I've got a complaint with my new motor already!

[Avocet]

cats out of the bag - as i guessed way more than delusion, a PR man perhaps, vested interest

Your prejudices led you to guess wrong. Engineer, principally regulations, standards, passive safety and compliance.

... like PR, but different...

 

[johnny2007]

cats out of the bag - as i guessed way more than delusion, a PR man perhaps, vested interest

The deluded workaholic got a free milk float that he charges for free at work to dive 10 mile/day max.
Of course he's gonna praise that.
Many moons ago I worked in a railway carpentry workshop and had a free Fiat Ducati at my disposal.
I praised that rubbish van and the tools in the workshop... After all I made a lot of money using all of that for free.
Invested interest...

 

[carmanmemoranda]

Every iPhone or firestick I own as well as my cookers and hob have had to be updated out of the box. I suppose it’s because the car had been sitting since being made. As fas as I know, you can’t search and download updates.

The dealer can, and should have checked for updates before releasing the car to you. Certainly a question I'd be asking.

It doesn’t update by itself. Yesterday I had another one. This time it was for the infotainment system. It tells you that you have one and asks if you want to download it now. I chose 'later'. When I went to sainsburys it asked me again and said it would take 10 minutes and it could do it while it was switched off. I chose ‘update now', went and did my shopping and when I came back it was done.

But you said it stopped you from starting, without any warning?

 

[carmanmemoranda]

not a 100% by a fair way, but i guess many spend a disproportionate amount of their money to impress people they don't like by buying cars they can't afford

It has always been the case, even before the advent of EV's. Was explaining our number plate system to a friend from USA, and his immediate question was, why is the age of the car so important to be needed on a number plate? It's to build in envy generally.

but getting back to who thinks these silly pointless pretentious cars are fantastic just seems to be those who sell them
do you have a connection to the motor industry ? you do seem to sing the praises of these cars a little too much

You don't hear or see the people praising their ICE cars? Seems to be a lot on here who won't even weigh up the ICE v EV sitaution.

Like it or not, ICE is not the future.

 

[Mottie]

The dealer can, and should have checked for updates before releasing the car to you. Certainly a question I'd be asking.

But you said it stopped you from starting, without any warning?

The car was parked up. I had been in and out of it piddling about with a dash cam. I think it must have been still updating (or installing) while on my drive.

 

[Brigadier]

not a 100% by a fair way, but i guess many spend a disproportionate amount of their money to impress people they don't like by buying cars they can't afford

Same with many things; "conspicuous consumption", they call it.
Gotta have the latest iPhone / trainers / so on and so forth............

And the number of people who have stuff on the drip is crazy.
You can even buy something as daft as a £10 t-shirt in instalments. It might be Klarna that is the credit provider?

Still, no different to buying from Kays / Littlewoods / Grattans etc catalogues.........................

 

[carmanmemoranda]

The car was parked up. I had been in and out of it piddling about with a dash cam. I think it must have been still updating (or installing) while on my drive.

But did you have a warning it was going to update, or not ?

 

[Mottie]

But did you have a warning it was going to update, or not ?

Yes but I don’t know how long the update or the install takes. For all I know it could do it while it’s locked, it could do it while is running, it could do a bit of both. I just don’t know but now it’s working again, I don’t care! Maybe just a glitch or a gremlin. I doubt that there’s a tool on the planet that can look at it now and tell me what happened - unless you know different?

 

[carmanmemoranda]

Yes but I don’t know how long the update or the install takes. For all I know it could do it while it’s locked, it could do it while is running, it could do a bit of both. I just don’t know but now it’s working again, I don’t care! Maybe just a glitch or a gremlin. I doubt that there’s a tool on the planet that can look at it now and tell me what happened - unless you know different?

No.

But you made an original comment that the key wouldn't work and you had no idea why, only finding out about the update later. Now you seem to be saying you knew it was updating.

But if it was a long time doing the update I would suggest that it had not been updated by the supplier before you got the car. That was my point, especially if it had sat for a while between manufacture and sale.

 

[Avocet]

Yeah, I have heard that some people download it onto a PC, put it on a memory stick and put that in the car when they next get in it. Bloody downloads - why do they need them anyway? My two cookers and hob have had about 6 'updates' since I’ve had them. Makes no difference to the chicken I roast or the sounds I boil!

Lots of reasons - some more important than others. The security ones are the most important. Like Windows on a PC, or your anti-virus software, they'll often be "security patches" in response to new threats. Nobody really wants cyber terrorists downloading a wee file to your car to tell the ABS pump to give full line pressure to the rear brakes, the next time it hits 60 MPH! Or your throttle to go to full travel next time you brake in 2nd gear... It's not unique to EVs or hybrids, it's anything that can accept "over-the-air" updates. (My phone has just told me there's one ready for my car, in fact)! The "Internet of things" is all well and good, but to cyber criminals, they present a lot of useful opportunities.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/leemat...-to-steal-data-from-a-casino/?sh=264fa50432b9

Other times, the software updates can be to make small improvements to functionality, update the maps in your sat-nav, fix bugs, maybe even add the odd new feature...

Saving to a memory stick can, of course, introduce additional vulnerabilities, depending on how good the antivirus software on your PC is...

 

[Avocet]

Every iPhone or firestick I own as well as my cookers and hob have had to be updated out of the box. I suppose it’s because the car had been sitting since being made. As fas as I know, you can’t search and download updates.


It doesn’t update by itself. Yesterday I had another one. This time it was for the infotainment system. It tells you that you have one and asks if you want to download it now. I chose 'later'. When I went to sainsburys it asked me again and said it would take 10 minutes and it could do it while it was switched off. I chose ‘update now', went and did my shopping and when I came back it was done.

This does sound like a shockingly bad PDI by your dealer?! We have to update the software on every car at final inspection before it leaves the factory. The dealer should do the same before delivery, to catch, as you say, any that might have come out during the time it's been sitting in their showroom (or a field, or whatever).

 

[Avocet]

I have no wish to come across as a luddite, but what happens when they get bored of sending you updates - presumably just throw it away like an old Windows laptop - and I expect this applies to all modern cars however they're powered. Some Russian hacker will brick your car for a ransom.

It's an excellent question! The EU Commission is looking at this right now. Some sort of obligation on manufacturers for lifetime security updates for vehicles. Up until now, manufacturers have done it anyway, because the reputational damage resulting from not supporting one of its own products would be too bad, but as time passes, there will be more cyber-enabled vehicles and more updates.

 

[Avocet]

I can’t see that any of them are urgent but part of the annual service includes check and install updates at the dealership. I’m assuming they have the latest virus checked programmes on usb sticks and install that while doing the service.

Usually a laptop, if it's a cable installation, but more and more commonly, it's wireless.

 

[Avocet]

Isn't this what happened when the EV maker Fisker went bust, leaving the nearly new cars useless, with so many new makes today you need to be careful with which brand you choose.

Looks like they've been saved... for the time being...

Fisker Ocean EVs Will Remain Cloud-Connected After All

American Lease, the company that wants to buy the bankrupt automaker’s remaining inventory, agreed to pay extra for cloud services.

insideevs.com

 

[Avocet]

or even crash it whilst you're driving - could a gamer hack into something and take control ?
i'm sticking with my old van

Potentially, yes.

Hackers Remotely Kill a Jeep on the Highway—With Me in It

I was driving 70 mph on the edge of downtown St. Louis when the exploit began to take hold.

www.wired.com

Note:

(a) the date and

(b) the fact that it's an ICE...