Successful ADAS service requires active reading

Nov. 28, 2018
If you don’t follow service information and the OE process properly for ADAS service, there is a risk that the system you serviced will fail to work properly and someone may get hurt.

With the onslaught of new technologies impacting the automotive aftermarket, it is important as industry professionals for us to get our tool box in order so that we are successful in servicing these new systems. Advanced Driver Assist Systems, or ADAS, are a series of advanced technologies that not only provide incredible levels of protection for motorists, but also challenge us as shop owners and technicians in a way that hasn’t been seen since OBD (on-board diagnostics) was introduced in the mid 1990s.

When OBD was first applied in 1996 to newer gas-powered vehicles, there was anxiety around how these systems worked, as well as how to go about diagnosing and repairing them. For those of us that were training or working on these early systems, it became apparent that each manufacturer took a different approach to the application of the OBD standard. I started my training company during those times and remember emphasizing the need to read service information in a way that most had not done in the past. Code set criteria and blocking conditions were two elements that needed to be understood in order to successfully solve many of these system’s issues. It was not difficult to find the information, even in those days prior to NASTF and OE service information access. Yet, I would receive call after call [we didn’t text or had very little email back then] asking about how this system worked or where to go with that vehicle. I the back of my head I was always thinking to myself ‘can you read?’

Since that time the modern automobile has become ever more complex, and the need to read has remained. But during that time society changed in the way we communicate with the introduction of cell phones, texting, email, smart phones and social media. Today we get information via small bite sized communications, and many times by emojis or acronyms that have eroded our ability to read and comprehend effectively. Couple this degradation of our reading skills with the rapid advancement of technology that requires us to fully understand before we can be successful and you can quickly see the cause of some of our failings in our goals of diagnosing and repairing these complex machines. So many technicians gravitated toward experienced-based information systems that could provide a quick fix without having to invest as much time in reading. We got by, and we continue to seek that path.

If you’ve made it this far in the article then please slow down and read actively; that means with purpose and with full understanding. It may also mean reading out loud or taking notes and creating an outline of what I’m going to say. In any case please focus on this; ADAS is not like OBD. It is completely safety oriented, and as such carries a litigation potential that we as automotive professionals have never had to deal with. If you don’t follow service information and OE process properly there is a risk that the system you serviced will fail to work properly and someone may get hurt.

Because of this risk, there are lawyers waiting in the bushes to take your business and livelihood. Sure, you’ve worked on brakes and steering systems and you didn’t need to read service information to repair them. But if you are of the mind that ‘I’ve done brakes for 20 years. I don’t need to read service information,’ then you are at risk and don’t recognize it. With todays’ technology you can’t assume you know how any system works without reading and training. Training prepares you to know what critical information is available and required, but discipline is required to research and read on every technology-based job.

So to put this back in context with ADAS, you must be a good technical reader. That is a learned activity and there are many articles on the web to assist. You must also have access to OEM service information, and you must use it in the context that the OEM intended. You must read and fully understand what the OEM is asking you to do for each service or calibration, and you need to know why it is asking you to follow these steps; training is available for the latter. Finally you need to follow each step. Don’t misinterpret this to mean you need to buy an OEM scan tool when it references it; it means you need to place the targets in the right spot and the targets need to represent the OEM intent perfectly. This isn’t difficult, however it is critically important. ADAS presents you with a tremendous opportunity to differentiate yourself in your market, and it is worth the investment and effort. Also, it isn’t just ADAS that requires this level of reading detail. Everything on the vehicle requires it, and your customers deserve it.

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