Here's another reason I DON'T want an electric car

https://teslamotorsclub.com/bl…ing-updates-safety-issue/

The article asks: Why is Tesla forcing non-safety updates on owners?

The basic answer is control. We (Tesla) get to decide what software you run, how you charge batteries, how your fly-by-wire car responds to brake and throttle, how you connect to the internet, and dozen of other parameters.

If the government (or Big Elon) decides to speed limit your 100K auto, your done. If they decide you have to use improved autopilot in cities, on highways, your done. If they decide you cannot go here or there in an emergency, your done. Maybe you say they can't make me accept the leash & collar update.... or can they?

Can they "make you?" Well, no access to internet if you don't. No access to supercharger stations if you don't. Your voice command goes away. Your GPS goes away. Big Tesla can get as draconian as they want, even shut and lock down your car! Having a heart attack? Big Tesla says "Too bad, you shoulda updated!" Gotta get groceries? Gotta get to work or school? Wanna have the USE OF THE CAR that you paid for and own? Too bad - you didn't build that. You pay for, but don't control that.

Big Elon says: "Stay!" and you stay, like a good dog, like a subject instead of a citizen. Call an Uber, sucker - and you better hope Big Elon doesn't buy THAT company, your Uber app is linked to the same credit card as your Tesla... and Big Elon says: "STAY! No ride for you until you accept the leash & collar with your update."

No thanks. I'll Drive free or die!

Quote from Edward Neal

if the powers that be really wanted couldnt these things be done to just about any modern vehicle? Seriously almost all new cars, at least all but the bottom of the line, are connected to the same technology as such does it really change anything if the motor is gas or electric?

I don't see that level of control with an ICE engine. The ECU controls a lot of engine functions, but the primary control is still in the owner's hands. The current autos cannot have their ECU's flashed via update.

They CAN change some functionality, speed limiters, etc. Hyundai just did an ECU update that had to do with the knock sensor. I had to take my car in to get the change. Hyundai's stick? They wouldn't pay for warranty repairs if the old software was not updated. Would the car work? Yep! But the final choice was yours.

Tesla is different. When they say "no supercharger without the update, they basically say you can only drive around town with your car and refuel at home. 300 mile range means you cannot get more than 125 miles away from home (unlike ICE, EV's range is very dependent upon local conditions).

Maybe I'm old fashioned, but I think the 2nd ammendment protects all the others from big government intrusions, but you cannot point any sort of weapon at a computer and force it to return your freedoms. Once you surrender them, you likely aren't getting them back.

Flybuddy

Not a potshot at the car, I love Tesla's product and would love to have one of their early model roadsters!

I griping about the company's practices and how they disrespect the purchaser. It's one thing to say that if you mod the car or don't do maintenance, we won't honor the warranty. The consumer is free to choose, and more importantly, free to use the product they own as they see fit.

Tesla outrages these sensibilities by acting as if the customer Doesn't Own the vehicle! If you don't obey, they make your car inoperable. I think it unamerican, and probably illegal. I'm sure Tesla Corp's lawyers have some airtight legal agreement you must sign at purchase time, but I still think it stinks and I hope they get sued over it.

Short answer, I don't think you should have to surrender your freedom to enable you to own transportation in a free country. I don't want Tesla's horrible business model to become status quo for Ford, Toyota, and the rest. And a large part of my outrage is that I think this control-freak business model would appeal to companies who have lost touch with the American consumers. I also think that it will appeal to Bernie supporters and other nanny state voters.

Yuck!

thanks for the video, and I do get it - but I still don't like it, and I won't buy one if I don't have to.

I'm in the same sort of wrestling match with my TV and DVD player. I have no cable or broadcast TV service of any kind in my home. There aren't enough swear words in English to tell you how I feel about how far down the toilet TV has gone....

But my TV & DVD players are connected devices. I do use that to download select programming, etc. These insidious things INSIST that I want broadcast crap as soon as the DVD stops playing. I sweat, swear, call help lines (NEVER helps) and spend hours crawling through menus to get my TV & DVD to stop being robots and go back to being devices.

I will NEVER get into that fight with an essential transportation system, or potentially when I'm on the road. The "Oh, that will never happen!" statement comforts me not at all... mostly because every other time I've heard it, it has been a lie.