A car rolled into the shop, the technician pinpointed the fault and knew how to fix it. However, the vehicle can remain immobilized for several days due to an issue increasingly common—such as a missing camera, a sensor, a control unit, or a specific headlight—and you have to wait to find the right replacement. The growing presence of electronics in vehicles is changing the daily work of repair shops in the United States and also the cost and timing of certain repairs.
According to Recomotor’s analysis, electronic component requests received between October 2024 and September 2026 rose 38% compared with the previous two years, accounting for around 22% of all references that shops request on the platform.
The phenomenon coincides with two factors. On one hand, an aging fleet, with the average age of cars in the United States in the mid-teens, and on the other, the widespread rollout of driver-assistance systems (ADAS), which are increasingly common in new vehicles, though not a nationwide mandate in the U.S. Yet. Central ECUs, ADAS cameras, sensors, radars, electronic modules, and LED headlights are now part of the day-to-day repairs, occupying a space that, a decade ago, was much more focused on traditional mechanical components.
“Before, a hit to the front bumper meant replacing the bumper. Today it can also involve radar, a camera, two or three parking sensors and then a calibration. The mechanics remains essential, but the shop no longer works only with pieces that you can see and touch, but with systems that have to be located, installed and configured. That is changing aftersales completely,” explains Marc Cuñat, head of sales at Recomotor.
The problem isn’t always fixing the car; it’s finding the part
This transformation is creating a new challenge for professionals: locating increasingly specific components. According to Recomotor’s data, ADAS cameras, certain electronic control units, LED and matrix headlights, and some sensors and radars are currently among the parts that can present the greatest localization difficulties.
In certain models, obtaining a specific reference can require 7 to 14 days, especially for newer vehicles, versions with limited presence in the U.S. market, or specific electronic components. This creates an increasingly common situation: the car is diagnosed and the shop could perform the intervention, but it sits idle while awaiting the component.
“Every day a car sits idle is a problem. For the shop it means taking up space and delaying work, and for the owner, being without a vehicle even though the fault is clearly identified. That’s why part availability is becoming almost as important as the repair itself,” says Recomotor’s sales head.
Up to a 50% difference in the price of a part
Electronics is also having direct consequences on the driver’s wallet. Certain components carry more technology and their replacement can substantially drive up the repair bill. Based on examples analyzed by Recomotor, the difference between a new part and a salvaged one can reach several hundred dollars
An example illustrates the difference: while a new electronic control unit runs around $1,400, a salvaged one costs about $140. In addition, the shop can have it in 24–48 hours rather than waiting 10–12 days to receive a new one. Another case is full LED headlights. For this component, the savings exceed $900 (from about $1,450 to $500), a figure aligned with market prices, since a single headlight for modern models can run between $1,160 and $1,320.
The front ADAS camera, for its part, drops from about $750 to around $120—a reduction of roughly 84%—although, as Recomotor warns, just like with a new part, this camera still requires calibration that typically costs between $150 and $300 depending on the model.
For Recomotor’s experts, the difference always depends on the model, the vehicle’s age, the reference, and the availability of each component. “Based on the electronic-parts orders managed by the company in the last twelve months, the average savings of a salvaged part versus a new one sits between 30% and 50%. It’s always the price of the part, excluding installation and, if applicable, programming or calibration,” explains Marc Cuñat.
Recomotor also detects a shift in the behavior of workshop customers. In repairs over $500, it is increasingly common for drivers to request an alternative before authorizing the estimate. “According to the workshops in our network, this already happens in nearly four out of ten cases. When the fault does not immediately affect safety or the car’s operation—such as a parking sensor, a rearview camera, or a headlight that still illuminates—some owners decide to postpone the intervention until they can find a more affordable option,” notes the platform’s head of sales.
The change is not limited to parts alone. It is also reshaping the profile and needs of the repair shops themselves. Advanced driver-assistance systems (ADAS), present in more and more vehicles, rely on cameras, radars, and sensors for functions like automatic emergency braking, lane-keeping, and distance control.
Interventions on any of these components may require not only replacing the part but also performing diagnostic work, programming, or calibration afterward. For Recomotor, this evolution will intensify in the coming years as the number of hybrid, electric, and highly digitalized vehicles arriving at shops continues to rise.
“The mechanic isn’t going away, but their job is already changing. They will increasingly have to work alongside diagnosis, electronics, software, and calibrations. And behind the scenes we’ll need a supply chain capable of identifying and locating components much more specific than those we used 10 or 15 years ago,” concludes Marc Cuñat.
The evolution is thus quietly driving a shift in the aftermarket as well, since the repair time for a vehicle no longer depends solely on the fault or the shop’s capacity. It increasingly depends on finding the right electronic part quickly and at an affordable price.
