Good news for VW drivers who own an Android smartphone. The traditional German manufacturer wants to guarantee its customers 15 years of support for Android Automotive. When buying a car, you no longer have to worry that your vehicle will soon no longer receive software and security updates.
Android Auto secure for 15 years
Software in cars is playing an increasingly important role. Hardly any manufacturer makes this as clear as Tesla. While the US manufacturer cannot keep up with German manufacturers in terms of build quality, it is miles ahead of them when it comes to software. VW is apparently also aware of this. Therefore, the company now wants to strengthen its cooperation with Google. As has now become known, Volkswagen wants to support Android Auto in its vehicles for 15 years. This secures the next few years for owners of an Android device. This is the result of a report by Ars Technica. With the help of Android Auto, it is no longer just possible to make phone calls or use apps like Spotify.
In addition, your car’s operating system gains access to important vehicle settings. Manufacturers such as Polestar and Honda are already showing how well this works in detail. In the future, it should be possible to control things like air conditioning or seat heating via Google’s operating system. The durability of the support is particularly pleasing. With cars increasingly becoming smartphones on wheels, software support also plays a big role. In view of the disproportionately higher costs, three years is of course not enough here, as with many smartphone models. Anyone who buys a vehicle from a manufacturer in the Volkswagen Group should also have the security of knowing that the software will be kept up to date for many years to come.
A competitive advantage for VW
Of course, over time there will also be black sheep in the automotive industry who will only provide their software with appropriate support for a short time. Since models such as leasing and car subscriptions are becoming increasingly popular, many end customers do not even notice. However, this is not really sustainable. After all, a modern car without a correspondingly long software support loses significantly in value, because it not only loses a number of important functions. When it comes to security, up-to-date software should not be underestimated. Dirk Hilgenberg, CEO of the VW software division Cariad, emphasizes in the context of the Ars Technica report that they see a competitive advantage for their own brands. With the announcement, Cariad finally has good news to share. The car software experts had to deal with extensive problems in the past few months, which led to delays in the release.
