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Toyota Recalls 625,000 Hybrid Vehicles Over Software Glitch
hypnosec writes: Yesterday we discussed news that over 65,000 Range Rovers were being recalled over a software issue. Not to be outdone, Japanese car manufacturer Toyota on Wednesday recalled 625,000 hybrid vehicles globally to fix a different software defect. The automaker said the defect in question might lead to shut down of the hybrid system while the car is being driven. The recall was due to software settings that could result in "higher thermal stress" in parts of a power converter, potentially causing it to become damaged. Toyota dealers will update the software for both the motor/generator control ECU and hybrid control ECU in the involved vehicles.
I think you are romanticizing the past. Will you get rid of automatic chokes, electronic ignition too? I'm old enough to remember cars in those days. My 1972 Buick Le Sabre Estate Wagon had a very intricate starting procedure. You had to push the gas pedal all the way to the floor to set the choke. Then pump the gas pedal 2-3 times to prime the carb. Then you had to "crack" the gas pedal just the right amount. THEN you could turn the ignition key. Assuming the car turned over, it MIGHT start. Then, if it did not, you pumped the gas pedal one more time in case there was not enough fuel yet. Don't do it twice though. If you did, the engine was now "flooded" and you had to wait 15 minutes to try again. It's also possible that the one extra pump of the pedal flooded it. If you were lucky, the car started on the first try, but more likely it took 2, maybe 3 turns of the key to get the thing to start.
Today, you get in, turn the key enough to engage the starter. I you let it go, the car continues to crank until started. At least that's what my Expedition does. Anyway, it starts every time unless the battery is dead, or there is some other big problem. Sure, your old car was easy to work on. That's just another way of saying that it was always broken by today's standards.
Brawndo: It's what plants crave!
And still more deadly, despite the lack of software flaws.
That is true, but a lot of the safety benefits in modern cars come from primarily mechanical systems like seatbelts, crumple zones, airbags, and designing the outer areas to be less damaging to others in the event of a collision.
Some of the other big improvements in recent years might involve some software but it can still operate independent of the main control systems, for example rear-view cameras, and better exterior lighting. Even if you have sensor integration for things like blind spot warnings or the high-end headlights that run on semi-permanent high beam at high speeds but adapt to avoid dazzling other road users, the system as a whole doesn't need to be integrated into the basic control systems for, say, the engine, brakes, or power steering.
The trouble really starts when instead of operating a set of properly independent systems, the lines get blurred. Someone thinks it's a great idea to have the car automatically call for help if it's in a collision and the occupants are unable to do so themselves -- and that person is right, it is a significant benefit if the worst happens -- but then the easiest route to implement that feature winds up hooking the remote communications system into the same sensors as the airbags or the fuel injector control systems or the ABS so it can trigger at the right time.
Unfortunately, most vehicles have traditionally operated on relatively open architectures internally. Each part of the system assumes each other part is trustworthy and will co-operate properly when sharing resources like communications channels within the vehicle. But with so much dependency on software and so much complexity in each part of that software now, those old assumptions are not doing well. Throw in external interactions, from the emergency call feature to the anti-theft tracker to the car radio and on-board entertainment systems to the remote keyless entry system to the integral garage door zapper, and you have real potential for very bad things happening.
If you disagree, post your argument. (-1, Overrated) isn't your personal censorship tool for views you don't like.