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Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

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Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#121

Post by willio58 »

apparent wrote: post #76
willio58 wrote: post #68

Earlier quoted context omitted.

In the age of push-to-start cars, yeah it does feel basic to me. If I can unlock my car with my key fob, why can’t I send a signal to start it? My 2017 Honda civic has it without a subscription so I was pretty shocked to learn that Subaru decided its customers would be cool with it being behind a pay-wall.

Are you looking to remote start from the fob, or from an app? I agree that if it's done via the fob, that shouldn't require a subscription. But I understand that something requiring a cell signal will usually be paid, one way or another. I prefer it not be baked into the cost of the car, since some people (me) will not want that feature.

Key fob-based has worked great for me in a variety of living configurations (apartments, single homes) in the past 7 years with my 2017 civic. It can connect surprisingly far distances, and it doesn’t need a direct line of site or anything. Just good old RF.

I get what you’re saying about app-based. My civic has that too and it’s for a cost. I’ve just never needed it since we have the free for life RF version.

At $110/yr for cell-based remote start via Honda link, I’ve saved $770 over the years. Over the life of the car for me I could be looking at doubling those savings. That’s the power of avoiding needless subscriptions.

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#122

Post by collingreen »

triceratops wrote: post #118
Thorrez wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you live in an area where it snows frequently?

Does it clear your driveway of snow? Otherwise I'm not sure why leaving a running vehicle unattended is useful. If the car is too cold when you get in, put a coat on. Too much ice on the windows? Scrape it off.

In MY day we walked to school in the snow, uphill both ways! Turn that light off! Just put a coat on! Get off my lawn!

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#123

Post by winrid »

gdulli wrote: post #2

Trying to estimate whether I'm old enough that when I buy the last car of my life, there will still be ones without screens to choose from.

Current gen base model Chevy vehicles don't have smart screens, just some basic UI for the reverse camera/radio etc.

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#124

Post by ssl-3 »

willio58 wrote: post #119
petre wrote: post #93

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Gasing your neighbours and every living beign on a 100ft radius. I can't stand drivers that idle their cars while they're gone doing other stuff. Remote start should totally be a subscription feature, before it gets banned or regulated. Why? Because it's very annoying.

I’ve never heard of remote start being used as a way to idle your car while doing other stuff. It’s most commonly used to defrost a car in the winter without having to get into it and sit in the freezing car while you’re not moving anyway. There’s a time limit on it on my car, I think about 10 minutes or something pretty sane. If you don’t get into your car by then it turns back off automatically.

I once spent two cold nights standing on my head putting an aftermarket remote start system into an old BMW.

And sometimes I did use it to keep the car running while doing other stuff. This function was a design intent of the device.

It would work like this: Drive to a destination not so far away on a cold wintry day and put transmission in park like usual. Then, push the start button on the remote and turn the ignition switch off.

After that: Remove key, get out, lock doors, go do whatever quick errand it was that had us out to begin with, and return to a car that was finally actually warm inside. The engine and accessories would continue running uninterrupted, like nothing ever happened.

After returning: Put key in, turn it to "on", select a gear, on to the next destination. Engine stays running the whole time.

When I read about this function, I figured I'd never use it. But it did work very well and my then-wife liked it quite a lot. Also if short, cold runs are bad for things like bearing wear and oil contamination, then keeping it running and letting it get up to operating temperature was perhaps a nicer way to treat that old engine than the alternative of never letting it really get warm might have been.

(It would time out and turn off after about 10 or 15 minutes. Otherwise, the engine would cease immediately upon touching the brake pedal if the ignition switch wasn't on.)

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#125

Post by ssl-3 »

triceratops wrote: post #118
Thorrez wrote: post #112

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Do you live in an area where it snows frequently?

Does it clear your driveway of snow? Otherwise I'm not sure why leaving a running vehicle unattended is useful. If the car is too cold when you get in, put a coat on. Too much ice on the windows? Scrape it off.

It warms the engine (and thus the interior) while I clear the driveway of snow, and it does this even if the doors are frozen shut because of a layer of ice.

By the time I get back to addressing the car itself, the snow and ice is easier to brush or scrape off and the doors might actually open without ripping the handle off (which is something that I've directly experienced twice so far in my days).

This all conspires to mean that it makes my life easier.

And it's OK if you don't like the feature and take a very dim view of it. It's also OK that some others may find merit in using it.

It's all OK.

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#126

Post by SR2Z »

petre wrote: post #93
rightbyte wrote: post #72

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree with boycotting subscription looked down cars, but what is the point of remote start? Defrosting?

Gasing your neighbours and every living beign on a 100ft radius. I can't stand drivers that idle their cars while they're gone doing other stuff. Remote start should totally be a subscription feature, before it gets banned or regulated. Why? Because it's very annoying.

I have a hybrid. If I remote start it, generally the engine doesn't start - and even if it does, it's extremely quiet because it's an Atkinson-cycle model. I have to be within 10 feet of the car to hear it running in a quiet parking garage, let alone on the street.

Sure, it sucks when someone idles a diesel outside your house, but new cars are QUIET.

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#128

Post by [deleted] »

willio58 wrote: post #58
hereme888 wrote: post #14

I had already scratched Jeep off my car-buying list years ago. Now the bulk of car-buying research is not "how good is it?" but "what are the purposefully in-built annoyances? Can I hack them away?"

My partner recently bought a newer Subaru. It’s great, and when we looked it up we saw it had remote start. Turns out it’s behind a subscription. When I found that out I essentially wrote off Subaru as a brand for my future car purchases. Catch me driving my 2017 civic into the ground before I pay a freaking subscription for basic vehicle functionality

[deleted]

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#129

Post by subaripped »

dotancohen wrote: post #97
morshu9001 wrote: post #84

Earlier quoted context omitted.

There was an article not long ago about a Subaru vuln that allowed anyone to remote start, track, or unlock any new Subaru

Interpretation The First: One does not need to subscribe to enjoy this functionality. Interpretation The Second: These vehicles are maintained by a corporation that is both greedy and incompetent.

I took my wife's 2020 Crosstrek in for service a couple of years ago.

The service writer told me (and documented) that the car needed rear pads when I came to pick it up.

That's a little weird, I thought.

I took it to a tire place for snows two weeks later. They inspect that shit for the upsell while the wheels are off anyway. Front and rear brakes: fine.

Checked 'em myself. Sure enough, barely worn.

That was the last time that car visited the dealer.

I still have to pull the dash apart to bypass the spy box they never mentioned when selling the car.

These dicks feel they aren't making enough money just making and selling cars they have to do shady shit.

Well fuck that, I won't buy a new one again.

Re: Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens with Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts

#130

Post by PyWoody »

morshu9001 wrote: post #84
willio58 wrote: post #58

Earlier quoted context omitted.

My partner recently bought a newer Subaru. It’s great, and when we looked it up we saw it had remote start. Turns out it’s behind a subscription. When I found that out I essentially wrote off Subaru as a brand for my future car purchases. Catch me driving my 2017 civic into the ground before I pay a freaking subscription for basic vehicle functionality

There was an article not long ago about a Subaru vuln that allowed anyone to remote start, track, or unlock any new Subaru

Wasn't it the other way round? Subaru was the only manufacturer that wasn't affected, I thought.
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