Porsche cars across Russia suddenly shut off with no explanation

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In late November, a large number of Porsche vehicles in Russia suddenly stopped working, leaving their owners stranded and without any clear reason why.

Cars today have many advanced electronic features, but unfortunately, these new technologies can sometimes create problems for drivers.

A widespread issue arose in Russia where hundreds of new Porsche vehicles unexpectedly became inoperable, essentially becoming unusable.

The problem started in late November and became public in the West around early December. Owners of certain luxury cars found they wouldn’t start or unlock, leaving them unable to drive and needing to find other ways to get around.

Russian Porsche dealer finds ways around sudden vehicle shutdown

Rolf, a major Porsche dealership in Russia, was flooded with calls from drivers unable to start their cars. Technicians quickly found the problem: a glitch in Porsche’s vehicle tracking system was preventing the cars from starting.

While not every Porsche has it, most models built since 2013 include Porsche Connect, a service that helps with navigation and can locate your car if it’s stolen or damaged in a disaster. This service costs $280 per year.

Rolf believed someone had disrupted the link between the cars’ tracking system and Porsche’s satellites, which triggered a feature that stopped the cars from being started.

The reason for this widespread outage is still unknown. Some believe it was just a technical error, while others think it might be connected to Porsche’s decision to stop selling cars in Russia following the conflict in Ukraine. This issue hasn’t been reported anywhere else.

Yulia Trushkova, a service director at Rolf, recently told RBC news that she explained some methods car owners can use to reactivate their vehicles despite the system’s restrictions.

Right now, there’s no consistent way to connect to all kinds of internal combustion engines. This means any vehicle could potentially be blocked. Currently, mechanics can work around the block by resetting and taking apart the factory alarm. We’re still looking into the problem and figuring out how to unlock affected vehicles.

Porsche gives vague reply after their cars suddenly ‘brick’ in Russia

Porsche is aware of the problem, but hasn’t found a fix or determined the cause yet. A company spokesperson told The Register that the issue appears to be limited to Russia and that Porsche prioritizes the security of its vehicles.

Porsche prioritizes the cybersecurity of its vehicles. They protect against attacks through robust security measures throughout a vehicle’s lifespan, including secure software updates, protected data connections, and continuous monitoring for potential threats. These steps help them identify and address any suspicious activity quickly.

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2025-12-12 23:49