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Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by 2OEH8eoCRo0 on Sunday January 23, 2022 @06:31PM (#30051787)
This has all been solved already. Cars.

I modded my car and it didn't void the warranty. I can goto the dealership, 3rd party, or repair it myself. I can swap out nearly everything for non OEM parts.

Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by shagie on Sunday January 23, 2022 @10:03PM (#30053234)
Cars aren't industrial equipment. A different set of laws and warranty repair laws are applied to each.

If tractors were able to be classified as cars for warranty and such - such that the people who make modifications to them are liable for damages caused by the device (rather than the manufacturer), there wouldn't be as much of an issue.

As it is, if you are able to modify the emissions controls for a tractor and the manufacturer doesn't try to make it impossible to do that, the EPA goes after the manufacturer instead of the owner or operator.

In the mean time, see if you can legally make any changes to your car's catalytic converter and replace it with a pipe.

Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by 2OEH8eoCRo0 on Sunday January 23, 2022 @10:45PM (#30053495)
> Cars aren't industrial equipment.

I'd argue they are industrial safety-critical equipment.

> In the mean time, see if you can legally make any changes to your car's catalytic converter and replace it with a pipe.

Nobody goes after Subaru when people run catless. This is a silly strawman.

Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by shagie on Sunday January 23, 2022 @11:00PM (#30053591)
Legally, cars are not industrial equipment. One of the key distinctions appears to be that a hobbyist can modify a car whereas a hobbyist isn't supposed to be modifying cranes, tractors, trains, or the like.

Exactly - the government doesn't go after Subaru when people remove their catalytic converter because the car isn't industrial equipment. The EPA does go after tractor manufacturers and distributors when it is possible to modify a tractor to remove its diesel particulate filters and similar.

https://www.epa.gov/enforcement/tractor-supply-company-inc-s...

https://www.justice.gov/archive/opa/pr/1998/June/281.html

Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by 2OEH8eoCRo0 on Monday January 24, 2022 @09:42AM (#30058128)
> The illegal vehicles had adjustable carburetors that were not described in their application for certification, were produced by a different manufacturer than the one specified in the application, were manufactured prior to the date of the certificate of conformity, had model names that were not identified on the certificate of conformity, or were significantly more powerful than described. The illegal engines were incorrectly certified as non-road engines rather than as recreational vehicles and some were significantly more powerful than described in the allegedly applicable certificate of conformity. The EPA and the U.S. Department of Justice also alleged that the emission control information labels on certain vehicles did not comply with federal regulations, and that Tractor Supply Company provided an incomplete and inaccurate response to EPA’s information request.

> According to the charges, the company's engine software controls the timing of fuel injection into the combustion chamber, causing the engine to emit excessive amounts of NOx while the truck is running on the open road. However, the company's engine software is designed in such a way so that these emission levels do not show up on the federal test.

What do any of these have to do with end users modifying their equipment?

Re:Alabama farmer sues John Deere for ‘right to repair’ by bin_bash on Sunday January 23, 2022 @11:06PM (#30053624)
Well not if you live in California, then you need to buy OEM parts or they won't pass smog