Biden administration/NHTSA supporting Mass. right to repair law again
Biden administration/NHTSA supporting Mass. right to repair law again
The Biden administration has changed its mind about a Massachusetts state law giving mechanics and car owners access to more diagnostic data.
Car manufacturers could comply with the law “by using short-range wireless protocols, such as via Bluetooth,” to give owners or independent shops authorized by owners access to the information they need to diagnose issues with and repair vehicles, the letter says.
Hopefully no manufacturers are allowing changes to the vehicle wirelessly. It should be read-only.
I’m always curious about how this would apply to electric cars. I do my own maintenance on cars but, ain’t no shot imma fix an electric car.
But, this could result in cheaper repairs for electric cars if parts are more readily available.
I was a kid when cars started switching from carburetors and distributors to throttle body fuel injection, and then to port fuel injection, and there was a lot of complaint and gnashing of teeth that mechanics wouldn't be able to fix cars anymore because of all the computers.
That was well over 30 years ago now, and for $12 I can get a doodad that will work with my phone to tell me what the trouble code means.
Of course that's just part of it, you've got to dive in and figure out what is causing the code to be set instead of throwing parts at it, but having to diagnose problems is part of repairing anything ever.
Given enough time and popularity, I could see third-party programming being a thing. They already have stuff like HP Tuners, which can program a GM ECU for mods/performance.
They're already hacking Teslas and stealing Hyundais/Kias with a USB stick. It won't take long.