What does this button do? – My new car has a mysterious and undocumented switch
A used Opel with a mysterious toggle and metal contact near the steering wheel turned out to have an aftermarket GPS fleet tracker and driver-ID reader left installed by a previous owner. From there, commenters zoom out to questions of who owns and may access location data transmitted by such devices, how GDPR and other privacy laws apply, and whether using an embedded SIM after a sale is legal or akin to theft. Many tie this to a broader unease about modern “connected” cars, remote kill‑switch capabilities, and manufacturers reselling detailed driving data, prompting some to favor older, simpler vehicles they can fully understand and disable.
Device identification and purpose
- Most commenters conclude the switch and puck are part of an aftermarket GPS fleet-tracking system, commonly installed by dealers or finance companies for repossession or fleet management.
- The metal puck is widely recognized as an iButton / 1‑wire reader for driver identification; the toggle likely marks trips as business vs personal for tax/HR purposes, or logs “on duty/off duty.”
- A few speculate alternative functions (panic button, extra lights, tracking off switch) but fleet-tracking + business/personal logging is seen as the best fit.
- Some are surprised dealers don’t remove such hardware before resale; others say it’s typical and often just left deactivated.
Tracking, privacy, and GDPR
- Commenters debate GDPR implications when a used car still transmits location.
- Consensus: if location data can be linked to an identifiable person, it’s personal data; the “data controller” (fleet company, dealer, OEM) must have a legal basis and must honor access/erasure requests.
- Several note the owner has the right to request all data held about them; others worry enforcement is weak and data may still be misused or sold (e.g., references to carmakers reselling telematics to insurers, data brokers).
- Some see a strong analogy to hidden cameras left in a home: intrusion into a private space, not just “no privacy in public roads.”
Ownership and abandoned equipment
- Long subthreads argue whether hardware/SIMs left in a sold car or house remain the previous owner’s property or are “abandoned.”
- Examples span alarm systems, security cameras, and stored goods in barns, with anecdotes of courts siding with former owners and of “involuntary bailee” duties in some jurisdictions.
- Many insist they’d simply rip out cameras or trackers inside their property regardless of formal ownership.
Telematics, kill switches, and government overreach
- A US requirement for “driver impairment” tech is hotly debated:
- One side says media exaggerated claims that police get a remote kill switch; current designs only auto-intervene based on in‑car sensing.
- Others argue that functionally it is still a kill switch, raises hacking/government-abuse risks, and could fail dangerously (false positives, emergencies).
- Broader worry: modern cars embed always‑on GPS/modems (eSIM, eCall, OEM services) that can’t realistically be disabled, turning cars into “smartphones on wheels.”
Using the embedded SIM
- Some fantasize about “free data” from the tracker’s SIM; pushback calls that theft or computer misuse, though others argue abandoned contracts muddy the issue.
- Technical replies note many IoT SIMs are locked to private APNs, tiny data plans, or already deactivated, limiting abuse.
Broader reactions to modern connected cars
- Many express preference for older, simpler cars they can repair and that lack pervasive telemetry.
- Others counter that newer cars bring major safety and convenience gains, and that phones already leak far more location data than cars do.