Digitization and computer security are the challenges facing the automotive world over the next three years. According to a study by Frost & Sullivan and Irdeto, investments in this field are expected to be in the region of $ 82 billion

The European Commission's proposals on revision of the homologation process for motor vehicles and on the connected car and access to technical data are in the process of being approved. Two measures of utmost interest for the car repair industry, given the numerous and heavy implications that could arise for the after-sale sector.
 

It seemed almost impossible, but garage equipment is still evolving, with car diagnostics on the front line: more user-friendly hardware and software, the internet as a stable background to retrieve information and updates in almost real time. At the same time, where software is less essential there are talks of quick maintenance service and ergonomics
 

78,000 lives saved, 1,800 vehicles tested, 630 safety ratings, investments for 160 million euro. Result: safer cars than ever before. And from next year impact tests on cyclists.
 

The European Garage Equipment Association has recently decided to create a specific working group with the aim of defining a product standard for the suspension tests equipment, trying to identify a viable and cost-effective solution for anyone in Europe and around the world who wants to introduce this test in their periodic vehicle inspection checks.

By endorsing the joint declaration, EGEA (European Garage Equipment Association) confirms the need for robust policies on behalf of Europe’s future industrial production, 99% of which is made up of SME, the real backbone of the continent’s economy and industry. The initiative bears a great significance also for the car repair sector.

Starting next year, all newly registered vehicles must be equipped with an on-board  e-Call service device. A system that will significantly improve road safety (a 10% reduction in the number of road accident victims per year is hoped for), and one that aftermarket specialists would do well to become familiar with.

The fear that a person other than the owner might control a car,  is pushing car manufacturers to invest in cyber security. And not just them, individual companies too, increasingly worried about having their systems “hacked” and the consequence this would have in their business are also moving in the same direction.
 

Smart equipment, predictive diagnosis and self-learning software able to act independently. These are just some of the innovations to which mechatronic specialists, body shops and tire dealers will have to pay special attention to in order to capitalize on their full potential and avoid being “scrapped”.
 

The work of the European Commission on the definition of a standardized vehicle data access platform continues without let up. A study is, in fact, currently evaluating the feasibility of the proposals on the table. Meanwhile, German manufacturers and component suppliers have signed an agreement to support a system in which all data will have to pass through a car manufacturer's portal, which, on paper, meets all the free-competition policy requirements, but in reality is causing many sleepless nights for a number independent workshops.