ADAS and Wheel Alignment

When ADAS calibration is needed

Driver-assistance systems — autonomous emergency braking, adaptive cruise control, lane-keeping, blind-spot monitoring, parking assistance — rely on cameras, radar and ultrasonic sensors mounted on the windscreen, grille, bumpers, mirrors and body. The vehicle manufacturer specifies when those sensors must be recalibrated. Typical triggers include:

• Windscreen replacement where a camera is mounted on the glass
• Bumper, grille or mirror replacement or repair where a sensor is housed
• Wheel alignment or suspension work that changes the vehicle's thrust line
• Structural repairs affecting sensor mounting points
• Removal or disturbance of a sensor or camera for any reason
• Certain diagnostic fault codes relating to ADAS components

The authoritative source is the manufacturer's repair information for that vehicle, which sets out the calibration requirement and the procedure; UK insurer-backed research on ADAS repair is published by Thatcham Research. We source manufacturer repair methods — see manufacturer repair methods — so a bodyshop can confirm what the vehicle requires before the repair is planned rather than after it is finished.

Wheel alignment

Alignment is where mechanical repair and ADAS meet. Many camera and radar calibrations depend on the vehicle's thrust line, so a wheel alignment to the manufacturer's specification is often a prerequisite for calibration, and always a requirement after suspension, steering or structural repair. We support trade customers with wheel alignment for the vehicles they repair; tell us the vehicle and the work carried out and we will confirm what we can arrange.

How we support the trade with ADAS and alignment

1. Tell us the vehicle (registration or VIN) and the repair carried out or planned.
2. If you need to know what the manufacturer requires, we source the repair information for that vehicle.
3. We confirm what ADAS-related support and wheel alignment we can arrange for the job, with cost and timing.
4. If the repair needs replacement sensors, cameras, brackets or panels, we source the genuine parts in the same enquiry.

Send us the registration and a description of the repair. We'll tell you what we can arrange and, where you need it, source the manufacturer's calibration requirement for the vehicle.

ADAS components and genuine parts

Sensors, cameras, radar units and the brackets and covers around them are vehicle-specific and frequently on back order. A bumper cover with the wrong radar aperture or a bracket a millimetre out will fail calibration. We identify these parts against the VIN and source them through UK and international supplier contacts. See genuine body panels and back-ordered parts.

Trade only

ADAS-related support and wheel alignment are offered to garages, bodyshops and specialists. Private customers should ask their repairer. For related equipment servicing — including alignment equipment calibration — see workshop equipment servicing, or contact us.

Recording calibration on the repair file

Whether an ADAS calibration was required, and whether it was carried out, is increasingly a question asked by insurers, by manufacturers in warranty matters and by customers after a repair. The repair file should show the manufacturer's requirement for that vehicle, the alignment record where alignment was a prerequisite, and the calibration record itself. Sourcing the manufacturer's requirement before the repair — rather than after — is what makes that file complete. See manufacturer repair methods.

Alignment after accident repair

Even where no ADAS calibration is required, a wheel alignment to the manufacturer's specification is good practice after any repair involving the suspension, subframe, steering or structure, and after wheel replacement. Tell us the work carried out and we will confirm what we can arrange for the vehicle.