Shops are being urged to prepare for significantly changing vehicle technologies that will soon have significant chunks of the overall car parc. But what can they afford?
A shop debating between focusing on the electric vehicle market or being able to handle calibrations around advanced driver assistance systems might want to consider the cost of each. And according to advisory firm Roland Berger, setting up an ADAS-equipped shop can be one-third the cost of an EV-ready one.
EVs require significant investment and new infrastructure to get up and running — anywhere from about $140,000 to $280,000, the group estimated.
By comparison, to get ADAS-ready, a shop is looking at about $40,000 up to around $70,000.
It will be difficult for a shop to offer both services, experts advised.
“Put those two things together, it’s a lot of money for an average shop to be able to perform and become a true shop [of the future],” Neury Freitas, partner with Roland Berger,
To service EVs, shops need to invest in chargers first. Freitas recommended fast chargers to quickly have vehicles ready to go. There are infrastructure costs, such as installing transformers to handle the higher load. There is significant training required of staff. New tools and equipment will be needed, such as lifts that can handle the extra weight of an EV.
Another consideration Freitas pointed out, is the physical space available in shops. When removing the battery from an EV, it will take up the space of an entire bay, in addition to the bay the vehicle is currently in.
By comparison, to be an ADAS-equipped shop, it comes down to the tools, equipment and training.
Some shop owners may be shocked by the numbers. Roland Berger partnered with the Midwest Auto Care Alliance to ask shops how much they thought an investment in each space would cost. Four in 10 (42 per cent) expected investment to total between $14,000 and $28,000. About a third (32 per cent) said in the $70,000-$140,000 range.
On the ADAS side of things, estimations were closer to reality but still below. Sixty per cent of respondents estimated it would cost about $30,000-$55,000.
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