Your Ford Will Soon Drive Itself to Repo for Nonpayment of a Loan

Ford has applied for a patent for a “repossession system computer” (RPC) that can turn your car into a self-driving vehicle if you fall behind on payments.  It makes your life increasingly miserable until you pay up. Eventually, it drives to a repo lot or junks itself.  If they made a mistake, oh, well.

Zero Hedge:

“The idea of self-driving cars repossessing themselves might sound dystopian, but it is not surprising that automakers are considering this technology to ensure payment. Repossession is a common practice, and as we’ve described recently, cracks are beginning to form in the subprime auto loan market.”

The patent, titled “Systems and Methods to Repossess a Vehicle,” explains how a future lineup of Ford vehicles would be capable of disabling “a functionality of one or more components of the vehicle.”

The patent application was published on February 23rd of this year.

If a driver misses a car payment, the vehicle will disable air-conditioning, radio, GPS, and cruise control to irritate the driver.

Can you imagine what a forgotten payment could do to cause even more tension in this very tense world we live in?

The missed payment cycle keeps getting worse as time goes on. They even have an “incessant and unpleasant sound” that will torture drivers. Eventually, the vehicle will lock out the driver on certain days.

I won’t buy a GM car after what they did to investors during the Obama bailout. Now Ford is off my list. I’ve never missed a car payment, but I don’t want a car that could lock me out.

Police could use it to force you to the side of the road. Take your kill switches to Hades, Ford. Just wait until you see the road rage accidents you cause.

Eventually, the vehicle drives to a safe, nearby location for the repo team to seize it, or worse.

It can direct your car to a waiting tow truck, a dealership, or even a scrapyard if it deems it worthless.

Read the rest of the story on this link to an article by Leo Hohmann.

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