black box

[oldman14ss]

is there such a thing as the black box in our cars? in my 2014SS ? if so where is it located? can it be disabled? disconnected? would it be in the service manuals? thanks ahead of time. the old man.........

[Welker2]

There is no 'black box' persay; however the computers in most vehicles today do record/store various data points such as max speed driven. Not sure what specific data points are stored by the computers in our Camaros.

[oldman14ss]

I know onstar has capabilities to tap in to info and I pulledthe whole module,battery and fuse spliced the can bus thru.

[Mr_Draco]

Originally Posted by Welker2

There is no 'black box' persay; however the computers in most vehicles today do record/store various data points such as max speed driven. Not sure what specific data points are stored by the computers in our Camaro/s.

A cars "black box" only records data when an event is triggered, such as an accident. They do not continuously record or store data such as max speed.

As for the OP, all GM vehicles since 1993 has had a 'black box'. As for disabling it, sure you can as long as you don't mind having a 4,000 lb paper weight in your driveway that you can't drive or do anything with.

[Mr_Draco]

Originally Posted by oldman14ss

I know onstar has capabilities to tap in to info and I pulledthe whole module,battery and fuse spliced the can bus thru.

False. Onstar does not have nor ever had those capabilities. The only thing they can see is if certain sensors on the car is triggered that would indicate a crash, oil life indicator, how much fuel you have, and mileage. They can only get these readings if you have an active Onstar subscription. If you cancel your subscription, they do not have the ability to read anything.

[Bow Tie Affair]

Originally Posted by Mr_Draco

False. Onstar does not have nor ever had those capabilities. The only thing they can see is if certain sensors on the car is triggered that would indicate a crash, oil life indicator, how much fuel you have, and mileage. They can only get these readings if you have an active Onstar subscription. If you cancel your subscription, they do not have the ability to read anything.

Actually you are mistaken. Have you ever seen an Onstar driving report? It includes hard starts, hard stops and more.

[Mr_Draco]

Originally Posted by Bow Tie Affair

Actually you are mistaken. Have you ever seen an Onstar driving report? It includes hard starts, hard stops and more.

Yes I have, all that info is read from sensors that could indicate a crash like I posted above lol.

[Bow Tie Affair]

Originally Posted by Mr_Draco

Yes I have, all that info is read from sensors that could indicate a crash like I posted above lol.

Yes, i know genius. Tell me what is the difference, they can see (through "sensors") and hear everything that is done in an Onstar equipped vehicle.

[oldman14ss]

bowtie, I don't know how to respond to pm's onstar keeps sending me letters saying they can't contact my vehicle, so they know more than they're telling. sorry I didn't reply . I wasn't ignoring you.

[oldman14ss]

where is the box located ? is it the body control module? the search goes on.

[Royal Tiger]

Your car has an EDR (event data recorder) located under the seats. In the event of a crash, the car freezes the last few minutes of data into its memory. This can not be erased by disconnecting the battery as told in internet fairytales, as in many cases the fire department will cut the battery cables in a major crash. The data is pulled through the OBD II port or the whole module can be removed and downloaded. Depending on the make of vehicle and the year, different data is recorded. We used that data in crash reconstruction to further analyze the dynamics of the crash. It’s a piece of the puzzle, but not the only one. The courts so far have not required search warrants as you have no 4th Ammendment expectation of privacy as you are driving down the road in public, but we always got one or written consent from the owner to avoid having the data suppressed if criminal charges were filed. Again, unlike the BS you read on the internet, no one goes to prison just because of what the EDR data displays. You can not remove or disable the EDR.

[swampcritter]

yep.they did it with my Cobalt when I T-Boned a Ford Tortise!

[Bow Tie Affair]

Originally Posted by oldman14ss

bowtie, I don't know how to respond to pm's onstar keeps sending me letters saying they can't contact my vehicle, so they know more than they're telling. sorry I didn't reply . I wasn't ignoring you.

No problem, no offense taken. When you get a pm, scroll further down the page and you will see a small window with the pm, you type in your response there and hit the submit button. They definitely know everything about what goes on in the car if the module is in it.

[oldman14ss]

thanks for the info all. doesn't the air bag system tie in also?