CarCurtain
A dashboard plus a small OBD-II bridge that detects, blocks, and reports every ad, telemetry ping, and feature paywall your connected car tries to push to its infotainment screen.
owners of newer connected cars (BMW, Stellantis, Tesla, GM) who resent post-sale monetization of hardware they already paid for
- real-time infotainment ad suppression at the CAN-bus level, with a visible 'blocked this week' count on the dashboard
- monthly 'what your car sent home' report listing every OEM endpoint it contacted and what kind of data
- opt-out templates pre-filled for GDPR, CCPA, and EU ePrivacy so owners can file complaints in three clicks
- an OTA update tracker that warns you before a dealer-pushed update changes privacy or subscription terms
BMW's 2026 Spider-Man u-turn after a 2023 'private space' promise is a flashpoint; Stellantis already runs the same playbook; 70+ markets have received the ad and consumer anger is now on Hacker News and the Autopian in the same week.
BMW Spider-Man in-dash animation confirmed by Autopian and BMW Blog (July 2026); Stellantis pop-up ad issue covered by The Drive, Carscoops, TechStory and MSN, with owner backlash across Jeep/Ram/Chrysler lines — real and visible flashpoint.BMW Is Showing Commercials On Their Car's Dash Screens And They Want You To Think Its A Treat ↗Stellantis Is Spamming Owners' Screens With Pop-Up Ads for New Car Discounts ↗
No consumer product found that specifically blocks in-car infotainment ads or telemetry pings; existing OBD-II accessories (IGLA, OBD Block, etc.) are anti-theft port locks, not ad/paywall blockers — wide-open category.IGLA OBD Block by IGLA | Innovative Car Security Technology ↗You Can Opt Out Of Stellantis Pop-Ups, But Not From Inside The Car ↗
Adjacent OBD-II dongle market is ~$2.4B but dominated by fleet/telematics; no evidence of consumer willingness-to-pay for an in-car ad blocker, and OEM opt-out is often free (Stellantis), capping price ceiling for an enthusiast hardware product.OBD-II Dongle Market Research Report 2033 ↗Stellantis Slammed for In-Car Ads ↗
Trend is structural — multiple OEMs (BMW, Stellantis, GM) pursuing lifecycle monetization including heated-seat subscriptions and loyalty ads per motales.com; cars live 10+ years and OTA updates keep pushing new monetization, sustaining demand over time.STLA pushing its ads into its cars ↗
Modern infotainment runs signed proprietary firmware on a separate head unit with no documented way to inject CAN-bus or display commands from an OBD-II bridge; would require per-make/model exploits, plus a hardware SKU, making a general-purpose consumer build very hard.Automotive OBD II Scan Tools Market 2026 to 2034 ↗