Press Release (EDITED): WASHINGTON, DC–The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) is urging the Department of Transportation (DOT) and Congress to develop policies and guidelines for advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) to ensure that they work with popular aftermarket equipment add-ons in vehicles.
SEMA said aftermarket businesses must have the information needed to safely customize vehicles with ADAS for adding products like vehicle wraps, lift kits, bike racks, bumpers, winches, and sideview mirrors.
SEMA is requesting that the DOT and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) work with Congress to craft a highway bill that addresses the following through rulemaking and the issuance of guidance and requirements:
- Establish modification ranges and tolerances for new vehicles
- Develop guidelines that ensure proper calibration of ADAS and create neutral validation protocols
- Create either a visible diagnostic indicator to determine ADAS operational status or an electronic diagnostic indicator for ADAS status
- Require that automakers make full lifecycle support for ADAS achievable
- Provide full access to Vehicle Dynamic Systems and the data needed to maintain compliance and functionality
SEMA President and CEO Mike Spagnola said it SEMA’s letter to the DOT, “When cars and trucks needed to be safer, the automotive aftermarket was there; when seat belts, backup cameras, sideview and enhanced rearview mirrors were still optional equipment, it was the aftermarket that sparked their popularization and made them widely available. Today, with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) offered in most newer vehicles, the aftermarket is developing products that are compatible with the many safety features these vehicles provide, along with providing collision avoidance systems and blindspot monitors for older vehicles.”
The Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) serves as a leading voice for the worldwide car culture, representing over 7,000 member companies that create, buy, sell, and use specialty-automotive parts that make vehicles more unique, attractive, convenient, safer, fun, and even like new again
Wait a second. I hope this request gets tossed out. Allowing untrained installers to tamper with ADAS is reckless—especially when many drivers are already glued to their phones instead of the road. Also. The equipment needed to set up ADAS will cost a mint. Especially for the struggling aftermarket local mom and pop stereo/tint/accessory shop.
Adding wraps or modifications that interfere with these safety systems only increases the risk of accidents.
Yet, non-certified stereo and tint shops often attempt this work without the proper ASE training. Who in their right mind would hand over critical safety systems to someone unqualified, just so a distracted driver—who spends 57 seconds of every minute on their phone—can keep glancing at the road for 3 seconds? I am thankful for Autopilot for those who lost the ability to pay attention. Soda cans. We all travel in soda cans above 35mph. (Working in a collision shop shown me this.)
Frankly, this proposal and SEMA’s request are misguided. Instead of trying to hack around DOT regulations, the focus should be on developing solutions that reduce cell phone use behind the wheel—not undermind vehicle safety implementation to keep people as safe as they can and hopefully walk away from an car accident. Think about this for a second.
I like my customization a ton for a vehicle. Not so much that it does not keep my family, or someone else’s family safe on the road.