AI creeps into the aftermarket

A new AftermarketNews audience survey found most companies are still in the experimenting stage with AI. About a third of respondents said their company does not use it at all, and only 20% have moved past pilot programs into wider use. Where AI is in play, it shows up most in product data and catalog management, marketing and content, and customer service chatbots.

The reasons for hesitation are practical. Security and privacy concerns topped the list of barriers, followed by a lack of in-house expertise. Several respondents told AftermarketNews the hard part is simply figuring out where the technology fits their specific business at a price that makes sense. Even so, spending looks set to rise, with 61% expecting their company's AI budget to grow over the next year.

Why it matters: This may signal that AI in this industry is still more promise than payoff, at least for now. Respondents who saw gains pointed mostly to faster research, data work, and administrative tasks rather than anything dramatic. For some shops, it is worth considering whether a narrow, well-defined use like write-ups or parts lookup is a better place to start than a broad rollout.

The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety surveyed more than 16,000 drivers and ran focus groups to understand how people actually think about speeding. The pattern is consistent: drivers generally think posted limits are reasonable but do not see strict compliance as necessary. A social threshold of about 10 mph over the limit came up repeatedly as acceptable and unlikely to draw a ticket.

Traffic flow acts as a strong social norm, with 49% agreeing it is safer to keep pace with surrounding traffic than to obey the limit. The AAA Foundation also found drivers tied speed choice to personal freedom and often justified it by distinguishing "safe" speeding from the dangerous kind. On technology, acceptance of intelligent speed assistance in a driver's own car dropped as the feature got more restrictive, from an alert to a hard limiter.

Why it matters: This could reinforce why collision volume stays stubborn even as cars get safer. The findings on speed-limiting technology are also worth watching, since resistance to it suggests these systems will likely arrive as overridable assists rather than hard limits. For some shops, that might mean another layer of driver-assist calibration work down the road rather than fewer crashes.

Mitchell's Plugged-In report on second-quarter EV collision claims found the gap between electric and gas vehicle repair costs at its narrowest yet. In the U.S., average repairable severity ran $5,684 for battery electric vehicles compared with $4,955 for gas vehicles, a difference of $729. Mitchell suggests a maturing EV fleet and higher total loss frequency may be pulling costs across powertrains closer together.

The claims mix tells a hybrid story. According to the report, the BEV share of U.S. repairable claims held flat while mild hybrid claims hit an all-time high, up 26% from a year earlier. Mitchell also notes that EVs lean far harder on OEM parts, roughly 85% compared with 61% for gas vehicles, and have fewer parts repaired rather than replaced.

Why it matters: This may signal that EV work is becoming less of a cost outlier than it once was, though the parts picture is a different story. Heavy OEM parts dependence leaves EV repairs more exposed to tariffs, shipping disruptions, and supply swings. For some shops, it is worth weighing how the growing hybrid share of claims changes the mix of work coming through your doors.

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