The OBD2 port is a plug under the dashboard that mechanics and diagnostic tools use to talk to the car. It can show error codes and some vehicle data. This episode is saying automakers may be putting controls around what can be read through it.
“Gateways” are like traffic controllers inside the car’s computer network. They decide which computers can talk to each other and what information can be shared. The speaker is saying these gateways are where access gets restricted.
Telematically equipped vehicles are cars with an internet connection built in. They can send information from the car to a company over the air. The point here is that data may move from the OBD2 plug to wireless systems.
Here, “wirelessly” means the car sends data to the outside world without plugging in a cable. That can change how mechanics and owners get information from the car. The discussion is about access and control as data moves online.
Cybersecurity means keeping the car’s computer systems safe from hackers or unauthorized access. When cars connect to networks, there are more ways someone could try to interfere. The speaker says critics worry that easier access could increase those risks.
Privacy concerns mean worries that connected cars could collect or share information about you—like where you go and when. With telematics, that kind of data can be very personal. The episode says opponents use privacy as a reason to limit access.
An "EV user tax" is a proposed charge aimed at electric-vehicle drivers. Since EVs don’t buy as much gasoline, some lawmakers want a different way to collect road-related revenue from EV owners.
The "Repair Act" refers to right-to-repair legislation that aims to make it easier for independent shops and owners to service vehicles. In practice, these laws often focus on access to repair information, diagnostic tools, and parts so repairs aren’t locked behind the automaker’s own channels.
Telematics is the tech in a car that uses a connection to send vehicle data out—like diagnostics or location. Right-to-repair rules often mention it because independent mechanics may need access to that data to fix problems.
In this context, "port manufacturers" means the companies that make the charging plug/charging port hardware on EVs. The speaker is saying the bill should cover those parts too, so repairs and replacements aren’t blocked.
They’re talking about whether independent repair shops can do the same software-based repairs as dealerships. The example here is replacing a battery and still needing dealership programming.
Term
accessing data
This is about whether independent shops can get the information they need to fix today’s cars—like repair instructions and diagnostic details.
Term
marrying the part to the vehicle
When a part is replaced, the car may need to “learn” that new part. That can require special software or programming so the car can communicate with it correctly.
Term
flash that battery
Some car batteries aren’t just “plug in and go.” They may need a software update so the car can recognize the new battery and manage charging and protection correctly.
O’Reilly is a store that sells car parts. The hosts are using it as an example of a place where you’d expect a battery swap to be easy—without needing extra steps at a dealership.
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Welcome to Ratchet and Wrench Radio,
produced by Endeavor Business Media,
a division of Endeavor B2B,
bringing you strategies and inspiration
for auto care success.
["Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy"]
Congress recently advanced legislation
addressing rights to repair,
but the final language looks much different
than what independent repair advocates originally sought.
Bill Hanvey, president and CEO of the Auto Care Association,
joins Ratchet and Wrench Radio
to explain what made it into the bill,
what was left out, what happens next,
and how shop owners can help shape the future
of vehicle data access and consumer choice.
Let's listen in.
Hi Bill, thank you so much for joining us today.
Hi Christine, so glad to be with you
and thanks for the opportunity.
Oh, we're always glad to have you.
Now Bill, rights to repair has been in the news a lot lately,
so bring us up to speed.
What exactly happened in Congress
and why should the independent repair shop owners
be paying attention right now?
Well, a great question, Christine.
There's been a lot going on over the past month.
So let me try to be brief, but give you a good recap.
All right, let's break it down.
All right, so in the middle of May,
like around May 15th,
our representative, Lisa Foshe,
was called down to Washington DC
to meet with the Energy and Commerce Committee staff.
At that point, they presented what they call
the Reveal of the Repair Act,
which would be part of the Highway Reauthorization Bill.
And that particular piece of legislation
that they presented looked very favorable to our industry.
It included telematics, it included the FTC
as an enforcement arm for the bill,
and it also included a provision
where part manufacturer would be able to be
what we call designees of the data.
So part manufacturers, in effect,
would be able to get vehicle data
so they could plan their products more appropriately,
determine failure rates, regionality, so on and so forth.
So naturally, we were all very excited.
We were at our connect event.
I got up on stage and said,
hey, look at the industry now needs to really rally
and show their support,
which was the last message
by the Energy and Commerce Committee.
Make sure that everybody on the committee
hears from the industry.
Well, we sure did, and we showed up
and we generated about 50,000 letters in a week's time.
So we found out about this legislation on a Wednesday.
The hearing was supposed to be held the next Wednesday.
So we leave the connect event, everybody is high,
really happy, and then we're waiting
for the committee schedule to come out.
Monday no schedule, Tuesday no schedule,
we knew something was up.
So we had until Tuesday night at midnight
to be able to get this done,
and with 30 minutes left on the clock,
the Dealer Association, NADA,
backed out of their agreement,
to call an agreement, who knows, but they backed out.
They rallied their constituents,
and in turn, the committee staff had nothing left,
but they had no choice left,
but to insert very watered down language
as to what we had initially believed to be the law.
And that watered down version
eliminated telematics from the bill,
it eliminated part manufacturers from the bill,
it added a four year study for the FTC to conduct
on the effect of data in our industry.
So basically it's very much a watered down version
of what we wanted to accomplish, Christine,
but it did have some good things in it.
Number one, we're still alive, right?
So we're moving forward.
Number two, it did include the FTC enforcement arm,
and that's very important to have specific
enforcement arms of the bill where we can monitor
the progress of the bill and enforce the bill
if it is not being adhered to by the manufacturers.
So here's where we are.
What we're trying to do, and we do have an opportunity,
so that left the Energy and Commerce Committee,
and now this whole big highway reauthorization bill
gets put together by the Rules Committee,
and the Rules Committee determines protocol
of what can be in, out.
So there's an opportunity for us
to get that telematics language
and the part manufacturers included back into the bill
at the Rules Committee.
We could also get that language put back into the bill
on the house of the floor, which is tough odds.
We could also change the language of the bill at the Senate
should we still continue to fight this fight.
So there's many opportunities for us
to get that language inserted back into the bill,
and that is what our primary initiative right now is.
So we're working hard with the Energy and Commerce Committee.
The viewers may have seen that President Trump
recently came out in support of right to repair.
He met with the automakers and to quote, not exactly,
but the President did say that they don't want
Americans to fix their cars, it's crazy.
And obviously we agree with the President 100%
on that point.
So another path that we could take
would be an executive order from the Oval Office.
So that's another thing that we're pursuing.
So even though it was an initial setback, Christine,
we stepped back, we looked at some opportunities.
So those are some of the paths that we can take
and are taking to get that language back
included in the bill.
We talked about the FTC and one of the key outcomes
appears to be making the existing 2014
right to repair agreement enforceable through the OVTC.
Why is that significant?
Because right now, Christine,
there's not really an enforcement mechanism for the law.
Under the MOU, an organization called NASDF
was pretty much the clearinghouse for complaints,
but they didn't have any, they still don't have
any real enforcement arms to go back to the automakers
and say, for every instance, you're gonna be fine $10,000
or whatever the case might be.
So there's no real teeth in that enforcement agency.
So we need an agency that's independent, that's federal,
that can monitor the law and impose penalties
where appropriate.
So under the current language,
what would independent auto repair shops be missing
or missing out on as a result of these changes?
Sure, for the independent shop right now,
Christine, it may not seem like a lot
because telematics right now that the automakers
and the dealerships are still communicating
via the OBD2 port.
And really where we're having the majority
of our data problems is on the gateways
that the automakers have installed in the OBD2 port.
We all know that with the technology,
the vehicles that is occurring today,
the telematically equipped vehicles,
that in the future, that data is being transmitted
wirelessly now, but due to that fact,
it almost makes the OBD2 port obsolete.
So that's what we're really being careful of
is to make sure that we position for the industry
so that they will be able to access that data
in a wireless manner in the same manner
that the dealerships access that data.
So although we may not be seeing a tremendous amount
of telematic issues,
that's only gonna become exponentially worse
as time goes on.
And opponents are citing cybersecurity
and privacy concerns.
What's your response to that?
How do you balance that with a need for access?
Sure, and I'll give you a calm answer on that.
And that would be, let's address
the cybersecurity issue first.
So the automakers are purporting
that this is a cybersecurity risk.
So they're creating fear in the environment
and they're creating fear on Capitol Hill.
When in effect, the law specifically states
that we will access the data in the same manner
using the same protocol as dealerships.
So if there's a cybersecurity concern, Christine,
it should be on their end, not on our end.
Makes sense.
And then on the data privacy end,
I find it extremely ironic
that the automakers are citing privacy concerns
when they are selling data on the open market
that people generate in their vehicles every single day.
And we have made it perfectly clear
that this law does not allow independent shops
to sell access any personal data.
The only thing that we are interested is in maintaining
and diagnosing today's vehicles, period, end of story.
Same way they have been doing for years upon years
without the oversight of this legislation, so to speak, right?
That's correct, yes.
So what happens next?
Is the legislation gonna move forward as written?
Is there gonna be changes?
What do you expect to see from here?
Christine, for you to ask me what to expect
from Congress right now is a very difficult question.
I understand you don't have a crystal ball,
but what avenues might we expect to see them possibly take?
There's a couple of different paths,
and first of all, the highway reauthorization bill,
I believe is a five-year bill that needs to be renewed,
obviously, on a five-year basis.
Right now, transportation and infrastructure
is working on another portion
of this highway reauthorization bill for EV owners,
for them to pay a highway tax.
So for those of us that use an ICE vehicle,
we pay that highway tax every time we fill up at the pump.
EV users do not do that,
and basically they're using our roads
and infrastructure for free.
So that's a big contention on this highway reauthorization
bill for that to move forward.
So there's a lot of underlying circumstances
that depend upon our success.
That's one of them.
Whether that bill is gonna get passed or not, nobody knows.
But our intent is to try to get that language
back into the reauthorization bill
at the rules committee so it can move forward.
So there's a lot of different ways that may affect us.
That big one is the EV user tax
that may prevent this bill from going forward at this point.
What is the Auto Care Association advocating for
as the bill continues through Congress?
Right, we are working every angle that we possibly can.
We are encouraging Dr. Dunn to send a letter
to the president.
We've encouraged committee leadership to do the same,
asking him to support the Repair Act
and to put some pressure on Congress to do so.
We're also trying to work with the White House
to create an executive order if that's in the picture.
We'll have that ready to go if we get some signals
from the White House that that's an opportunity.
So many different paths.
Are there any specific provisions you would like to see
restored before it hits the president's desk?
Oh, absolutely, Christine.
We would not support a bill that does not include
telematics or port manufacturers in the bill.
How concerned should auto shop owners be
if Congress settles on this narrower approach
instead of what was originally proposed?
Yeah, and great question, Christine.
And I urge all of you shop owners or technicians out there
to become involved because we did a survey recently
of 700 shop owners.
The number one concern they have is access to data.
Number two, that survey showed that more than 50%
of our independent shop owners have to send on average
three to five vehicles back to the dealership each month
because they're not able to access that data
because of those gateways that I mentioned earlier.
So my message to the independent shop owners
is that you need to be engaged.
You need to understand that when you can see that job
to the dealer that in all likelihood,
they are making their best efforts
to gain that customer for life.
So I had an old mentor of mine when I was a salesperson
in Syracuse, New York, and he used to tell the shop owners
when you've got them on the lift, they are your customer.
So we have to keep those folks on your lifts.
We have to keep them coming back to you.
And the more that the consumer sees that we are unable
to access that data, they themselves will change
their buying habits and go back to the dealer.
So this is a very important issue for all of you
to get involved, visit the AutoCare website
to learn about the issue, and don't be afraid
to reach out to your local congressperson.
Maybe we can insert a QR code as part of this podcast
where the listeners can hit the QR code
and send a letter to their congressperson,
urging them to support the Repair Act.
So very important for our technicians
and shop owners to get involved.
Let's talk a little bit more about that.
What do you feel like is the biggest misconception
shop owners might have right now about rights to repair?
Well, I'm gonna turn the tide on that.
And I'm gonna say, here's what the automakers
are telling you and telling the general consumer.
They're telling you and the general consumer
that you're getting all the data.
And we all know that that's not true.
So the one thing that the shop owners can do
to help us build our case is to document those cases
where they did have to send that vehicle
back to the dealership.
We also have a QR code that we can provide to you
that you simply hit the QR code, year make model.
What's the default and what's the problem?
And then we in turn can use that information
when we go to Congress and say,
when the automakers tell you
that you're getting all the data, that's not true.
Because here is a book of a thousand instances
where our shop owners were not able to access that data.
So number one for the shop owners,
please send a note using that QR code
to your local representatives and senators.
Very easy to do, it's automatic.
And number two, document those cases
where you're not able to access the data.
Send them to us using that QR code that we'll provide.
And we can use that to help defend you
in the halls of Congress.
Are there any other resources or advocacy tools
that you could recommend that would make it easier
for shop owners to get involved in this?
Christine, we have tried to make it as easy as possible
for not only shop owners, for DIYers,
and the rest of the industry.
And that's autocare.org forward slash advocacy.
Fantastic.
You will find everything that you need there.
We also give instances of applications
where shop owners have run into a difficult thing
accessing data or marrying the part to the vehicle itself.
We're seeing particular applications
where to get a battery replaced,
you can put the battery in the car,
you can screw it down, all set to go,
but you're not able to flash that battery to that vehicle
and you have to take it back to the dealership
in order to do that.
That's not the way this industry runs.
That's maddening, and for the consumer also as well.
Without question.
Can you imagine going to an O'Reilly store,
have the counterperson install the battery
and then have to have it towed back to the dealership
or from an independent shop?
It's ludicrous.
Yeah, it doesn't make any sense.
When we have this conversation a year from now,
what would success look like
for independent auto repair shops and consumers?
Sure, success would look like the bill
as it's currently written with telematics included
and part manufacturers included
to be able to access that data as well.
Those are the two main issues
that we're really fighting for.
Fantastic, Bill, you've been a wealth of knowledge.
Thank you for joining us.
We greatly, greatly appreciate your perspective on this.
And hopefully as it develops and as new things come forward,
you will join us and continue to share any updates.
And again, how people can get involved
because I think that that push at the end
really woke a lot of people up and called attention
to something that was about to slide through.
And before you know it, like you said, 50, what, 50,000?
50,000.
50,000 letters came about.
So it just goes to show that people do have power.
It's not just one person.
You're one person of 50,000 that can make a difference.
Absolutely.
Thanks for joining us today, Bill.
My pleasure, Christine.
Thank you so much.
And let's get involved, everybody.
This is something that we all need to do.
Until next time.
Thanks for listening to Ratchet and Wrench Radio.
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And may the rest of today be the greatest day of your life.
About this episode
Bill Hanvey of the Auto Care Association breaks down how “Right to Repair” language moved through Congress—and why independent shops should care. A promising Repair Act proposal initially included telematics access, FTC enforcement, and allowing parts manufacturers to be data “designees,” but last-minute opposition watered it down, removing telematics and parts-manufacturer provisions. Hanvey says the fight now shifts to the Rules Committee, House, and Senate, plus possible White House action. He argues cybersecurity/privacy claims are overstated, stresses wireless telematics access will become critical, and urges shop owners to contact lawmakers.
Congress recently advanced legislation addressing Right to Repair, but the final language looks much different than what independent repair advocates originally sought. Bill Hanvey, president and CEO of the Auto Care Association, joins Ratchet+Wrench Radio to explain what made it into the bill, what was left out, what happens next, and how shop owners can help shape the future of vehicle data access and consumer choice.
