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Many Lexus Navigation Systems Bricked By Over-The-Air Software Update (theverge.com)
An anonymous reader quotes a report from The Verge: An unknown number of Lexus automobiles have seen their infotainment and navigation head units broken by a bug in an over-the-air software update from Lexus. The glitch, which was confirmed by a Lexus spokesperson, was delivered in a routine software update. In affected cars, it can cause the dashboard screen to spontaneously reset itself and, as a result, both the radio and navigation system can be unusable. It affects cars equipped with Lexus' Enform system with navigation. Lexus social media channels have been flooded by frustrated owners, but the company has been unable to give any estimates for when the problem will be resolved. The company also couldn't say whether customers will see the problem fix itself with another software update or if they will need to head into dealers to get it fixed. Some users on Twitter have reported success with disconnecting their battery for a few moments to force a reset of the system.
You would be surprised what you can do with an OBD2 port. On the new F-chassis BMWs (2012+ depending on model) the in-car CANBUS system will measure resistance and voltage on certain pins, and if it sees what it expects, that port stops doing ODB2 and starts signalling ethernet and TCP/IP to talk to diagnostic software.
They weren't stupid enough to do over-the-air updating, but you can build a cable or buy one for ~$30 to start poking around in the firmware, and even upload values to change how the car behaves in slight ways - turning off the govt. required nanny warnings that display for stupidly long times every time you start the car, increase the short-press on the turn signal stick from 3 blinks to 5, enable rolling up the windows and closing the sunroof if you hold the lock button on the keyfob, etc.
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It depends on the make, and model. Some asshole manufacturers have the CANBUS running through the head unit (radio) so that if you remove it, things like the power windows stop working. I saw a Dodge truck like this once, and there was enough room in the dash that the owner just shoved the unit back in far enough that he could plug the speaker wires into a new unit that he mounted in the dash - that was the only way to get it done without buying some $300 aftermarket unit that could replicate the CANBUS functions in the radio.
Other manufacturers play nice and don't do stupid shit like that, so YMMV.
Slashdot still doesnâ(TM)t support Unicode after it was added to the HTML standard in 1997.