ADAS Calibration After Windshield Replacement

ADAS Calibration After Windshield Replacement: What Regina Drivers Should Know

If your vehicle was built in 2018 or later, a new windshield is only half the job. The camera behind your rear-view mirror runs your safety features, and it needs ADAS calibration after windshield replacement so those features work the way they should.

Here’s what that means, which vehicles need it, and what it costs.

What ADAS is

ADAS stands for Advanced Driver Assistance Systems: the features that help you drive more safely. Many of them see the road through a camera mounted on your windshield, including:

• Lane departure warning and lane-keep assist
• Automatic emergency braking and forward collision warning
• Adaptive cruise control
• Pedestrian and cyclist detection
• Traffic sign recognition
• Rain-sensing wipers and automatic high beams

Why a new windshield throws it off

The camera is aimed through the glass at a precise angle. When the windshield is replaced, its position can shift by a fraction of a degree. That’s invisible to you, but at highway distances it’s enough to put the camera’s view of the road off target.

An uncalibrated camera can:

• Warn you about lane drift too late, or not at all
• Misjudge the distance to the car ahead when braking
• Make adaptive cruise follow too closely or brake unexpectedly
• Trigger false collision warnings, or miss real ones

Calibration resets the camera to the manufacturer’s specifications so every system reads the road correctly again.

How calibration is done

There are two methods. Your vehicle’s manufacturer decides which one, and some need both.

Method	Where it happens	How it works
Static	In the shop	A target board is set at exact distances and angles in front of the vehicle, and calibration equipment aligns the camera to it.
Dynamic	On the road	The vehicle is driven on well-marked roads at set speeds while the camera recalibrates itself from real lane markings.

At Mike’s, we do calibration in-house, so you don’t need a separate trip to the dealer. Because of the calibration step, windshields with cameras can take the full day.

Does your vehicle need it?

Most vehicles from 2018 on have windshield-mounted ADAS. Some 2015–2017 models do too, especially higher trims.

The quickest check: look behind your rear-view mirror. If there’s a camera lens or a boxy housing mounted to the glass, your vehicle needs calibration after a windshield replacement. Not sure? Give us your year, make, and model and we’ll tell you.

What it costs and how SGI handles it

Done on its own, calibration typically adds $300–$500 to a windshield replacement, depending on the vehicle and the method.

Through SGI, it’s part of your claim:

• Package policy: calibration is included and you pay only your $50–$100 deductible.
• Standard plates: glass plus calibration often totals more than $700, so SGI covers the difference over your deductible.

That’s a big reason a claim usually makes sense on a newer vehicle. Our windshield replacement cost guide has the full numbers.

Can you skip it?

We don’t recommend it. A camera that’s slightly off makes the safety features you rely on unpredictable, and you won’t always know until it matters. When you go through SGI, calibration is covered, so there’s no cost reason to skip it.

Book your windshield and calibration

Driving a 2018 or newer vehicle with a cracked windshield? Call Mike’s Auto Glass at (306) 543-2299. Calibration is included with every windshield we replace on an equipped vehicle, and it’s covered under your SGI claim.

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