Manual therapy: automakers are required to share data for repairs
Starting next spring, automakers will be required to provide organizations and individual entrepreneurs with technical information related to car repairs — the so-called manuals. Difficulties in obtaining such data are now mainly experienced by technical centers engaged in servicing Chinese cars, industry participants say. At the same time, both Russian and Chinese automakers are ready to work according to the new rules. The effect of changes in legislation will depend on the extent to which technical information and documentation will be available to car service stations, lawyers and experts say. Details can be found in the Izvestia article.
It says to share
The State Duma approved amendments to the law "On Consumer Rights Protection" in the second and third readings, which provide for changes in the rules for the repair and maintenance of goods, primarily cars. The document is posted in the legislative support system of the Parliament.
According to the adopted amendments, which are due to enter into force on March 1, 2027, automakers will have to provide technical centers with not only spare parts, as stipulated by current legislation, but also the necessary technical documentation for the repair and maintenance of their cars.
"The manufacturer provides repair and maintenance of goods, release and supply to organizations and individual entrepreneurs engaged in trading, repair and maintenance activities in the volume and range of spare parts necessary for repair and maintenance, as well as provision in the manner, terms and composition established by the Government of the Russian Federation to such organizations and individual entrepreneurs. entrepreneurs need information (technical documentation) necessary for the maintenance and repair of goods, and if there are changes in this information (technical documentation), information (technical documentation) containing these changes during the period of production of the goods," the text of the document says.
The obligation remains with the manufacturer for 10 years after the cessation of production of goods within their service life. And if such a deadline is not set, then within 10 years from the date of its transfer to the consumer.
As follows from the accompanying documents to the draft law, first of all, the adopted changes are related to the repair and maintenance of cars. The authors of the amendments note that the current regulations are largely devalued by the lack of obligations of the manufacturer to provide the technical documentation necessary for the repair and maintenance of machines.
"In cooperation with automakers from Western countries, as well as Japan and South Korea, this legislative omission was offset by the established commercial practices in these countries. However, it was made relevant by the intensification of cooperation with China, whose commercial practice does not imply automatic transfer of documentation even for repairs and maintenance," the explanatory note says.
One HUNDRED in the dark
The problem of the lack of "manuals" necessary for maintenance and repair is most typical for models of Chinese brands, Ilya Plisov, a member of the board of the Union of Car Service Stations, told Izvestia. If official dealers of Chinese brands have access to this data, then independent technical centers do not have it, he said.
Nikita Arkhipov, head of Rolf's service department, confirmed that the dealer network usually has no problems accessing such data. But for service stations that are not part of the networks of specific brands, access to information may be limited.
The "officials" also have certain difficulties in obtaining complete technical information, Ivan Trandin, the owner of the KM/H group of companies, emphasizes.
— The basic data set — maintenance regulations, diagrams, error codes — is usually available to authorized dealers. The issue is depth and speed: for hybrid systems, electronics, and calibrations, information often comes with a delay or in a stripped—down form compared to what European and Korean brands have been providing automatically for years as part of commercial practice," he told Izvestia.
Independent services and multi-brand service stations have an even more difficult time, the source notes. Since they do not have a direct communication channel with the manufacturer, they receive some of the data only through parallel circuits or requests to dealers, he explains.
— For the owner of the car, this results in a longer diagnosis of individual nodes, and sometimes contacting several services at once until the necessary information is found. It cannot be called a system failure, but it is precisely such points of friction that have become the reason for the legislative initiative," said the owner of the KM/H group of companies.
How to tighten the bolt
Providing an automaker with the necessary technical information for car repair and maintenance to an unlimited number of people is a normal and widespread global practice, says Ilya Plisov. It ensures the normal and safe operation of the car as a source of increased danger, he emphasizes.
— In Europe, the USA and other countries, automakers provide users with data on how to service or repair a car. For some brands, such information in Russian was available in our country until 2022. By visiting a specialized website, a mechanic or even the car owner himself, who decided to repair or service the car himself, could find out, for example, with what effort to tighten a particular bolt, in which cases it is allowed to reuse a particular gasket, and in which cases it is necessary to install a new one," a member of the board of the Union of Car Service Stations told Izvestia..
At the same time, Ilya Plisov emphasizes, there is no data in this information that reveals the technologies patented by the automaker or other production or technical features of the car.
— It will not be possible to assemble and produce a car based on this data. Yes, it is not necessary for a mechanic of a technical center or an ordinary car owner. They need to understand, roughly speaking, how easier, faster and more correct it is to replace some part, which tool is needed for this, and which operations need to be performed," he stressed.
The adopted amendments are the first step towards a civilized car repair and maintenance market, Ilya Plisov believes. They should form the basis for further changes to the admission of cars to our market, he believes.
— Ideally, when certifying a new model, one of the conditions for obtaining an OTC should be the automaker's guarantees to provide technical information on it within the prescribed period. This will eliminate situations when a company, having certified and sold, for example, a thousand cars in our country, decided to curtail its activities. Unfortunately, there are such examples now, and no one knows what to do with these machines now," Ilya Plisov believes.
What to expect for tech centers and car owners
The Association of Russian Automobile Dealers (ROAD) supports the movement towards more transparent rules in service and repair, its executive director Oleg Barinov told Izvestia. The adopted amendments can be an important step towards a more civilized service, he notes. At the same time, a clear and unified system is important for the market as a whole: who, to what extent, at what time and under what conditions can receive the technical documentation necessary for car repair and maintenance, the executive director of ROAD emphasizes. Therefore, it is important that regulation is not formal, but practically applicable.
— It is necessary to clearly specify what information is considered necessary, to whom it is provided, in what format, how quickly it should be updated, how trade secrets and data security are protected, as well as what responsibility comes if access to technical information does not actually work, — Oleg Barinov said.
The amendments provide market participants with an important tool, Ivan Trandin notes. If previously the manufacturer's refusal to hand over the documentation did not entail consequences, now it can be challenged, he believes. At the same time, it is not worth waiting for the effect right from the date of entry into force of the law, the expert believes.
— Chinese automakers need to restructure internal regulations, translate and structure documentation for the Russian market, and establish data transmission channels for service organizations. Plus, any new rule goes through the first disputes and judicial practice before the mechanism works predictably. 1-1.5 years to build the process is a realistic time," Ivan Trandin believes.
It is important to understand that technical documentation is only one element of a high—quality repair system, Nikita Arkhipov reminds. The authorized dealer receives from the importer not only instructions and catalogs, but also staff training, access to diagnostic and software tools, special equipment, technical support and updates, he notes. Therefore, the transfer of documents alone will not make independent services fully comparable with official ones, the expert believes.
The law is just the beginning
The amendments explicitly stipulate that the procedure, volume and timing of the provision of technical information are determined by the Russian government, said Sergey Radko, a lawyer for the Freedom of Choice movement. Therefore, in many ways, the implementation of the new rules will depend on the content of the bylaw adopted by the government, the lawyer emphasizes.
— Obviously, before repairing a modern car with a lot of electronics, it is necessary to clearly establish the cause of the malfunction. This can most often be done only with the help of diagnostic equipment and special diagnostic programs. But such programs are often developed not by the automakers themselves, but by third-party companies, and this software is often subject to the intellectual property rights of the developer, not the automaker. And the development company may well be against its diagnostic program being publicly available," the lawyer described one of the possible difficulties in implementing the new rules.
If we are talking about ordinary "manuals" that describe simple procedures and operations with a car, then automakers are likely to provide such information without any problems, says Maxim Kadakov, editor-in-chief of Za Rulem magazine. But if there are requirements to provide all car service stations, and not just authorized dealers, with data that contains some kind of patented solutions, special technologies, etc., then automakers are unlikely to take such a step, he is sure.
"Always ready"
The amendments to the law "On Consumer Rights Protection" apply not only to foreign, but also to Russian automakers, lawyers and market participants emphasize. At the same time, as Izvestia found out, both domestic car factories and automobile brands from China are ready to work according to the new rules.
—The Evolve company complies and will comply with all the requirements of Russian legislation," the press service of the domestic automaker told Izvestia.
Sollers operates and will continue to operate within the framework of Russian legislation.
"All necessary information and documentation required for the operation, repair and maintenance of vehicles manufactured by the group is updated in a timely manner, is available electronically on the company's official resources, and specific information is provided upon request," the company's press service noted.
The adoption by the State Duma of amendments to the law "On Consumer Rights Protection" is an important step that reflects the government's desire to increase transparency and quality of after-sales services, Alexander Parshutin, brand director of Foton at MB RUS, the official distributor of the brand in Russia, told Izvestia.
— We are already actively transferring technical documentation and training the staff of our certified technical centers. The new requirements only formalize and unify this process for all market players. Foton and MB RUS support any measures that protect consumer rights and ensure safe and long-term operation of the equipment. Technical information is not know-how, but the necessary basis for competent repairs. We have always advocated equal conditions for all market participants, and these amendments create a more honest competitive environment where the winner is the one who provides the best quality, not the one who hides the documentation," Alexander Parshutin said in a conversation with Izvestia.
He stressed that the company is ready to fully meet the new requirements. According to him, this will help increase confidence in Chinese automotive technology in Russia and ultimately benefit consumers.
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