Association representing the automotive aftermarket urges U.S. Transportation Department to spearhead policies and guidelines that promote safety and support basic modifications

With safety concerns front of mind, the Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) is urging the U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) and Congress to take a long, unflinching look at how the federal government can deliver advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) policies and guidelines that account for the needs of vehicle owners and the aftermarket amid the rapid, unparalleled advance of vehicle safety technology.

Aftermarket companies manufacture, sell, and service popular and widely used products like vehicle wraps, lift kits, bike racks, bumpers, winches, and sideview mirrors, which must operate harmoniously with the technology automakers employ to support ADAS features on modern vehicles and thus ensure safety systems continue to operate as intended for the full lifecycle of a vehicle. As a result, correct calibration and re-calibration of safety systems are core concerns for maintaining driver and passenger safety after these common modifications are made.

Read SEMA’s full comment here.

SEMA’s letter in response to a USDOT request for information on the upcoming surface transportation reauthorization bill, commonly known as “the highway bill.” SEMA focuses on federal policies that would deliver the transparency needed to ensure specialty aftermarket businesses have the information needed to safely modify, customize, and work on vehicles with ADAS. SEMA is requesting that USDOT 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 industry 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 Says: “Safety is a primary concern and core focus for the automotive aftermarket,” said SEMA President and CEO Mike Spagnola in the organization’s letter to USDOT. “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.”

BACKGROUND

Vehicles’ ADAS technologies and modifications must safely coexist, as outlined in SEMA’s right to repair/right to modify principles, with safe-and-correct ADAS re-calibration necessary for ensuring optimal vehicle performance after basic modifications, such as installing larger tires and wheels, lift kits, lowering kits, bumpers, grills, push bars, light bars, bike racks, and winches.
The SEMA Garage’s ADAS Technology Center in Plymouth, Mich., helps SEMA member manufacturers develop products from start to finish that maintain the integrity and performance of ADAS and vehicle safety systems after a vehicle has been modified.

ABOUT SEMA

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. Business member benefits include product development resources, market research, networking, education, legislative advocacy and more. The association organizes the annual SEMA Show in Las Vegas and actively supports the career and business opportunities that the aftermarket generates. The industry contributes nearly $337 billion in economic impact to the U.S. economy, supports 1.3 million jobs nationally, and generates $52.3 billion in parts sales annually. For more information, visit www.sema.org.

Tagged: Vehicle Dynamic Systems

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