Latest news with #connectedcars
The Drive
3 days ago
- Automotive
- The Drive
Carmakers Can Just Disconnect Your 'Connected' Car Whenever They Feel Like It
The latest car news, reviews, and features. A few years ago, all major U.S. cell carriers began shutting down their 3G wireless networks, which subsequently took vehicles that relied upon it offline. This effectively ended remote start, location, and locking services for some of the earliest connected cars to hit the market. This week, an Acura owner shared a letter they'd received on Reddit, announcing that a range of 2014-2022 model year vehicles would also be dropping support for AcuraLink, the automaker's connected car platform. It's a disappointing reminder that no matter how long a car remains on the road, the tech inside it often carries a much shorter shelf life. The letter identifies the following vehicles as ending AcuraLink support on July 21: 2014-2020 Acura RLX 2014-2020 Acura MDX 2015-2020 Acura TLX 2016-2018 Acura RDX 2016-2022 Acura ILX 2017-2022 Acura NSX Yes, every Acura NSX ever built, including the one-last-bang Type S model from 2022, will lose its AcuraLink features, from roadside assistance to stolen vehicle tracking, remote locking, and concierge. Those who are currently subscribed to an AcuraLink term that runs beyond July 21 will receive a prorated refund. AcuraLink being discontinued on older cars byu/orange9035 inAcura It's unclear if this decision was prompted by a technical limitation, like the 3G shutdown, or some other reason. Nevertheless, the fact that vehicles up until 2022 are affected is a pretty tough pill to swallow for owners of new-ish Acuras. The Drive has reached out to the company for more insight, and to find out if any associated HondaLink vehicles are affected. We will update this story with whatever we learn. This is, unfortunately, the modern reality of car ownership. The capabilities that rely on systems automakers have no control over, like data networks, are never guaranteed to be up and running forever, and there's no replacement for them once they go dark. Yes, you could argue that these owners got the service they paid for, for an established length of time they agreed to. But many people base their vehicle purchasing decisions on technologies like these (because carmakers advertise them), completely unaware that they won't last forever. Or even just three years! The interior of a 2019 Acura NSX. Acura It's simply not a good situation for consumer confidence, and it's bound to frustrate people who purchased their vehicles intending to keep them for a good number of years. I mean, I probably have canned food products in my pantry that I bought in 2022 that still haven't expired yet. There had to be a better way Acura could've handled this situation, especially for the most recent models affected. It's frankly a surprising move from the same company that offered to retrofit late-model Accords with Wireless CarPlay for a very reasonable price. If you happen to own one of the impacted vehicles and use AcuraLink, let us know in the comments if you've received a similar notice, and how you're feeling about all this. Got tips? Send 'em to tips@
The Drive
07-05-2025
- Automotive
- The Drive
Watch Hackers Terrorize a Nissan Leaf, Including Its Steering, Over the Web
Connected cars are great, as they let you communicate with other systems and devices via the internet, but connectivity opens the door to hacking. As it turns out, hacking a Nissan Leaf isn't nearly as difficult as it might sound if you've got the right tools and the right knowledge. Researchers from Budapest-based PCAutomotive traveled to Black Hat Asia 2025 to demonstrate how they managed to hack into a 2020 Nissan Leaf. Luckily, they had good intentions—they simply wanted to show that it could be done. Someone with less -than-good intentions could have caused a great deal of damage with the same tools. Most of the parts used to hack into the car were sourced from eBay or a junkyard. The first part of the project involved building a working test bench around a Leaf touchscreen and the EV's digital instrument cluster. They then bypassed the anti-theft safeguards by implementing a Python script, which is a programming language, and hacked into the system. The steps taken to break in were detailed in a presentation. They look complicated if you don't know what you're dealing with and have no programming experience, but someone with a great deal of programming experience shouldn't find the process terribly daunting. When everything was set up, it was time to launch an attack. One of the researchers connected to the Leaf remotely via a laptop while two others were riding in it. The first step was pretty straight-forward: The man with the laptop tracked the Leaf's movements via GPS. He then recorded the conversation the passengers were having inside the car, downloaded it to his laptop, and played it in the car via the speakers. Next, things got creepier. Using the same laptop, the researcher sounded the horn, folded the door mirrors, turned on the wipers, and even yanked the steering wheel. He was able to perform these tasks even when the car was moving. The team identified a list of 10 vulnerabilities that allowed it to access the Leaf's infotainment system and notified Nissan. The company hasn't responded to the video as of this writing, however. Got tips? Send 'em to tips@
