Massachusetts voters passed a law telling automakers who sell cars in Massachusetts provide consumers and independent repair shops with wireless access to the car’s “telematics” — digital information needed to diagnose the vehicle’s performance. With access to the telematics, independent mechanics can repair these vehicles as readily as authorized dealers. It goes into effect June 1 but the Alliance for Automotive Innovation, a car industry trade group, has sued to block it.
This law is a very limited version of the right-to-repair laws that have been stymied all over the country (including in NH) by firms that want to control the lucrative repair business, or want people to give up and trash their stuff so they’ll buy new ones.
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