Six brands needed a fix and six confirmed no impact
The 3G shutdown hit emergency calling, not every connected feature, and it hit some brands and not others. Drive reported in October 2024 that Hyundai, Kia, Genesis, Ford, Land Rover and Jaguar issued fixes, while Toyota, Mazda, MG, Mercedes-Benz, BYD and Honda confirmed the closure would not affect their telematics systems.
The risk was specific. Hyundai, Kia and Genesis confirmed that a software update was needed so their vehicles could still call emergency services after a crash once 3G closed. Drive described the update as what lets those cars keep calling for help after a crash once 3G closes.
The network behind the SIM decided who was exposed
Hyundai Bluelink, Kia Connect and Genesis Connected Services use the Optus network in Australia, after Hyundai Motor Group partnered with Optus's parent Singtel for SIM cards and mobile data. Bluelink is available in some versions of 12 Hyundai models from 2022, including the i20, Tucson, Santa Fe, Palisade, Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6. Kia Connect covers six, including the Seltos, Sorento, Carnival and EV9. Genesis Connected Services is fitted from the 2023 model year.
Audi shows the same dependence from the other side. Its Australian cars carried a SIM on either the Vodafone or the Telstra network. Vehicles on Vodafone were moved to Optus after TPG Telecom closed Vodafone's 3G network in January 2024, which kept them connected until Optus started its own closure.
Telstra's closure date moved twice, so older advice is unreliable
Telstra first planned to close 3G in June 2024 and then on 31 August 2024, and Optus planned September. A joint statement on 15 August 2024 moved both to 28 October 2024, and Telstra then closed state by state, planning to finish by 4 November. TPG Telecom had already closed Vodafone's network in January 2024. Guidance from early 2024 that names June, August or September is out of date.
The Australian Government's infrastructure department describes the switch-offs as commercial decisions by Telstra, Optus and TPG Telecom to free spectrum and lift the capacity, speed and reliability of 4G and 5G. Transport Certification Australia also warned road transport operators that telematics devices used for access or productivity schemes had to be upgraded to stay legally compliant, which brought fleets into the same deadline as consumers.
From 28 October 2024 Telstra was legally required to block phones that could not call emergency services. The Australian Mobile Telecommunications Association warned that some 4G devices default their emergency calls to 3G and would fail in the same way. Operators put the number of affected handsets at up to 740,000, which counts phones, not cars.
Network sunsets arrive on a schedule that a car's life outlasts
Australia's 3G network launched in 2003 under the Hutchison brand, with Telstra and Vodafone following in 2005 and Optus in 2006. The 2G network closed in 2018 and 3G followed six years later, in 2024. A connected car keeps its modem for the life of the vehicle, and a vehicle life runs well past the life of a network generation, so any module built for one generation will meet its sunset while the car is still in service.
The Australian Government's communications department described the devices affected by the closure in four categories, beginning with 3G-only phones that lost all functionality when the networks were switched off. Vehicles with a 3G-only telematics unit belong in the same first category. Vehicles with a 4G-capable unit belong with the devices that keep working but need to be confirmed for emergency calling.
What a car owner should check
Check the brand's app or dealer for an update to the telematics unit, and confirm that emergency calling is listed as supported on 4G. Do not test the system by calling Triple Zero, which the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) advises against. A telematics unit that can only use 3G stops sending any signal or starting any data session once the network closes.
The counter-argument is that the closure was announced in 2019 and every brand had years to prepare. That is true, and it explains why most cars were fine. It does not remove the exposure of vehicles whose modules were hardwired for 3G. Marqstats does not quantify that group. It sizes the wider connected base at 947,762 of 1,237,287 new vehicles sold in 2024, a Marqstats estimate.
For a buyer weighing a used connected car, the practical questions are short. Which network does the built-in SIM use? Does the unit support 4G or only 3G? Has the brand issued the emergency-call update? An owner who can answer all three has covered the exposure that the 2024 closure created, and the same three questions will apply to the next network generation.
