I saw it the other day. I knew it was only a matter of time. A commercial on YouTube from Safelite about how they’ll “recalibrate your safety systems correctly after replacing your windshield.”
That was the first time I’ve seen a commercial trying to educate consumers on front-facing camera calibration. We’ve all seen the commercials on TV during football games or our favorite shows where the young couple gets distracted talking to each other, only to have their car deploy its automatic emergency braking system just in the nick of time before rear-ending a garbage truck. Or automakers touting their advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS) that will protect your family. I think we all get that and appreciate what this technology can do for us — at least those of us who don’t own a 2009 Honda Civic with 207,000 miles. Guess I’ll have to stay more on my toes when I’m driving because it’s me and my reactions and nothing else.
I think it’s a good thing to educate consumers on recalibration, although most (except engineers or rocket scientists) probably won’t get it. Again, we don’t want to get too into the weeds with them. I liked Mitch Becker’s analogy in his article, “What Are Your Senses Telling You?” As you drive down the road in your vehicle, you’re using all of your senses to react to the environment around you. A vehicle with ADAS does the same thing.
Do you educate your customers? If I owned a collision repair facility and spent all that money on equipment and training, I would go out of my way to tell them why my shop was the best choice in the area to restore their safety systems to proper working order. Of course, I’d want to make sure, verify and validate that what I was telling them was the truth before uttering that statement.
Original equipment manufacturer (OEM) certification instills confidence in consumers. So does a clean shop, helpful staff, state-of-the-art equipment and constant updates on the progress of their repairs. Pulling back the curtain and educating them does too. And that includes the new computer they just bought — you know, that transportation mechanism on wheels.
