[perrymock]

Are there options/features that are passive, dormant, or hidden so to speak that can be turned on or unlocked somehow? For example, blindspots, heated seats etc???

Silly question maybe

 

[Flybynightcru]

Are there options/features that are passive, dormant, or hidden so to speak that can be turned on or unlocked somehow? For example, blindspots, heated seats etc???

Silly question maybe

I think you have the option, if you have the rest of the hardware associated with those functions, and are skilled with Alfa OBD, and quite a bit of luck, maybe...😎

 

[MUEngineer08]

Are there options/features that are passive, dormant, or hidden so to speak that can be turned on or unlocked somehow? For example, blindspots, heated seats etc???

Silly question maybe

This won't work for anything like blind spot monitoring, heated seats or anything like that. All those things require hardware, sensors, heating elements, displays, etc.

The automotive business is a money making venture. Installing features in a car spending all the money on the hardware and wiring and simply turning it on through a program would be a literal failure to that end.

There are limited instances where things like towing packages, remote start and navigation can be added, but those are preplanned dealer install upgrades that again generally require hardware and software programming.

They want to sell you a car that won't do what you want or need, when you realize you really wanted heated seats and blindspot monitoring, you buy a different car that has those features. It is their business model. Your Jeep will also lack features that next year's Jeep will have and they won't be backward compatible on purpose.

Its called planned obsolesce, and the plan is you buy the car, keep it 4 or 5 years until it starts needing repairs, then look at a newer car with more features and buy it because it looks like it better fits your needs.

 

[Flybynightcru]

Your Jeep will also lack features that next year's Jeep will have

Except in the case of Trailhawk Elites, I have a laundry list of things that are no longer available on 2021 Trailhawks. That's really unfortunate. I won't be trading mine anytime soon...😎

 

[MUEngineer08]

Except in the case of Trailhawk Elites, I have a laundry list of things that are no longer available on 2021 Trailhawks. That's really unfortunate. I won't be trading mine anytime soon...😎

Your vehicle vs. the 2021 is a case of combining trims and decontenting. Its a common practice as you get closer to the end of a products lifecycle. You incrementally add feature content that is mostly trivial while removing good feature content in the search for reduction in cost to build.

Case in point: 2018 Grand Cherokee TrailHawk vs. 2016 Grand Cherokee Limited.

2016 Limited had a nice cargo floor with metal strips in the floor to help slide stuff in. It also had a rechargeable LED flashlight.

2018 Trialhawk had neither of those things, but it had off road pages the 2016 didn't have.

 

[AtlCade69]

LOL, yet another reason dealers have trouble clearing stock before/when a new model comes out...

 

[UN4GTBL]

I had that rechargeable flashlight in my Caliber and it didn't have a long battery life lol

It was cool, but if you didn't replace the battery every few years it was useless.

I'd happily take Off Road Pages instead of it lol

 

[perrymock]

This won't work for anything like blind spot monitoring, heated seats or anything like that. All those things require hardware, sensors, heating elements, displays, etc.

The automotive business is a money making venture. Installing features in a car spending all the money on the hardware and wiring and simply turning it on through a program would be a literal failure to that end.

There are limited instances where things like towing packages, remote start and navigation can be added, but those are preplanned dealer install upgrades that again generally require hardware and software programming.

They want to sell you a car that won't do what you want or need, when you realize you really wanted heated seats and blindspot monitoring, you buy a different car that has those features. It is their business model. Your Jeep will also lack features that next year's Jeep will have and they won't be backward compatible on purpose.

Its called planned obsolesce, and the plan is you buy the car, keep it 4 or 5 years until it starts needing repairs, then look at a newer car with more features and buy it because it looks like it better fits your needs.

Thanks for the details. It crossed my mind because some years back I was getting a sound system put into a vehicle and the tech in the shop had mention lots of time base model cars have all the stuff that premium cars already have in them they are just not connected or activated. Now I know.