FORD and General Motors have told collision repairers in the US that all ADAS components must be scanned before and after repairs to avoid potentially life-threatening problems caused by inaccurate post-repair ADAS calibration.
And now the same demands are hitting Australian repairers.
According to a recent article in the US-based AUTOBODYNEWS, the statement is the second to repairers in the US made by Ford since October 2025, and the second for GM this year. It follows concerns that ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems) repair calibrations don’t meet manufacturers guidelines and will affect the performance of collision avoidance electronics.
It follows Ford’s October 2025 refresh of its collision position statements, alongside continued concerns that ADAS (advanced driver assistance systems) repair calibrations don’t meet manufacturers’ guidelines and will affect the performance of collision avoidance electronics.
Gonzalo Haddad, general manager Autogroup Solutions
Independent workshop group and MotorOne subsidiary, Autogroup Solutions, specialises in ADAS calibrations and related components.
Its general manager, Gonzalo Haddad, told GoAutoNews Premium that what is happening in the US with OEMs controlling ADAS repair work is the same in Australia.
“It absolutely mirrors what we’re seeing in Australia and in some ways we’re already living it on the workshop floor,” he said.
“The shift being made by Ford, Lincoln, GM, Nissan, Volvo and others from ‘recommended’ to ‘mandated’ language is significant.
“It changes how repair procedures are interpreted by insurers, DRP networks, and eventually courts.”
He said that what was very pertinent to Australia was the pre-repair and post-repair scanning plus calibration documentation.
“This is the piece we’ve been banging the drum on for years. The question is shifting from ‘was the vehicle repaired?’ to ‘can the repair be documented, validated, and defended?’.”
He said that a file without diagnostic records, calibration reports and OE-procedure verification “is going to be very hard to defend when a claim gets scrutinised”.
Ford in the US and its subsidiary Lincoln now need diagnostic scans both before and after any repair on a damaged vehicle.
Scanning before the repair is aimed at revealing codes that may not be reflected in dashboard warning lights, while the post-repair scan is intended to verify that the electronics are in sync and that no new warning codes remain.
General Motors follows the same approach as Ford and adds that a follow-up scan is needed after any repair work involving disruptions to the battery or electrical circuit.
In addition, changes to the vehicle during repair work must meet exacting standards.
For example, repairs to bumpers and fascias supporting ADAS components are limited to topcoat refinish work and in cases where a total paint job is required, paint buildup must remain below 13mils (0.33mm or 0.013 of an inch).
“Substrate repair triggers replacement of the fascia,” GM’s statement on ADAS March 2026 said to repairers and dealers.
Ford’s statement, released in May 2026, does not specify a paint thickness limit. However, it warns that the application of three or more coats of paint can attenuate or deflect radar signals, and refers to the workshop manual for specific limits.
“Refinish work has to stay within the limits documented in the workshop manual,” Ford said.
Mr Haddad said that the new US paint thickness ruling imposed by Ford and GM are not being followed in Australia.
“Australian workshops aren’t yet measuring these paint thickness specifications,” he said.
“But I think that it may not take long for ultrasonic gauge verification to become standard, not optional.”
Mr Haddad said that from an Australian perspective, Australian workshops repair the same global vehicles so the ADAS specifications are globally the same.
“The Ford Rangers, Mustangs, Everests, GM-sourced product, Nissan Patrols and X-Trails, Volvos and Stellantis brands rolling through our doors are built to the same ADAS specifications as their US and European counterparts,” he said.
“When the OEM tightens its position statement globally, that guidance flows straight into the technical information Australian repairers are expected to follow.”
The new information on ADAS repair for the US market came from Ford and GM separately in March.
In addition to the latest repair guidelines, Ford and Lincoln are now saying that ADAS validation can only be done on Ford or Lincoln genuine parts.
Ford said that sensors from a recycling business, a wrecker, an aftermarket supplier, or a reconditioning operation “are off the approved list”.
Further, Ford’s statement warns that those parts may not pair correctly with the vehicle’s software or with the other sensors around them.
GM’s latest update rejects ADAS components from “salvaged, recycled, reconditioned, remanufactured, aftermarket, or any secondary-market” sources.
Mr Haddad said that there had been an increase in the number of OEMs who are refusing to validate performance of salvaged, aftermarket, or reconditioned sensors, radars, cameras and ADAS-equipped bumper fascias.
“Australia has historically had a more flexible parts supply chain, so this is a real conversation the industry needs to have with insurers,” he said.
Mr Haddad said Autogroup Solutions has built its workflow around providing full diagnostic records.
“Every ADAS-related job leaves the workshop with full diagnostic records, OE-procedure calibration, and documentation the repairer and insurer can hand over to anyone who asks,” he said.
“It’s not a premium service anymore, it’s the baseline the industry is moving toward, and the OEMs have just made that direction very clear.”
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By Neil Dowling
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