Electric functions in cars being removed by manufacturer

[ebikeerwidnes]

Hi all

Just seen this
https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2026/mar/14/nissan-leaf-app-shutdown-nissanconnect-ev-app

so basically some remote functions in Nissan Leaf cars - such as remotely switching on the heating - are being "discontinued"

made me wonder what other things manufacturers have removed from cars

In my case - my car is a petrol one - so should be OK

but no - the sat nav is supposed to have a life time traffic function so it can direct you on the best route based on current traffic
and not just the best route based on empty roads

But apparently the licence for it is life-time

but there is a clause saying that if the monitoring company discontinues the product then that's just tough!

Sounds like Honda were annoyed and tried to make them stick to the concept of the deal but failed


I presume electric and hybrids can have it worse

but what else have they removed??

 

[Drago]

The link is a story, yet in some ways a non story.

The charge can be controlled by the charger app. Usually not as versatile as the car makers app, but you can still set limits on time, capacity, prices, etc.

Pre-heat can be done by programming the car when parking up, or often via the charging app (Ohme allows us to do this).

So theyre not losing much functionality, its just not going to be as neat and tidy as having it in one handy app at their fingertips. A bit of a first World problem.

In Mrs D's new car she can opt to use the system architecture, which is Google based, or operate via carplay/android auto, so even if Volvo started cutting functions everything else is duplicated off her phone.

Even my van has certain functions that can be controlled via the app, but nothing that cant be done via other means.

I can see eyebrows being raised, but taking time out to moan to the Guardian is taking thjngs too far. With starvation and war ravaging the planet it seems odd to waste bandwidth on life being made ever so slightly less convenient.

 

[sungod]

anything you 'buy' that relies on remote infrastructure is unlikely to outlast dumb stuff

many people who installed 'smart home' devices/appliances have found this out the hard way

cars with 'subscription' features are a bad sign too - manufacturers like the revenue stream, but once vehicles get old and operational costs exceed revenue they can just abandon them, or not extend services on resold cars, which kills resale value (and drives new sales of course)