Cross posted from https://hexbear.net/post/9006467
A Sycamore Township man said a mandatory software update on his Volkswagen Jetta appeared to trigger a cascade of malfunctions, leaving key safety features and the infotainment system not working properly. A dealership then told him it would cost $1,600 to diagnose and repair:
They should have to cover the costs if a OTA update is pushed even if the normal warranty is up. Not saying as fact, but it should be. They are the ones that push the updates and the owners of the cars are just doing what makes sense if they see an update is ready to install.
I agree but I know Ford ain’t gonna cover shit once my warranty is up (which is soon). The only way would be to fight in court which isn’t worth the time or money. So I just turned off updates. It’s not like they are adding cool features ever.
I also agree that court would unfortunately be the route they would rather take it (with their money and lawyers’ time). Turning off the updates being an option is better than nothing regarding risks, but really sucks that even knowing the risks (possible with updates for anything) isn’t something a average owner/user thinks about (and really shouldn’t be expected to).
The more I hear about all the extra levels of data collecting and issues that get shifted onto the owners like this case. The more I am kind of glad to have an older model that their app/updates and features related to them hasn’t supported for a while. Would be nice to be able to use the infotainment unit with my phone for displaying GPS instead of my phone on a mount that covers the screen (I think Android Auto was an option for the model the year after). I can still do calls and show blue-tooth media, and the backup camera works fine (would be pissed if the cam was tied to updates or plans that aren’t an option anymore).