Following the
"There were some stories of it being due to a microprocessor hardware fault," said Bryant, "but that was probably not the case and, if it was, it would be in the software. But this can put people off buying a car with advanced electronics."
The stories of people being locked out of their cars because the electronic key doesn't work, are legion. And, earlier this year, I had the experience of my car not starting because the coding in the key which fires the ignition had degraded. I later found that this was a not uncommon problem.
The green Flag rescue guy who came to help out couldn't figure it out at all and it was only when the car was connected up to a computer at a garage that the real reason emerged.
And the need to have a computer to diagnose so many problems is, of course, another reason why people don't like electronics in cars.
"We many see low-end cars, and some larger ones, engineered to meet the regulations without ECUs everywhere," said Bryant, adding: "There's definitely a demand for these in the
That was one of the stories I was refering to Scunnerous. There was also someone in Europe making similar noises.