GM may be the worst of the car makers. They've been collecting information through OnStar on how people drive and "sharing" (ie, selling) that data to LexisNexis. LexisNexis then sells that data, with personal identifiers, to insurance companies. GM conns drivers into signing up to some Orwellian app called "Smart Driver" and they don't disclose that GM's going to sell the data. Hell, the new owners often aren't told, because the salesvermin get more money for sneakily signing people up for it.
GM may be the most egregious, but Ford, Honda, Subaru and Hyundai are also doing this shit.
Read about it here. (The article is not in the NY Time's paywall.)
Any doubt that car salesmen are among the slimiest of all? And GM is just borderline evil. About the only good thing one can say is that the company wasn't founded by a fucking Nazi.
If you have an older non-networked car, keep it maintained and drive it until the wheels fall off.
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Apparently there are no rules governing what data the car can save or who can, or cannot access it. Rep. Ed Markey tried, but apparently failed, to address this issue.
back when buying the 2015 corolla the dealer was big on two things...
Extended warranty,
The phone thing they use.
The answer from my partner was hard NO and if you go
on about it the deals off. She meant it.
She has a cell phone and warranty is the factory one.
No car that calls home desired. Its bad enough
they (dealer and inspection station) can plug in
and talk to it.
Most newer cars have the auto version of black box.
The difference was aircraft its used to assure safety
or cause.. for auto its about insurance and warranty
violations.
Its all a racket!
Eck!
Yeah, of course they do.
Just spent a fun 5 minutes I'll never get back reading this:
https://mygarage.honda.com/s/vehicle-data-privacy-settings-result?result=no
Clicking through to https://www.honda.com/privacy/connected-product-privacy-policy.pdf
gets pages of legal mumbling which boils down to they will sell, give away or publish whatever,
unless you tell them not to. Somehow.
Bring a trailer?
I drive a 92 Toyota mini truck.
My wife has a 2000 Tacoma.
Wouldn't trade either of them for a new model of any make.
Other than belts, hoses and tires nothing has ever been replaced on either one.
Add gas and change oil once in a while...
In spite of all the strang, drung and bluster I fear they would find my driving habits really rather boring: MGH couple times a month, CVS, Stop $ Shop couple times a week; pot-shop once a week, car wash next door. I might drive fifty (50) milers a week. The only thing I can think of I do that might piss 'em off is zoom out of the on-ramp before I'm out of the on-ramp (and I fog-lamp the tunnel, which I'm told is to everyone else like a tailgating truck high-beaming me)
The eMini has an option to turn 'call the mothership' off and ... well, as hard as this is for me to say: sometimes ya' just gotta' trust. I mean ... can you really turn that cell-hone in your back-pocket off ? How quickly do you think the bank ~ the mothership ~ has your debit transaction when you execute one at one (1) in the morning ? And those satellites can see more than license plates: they can scan your drivers license, the text at the bottom of a matchbook
We all remember matchbooks ! Right ...
Corolla, didn't turn on their version of phone ap and to be
sure it was inop I pulled the antenna and replaced with the
a dummy load (shielded resistor) and then if it tries to
call home its nullified. The 2015 really was not what is
done these days. Then again my 2009 Tacoma is likely to
be my last for that reason and you can't get a new one
with a manual and a 4 cylinder. Besides at 110K its
barely broken in. Its paid for and passes gas stations.
Its like the last one, doesn't rust, bust, or narc on me.
The real problem is the cellphone I carry. I have a
metal case to keep it bottled up if I have concerns.
It all about personal security.
Eck!
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