I got in my new truck the other day and the computer came on and said, "you're due for a colonoscopy, would you like me to schedule one? I said no, I'll take care of the personal stuff, you watch the truck. Maybe I should talk with your wife? I said I'm taking the old truck, enjoy the garage." So I go out and get in and there is message on the radio, I say what the hell, so I tap the radio, and it says, " I was talking to the new guy and your colonoscopy is all set, with one change, it's now extra deep. That's not what I want, I'll change it. When you were talking to that cute little blonde at the Shell station you said you liked going deep, should I check with your wife? Tomorrow you're getting a full reset and a new battery, I'm parking you outside tonight."
I did a bit of research and WIKI suggest 2011. But my 2003 Suburban had it standard equipment. After I owned the Suburban for a few years I was notified that the 'hardware' was being obsoleted and it would not
be functional soon after. But I sold the truck and don't know what happened.
This from OnStar's own website.
History of OnStar
According to the first paragraph of their webpage, it was in 1996 in Cadillac products.
Yeah I doubt I will ever own a vehicle new enough to tattle on me . At this point I just want one to be reliable for daily driver use and I am saying this as someone who has worked in IT for 20 years now plus a little bit . There is no trust on my part for any cloud based application or smart device . I do not need my car telling the manufacturer what I am doing anymore than I need my fridge to order eggs.
2008
OnStar Stolen Vehicle Assistance* receives a new feature with Stolen Vehicle Slowdown®,* which uses satellites located more than 12,000 miles above the Earth and vehicle sensors to determine a vehicle's location. When conditions are safe, an Advisor can send a signal to slow the vehicle down — helping authorities get it back quicker and safer.
That was 2008. Imagine today. And if the Gov. has there way all vehicles will have a receiver that allows LE to stop your car with the push of a button.
OnStar Stolen Vehicle Assistance* receives a new feature with Stolen Vehicle Slowdown®,* which uses satellites located more than 12,000 miles above the Earth and vehicle sensors to determine a vehicle's location. When conditions are safe, an Advisor can send a signal to slow the vehicle down — helping authorities get it back quicker and safer.
That was 2008. Imagine today. And if the Gov. has there way all vehicles will have a receiver that allows LE to stop your car with the push of a button.
I don't own anything that isn't paid off and 20 years old. They know where I'm going sometimes, like a horse (I phase out and the car drives itself. Wake up and don't realize I drove wherever I am. How'd I get in Kentucky?). That's about all they know.
My 1960's pickup doesn't even know she's towing a trailer half the time. She just eats and moves, like a cow.
My 1960's pickup doesn't even know she's towing a trailer half the time. She just eats and moves, like a cow.
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My 1999 Saturn SL still gets me around and has all the computer chips I ever want in a car. Love to have a nice Porsche, but I am fine with what I have. Cops can impound a Tesla car if they think it witnessed a crime, even if it wasn't involved in the crime. Pretty sure they will require all vehicles to be equipped with cameras and a kill switch in the future to comply with new regulations. And, of course, they will eventually require AI automated driving with a requested destination before approval. Welcome to the tinfoil hat future.
Even the 99 Saturn had OnStar available and a GPS receiver. There was a hack a few years back that you could hook an OnStar GPS unit to a computer for mapping purposes. The one they used was from a Saturn on Hackaday.com
Eight years ago when I was still working the company supplied vehicles for all the field employees. For “insurance purposes” each one had a little gizmo the size of the key fob plugged into a port under the dash. As a manager I could see everything associated with that vehicle 24 /7,. I mean everything, speed, location, engine temp, oil pressure, battery condition, how much fuel was in the tank. The exact route they traveled and how long and where they stopped if they had any moving violations like speeding, or even hard stops. i would get a text message if they unplugged or disabled the damn thing. I knew something was up when my boss (the VP) refused to take a free company vehicle. Scared me enough that I seldom drove the free vehicle they issued to me.
