Auto Repair Illegal

[Tuxedo]

BMW cost of repairs have been know to give that shall I say milk out the nose price and many find DIY's and indy shops. Just read the update from a 3 1/2 yr old complaint about BMW sw updates. http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=612940
My personal issue with the basic fact BMW shows a problem needs fixed and do it by sw update. Tho they fixed that issue 2-3 issues get moved down the field as worse and frustrating or upsetting.

The good news is it will be all out of your control if the desire of BMW and other Auto manufacturers get their way. A car is no longer a car folks ish.
http://jalopnik.com/carmakers-want-t...eca-1699132210

[ShocknAwe]

Please don't take this wrong if English is your second language, but I'm not getting the point of your post.

[Tuxedo]

Originally Posted by ShocknAwe

Please don't take this wrong if English is your second language, but I'm not getting the point of your post.

No one can fix your car except the owner of the software. BMW still owns that software, even if you own the car. Not you or your indy shop can then legally touch under the hood or modify your car. This would create a dealership monopoly for your repairs.

[ShocknAwe]

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1118707

http://www.1addicts.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1117639

[Tuxedo]

3rd times a charm?

better late then pregnant?

Not the first time been proven an idiot!

[ShocknAwe]

Originally Posted by Tuxedo

3rd times a charm?

better late then pregnant?

Not the first time been proven an idiot!

It's all good.

[edisapimp]

All your base are belong to us.

[mr.fabulous]

This is all baloney. I can legally jailbreak my phone, I bought it. Same goes with my car. This will easily be proven in court.

[KNS]

Originally Posted by mr.fabulous

This is all baloney. I can legally jailbreak my phone, I bought it. Same goes with my car. This will easily be proven in court.

There is actually a big push by most of the auto makers to keep the owner's hands (and independent garages, software tuners, etc) off of the car you bought. Some day they'll just seal the hood at the factory.

[_Ryan_]

Originally Posted by mr.fabulous

This is all baloney. I can legally jailbreak my phone, I bought it. Same goes with my car. This will easily be proven in court.

Have you read the terms of the proposed license agreement?

[The Wind Breezes]

Originally Posted by _Ryan_

Have you read the terms of the proposed license agreement?

Doesn't matter. License agreements often say all kinds of outlandish stuff that's unenforceable. The dealer can refuse service if you modify the software but the act of modification itself is in no way ILLEGAL, at least not yet. If this was actually the case there would be no commercial flash tunes for factory ECUs as every single commercial tune for N54 or N55 stock DME is based on code written by either of Bosch or Siemens and BMW. Instead, software tuning of factory ECUs is thriving in the US, and not just for BMW.

[_Ryan_]

Originally Posted by The Wind Breezes

...at least not yet. If this was actually the case there would be no commercial flash tunes for factory ECUs as every single commercial tune for N54 or N55 stock DME is based on code written by either of Bosch or Siemens and BMW. Instead, software tuning of factory ECUs is thriving in the US, and not just for BMW.

I'm looking forward...

[Diver]

I started a thread on this issue in the general automotive sub forum. While not an expert on the law, I believe the issue turns on decrypting the software. Flash tunes have an additional problem because I suspect they start with the factory software and change a few constants thereby creating a copy of the software in the process. A piggyback tune might pass assuming it could be designed without first decrypting the DME.

[Rainier]

I'm not a lawyer as well, I'm an engineer. But my initial reaction is that it would be impossible to put thousands of businesses out of business by enacting this regulation. I would think that the government would stand up for the little guys.

[ShocknAwe]

Originally Posted by Rainier

I'm not a lawyer as well, I'm an engineer. But my initial reaction is that it would be impossible to put thousands of businesses out of business by enacting this regulation. I would think that the government would stand up for the little guys.

The government is not altruistic. This will likely come down to how much money the companies involved "donate" to lawmakers to build support. If they can buy off enough people, it will likely pass.

[mr.fabulous]

There is a difference between reverse-engineering BMW's intellectual property and reselling that product for profit, as opposed to a 3d party (or me) simply working on the car. I bought it, I own it.

[ShocknAwe]

Originally Posted by mr.fabulous

There is a difference between reverse-engineering BMW's intellectual property and reselling that product for profit, as opposed to a 3d party (or me) simply working on the car. I bought it, I own it.

What you would possibly see is, for example:

A company makes hardware that allows a user to flash tune an ECU. No maps are supplied to the end user but instead they are given instructions on how to do it themselves (and with what variables) with free software.

Another example would be small shops charging for dyno time, but then doing the tuning for free (less likely since it's still contracted work).

All depends on how it's written. If it happens at all. But the options will be hugely unsatisfactory.