Black Box To Beat Tuners

The fight to beat unscrupulous tuners is being stepped up at Subaru. Plans are underway to fit its cars with 'black boxes' to record engine and ignition data to better protect its customers.

Auto Express Car Reviews

15th March 2004

The systems will be specifically developed to spy on drivers who fit so-called 'invisible' tuning parts, including removable engine ECU chips and easy-to-change performance components such as exhausts. Usually, fitting non-standard parts like these will immediately invalidate an engine's warranty protection, and reduce a car's resale value.

Drivers fit them to improve performance, but remove them when making fraudulent warranty claims or before selling the car. "Black boxes are inevitable," said a Subaru UK spokesperson. "We'll have them fitted to all cars in the next two years."