TechDirt reports that car makers are using “intellectual property” as a way of forcing consumers to go to dealers for repairs. For independent companies to do repair, they say, violates their IP in their digital components.
Source link: http://archive.mises.org/11368/ip-and-car-repair/
IP and Car Repair
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Okay, I promise not to buy a car new enough for that to matter, and to fix it myself or take it where I like. Happy now, automakers?
It’s common for all sorts of products to void the warranty if an unlicensed repairman modifies the mechanics. I don’t see why it would be different for cars.
stranger, its not about whether getting your car fixed here instead of there will void your warranty or not, its about who is legally allowed to fix your car, period.
You forgot the mentioning of a law made to fix it. I’d love to see how that law will mess up personally. At least this law seems to be a deregulation…
I didn’t see anything about being disallowed to fix your car, just that this operation requires very expensive equipment.
That’s right that there is nothing wrong with steering people to a certain service provider. The problem is the IP claim – which means that it introduces coercion into the mix.
It appears that this is about the automakers’ unwillingness to provide specialized repair information to third parties in the first place.
If so, what is misleadingly described as an “IP” claim in the article is actually one of privacy and protecting a trade secret (for better or for worse from the customers’ perspective).
Salesman: It’s a great vehicle. Power everything, cruise control, top of the line stereo and mapping system… everything you need.
Buyer: Is it available in an open-source model?
Electronics are a great way for manufacturers to force you into using their “approved” dealership network. Take BMW Motorrad (of which I am a customer), a classic case: once the bike hits a certain mileage the on board electronics will warn you service time is approaching. The only way to shut off this warning is to take the bike to a dealer. I’ve heard there’s a third party electronic gadget to interact with the bike’s ECU but 1)I am not very sure about its usefulness 2)it’s over 600€. And this is just part of the picture.
Older Hondas although still loaded with sophisticated electronics were much easier to work on: fault codes were displayed through a simple warning light (easy to read with a workshop manual), components could be checked using commercially available instruments and resetting the diagnostics was a breeze.
So I am with those who believe all these “warranty issues” are nothing more than an excuse to force you into using approved (and more expensive) workshops.
A never-ending war between (control) measures and counter-measures. It’s only a matter of time before entrepreneurs find a loophole, or at least a “crack” invisible to the original makers. Much like software cracking for computers, that for cars no doubt has groups of hackers involved somewhere.
I remember when I owned a car I always bought one with a mechanical carburettor, not one of the electronic types that could only be expensively “serviced”. I also learnt quickly via back-channels about the various cheap parts on electronically-controlled cars that broke often and reaped the service centres massive profits via the “expensive” process of “recalibrating”.
I promise to never buy brand new cars again in my life. I will always buy jalopies and soup them up myself.
Car companies can rot in hell. Especially that they are run by the government now.
Well, there’s always IP and cookie icing designs.
BMW now sells cars with no engine dipstick. If you want to check the oil you have to go to the dealership.
They hoist the car, drain the oil, measure it, and refill.
Repulsed? Dont buy.
Mercedes is also doing this, as far as dipsticks. Hey, you are buying into a lifestyle there or a prison sentence. Just know what you’re getting into with the upper echelon makes. The stuff is nice, buy like anything nice, comes with a twist. Some have 7 or more onboard computers. My friend’s wife’s BMW 740il was constantly in the shop with the I-Drive distractions. Thus she went back to a simplier 3 Series. An M3 conv. to be exact. VW are another get it to the dealer make. Once again, just be prepared for inconveinence for service. Not always, but shop carefully if you go foreign.
Foreign cars aren’t the only ones trying to harness a captivated audience for their dealer.
Another thing that is annoying are the govt. mandated tire sensors that alot of times must go back to the dealer for reset. Total joke, and yes they are prone to break, and many times unless you raise cane you are charged $50-70 for a new one.
Its sad, but the best bang for the buck car is American, try Chevrolet Z06 or the regular C6 Vette. Yeah, some of the hyper-cars can beat it, but you won’t have tens of thousands of maint. each year. Light/nimble, naturally aspirated/pushrods (less complexity), good fuel mileage for what it is.
The sad thing is that govt. has ruined automobiles, and all the forced mandates that supposedly usher in progress. Really sad, since I have always been a car nut.
Nothing bothers me more than a cliche uppity, oh don’t want to profile, say (modern leftists) professor driving a hybrid with a smug look on his face, believing he is really found the end all be all. As if he ever spent time around real car people. Yeah sorry, I’m a car snob. Just wanna ask those kinda of academic types if they ever heard of trade-offs in anything you do. Their scientific calculations have skewed towards fashion instead of common sense.
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