ok, if onstar (gm's directions and other use thingy) can unlock your car, find where your at, etc. why cant it....

[MikeMike]

shut the car off?

they have access to the locks for crying out loud, they guarentee that if within the first 15k miles your car is stolen and not recovered undamaged w/in 36 hours that they will buy you a new car. why cant they shut down a car and end a car chase? or can they, and its just never been talked about? i mean how hard would it be to send a signal to the computer that tells it to shutdown. i betcha they could even tell if theres an actual key in the ignition or not.

MIKE

 

[YayYay]

Most cars don't have the service installed and even in the ones with it, I don't think they support anything to do with shutting off the engine.

 

[filmmaker]

Shutting off the engine while someone is in the middle of driving really isn't a good idea and really isn't the best way of getting your car back in one piece.

Maybe I misunderstood you, but I do see your point about making the car not start once the person stealing it has gotten out of it.

 

[Hossenfeffer]

If it somhow could limit speed and make the car glow bright pink, that might be cool.

 

[MikeMike]

Originally posted by: YayYay
Most cars don't have the service installed and even in the ones with it, I don't think they support anything to do with shutting off the engine.

any new gm car comes standard with it (atleast for trucks it does) and it was an option beginning in 98 or maybe before that, i know that for a fact. and i bet the tracking is there, just not any way for the end user to interface w/ the onstar system. my 98 jimmy has the mic location for onstar, but no button for me to hit to call them, thus i know all they did was change mirrors on most cars that got the system as an option.

MIKE

 

[MikeMike]

Originally posted by: filmmaker
Shutting off the engine while someone is in the middle of driving really isn't a good idea and really isn't the best way of getting your car back in one piece.

Maybe I misunderstood you, but I do see your point about making the car not start once the person stealing it has gotten out of it.

im talking about police chases and the like, would be a hell of a lot safer than chasing them at 100+. just would have to find a way to allow the steering to still work, and apply the brakes.

MIKE

 

[MikeMike]

^^^^ anyone else got input?

MIKE

 

[DerwenArtos12]

on star can not shut down the car but lowjack can. they are basically the same thing acept that lowjack shuts it down and onstar does everything else. capitolism at it's best there.

 

[MrBond]

Even if you have the capibility for onstar, you have to pay them to maintain it.

My mom's impala came standard with it, she never locks herself out, my parents live in a no-crime area, so she decided the $200/year was better spent on other things. After the first year, it expired and she never renewed it.

As far as I know, you can press the little button to your heart's content now, it just won't call OnStar.

 

[MikeMike]

Originally posted by: MrBond
Even if you have the capibility for onstar, you have to pay them to maintain it.

My mom's impala came standard with it, she never locks herself out, my parents live in a no-crime area, so she decided the $200/year was better spent on other things. After the first year, it expired and she never renewed it.

As far as I know, you can press the little button to your heart's content now, it just won't call OnStar.

200$ a year! what fvcking plan was she looking at? the one with the 1000 phone minutes (they can be used as a cell phone to call anyone), emergency stuff, and everything obviously!!!

its 29 bux a year. you get 100 phone minutes to onstar. they will track your car down if stolen. if you are in an accident under 15mph they will call your car and ask you if your alright, if the airbags deploy they will immediately call the nearest emergency squad. if you ar in an accident at over 15 mph they will call an emergency squad. they will give you directions, unlock your car, and make reservations and anything for ya. 29$ a year for all that!!!

MIKE

 

[GeekDrew]

Originally posted by: nourdmrolNMT1

Originally posted by: MrBond Even if you have the capibility for onstar, you have to pay them to maintain it. My mom's impala came standard with it, she never locks herself out, my parents live in a no-crime area, so she decided the $200/year was better spent on other things. After the first year, it expired and she never renewed it. As far as I know, you can press the little button to your heart's content now, it just won't call OnStar.

200$ a year! what fvcking plan was she looking at? the one with the 1000 phone minutes (they can be used as a cell phone to call anyone), emergency stuff, and everything obviously!!! its 29 bux a year. you get 100 phone minutes to onstar. they will track your car down if stolen. if you are in an accident under 15mph they will call your car and ask you if your alright, if the airbags deploy they will immediately call the nearest emergency squad. if you ar in an accident at over 15 mph they will call an emergency squad. they will give you directions, unlock your car, and make reservations and anything for ya. 29$ a year for all that!!! MIKE

Where did you get $29??? My parents new car was over $200/year...

 

[C'DaleRider]

Originally posted by: GeekDrew

Originally posted by: nourdmrolNMT1

Originally posted by: MrBond Even if you have the capibility for onstar, you have to pay them to maintain it. My mom's impala came standard with it, she never locks herself out, my parents live in a no-crime area, so she decided the $200/year was better spent on other things. After the first year, it expired and she never renewed it. As far as I know, you can press the little button to your heart's content now, it just won't call OnStar.

200$ a year! what fvcking plan was she looking at? the one with the 1000 phone minutes (they can be used as a cell phone to call anyone), emergency stuff, and everything obviously!!! its 29 bux a year. you get 100 phone minutes to onstar. they will track your car down if stolen. if you are in an accident under 15mph they will call your car and ask you if your alright, if the airbags deploy they will immediately call the nearest emergency squad. if you ar in an accident at over 15 mph they will call an emergency squad. they will give you directions, unlock your car, and make reservations and anything for ya. 29$ a year for all that!!! MIKE

Where did you get $29??? My parents new car was over $200/year...

I'm wondering about that $29/year crap myself since OnStar themselves, on their website, lists the Safe and Sound Plan, the one he so "expertly" states is $29/year, at $16.95/PER MONTH!!! That's the $200/year everyone's relating and the cheapest plan. The next one up, the Directions & Connections Plan, is $34.95/mo and the Luxury & Leisure Plan is $69.95/mo.

I think someone should do a little research before trying to be the "expert" in something he doesn't have a clue about. The plan below is taken directly from OnStar's site:


Plan: Safe & Sound Plan


Services: Air Bag Deployment Notification
Stolen-Vehicle Tracking
Emergency Services
Roadside Assistance
Remote Door Unlock
Remote Horn & Lights
GM® Goodwrench® Remote Diagnostics
AccidentAssist
Online Concierge Services
Personal Calling (requires OnStar minutes package)
Benefit: Bringing you safety and security when you need it most, the Safe & Sound Plan starts at only $16.95 per month, with more substantial savings as you increase the length of your contract.


But hell, don't believe me............just go to their website and look for yourself..............

OnStar Plans

 

[NikPreviousAcct]

If you shutdown a moving vehicle, the driver loses control of the vehicle, which puts bystanders in danger. Granted that's only if the car is moving. But GM chose not to give OnStar that ability. Big deal. Is that lack of ability worth not getting it? Heh. You're not buying a shut-off-my-car-if-it-gets-stolen service, you're buying much more than that.

 

[PatboyX]

Originally posted by: C'DaleRider

Originally posted by: GeekDrew

Originally posted by: nourdmrolNMT1

Originally posted by: MrBond Even if you have the capibility for onstar, you have to pay them to maintain it. My mom's impala came standard with it, she never locks herself out, my parents live in a no-crime area, so she decided the $200/year was better spent on other things. After the first year, it expired and she never renewed it. As far as I know, you can press the little button to your heart's content now, it just won't call OnStar.

200$ a year! what fvcking plan was she looking at? the one with the 1000 phone minutes (they can be used as a cell phone to call anyone), emergency stuff, and everything obviously!!! its 29 bux a year. you get 100 phone minutes to onstar. they will track your car down if stolen. if you are in an accident under 15mph they will call your car and ask you if your alright, if the airbags deploy they will immediately call the nearest emergency squad. if you ar in an accident at over 15 mph they will call an emergency squad. they will give you directions, unlock your car, and make reservations and anything for ya. 29$ a year for all that!!! MIKE

Where did you get $29??? My parents new car was over $200/year...

I'm wondering about that $29/year crap myself since OnStar themselves, on their website, lists the Safe and Sound Plan, the one he so "expertly" states is $29/year, at $16.95/PER MONTH!!! That's the $200/year everyone's relating and the cheapest plan. The next one up, the Directions & Connections Plan, is $34.95/mo and the Luxury & Leisure Plan is $69.95/mo.

I think someone should do a little research before trying to be the "expert" in something he doesn't have a clue about. The plan below is taken directly from OnStar's site:


Plan: Safe & Sound Plan


Services: Air Bag Deployment Notification
Stolen-Vehicle Tracking
Emergency Services
Roadside Assistance
Remote Door Unlock
Remote Horn & Lights
GM® Goodwrench® Remote Diagnostics
AccidentAssist
Online Concierge Services
Personal Calling (requires OnStar minutes package)
Benefit: Bringing you safety and security when you need it most, the Safe & Sound Plan starts at only $16.95 per month, with more substantial savings as you increase the length of your contract.


But hell, don't believe me............just go to their website and look for yourself..............

OnStar Plans

where would ATOT be if not for all the armchair experts?

 

[KingNothing]

over there ---->

 

[EyeMWing]

A lot of fuel trucks have this technology already implemented. Trucker calls base, tells them that someone just ran off with his rolling bomb and they remotely shut off the fuel flow and start a braking procedure. A lot of fuel trailers are also having buttons installed on the rear end at exactly the right spot for a Crown Victoria or Impala to tap, locking the brakes on the trailer. Of course, this can be reset by the driver if it was triggered by some jerkoff at a truck stop or somthing, but it invovles getting out and manually resetting the mechanism.

But using that kind of technology on a smaller vehicle isn't really worthwhile because there's little potential for collateral damage and has MANY ways to be abused (OnStar is actually just an old school analog cellphone - anyone with a nice enough radio transmitter could stop your car) whereas the methods used on fuel trucks are done via satellite.

 

[BrunoPuntzJones]

On-Star isn't standard on trucks. Still only on certain trims.

And it seems like it's be easier to do something like shut off fuel flow, as if you shut the engine off you can't steer

 

[bunker]

To answer the original question, one word:

LIABILITY

Anything bad happens as a result of them killing the engine and it's hello lawsuit for GM.