Carmakers copyright repairs or changes

[timpug]

http://tech.slashdot.org/story/15/04/20/...iring-cars

Hey guys,

I was catching up on my daily news, and came across this.

It seems like manufacturers arent milking us enough for vehicles and they want more revenue through their own ecosystem.

Do you think its just to force you to spend twice as much at the dealer, or are there alternate reasons?

[RetroPug]

To force you to spend money in their dealer network but also when they have a monopoly on replacement parts and repairs even smallish repairs might make the vehicle uneconomical to repair and necessitate you buying a new one from them.

[lolsteve]

On the side of the fence it might stop cars having so many bodge jobs. Seen some truly poor examples driving around on the road Example: gaffa tape covering holes which have fallen out from rust

[r3k1355]

That only applies in the USA, and the law doesn't currently apply there yet anyway.
Also the link in that article doesn't work either.

So, it's all a load of bollocks.

[Dum-Dum]

It used to be the case in this country that if you didn't have your car serviced and repaired at the dealership with dealer parts that you would invalidate the warranty but the competition commission saw the end of that.

[welshpug]

only partly, still needs to be o.e.m parts fitted by an ISO 9001 registered garage.

[r3k1355]

To be fair with some of the useless lady gardens that work at main dealers you can see why the competition commission stepped in.

[Toms306]

On the side of the fence it might stop cars having so many bodge jobs. Seen some truly poor examples driving around on the road Example: gaffa tape covering holes which have fallen out from rust

I agree tbh, not so much with rust holes, but anyone can fit brakes to their ~80mph tonne of metal...could have catastrophic consequences if done wrong!!

You can't fit a gas boiler or electric consumer unit without the correct qualifications so why should car maintenance be any different?


I don't think it'll ever happen in the UK to that extreme, but I won't be at all surprised if ALL mods are made illegal (a lot already are tbf!). Also wouldn't be surprised if cheap shit pattern parts become better regulated somehow so you have to buy OE parts or OE quality.

[toseland]

so which of the "alot of mods" are illegal in the UK then toms?

Neons? nope, not if iftted correctly
Alloys? Nope, Not if fitted correctly
Engine modifications? Nope, they're not illegal either if declared on insurance (and not illegal anyway)
Interior modifications (roll cage, etc).? Nope, thats not illegal, (but might not be approved for track use if not MSA spec and cert)
Brake upgrades... Nope these are fine
Suspension upgrades.. these are good too..


I think that it can be said quite simply said that all mods are legal (with a Few exceptions such as things that render the car dangerous - i bullbars, Canards that protrude or are sharp, xenon lights (without auto adjusters and washing equipment)

[Seb_Ryan]

Tose decats are illegal well not for road use.. Theres alot of stuff that says that though

[toseland]

Oh and in the US, absolutely for cosmetic mods, this will be shot down under the freedom of expression clauses in their constitution, + there would be no way to enforce this easily and anyone trying would be eaten alive in the US courts.

it IS already illegal to modify something you don't own (for example you have something on finance, because the finance company owns the vehicle rather than the person who took the finance out until that is paid and settled - at very least you need permission from teh finance company and will be liable for any reparations if you default on that but its a civil matter rather than a criminal one)

[Niall]

This just won't happen. If they go ahead with trying to copyright this shit, I'm pretty sure the monopolies commission will have a lot to say about it....

[Toms306]

so which of the "alot of mods" are illegal in the UK then toms?

Neons? nope, not if iftted correctly
Alloys? Nope, Not if fitted correctly
Engine modifications?  Nope, they're not illegal either if declared on insurance (and not illegal anyway)
Interior modifications (roll cage, etc).?  Nope, thats not illegal, (but might not be approved for track use if not MSA spec and cert)
Brake upgrades... Nope these are fine
Suspension upgrades.. these are good too..


I think that it can be said quite simply said that all mods are legal (with a Few exceptions such as things that render the car dangerous - i bullbars, Canards that protrude or are sharp, xenon lights (without auto adjusters and washing equipment)

Well it's illegal to change anything that alters the factory emissions for a start...that's decats, DPF removal, de-EGR, exhaust etc. But also technically wheels and many other engine mods...

If you go to buy a brand new car today (1.0 ecoboost Fiesta is a good example) and want bigger alloys on it from the factory, it's not allowed as the emissions tolerances are so tight now... Of course you can currently buy the car and wheels separately but Ford won't fit them for you.

It's illegal to increase the decibel level of the exhaust over standard, so again, exhausts are technically illegal.

It's illegal to have a screen visible to the driver when in motion - so DVD headunits are technically illegal.

It's illegal to remove airbags in a car equipped with them so aftermarket seats and steering wheels are technically illegal.

It's illegal to not have the reg plate on the frontmost vertical surface, so stickers or window mounted plates are illegal.

It is illegal to have the incorrect beam pattern and be dazzling other drivers so most retro-fit HIDs are illegal.

It's illegal to tint the front windows more than 30% so pretty much all aftermarket front tints are illegal.


There are loads of 'everyday' mods that are technically illegal. Note I say 'technically' because currently they aren't police'd well, and in a lot of cases are impossible to police anyway... I mean pulling over car and spending half hour checking for an EGR blank isn't really feasible. You also have to remember that just because something passes MOT doesn't make it legal.

[Niall]

so which of the "alot of mods" are illegal in the UK then toms?

Neons? nope, not if iftted correctly
Alloys? Nope, Not if fitted correctly
Engine modifications?  Nope, they're not illegal either if declared on insurance (and not illegal anyway)
Interior modifications (roll cage, etc).?  Nope, thats not illegal, (but might not be approved for track use if not MSA spec and cert)
Brake upgrades... Nope these are fine
Suspension upgrades.. these are good too..


I think that it can be said quite simply said that all mods are legal (with a Few exceptions such as things that render the car dangerous - i bullbars, Canards that protrude or are sharp, xenon lights (without auto adjusters and washing equipment)

Well it's illegal to change anything that alters the factory emissions for a start...that's decats, DPF removal, de-EGR, exhaust etc.  But also technically wheels and many other engine mods...

If you go to buy a brand new car today (1.0 ecoboost Fiesta is a good example) and want bigger alloys on it from the factory, it's not allowed as the emissions tolerances are so tight now...  Of course you can currently buy the car and wheels separately but Ford won't fit them for you.  

It's illegal to increase the decibel level of the exhaust over standard, so again, exhausts are technically illegal.

It's illegal to have a screen visible to the driver when in motion - so DVD headunits are technically illegal. Wrong....explain factory sat navs or trip computers?

It's illegal to remove airbags in a car equipped with them so aftermarket seats and steering wheels are technically illegal.

It's illegal to not have the reg plate on the frontmost vertical surface, so stickers or window mounted plates are illegal.

It is illegal to have the incorrect beam pattern and be dazzling other drivers so most retro-fit HIDs are illegal.

It's illegal to tint the front windows more than 30% so pretty much all aftermarket front tints are illegal.


There are loads of 'everyday' mods that are technically illegal.  Note I say 'technically' because currently they aren't police'd well, and in a lot of cases are impossible to police anyway...  I mean pulling over car and spending half hour checking for an EGR blank isn't really feasible.  You also have to remember that just because something passes MOT doesn't make it legal.

[Toms306]

It's illegal to view any screen unless carrying driver information if you want to be pedantic.

[bashbarnard]

Also I'm not saying that's all wrong far from it. Most is correct. But there is a new thing that came into mot recently who has been pretty vague. You can now say remove the brake servo on your car if it meets two requirements. The first is that the brakes read up satisfactory. The second. If the vehicle has been extensively modified. Wtf does that mean? New engine? Just alloys? And entire space frame.

[Seb_Ryan]

Id say extensive is track/rally car tbh

[Toms306]

Why would you need an MOT for a full track/rally car? You'd trailer it usually.

[Seb_Ryan]

Why would you need an MOT for a full track/rally car? You'd trailer it usually.

If its rally car and its road rally (like WRC for example) they need to be fully road legal including tax.. Whenever wales rally gb is on you seen the full on wrc cars driving between events lol

[Toms306]

Ah I didn't know that, fair enough.

[Niall]

I would imagine if the DVLA have used the term "extensively modified" then its basically testers discresion. If its a chavvy Corsa with a air filter and different wheels but the ABS doesn't work, thats not extensively modified. If however its something with no interior, changed suspension, engine modifications etc the i reckon you could class that as extensively modified as there is no law against doing those things however the owner may use the car for track days as well as a daily