Market Watch JUN2023 / by Sean Tucker / Read original article
It’s all about the data your car stores, hackers, and independent repair shops getting squeezed out of business.
Last week, the federal government’s major auto safety regulator told automakers not to comply with a new Massachusetts state law. The fight over who can see data about your car is getting weird.
Telematics – your car’s diary
Modern cars are pretty much computers on wheels. They contain dozens, sometimes hundreds, of tiny microchips controlling everything from engine timing to cabin temperature. And they keep track of a lot of it.
So-called vehicle telematics data keeps track of, among other things, the car’s performance and possible mechanical problems. Some cars even broadcast the data back to the automakers’ servers through always-on mobile internet connections. In some cases, automakers can send remote commands to the vehicles. That enables over-the-air software updates that fix problems remotely.
Telematics data can be vital to diagnosing problems and repairing them. But some automakers have been reluctant to make it available.
Without it, owners could be limited to using dealers for repairs. Third-party repair shops could be unable to perform some repairs. As even inexpensive cars grow more connected, that could squeeze repair shops out of business.
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