LexFather

A Florida man named Scott Weires has canceled the order for his long-awaited Nissan GT-R. Why? It's not that he was disappointed in the car's performance credentials, far from it. The problem is that the GT-R is equipped with a 'black box', similar in theory to the kind found on airplanes to help determine what went wrong in case of an accident or breakdown. By the end of 2012, car buyers won't have a choice as to whether their new car is equipped with a 'black box,' or Electronic Data Recorder -- they will be federally mandated to carry one. These devices track information that could be useful to the manufacturer in determining exactly what is, or has been, going on with a car. There are a few worries, though, that warranty claims could be denied if the automaker, Nissan in this case, deems that the car was being raced or abused in some way or by police or lawyers to determine culpability. Nissan's GT-R carries an on-board recorder that keeps track of the past few day's worth of driving and cannot be disabled. In the case of Scott Weires, an attorney no less, that was enough to look elsewhere. Would it be for you?

RXGS

iTrader: (2)

yes haha, all the more reason to buy old cars without all the technology

mmarshall

Old cars, though, often don't have a lot of good and useful features modern car buyers DO want. I, for one, would probably never want to own a car again with a carburator, breaker-point ignition, non-clearcoat paint, recirculating-ball steering, or a chassis/that needed constant grease jobs.

Threxx

Almost all cars have had a black box for the last decade, IIRC... just not nearly as much information contained in them as in the GT-R, I guess. The black boxes in cars now would really just indicate how fast you were going, if you were accelerating or on the brakes when a major impact occurred.

pingu

That is what distinguishes your preferences from others. I do not like the hassle of wiring and tuning a fuel injected motor into a car that do not come with one.

TwiBlueG35

I personally don't mind the existence of black box in the car.

mmarshall

They are not a continual record of your driving. From what I understand, they only keep on record the the last 5 seconds or so of what happened before an accident......and they can't be removed or downloaded without specific procedures from law enforcement or a court order, even by an auto-manufacturer representative.

These recorders have been invaluable in accident investigations and in court cases where people have tried to lie about how fast they were going, what kind of turns they made, etc.....

With today's anti-lock brakes and traction/stability controls, traditional methods of estimating speed and cornering speeds by the length of skid marks, tire tracks, etc.......don't work any more because the car's electronics don't allow the tires to lock up and skid, break traction, or leave black marks on the pavement. The black boxes help get around that with their records.

PhilipMSPT

iTrader: (5)

Hello?

The GT-R is a race car.

If I take it to the track and abuse it, it's what the car is made for!

That's like telling Viper or Corvette owners to treat the car "delicately." It's a freaking racing machine!!!

Wasn't there a lawsuit where a Viper owner sued Dodge because of a lemon transmission. Dodge's defense was that "he shouldn't have pushed the car so hard..."

inLine4

Man, that like being bugged on ure car. ftl

240swapped

yeah, but does anyone actually think it'll be impossible to disable? i say give it 3 years and people will sell kits to be able to switch it on and off if it becomes a warranty voiding issue.

LLTD

Can't agree more. GTR is a race car, it build to race and yet car maker and government restricted the car to do what it build for. SAD

Dave600hL

And what is the point of that?
They will know you haven't used it if you have a crash...

mikez

This is funny because the only reason someone would spend 100k for a freaking Nissan is to be faster than the Porsches, Aston Martins are the Maserati's. In real life, not on paper.

If I can't even push my car, I would rather get a real exotic than to drive around a Nissan telling everyone I'm faster than you but I can't actually race you cuz then it would void my warranty.

kit cat

iTrader: (6)

Yeah, Lotus out of all the cars will void your warranty if you take it to the track

Abear

iTrader: (1)

Wow, that is the most stupid thing I have ever heard, if your serious I mean.

As to what everyones saying about the GTR, like someone else said, practically all cars have that if I recall, they just kick on at different times. As far as its supposed to be a racecar..your right, but isnt there like a 1000 dollar fee you pay after you take it to a track to have Nissan look it over so you dont void your warranty? Im not saying thats right, but that should end that argument about racing it. I know we all street race..or have or whatever, but really your not supposed to, so that should be a non issue.