How to Prepare Your Car for Driver Assist System Calibration

14 March 2018
 Categories: Automotive, Blog


Many newer cars now come with various forms of driver-assist technology, such as blind spot monitoring and collision avoidance mechanisms. These driver-assist features rely on several sensors which can go out of alignment due to several factors, such as road vibrations and the replacement of car parts near the location of the sensors. It is, therefore, necessary to recalibrate the driver-assist systems so that one is sure that accurate data is being collected and acted upon. Below are ways through which you can prepare your vehicle for that recalibration exercise.

Remove Heavy Items

You should check the boot of your car and remove any heavy items that you may have stored there. Such heavy items can cause the rear of your car to be lower than the design specifications of that car. That low height can affect the focus of the sensors. The calibration exercise may, therefore, be ineffective since the sensors could end up being adjusted based on an incorrect ride height. Check inside the car as well for any heavy items.

Check Tyre Inflation

The inflation of your car tyres can also affect the process of calibrating the driver-assist systems in your vehicle. Always check and confirm that all the tyres are correctly inflated so that the angles of the sensors will be set correctly once the tyres are at the optimum inflation level.

Fill the Tank

You should also top up the fuel in the tank so that the vehicle reaches the calibration centre with a full tank. The amount of fuel in a vehicle can affect the range and effectiveness of the driver-assist system. For example, a car whose fuel tank is nearly empty will be lighter than a car with a full tank. The lighter vehicle can seem to have sensors that are in a higher position than where they should be. This can result in an adjustment which can bring those sensors too low. Avoid such mistakes by filling the tank.

Clean the Vehicle

Have your car cleaned thoroughly before you take it for driver-assist sensor calibration. Dirt can prevent sensors from working properly. For example, dirt can distort the lens in the camera sensors that are mounted behind the front windshield. Clean the car so that the person performing the calibration can do a good job.

The task of calibrating the driver-assist systems is technical and may be beyond your capacity as a car owner. Find a mechanic with experience in fixing that particular brand/model of car and let that expert recalibrate those complex systems.


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