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PCM 6.0 was not released in June 2021. It was released with the introduction of the Taycan in 2019. But from there Porsche released different software versions. Not all of them are compatible to earlier model years. Only Porsche knows why that is.
Maybe the different HW versions have been necessary for them, because of the chip shortage??

I would be very disappointed if a system that is less than 3 years old could not get new features and updates. Maybe not all new functions that can be added etc. But for instance the update for Charging planner should not be anything more than new software code. The filters for sorting out HPC etc is not rocket science. Just look at a lot of household appliances like smart tvs, amplifiers, receivers, new ovens, anything connected that easily gets new versions.

If Porsche and the VW group miss this then I think they have shot themselves in the foot.
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I contacted my dealer and they sadly hadn't gotten any information yet regarding a potential upgrade path for existing cars. He was going to look into it, though.
 

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I sent an email to Porsche yesterday and here is the reply I received.


thank you for your email dated 24 January 2022.

The new functions are now part of the standard equipment of every newly configured Porsche 911, Taycan, Cayenne and Panamera. Whether there will be a retrofit option for existing vehicles with PCM 6.0 is currently being evaluated.

We recommend you keep in touch with your Porsche Centre to stay informed about the latest developments on this matter.

We hope that this information is useful for you and remain at your disposal for any additional questions you may have.


Not really useful other than they are still thinking about updates for current owners.
 

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I sent an email to Porsche yesterday and here is the reply I received.


thank you for your email dated 24 January 2022.

The new functions are now part of the standard equipment of every newly configured Porsche 911, Taycan, Cayenne and Panamera. Whether there will be a retrofit option for existing vehicles with PCM 6.0 is currently being evaluated.

We recommend you keep in touch with your Porsche Centre to stay informed about the latest developments on this matter.

We hope that this information is useful for you and remain at your disposal for any additional questions you may have.


Not really useful other than they are still thinking about updates for current owners.
Porsche Taycan ? PCM 6 Update Announcement [Update: Retrofit Being Explored For Existing Taycans] F310511D-C0F3-4831-B443-FCB38E41FDB3

At least it’s not a hard no. I suspect they are trying to figure out the best way to implement and don’t want to announce that it’s coming to existing vehicles and over promise on timing etc.
 


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I sent an email to Porsche yesterday and here is the reply I received.


thank you for your email dated 24 January 2022.

The new functions are now part of the standard equipment of every newly configured Porsche 911, Taycan, Cayenne and Panamera. Whether there will be a retrofit option for existing vehicles with PCM 6.0 is currently being evaluated.

We recommend you keep in touch with your Porsche Centre to stay informed about the latest developments on this matter.

We hope that this information is useful for you and remain at your disposal for any additional questions you may have.


Not really useful other than they are still thinking about updates for current owners.
So "Newly configured" probably means that even if you already have a MY22 on order but not built yet you still won't get it. That's going to be confusing when order parts because you can't just put in your model and expect to get the right part.
 

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My speculation, as a software engineer, is that they wanted to get PCM 6.0 hardware and software out in time for 2022 models but had to cut out features that weren't ready while planning to update 2022 cars later. I've had to do that with hardware-tied software I've worked on. Hardware deadlines are always tight.
Normally I would agree with you, but in this case, the PCM literally already does every single thing they are adding/changing. It already displays color, it already has a streaming music service, it already has a voice assistant, it already has a route planner, it already has a map that supports multiple zoom levels, including dynamic ones. It also has a USB connector, bluetooth, and wifi, so it has everything it needs to support Android Auto, both wired and wireless.

In other words, Porsche absolutely has the ability to offer this functionality to all existing owners. If they don't, it's because they decided not to.

This is the one thing that Tesla understands and the other automakers just fundamentally don't.
 

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Here is the thing. For a moment, forget the new colors of the PCM release and revert to what is resident in the 2020/2022 cars. The PCM across the fleet doesn't work as designed. It is flawed.

Moreover, just like a mechanical part, this flaw will inevitably create either a TSB or a recall. Porsche already agrees and has set their own precedence in that they are performing buybacks to address these flaws (30% of the used Porsches in NA are just that! - repurchase or lemon).

These aren't isolated incidents - they are experiences across the entire platform. And, given this platform is their future and already equalling the 911 sales, they will have to address it. If they don't, the PR and subsequent costs will add up to be far more expensive than replacement of any HW/SW required to make it right for the client.

The PCM is a mission critical part of the car's operation. And the bugs are VERY apparent. Mine shows some kind of failure literally every single time I drive the car. Im sure everyone here experiences some form of failure as well.

Shrugging their shoulders and leaving 2 model years behind as 'beta' won't be an option.
 


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Normally I would agree with you, but in this case, the PCM literally already does every single thing they are adding/changing. It already displays color, it already has a streaming music service, it already has a voice assistant, it already has a route planner, it already has a map that supports multiple zoom levels, including dynamic ones. It also has a USB connector, bluetooth, and wifi, so it has everything it needs to support Android Auto, both wired and wireless.

In other words, Porsche absolutely has the ability to offer this functionality to all existing owners. If they don't, it's because they decided not to.

This is the one thing that Tesla understands and the other automakers just fundamentally don't.

My guess it would require a service visit and they are not sure they want to pull all the Taycans in for the update. I went through this with my Audi eTron and a lot of the dealers don't have the expertise to do the updates which in the eTron's case required special tooling. In some cases the dealers bricked the PCM when doing the update.
 

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I did a bit of googling around MIB3 (shared HW used across VAG brands with different names). I found some Samsung announcements. There were two different chipsets announced for MIB3 (infotainment system for VAG). The articles focus ob Audi but I highly doubt VAG would have different hardware for MIB3

  • Old chipset first introduced in MY19 A4s: "Samsung Electronics, a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced that its Exynos Auto 8890 processor will be powering German automobile manufacturer Audi’s third generation high-spec modular infotainment platform (MIB)."

The timeline matches the observation that there is a change in hardware in MY21. No idea if there will be a new update in HW for MY22. Volkswagen is trying to unify its approach to SW and a new E3 1.2 is coming to Porsche with Macan EV. I see a major change for MY23 model. As for retrofit opportunity, why not. After all, MIB3 runs on an open-sourced version of Android Automotive, so retrofitting is possible.
 

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My guess it would require a service visit and they are not sure they want to pull all the Taycans in for the update. I went through this with my Audi eTron and a lot of the dealers don't have the expertise to do the updates which in the eTron's case required special tooling. In some cases the dealers bricked the PCM when doing the update.
Yup, and given that the last time they did a software update of this nature, cars (including mine) just started switching off in the middle of the highway, I think they are going to be cautious before rolling out an update to existing cars. Hope they do it eventually, but as much as I like pretty colours, I might not guinea pig it this time...
 

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Normally I would agree with you, but in this case, the PCM literally already does every single thing they are adding/changing. It already displays color, it already has a streaming music service, it already has a voice assistant, it already has a route planner, it already has a map that supports multiple zoom levels, including dynamic ones. It also has a USB connector, bluetooth, and wifi, so it has everything it needs to support Android Auto, both wired and wireless.

In other words, Porsche absolutely has the ability to offer this functionality to all existing owners. If they don't, it's because they decided not to.

This is the one thing that Tesla understands and the other automakers just fundamentally don't.
Totally agree with you. I wasn't making excuses for them not backporting it to older PCMs but just speculating as to why there's a mid-year update. They definitely should port this update to older units (minus Android Auto because I understand that could require specific hardware). They've been routing their OTA update capabilities in press releases; time to put it to good use!
 

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I sent an email to Porsche yesterday and here is the reply I received.


thank you for your email dated 24 January 2022.

The new functions are now part of the standard equipment of every newly configured Porsche 911, Taycan, Cayenne and Panamera. Whether there will be a retrofit option for existing vehicles with PCM 6.0 is currently being evaluated.

We recommend you keep in touch with your Porsche Centre to stay informed about the latest developments on this matter.

We hope that this information is useful for you and remain at your disposal for any additional questions you may have.


Not really useful other than they are still thinking about updates for current owners.
Who'd you email? Maybe it enough people complain they would know there's demand for this from existing customers.
 

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UPDATE 1/25:

Porsche has confirmed that PCM 6.0 is not being made available to existing owners, but a retrofit option is being investigated. This was their reply statement:

“The new functions are now part of the standard equipment of every newly configured Porsche 911, Taycan, Cayenne, and Panamera. Whether there will be a retrofit option for existing vehicles with PCM 6.0 is currently being evaluated.”
 
 




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