this post was submitted on 03 Oct 2024
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If it’s just software, why can’t it be downloaded?
It can be? You literally just download the OTA update and the vehicle installs it from your own home. “Recall” implies that you have to go into the shop but that’s simply not true.
Some can be, some the manufacturer doesn't want to risk it so they make you take it into a dealership to update from a USB.
A Tesla always updates over the air (I suppose unless that's the part that's broken). It's arguably the most important safety feature on a car mostly defined by its software. I have a ten year old chevy that needs a software update, but like you said I'll need to make an appointment to have someone else download it and manually install that software for me, which sounds super archaic and dumb when it's spelled out like that.
Maybe they don't have an immutable backup firmware and are worried about bricking some part of the car if the update fails, or it's a hold over from their old car recall process.
Well, it's because it's an old car company doing software, something they're universally bad at. Legacy car companies being bad at software is why Apple Carplay and Android Auto exist.
I recall when I bought my first hybrid that the dealer said there were something like 15 different computers controlling things, from the ICE engine to the transmission to the charging of the battery, etc. They weren’t networked together.
I also once ran afoul of a software bug in the ECU of a Honda CR/V. That’s the embedded system that manages the whole operation of the engine - from fuel injection to timing to emissions etc. As they progress through model years they use different ECUs that require different software. Even though I work in IT, I wouldn’t feel comfortable trying to update it myself, given the different models, firmware revisions, etc. I was more than happy to take that car to a dealer to have them confirm my car had buggy software and to upgrade it to the right new version.
This is the same problem all the legacy OEM's are having. The car isn't a cohesive system, so it's very hard to update the car the way Tesla does.
They are getting better at it, and are able to do more things OTA, but I'm not sure anyone is actually at the level Tesla is yet. If I had to guess, I'd think RIvian might be, but I don't actually know. VW is going to Rivian for software help.