It’s almost certainly possible, but it might void your warranty/be illegal, depending on your jurisdiction (and qualifications- it’s probably not illegal if you’re a licensed mechanic, but might violate your employment contract). Even if it’s not illegal, it might affect your liability insurance coverage.

I’m not saying you shouldn’t do it, but make sure you know what the potential consequences are.

Ehhh that's a bit of a blanket statement that applies to dealers: I promise you my indie guy who does my tires and inspections will not be plugging anything in. Everything else I will be doing anyways.

Your assumption about how datalogging works is incorrect.

In short, sensors almost never store local data which doesn't even matter if those sensors are depowered. There is absolutely nothing to be afraid of here.

So yeah, sensors do not locally store data except in very rare and high-cost cases not found in basically any consumer electronics. There needs to be a datalogger or handoff to a datalogger of some variety. While the ECU or MCU of a vehicle logs data, there's not a permanent memory of every action you've done with the car because it literally doesn't have enough memory. Doubly so if some of the sensors such as GPS are physically unplugged or depowered as in my case.

So, no amount of malicious action from a dealer would extract location or even more basic data from a car. The only thing they'd see are the basics of the ECU or MCU which has been common for every car produced since OBD2 became... a thing.

I'll also add that an easy solution to this is not to go to a corporate dealer (all Chevy dealers are shit anyway to be fair). While the independent mechanic might have to buy proprietary diagnostics from the manufacturer, they aren't going to re-enable systems like GPS or telemetry if you tell them not to because they care about you coming back and thus have an incentive not to fuck you over.

Toyota is def gonna be a surveillance nightmare

Source?

A lot of cars do have EDRs (Event Data Recorders), but they only store certain events related to crashes so they can go back and establishes what was going on before an accident.

AFAIK, regular telemetry going out the cell is much more extensive, continuous, and realtime.

https://crashdatagroup.com/pages/edr-explained

Its not the sensors that store the data, the ecu/pcm/bcm do that. Yes, there is essentially a black box function in most modern-ish cars that logs the last X minutes of driving. It likely also has an "event recorder" for when certain conditions are triggered.

I know for a fact that most have reflash counters or log when the ecu was written to last. That is more to do with tuning or warranty stuff but still.

In most cars, there is an integrated antenna for all wireless signals. For example:

• Audi: https://parts.audiusa.com/p/Audi__/Mobile-Phone-Antenna/78750936/3G9035534.html
• GM: https://parts.gmparts.com/product/gm-genuine-parts-mobile-telephone-and-telematics-antenna-22964579
• VW: https://parts.vw.com/p/Volkswagen__Jetta/Mobile-Phone-Antenna/78750936/3G9035534.html

These are often mounted behind non-metallic surfaces (plastic bumper, spoiler, etc). You can try to cover them up, but it means you'll lose all the other antenna functions.

Disconnecting at the other end can only take out cellular without affecting wifi, Bluetooth, etc.

Mind you, it's not easy. There's a wiring harness with a waterproof connector that eventually goes into the cell modem. You'll have to find the right antenna pin and disrupt the signal. Different for every make/model and not possible without proper schematics.

I know, right? I shuddered as I typed out that part of my comment. But yes, it's a 2004 model; in 2029 it'll be legally considered a classic where I live.

I believe it. 2015 is roughly the last year before vehicle manufacturers started including this spyware crap en masse.

That would only be possible for vehicles equipped with gps. Without gps the 3g networks' shutdown means there's not even assisted-gps data.

Which shows that wholesale, data subcriptions are probably a few dollars a year.

Since it's in your car can you just use it to do what you want?

Like. I don't drive. But if I did I'm yanking that SIM card out.

There have to be people hacking these, right?

No idea on the technical reason, but it’s complicated. There’s a lot of foreign brands that are banned here.

Freedom, probably.

To answer any questions related to vehicle legislation in the US, look no further than the "Big Three": GM, Ford, and Chrysler/AMC/DaimlerChrysler/FCA/Stellantis.

These three dipshits bitch and moan incessantly to daddy government any time they have to contend with actual competition. Look at Japanese kei trucks for the most recent example. Some states are even outright revoking their registrations despite being 100% legally imported, inspected, insured, and licensed. The excuse is "they are unsafe", meanwhile states will happily register Bubba's '32 Ford with a SBC, no mufflers, no cats, no seatbelts, headlight output equivalent to 3 candles, a single brake light, and no actual structure besides "pretty metal". But kei trucks bad. Because safety.

🙄

Renaults have some of the best EVs on the current market though.

To be fair, the EVs are kinda brand new for them, so it may be different; we won’t know for sure though because they’re only a few years old at this point

ICE you get a lot more years to pick from, some of which are pretty simple/low tech.

I have a couple vehicles that fall into this category. 1980 Mercedes 240D, and a 1980 Honda XR500. Dead simple vehicles. The Benz will happily continue running with zero battery. The XR only requires a whole 3 wires to run, and since it's kickstarted, no battery is required at all.

Maybe 3 of the 4 wheels need tightening?
So it's a loose-loose-loose-tight situation when it should be a tight-tight-tight-tight situation

Thanks, fixed. Sorry for being a bit too loose with spelling

Also fewer, not less