Braking Point: Industry Calls for 1-Year Suspension of ‘Connected Car’ Regulations

▶ Automobile industry such as GM and Hyundai

▶ U.S. government, effective from 2029

The automobile industry has requested the federal government to delay the start of regulation enforcement by at least one year regarding regulations on Chinese hardware and software related to connected vehicles in the United States, which has emerged as one of the biggest topics in the global automobile industry.

The Alliance for Automotive Innovation (AAI), which represents major automakers in the U.S., said it would phase out the ban on sales of cars that use Chinese or Russian-made parts for their self-driving or communication features until the existing 2030 model year or January 2029. Reuters reported on the 28th that a request was made to delay production by one year.

Connected vehicles refer to ‘smart cars’ that exchange information with their surroundings through a wireless network and provide functions such as autonomous driving and driver assistance systems. Any vehicle equipped with navigation or wireless software falls into this category.

On the 23rd of last month, the Federal Department of Commerce announced a proposed regulation banning the import and sale of vehicles equipped with specific hardware or software linked to China or Russia in the Vehicle Connectivity System (VCS) or Autonomous Driving System (ADS). According to this, the related ban will apply from the 2027 model for software, and from the 2030 model or January 2029 production for hardware.

At a subcommittee meeting of the U.S. Senate Appropriations Committee in May, Federal Commerce Secretary Gina Lermondo indicated that related regulations would be announced in the fall of this year, saying, “A lot of data about Americans, such as where they are going, what their driving patterns are, and what they say in the car.” “It can go directly into China,” he said.

AAI is an organization that primarily works with the U.S. government and Congress for the U.S. automobile industry, including Hyundai Motor Company, General Motors (GM), and Toyota. The door to membership is open to automobile manufacturers such as Volkswagen, as well as companies in related industries such as batteries and semiconductors. AAI President John Bozzella previously said in a statement that while the preparation period included in the proposed rule may allow some automakers to make the necessary transitions, it may be too short a period for others.

Hyundai Motor Group separately made it clear that “information collected from vehicles sold in the United States is not transmitted to, stored in, or analyzed by countries of concern (such as China).”

Previously, in an opinion submitted to the Federal Ministry of Commerce in April, the Korean government said, “The Korean automobile industry is concerned that the broad scope of the connected vehicle supply chain investigation, the uncertainty surrounding the scope of potential regulatory targets, and the timing of implementation may all place a significant burden on the industry.” “We are expressing this,” he said, asking the industry to give the industry enough time before implementing new regulations.