Do you think this will help or hurt?
Sadly, there are people in the auto industry who want to dictate who can repair your car. This issue has come up many times in the past, like back in 2015 when certain automakers tried pushing for a copyright law that would’ve made repairing your own vehicle illegal. With the risk of such nonsense advancing as technologies evolve, a group of Democrats and Republicans in the US House of Representatives have banded together to pass the REPAIR Act (H.R. 906).
Learn why Toyota taking it slow on EVs might be a smart move here.
Because people inside the Beltway just love clever acronyms, REPAIR stands for the Right to Equitable and Professional Auto Industry Repair. This isn’t the first time this piece of legislation has been introduced to Congress. This time around, Neal Dunn (R-FL), Brendan Boyle (D-PA-02), Warren Davidson (R-OH-08), and Marie Gluesenkamp Perez (D-WA-03) are presenting it to House Energy and Commerce Committee.
What the sponsors argue is this act would not only preserve your right to repair your car but also empower independent repair shops to not get pushed out of the business. Among the provisions included is keeping diagnostic data, on-board diagnostics, and telematics systems accessible to all shops, not just dealership service departments.
At the same time, H.R. 906 seeks to increase cybersecurity as cars become part of the Internet of Things. In its present form, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration would be required to develop standards for how onboard data necessary for repairing a car can be accessed securely.
We’ve seen Chevrolet create the C8 Corvette with its “unhackable” ECU. Ford is following that lead with the S650 Mustang. What concerns people in the repair industry is that they might not be able to perform certain repairs on these and a growing number of cars, essentially squeezing them out of business while dealerships enjoy an unrivaled level of vehicle repair access.
The big question to ask is will H.R. 906 fix the problem and without awful unforeseen consequences? We encourage you to read the REPAIR Act in its current form here when it’s updated and decide for yourself.
Source: Auto Car Association
Images via Cottonbro Studio, Andrea Picquadio
