In today's rapidly evolving automotive landscape, the integration of Advanced Driver Assistance Systems (ADAS) into vehicles has transformed the collision repair industry. As technology continues to advance, the need for precise ADAS calibration becomes increasingly critical.
The Collision Vision podcast, hosted by Cole Strandberg and driven by Autobody News, recently wrapped up its “Technology Takeover: The Impact of ADAS and Calibrations” series with industry experts Lance Bull and Steve Davis of Techmotive, who shared their insights on the challenges and opportunities presented by ADAS calibration in collision repair.
Techmotive's Mission
Techmotive, founded by Davis in 2012 while he was running a body shop, emerged from a need to efficiently service vehicles with advanced technology.
“We started just so I could get my own cars out the door,” Davis said.
Bull added that Davis and their business partner, Dan Dutra, were on the “bleeding edge” of seeing where the industry was headed.
“They really understood that the complexity and that it was not just business as usual anymore,” Bull said. “You really had to pay attention to what the OEMs were doing and how they were building cars and how they wanted these vehicles repaired.”
Techmotive quickly expanded to serve other body shops, emphasizing the importance of safe and efficient vehicle repair. The company's mission is to address the technological challenges faced by body shops, ensuring that vehicles are repaired correctly and safely.
Davis noted the focus has always been on the technology side of vehicles, addressing pain points for body shops and ensuring that repairs are conducted with precision.
“We understand our customer and what their needs are at a very high level,” he said, including keeping an eye on profitability, cycle time and return on investment.
The Business Case for ADAS Calibration
Bull stressed the importance of understanding the return on investment (ROI) when considering whether to bring ADAS calibration in-house or outsource it.
The initial investment for proper OEM ADAS calibration can be substantial, often ranging from $250,000 to $300,000. This includes equipment, facility preparation and training. For many body shops, the opportunity cost of dedicating space and resources to ADAS calibration may outweigh the potential benefits.
Bull said in his own shop, it didn’t make sense to give up multiple collision repair stalls to do calibrations.
“You're either doing collision repair work there or you're doing the calibration work,” he said. “We were really good at collision. We understood collision. We probably could have gotten good at calibration, but it wasn't our core business.”
Plus, it was a “big question mark” how long it would take the shop to recoup what it had spent on the calibration equipment and training.
“For me, it was a no brainer,” Bull added. “I can spend zero and have Steve do it and sublet it.”
Bull and Davis stressed the importance of adhering to OEM procedures and using OEM scan tools for ADAS calibration, which Techmotive does.
Davis cited the John Eagle case as a turning point for many in the industry.
“After John Eagle, a lot of things changed,” he said. “You're thinking about this from a liability standpoint.”
Davis said there is still a misconception that calibrations are “pass/fail.”
“You can mis-calibrate a car and pass calibration,” he said. “I can set a Toyota target up 2 inches off the mark and it still passes calibration, but the problem is, these cars are starting to make decisions 250 yards out. Because when you're going 70, 80 mph, it's got to be looking that far out in order to start making decisions.
“It actually affects the car when you take that 2 inches and now you think about the angle that car is now looking at, it's not even in the roadway anymore,” he added. “Maybe it will still apply the brakes at some point, but not as soon as it should have.”
Getting Paid for ADAS Calibrations
Strandberg asked what Bull or Davis would say to shop owners who say insurance companies won’t pay for calibrations.
“If you're saying that the insurance company won't pay for something that is necessary to be done on a vehicle, frankly, you're not asking,” Bull said.
He said in his own shop, they “explain to the insurance company this has to be done,” Bull said. “This is no different than bolting the wheel on correctly, or making sure that the passive restraints have been reset. It's not a debatable issue.”
Davis acknowledged he has seen individual adjusters denying payment for calibrations.
“That's where we like to try to push it up the ladder, because you will always reach some point, and usually not very far up the ladder, where you have somebody that's now responsible for the liability around the vehicle, that now understands that this adjuster, and this decision could put the insurance company in legal jeopardy, and their legal jeopardy will be quite large,” Davis said.
“Most of these guys aren't looking to slaughter your estimate,” Davis said. “A lot of times they're denying it because they've heard something that they don't quite understand and they just need more information.”
The Future of ADAS Calibration
Strandberg asked both where they see the ADAS calibration market in five years.
Davis, who had just attended the 2025 Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, said “more and more sensors are coming and more and more complex sensors are coming.”
He said compared to what he has seen, today’s vehicles are still in the “infancy of ADAS.”
Davis said he has heard of several automakers that are developing ADAS features that use a combination of radar, lidar and cameras. “If you remove a sensor from that car, it takes 32 targets to calibrate that car,” he said.
Hyundai is developing sensors to monitor a driver’s stress level and suggest a new route based on that, Davis said. He’s also heard of heads-up displays that use cameras to project images from a blind spot onto the windshield, so the driver doesn’t have to look away from the road to check it.
“A lot of what they're doing is to keep you focused on the road and not looking away from it,” Davis said. “Some of this is very near to being in actual cars on the road.”
He said recalibrating those systems will probably require even more space than is needed today.
From a business owner’s perspective, Bull said it’s all about managing liability.
“The liability risk is going to go through the roof,” he said, adding that owners should be aware if their insurance policies cover liability related to ADAS calibrations.
Bull said shop owners with questions should reach out to a company like Techmotive for answers.
Davis said the company partnered with a private equity firm in the past two years to fuel continued scaling.
Abby Andrews