Cars with advanced technologies cost thousands more to fix
There is little debate over whether advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) could reduce both the number and severity of vehicle crashes. But the additional cost of these systems has slowed their adoption. A collision-mitigation system alone can increase the price of a new vehicle by as much as US $1,500. And in late October, the American Automobile Association (AAA) released new research
showing significantly higher repair costs for advanced systems compared
with the cost of standard repairs made after even a minor accident.
According to AAA’s research, vehicles equipped with new safety
features “can cost twice as much to repair following a collision due to
expensive sensors and their calibration requirements.” For instance, a
windshield repair for vehicles equipped with automatic emergency
braking, adaptive cruise control, and lane departure warning systems
could be as much as $1,650. A typical windshield replacement runs $210 to $230, although it is not uncommon to see it go as high as $400, according to Glass America, a glass-repair company.
Car
The AAA study further found that the repair bill for an ADAS-equipped
car involved in a minor front or rear-end collision could end up as
high as $5,300, while the same repairs to a car without those systems
would cost closer to $2,200. In an advanced car, the cost to repair just
the rear-bumper ultrasonic system that allows for parking assistance is
as much as $1,300; if the rear radar sensors used for blind-spot
monitoring and cross-traffic alerting were also damaged, another $2,050
could be incurred.
The problem isn’t just with the cost of replacing the equipment but
also the effort needed to recalibrate those systems once they are
repaired. Even small miscalibrations of the sensors could significantly
reduce the effectiveness of these safety features. In addition, normal
service work, like a suspension repair or even a simple wheel alignment,
may now require sensor recalibration, AAA warns.
Who is capable of making such repairs? “At the present time, new car
dealer service departments should theoretically be best trained and
equipped to repair and calibrate ADAS components,” said Michael Calkins,
AAA’s technical services manager. “However, there are some dealers who
are behind the curve, and some independent repair services that have
stepped up to learn the necessary procedures and purchase the required
calibration equipment.”
For example, Safelite AutoGlass, a glassrepair company based in Columbus, Ohio, has teamed up with Bosch Auto Parts
to develop special recalibration tools for windshield repairs of
ADAS-equipped vehicles. Safelite has been pushing these tools out to
more than 720 U.S. repair facilities over the past 18 months.
While it would seem that ADAS-equipped cars would have lower insurance costs, the repair costs for these cars
are, for now, greater than the overall monetary savings gained from
preventing accidents. A critical mass of advanced cars must hit the
roads before the scales will tip the other way, and it may take at least
a decade to reach that point in the United States.
Until then, not only can drivers of cars with new safety features
expect to see their insurance costs rise, but those without such systems
will likely pay higher rates, too. This is because if a driver of a
non-ADAS equipped car hits one that is so equipped, the driver (and the driver’s insurance company) may have to pay for the repairs to both vehicles.
Advanced driver-assistance systems will likely become standard
equipment on future vehicles, and auto manufacturers have already committed to selling autonomous cars
that will require new safety technologies. But the upcoming transition
period could be more expensive than most car owners expect.
There is little debate over whether advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) could reduce both the number and severity of vehicle crashes. But the additional cost of these systems has slowed their adoption. A collision-mitigation system alone can increase the price of a new vehicle by as much as US $1,500. And in late October, the American Automobile Association (AAA) released new research
showing significantly higher repair costs for advanced systems compared
with the cost of standard repairs made after even a minor accident.