified several trends that shops need to understand. First, the range of circumstances under which OEMs require ADAS calibration has broadened significantly. Where calibration was once required primarily after major collision repairs, many OEM procedures now require calibration after windshield replacement, certain suspension work, headlamp leveling adjustments, and even battery replacements that reset vehicle electronics. Second, different calibration types—static, dynamic, and dynamic-static combined—require different equipment and site conditions.

The findings from collision repair data are directly transferable to the auto glass sector. When a windshield is replaced, the forward-facing camera must be removed from its mount, the windshield bonded and cured, and the camera reinstalled and aimed precisely. Any error in camera alignment—even a fraction of a degree—degrades the accuracy of lane-departure warnings, forward-collision alerts, and automatic emergency braking. The Repairify data suggests that a large proportion of shops are not completing this calibration step, either because they lack the equipment, the training, or the awareness that it is required.

The ADAPT summit, held December 7–9, 2021, in Nashville, provided related context through panel discussions that concluded ADAS calibration work was transitioning from an optional specialty into an operational necessity. Panelists emphasized that shops without calibration capability would increasingly struggle to offer complete repairs on modern vehicles—a competitive and safety liability.

For auto glass operations, the December 2021 data should serve as a clear call to action. Shops that have not yet invested in calibration targets, scan tools with ADAS software, and sufficient clear-floor space for static procedures are already behind the pace of industry requirement. The increasing volume of vehicles requiring calibration means that shops which cannot perform or subcontract the work will face growing numbers of incomplete jobs.