I recently read that GM has finished an expensive test of processors installed in their vehicles in the last 15 years. The report surprised me because I was unaware that autos have date-sensitive computers. Clearly, GM would not have spent the money unless it believed a problem was possible. Leaving aside the issue of whether we can be sure GM would tell us the truth, does noyone out there have an idea of what the problems could be? Can our cars fail to function due to Y2K glitches?

Perhaps you folks can help me on another issue. I keep a 1982 Delta 88 Olds around for emergencies. Does it have any processors which can fail?

mike

-- mike (maples@voy.net), August 26, 1999

Answers

No, cars certainly won't be safe. They're going to be rolled over, smashed and then torched.

If you value your life - KEEP AWAY FROM CARS NEXT YEAR.

-- Looter (wherever@you.look), August 26, 1999.

I've got 20 plus years in the auto repair field and do a LOT of diagnostic work. So far I can't find anything that's going to be a problem on the cars themselves. My parts guys are just shrugging their shoulders and praying though.

I'm hardly a polly either.

-- Art (artw@lancnews.infi.net), August 26, 1999.

Could anyone provide an example of a car that has date/time sensitive code in it? If so, how is the date/time set? And how is the date/time used? Is it used for some type of control function? Or perhaps it's just used to time-stamp data. Though conceivably this bug could cause the controller to crash, it's not likely. While I think that Y2K has the potential to cause problems, I really don't think that they will occur in the automotive area.

-- Mikey2k (mikey2k@he.wont.eat.it), August 26, 1999.

The cars and chips in them themselves are not the real problem.

It is the machines that hook up to the to check your vehicle.

On certain lease vehicles and upper luxury vehicles, the dates are used with millage. If your warrenty runs out via milage, that is checked, if it is by date, that is checked.

As Jan 1, 00 rolls around, make sure the person hooking you up to have the diag's done has equipment compliant for the roll over.

Typical chips that do have a date setting as the default, will roll over to 00. Being that it is not used, the horn, engine, airbags, fuel, and other electrical will work.

However, Cadies between 91 and 95 have a service fix for y-to-k and Ford had some issues with some of the luxury vehicles.

VW had some vehilces too. A quick fix, replace the chip. At how much $$$ ?

Your cars will run, BUT when the gas stations have no fuel, what do you do anyways.

I played it safe, have a minivan without all the electronic gadgets, no fuel injection, and no airbags. If vehicles get a glich, then I have a contigency plan on the minivan.

As the ol' saying goes, who knows what is going to happen. So many lies, that a knife would have to slice and dice thousands of pieces.

This embedded chip thingie is the hard part to plan out fixes and/or contigency plans.

More than likely, your car will work well, like your digital alarm clock next to your bed. If you own a luxury vehicle, you have less luck.

Joe Martin -- Buffalo, Ny

-- Joe Martin (nospam@nospam.com), August 27, 1999.