Well-known car brand responds to vehicle lockout in Kazakhstan

Tengrinews.kz — Chinese company Zeekr has promised to change how a system works that can restrict vehicle functions after crossing a border. The decision was made after the owner of a Zeekr 9X was left without access to some of the car’s functions in Kazakhstan for more than a day, citing CarNewsChina.

The owner of a Zeekr 9X set off on an overseas trip in a car with Chinese license plates. According to him, before leaving, he informed the dealer and received confirmation that no problems should arise.

However, shortly after crossing the Chinese border, the system remotely restricted some of the vehicle’s functions. For more than 30 hours, the driver could not use navigation or open the glove compartment and fuel tank flap.

At the same time, documents were inside the glove compartment, which the owner could not retrieve. He later described what had happened on Chinese social media.

Zeekr later confirmed that the restrictions had indeed been triggered. The company said the system is designed to protect vehicles from theft and illegal export. By that time, access to the car’s functions had already been restored.

What Zeekr promised to change

After the public reaction, the company apologized to the owner and said vehicle security should not be determined solely by the manufacturer.

Zeekr presented a new principle for how the system will work: control remains with the owner, while the manufacturer provides protection.

The first change has already appeared in the Zeekr mobile app. Drivers will be able to generate an unlock code themselves if restrictions are triggered after crossing a border.

However, it has not yet been clarified whether such a code can be obtained without an internet connection. This may be important in border areas where mobile service is unstable.

Locking will be allowed to be disabled

The company plans to introduce another change through a remote software update for the vehicle.

A toggle will appear in the app allowing the owner to opt out of automatic locking when crossing a border.

According to the publication, after the update, this function will be disabled by default. This means owners will be able to activate the additional protection themselves.

Why such a system is needed at all

The cross-border locking system can be used not only to combat theft, but also to limit gray exports of vehicles.

Cars from Chinese brands are often exported to countries where the manufacturer is not officially represented or operates through a limited number of dealers. This practice is widespread, including in Central Asian countries.

At the same time, modern electric vehicles and hybrids are constantly connected to the manufacturer’s servers. This makes it possible to remotely update software and fix malfunctions, but also gives the company the ability to restrict certain vehicle functions.