GasBuddy Blog

GasBuddy News Article

votes

You Can Reboot Your Computer; Why Not Your Car?

Forbes -- Owners of late-model Ford and Lincoln brand vehicles recently received something unusual in the mail: a thumb-sized USB flash drive.

Ford Motor mailed more than 250,000 of the tiny data storage devices to its customers in response to widespread criticism of the company’s MyFord Touch and MyLincoln Touch dashboard entertainment system. Each memory stick contained a much-needed software update to fix bugs and make the system faster and more user-friendly. Owners simply plug the device into their car’s USB port and follow the prompts on the dashboard screen (or have a dealer do it).

Of course, there are a couple of hitches: To install the new software, the car needs to be running for about an hour. And you can’t use the radio. (Gee, that’s not inconvenient.)

Read the Full Article

Submitted Apr 16, 2012 By: eromitlab

Back To News

Category: Daily News Article Discussions > Topics	Add to favorite topics

Author	Topic: You Can Reboot Your Computer; Why Not Your Car?	Post a Reply Back to Topics

REPLIES (newest first)Ignore Short Messages

First Prev

Last

PrinceLH Champion Author Ontario Posts:2,687 Points:537,070 Joined:Jun 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:19:38 AM Ignore PrinceLH Report Abuse Why not?
blitzntj Champion Author Jacksonville Posts:4,674 Points:943,105 Joined:Dec 2007	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:19:27 AM Ignore blitzntj Report Abuse Whatever
rhail2 Champion Author Kentucky Posts:1,452 Points:287,485 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:18:51 AM Ignore rhail2 Report Abuse ok
jrcowell Champion Author Wichita Posts:2,274 Points:482,795 Joined:Oct 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:18:13 AM Ignore jrcowell Report Abuse If you consider how often your smartphone gets updates, it only makes sense that the software in your car should probably get some updates and bug fixes now-and-then too.
MikLamb Champion Author Texas Posts:7,975 Points:2,173,170 Joined:Jun 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:18:00 AM Ignore MikLamb Report Abuse At least Ford is doing something in response to criticism.
mh44s Champion Author Madison Posts:4,379 Points:1,688,015 Joined:May 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:17:36 AM Ignore mh44s Report Abuse Got to get that MyTouch to work right.
grandmacbc Champion Author Buffalo Posts:6,530 Points:1,428,075 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:16:35 AM Ignore grandmacbc Report Abuse Sounds like we all need to be technicians now.
GasholeMI Champion Author Lansing Posts:10,134 Points:1,717,165 Joined:Jul 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:15:54 AM Ignore GasholeMI Report Abuse So, hackers will soon be going after our cars too?
PrepHermit Champion Author New Jersey Posts:8,091 Points:1,642,230 Joined:Aug 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:15:46 AM Ignore PrepHermit Report Abuse Was there anything on it that improved gas mileage?
Dennis783 Champion Author Des Moines Posts:13,584 Points:2,701,935 Joined:Sep 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:15:43 AM Ignore Dennis783 Report Abuse Need to fix those bugs
BurntOrange Champion Author Austin Posts:8,717 Points:1,581,065 Joined:Nov 2007	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:15:12 AM Ignore BurntOrange Report Abuse Fascinating that they would attempt to have customer do this. This is a 1st.
js0743 All-Star Author Georgia Posts:981 Points:457,880 Joined:Nov 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:15:05 AM Ignore js0743 Report Abuse Very interesting.
Bill100 Champion Author Grand Rapids Posts:41,473 Points:1,160,895 Joined:Jan 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:14:25 AM Ignore Bill100 Report Abuse It'd be a good idea.
Marty_P All-Star Author Baton Rouge Posts:747 Points:1,462,180 Joined:Aug 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:13:27 AM Ignore Marty_P Report Abuse GO BLUE OVAL!!!
gws2980 Champion Author Philadelphia Posts:2,176 Points:499,390 Joined:Oct 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:12:52 AM Ignore gws2980 Report Abuse The benefit of doing it yourself is that it saves your time of sitting in the ford waiting room while they do it
HawaiianGuy Champion Author Idaho Posts:9,518 Points:3,077,750 Joined:May 2003	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:12:37 AM Ignore HawaiianGuy Report Abuse I just purchased a new Ford truck. I had seen reports of such difficulties with MyFord Touch and I am glad that I did not opt for that feature.
djwhit Champion Author Ohio Posts:3,002 Points:1,206,505 Joined:Jul 2009	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:12:16 AM Ignore djwhit Report Abuse THATS GREAT.....
Dale Jr. Champion Author Illinois Posts:16,219 Points:3,235,100 Joined:May 2004	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:12:11 AM Ignore Dale Jr. Report Abuse Wow
egd Champion Author Twin Cities Posts:8,088 Points:2,118,300 Joined:Mar 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:12:03 AM Ignore egd Report Abuse update when at maintenance intervals
flyfast Champion Author Kansas City Posts:9,243 Points:1,824,085 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:11:29 AM Ignore flyfast Report Abuse HOPE IT WORK
jppezz Champion Author New Mexico Posts:8,586 Points:1,691,585 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:10:34 AM Ignore jppezz Report Abuse Instead of a rebot why not give Obama the boot in November.
hailsupersport Champion Author Cincinnati Posts:1,230 Points:231,060 Joined:Dec 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:09:58 AM Ignore hailsupersport Report Abuse you can
Bubba44612 Champion Author Ohio Posts:7,386 Points:1,875,130 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:08:27 AM Ignore Bubba44612 Report Abuse A great savings in time and money for the car company and consumer.
GrumpyCat Champion Author Alabama Posts:2,603 Points:787,875 Joined:Jun 2009	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:08:00 AM Ignore GrumpyCat Report Abuse "sounds like a Bill Gates design" Bill hasn't designed anything in a long time. But the My-Ford/Sync system is running on a Microsoft platform. I'm waiting for someone to make an Apple car.
autohio Champion Author Ohio Posts:3,765 Points:818,275 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:07:50 AM Ignore autohio Report Abuse Okay
NukeAtComEd All-Star Author Milwaukee Posts:725 Points:338,520 Joined:Jan 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:07:43 AM Ignore NukeAtComEd Report Abuse does ford reimburse you for the gas wasted for this upgrade?
payogie Champion Author Atlanta Posts:1,047 Points:301,510 Joined:Feb 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:07:42 AM Ignore payogie Report Abuse Whatever...
SmokeFan14 Champion Author St. Louis Posts:2,118 Points:1,085,840 Joined:Oct 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:07:35 AM Ignore SmokeFan14 Report Abuse Should be part of the plan. Car makers are bad at providing saftware updates as part of the plan. Unless of course you want to pay premium.
Yankee829 Champion Author Dallas Posts:2,201 Points:558,615 Joined:Sep 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:07:23 AM Ignore Yankee829 Report Abuse Who wants to reboot their car? Please!
traumer Champion Author Twin Cities Posts:5,369 Points:1,337,475 Joined:Aug 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:06:32 AM Ignore traumer Report Abuse So to reboot your car you have to drive for an hour, wouldn't dare let it idle for an hour. That's Ford's "Better Idea".
SSchmidty Champion Author Illinois Posts:9,338 Points:1,775,255 Joined:Mar 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:06:28 AM Ignore SSchmidty Report Abuse And the point is ??
tribill Champion Author Twin Cities Posts:3,342 Points:2,338,210 Joined:Feb 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:05:51 AM Ignore tribill Report Abuse Whatever....
dlemma Champion Author Wyoming Posts:4,101 Points:1,554,045 Joined:Feb 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:05:06 AM Ignore dlemma Report Abuse interesting..
Gascapade Champion Author Fort Worth Posts:3,012 Points:481,480 Joined:Mar 2009	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:05:04 AM Ignore Gascapade Report Abuse Only good if the programmer is, and that's the rub.....
maryph1958 Champion Author Cincinnati Posts:1,420 Points:283,095 Joined:Sep 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:04:27 AM Ignore maryph1958 Report Abuse you can
checkum Champion Author St. Louis Posts:7,591 Points:1,473,290 Joined:Jan 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:04:24 AM Ignore checkum Report Abuse the price of gas here is stable in the past hour. oh wait that comment may be off topic for this site.
Luckylindy Champion Author Milwaukee Posts:4,509 Points:1,126,095 Joined:May 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:04:15 AM Ignore Luckylindy Report Abuse It will become more the norm in the future. Surprised it hasn't already happened.
itzagasgasgas1 Champion Author Cincinnati Posts:3,964 Points:1,598,295 Joined:Aug 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:04:10 AM Ignore itzagasgasgas1 Report Abuse I'd like to boot the programmer for all these bugs.
yvonneIL Champion Author Chicago Posts:3,714 Points:737,150 Joined:Apr 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:03:51 AM Ignore yvonneIL Report Abuse ok
Stevedog Champion Author Michigan Posts:3,843 Points:1,943,945 Joined:Jul 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:03:40 AM Ignore Stevedog Report Abuse sounds like a Bill Gates design
1stClicker Champion Author Texas Posts:5,306 Points:2,241,595 Joined:Oct 2005	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:03:33 AM Ignore 1stClicker Report Abuse Just running? A trip for one hour without the radio on? Has to be another solution.
Happytalk Champion Author Pennsylvania Posts:2,130 Points:576,140 Joined:May 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:03:17 AM Ignore Happytalk Report Abuse Why didn't they make a recall on this so they can fix it free
dsw56 Champion Author Kentucky Posts:1,374 Points:563,640 Joined:Dec 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:01:55 AM Ignore dsw56 Report Abuse Interesting.
paty2k Champion Author Florida Posts:1,603 Points:275,060 Joined:Jul 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:01:26 AM Ignore paty2k Report Abuse Not really impressed...
chvytruk All-Star Author Kentucky Posts:771 Points:377,785 Joined:Sep 2006	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:01:20 AM Ignore chvytruk Report Abuse Sounds like the MyFord and the MyLincoln Touch systems are WINDOWS.
CptnCanada Champion Author Saskatoon Posts:7,007 Points:914,975 Joined:Jun 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:01:17 AM Ignore CptnCanada Report Abuse Running or just ignition on?
mreiff Champion Author Louisville Posts:5,340 Points:1,301,740 Joined:May 2009	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:01:10 AM Ignore mreiff Report Abuse Leave it to M-B to know how to do it right!
nwhawk Champion Author Kansas Posts:1,957 Points:570,715 Joined:Nov 2010	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:00:44 AM Ignore nwhawk Report Abuse Who do you take your car to, garage or computer shop???
elink7 Rookie Author Pennsylvania Posts:99 Points:99,445 Joined:Jul 2011	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:00:43 AM Ignore elink7 Report Abuse Will it give me the blue screen of death?
gasoutherneagle Champion Author Georgia Posts:2,249 Points:737,410 Joined:Sep 2008	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 8:00:05 AM Ignore gasoutherneagle Report Abuse You mean the customers had to flash their audio system!
Markel Champion Author Chicago Posts:4,831 Points:477,155 Joined:Aug 2003	Message Posted: Apr 16, 2012 7:59:38 AM Ignore Markel Report Abuse I can crash my computer and then go on using it without any problems.