Hundreds of Porsches in Russia mysteriously stopped running in late November, leaving drivers without transportation and no explanation as to what happened.
In the modern age, vehicles come equipped with all sorts of electronic bells and whistles… but some of these new gadgets can cause major issues for car owners.
One such problem occurred in Russia, when hundreds of new Porsches across the country suddenly stopped working, effectively turning into ‘bricks.’
The incident took place in late November, with reports surfacing in the West in early December. News outlets state that the luxury cars would not turn on or, in some cases, refuse to unlock, forcing owners to find alternative methods of transportation.
Porsches across Russia were suddenly Bricked in late November – and we still don’t know why.
Russian Porsche dealer finds ways around sudden vehicle shutdown
One of Russia’s largest Porsche dealerships, Rolf, received a mass influx of calls from confused drivers wondering why their expensive vehicles wouldn’t start. After performing some diagnostics, Rolf’s mechanics discovered that the conundrum was due to an issue with Porsche’s Vehicle Tracking System.
Not all Porsches have this system installed; most newer models made after 2013, however, come with Porsche Connect services, which include the tracking system to help drivers navigate the roads and locate their car in cases of theft or natural disasters. (Owners must pay $280 for the package via a yearly subscription.)
Rolf surmised that the connection between the cars’ tracking system and Porsche’s satellites was somehow disabled, activating an “engine immobilizer” that prevented the vehicles from starting.
It’s still unclear why this mass shutdown happened. Some outlets theorize it could be a simple glitch in the system, while others speculate that it’s related to Porsche pulling its cars out of Russia due to the war in Ukraine. This particular problem has not occurred elsewhere in the world.
Unsplash.com: Sten RademakerMechanics at Rolf say disassembling the alarms on affected Porsches can help them start back up again.
Rolf’s service director, Yulia Trushkova, spoke with Russian news outlet RBC, where he shared a few ways owners can bypass the system and get their cars working again.
“Currently, there is no connection for all models and types of internal combustion engines,” he said. “Any vehicle can be blocked. Currently, the blocking can be bypassed by resetting the factory alarm unit and disassembling it. We are continuing to investigate the issue and the mechanics’ options for unlocking the vehicles.”
Thus far, Porsche has not commented on the matter, and owners of the high-end cars are still left wondering why this happened in the first place.
