Privacy Policy

1. Introduction

"M" / TSUNAGI GARAGE ("we", "us", or "the Service") recognises the importance of protecting personal information and establishes and observes this Privacy Policy.

This Policy applies to the Service as a whole — not only to our website (m3.tsunagi.app, "the Site"), but also to the applications we publish ("the App"; see "9. How the tuning tool handles information").

2. Definition of personal information

▶︎ What counts as personal information

In this Policy, personal information means the following:

  • Name
  • Email address
  • Telephone number
  • Postal address
  • Vehicle Identification Number (VIN)

The VIN is also a value the App reads from the engine control unit (DME) and displays on screen. How the App handles it is set out in "9. How the tuning tool handles information".

3. Purposes of use

▶︎ How we use personal information

We use personal information for the following purposes:

  • Responding to enquiries and providing information
  • Confirming, shipping and supporting products and services
  • Maintaining records of work performed
  • Reference material in blog articles: we may edit and adapt our correspondence with you (the content of enquiries, consultations, and information relating to work performed) into a form in which you cannot be identified — with your name, contact details, VIN and similar withheld — and publish it in our blog articles or other content, in order to inform other customers and improve the Service. If you would prefer your information not to be used in this way, please let us know in advance.

4. Provision to third parties

▶︎ When we disclose

We do not disclose or provide personal information to third parties except in the following cases:

  • Where you have consented
  • Where required by law

5. Disclosure, correction, deletion and suspension of use

▶︎ Responding to your requests

Where you request disclosure, correction, addition, deletion or suspension of use of your own personal information, we will verify your identity and respond promptly. Requests should be directed to the contact in "16. Contact (data controller)".

6. Use of cookies (the Site)

This section concerns the Site (m3.tsunagi.app). The App uses no cookies at all — see "9. How the tuning tool handles information".

▶︎ Cookies we set ourselves

For the purpose of understanding how the Site is used and improving its content, the Site sets cookies issued by Google Analytics 4 (GA4) — those beginning with _ga and _ga_ — on our own domain.
What is recorded is statistical information: which pages were viewed, time on page, referrer, approximate region, and device and browser type. It does not include information that identifies an individual, such as a name or email address.
We do not use it to serve advertising or to identify individual readers on an ongoing basis.
Details, and how to stop this collection, are given in "8. Analytics and advertising (the Site)".

▶︎ Cookies set by third parties

If you click an affiliate link in an article, the affiliate service provider (ASP) and the merchant you are taken to may set cookies in order to measure the referral.
Those cookies are controlled by those companies; we neither obtain nor hold their contents.
Cookies can be disabled in your browser settings.

7. Affiliate programmes (the Site)

This section concerns the Site. The App is provided free of charge and contains no advertising or affiliate links of any kind.

▶︎ Programmes we participate in

The Site participates in the following affiliate programmes, and may receive a referral fee from the merchant when we introduce a product or service:

  • Rakuten Advertising (LinkShare)
  • Rakuten Affiliate
  • A8.net
  • AliExpress Affiliate Program

▶︎ Disclosure and neutrality

  • Articles containing affiliate links carry a "PR" notice at the top of the body text.
  • Affiliate links carry rel="sponsored" for search engines.
  • Which products we feature, and how we assess them, is our own judgement, regardless of whether a referral fee is involved.
  • Purchasing through a link never changes the price you pay.
  • Referral fees received are put towards the research, development and running costs of the Service.

▶︎ Information we receive

Click and conversion data is aggregated by each ASP; what we receive is only the resulting number of conversions and the amounts. We never receive information that identifies a purchaser.

8. Analytics and advertising (the Site)

This section concerns the Site. The App performs neither analytics nor advertising.

▶︎ The analytics tool we use

The Site uses Google Analytics 4 (GA4), an analytics tool provided by Google.
We use it to understand which pages are read and how much, and to improve our articles and site structure.
For this purpose GA4 uses cookies and records the pages viewed, time on page, referrer, approximate region, and device and browser type.
This data is processed statistically and does not include information that identifies an individual, such as a name, email address or telephone number. Nor do we link this data to personal information entrusted to us through enquiries or otherwise.
For how Google handles this data, please see Google's Policies and Terms.

▶︎ If you would rather not be counted

You can stop this collection at any time, by your own action:

  • Install Google's Google Analytics Opt-out Browser Add-on
  • Disable cookies in your browser settings, or browse in private / incognito mode
  • Delete the cookies stored for this site from your browser settings

None of these will impair your ability to read our content.

▶︎ Advertising

The Service does not currently use any advertising service (such as Google AdSense).
If we introduce one in future, we will update this Policy beforehand and state the name of the service and the purpose of its use.

9. How the tuning tool handles information

▶︎ Applications covered

This section applies to the following applications we publish ("the App"):

  • MSS54HP CSL CONVERT /// TUNER (https://mss54hp-csl-convert-tuner.tsunagi.app/)
  • The PWA installed from the above to your home screen
  • The Android application wrapping the above (package name app.tsunagi.e46m3.launcher)

The App is provided free of charge and requires no account registration, sign-in or licence activation.

▶︎ All processing happens inside your browser

There is no server or database operated by us behind the App.
The ECU binaries (BIN) and datalogs (CSV) you load, the tuning data you create, and the information read from your vehicle are all processed and stored on your own device, and are never uploaded anywhere — including to us.

▶︎ What is stored on your device

The App creates the following three databases in your browser's IndexedDB. All of them exist only on your own device:

  • mss54hp-tuner-db — tuning sessions: the 64 KB BASE and TUNED ECU binaries, their paired datalogs, VE maps, tune settings, SHA-256 hashes, flash history, and adaptation-reset records
  • mss54hp-tuner-live — a recovery buffer for a datalog in progress (written roughly every 5 seconds, so that an unexpected browser or tab closure does not lose the recording)
  • mss54hp-tuner-backups — backups of the DME service block (16 KB) taken before erasing

It also stores the following two settings in your browser's localStorage. Neither identifies an individual:

  • e46m3csl:disclaimer-ack — whether you accepted the first-run disclaimer and chose not to show it again
  • The zoom level of the map display

▶︎ Information read from the vehicle (DME)

When connected to a vehicle, the App reads the following from the engine control unit (DME) and displays it on screen:

  • Vehicle Identification Number (VIN), AIF records, software number, and write count (flash counter)
  • Operating data while a datalog is being recorded: engine speed, load, short-term fuel trim (STFT), oxygen sensor values, and coolant temperature

As stated above, these are only stored on your device and are never transmitted.
Furthermore, the App does not obtain location, road speed, odometer reading, or diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs).

▶︎ Connecting to the vehicle

The App communicates with the DME over a K+DCAN cable (using the K-line DS2 protocol) via the following standard browser APIs:

  • Web Serial API (primarily on desktop)
  • WebUSB API (primarily on Android)

In both cases a connection is made only when you explicitly select and authorise the device in the dialog your browser presents. You can revoke that permission at any time from your browser settings.
The App does not access Bluetooth, location, camera or microphone.

▶︎ Exports you initiate

The following happen only when you press a button. They are exports on your own device, not transmissions:

  • Downloading a BIN, a datalog CSV, or a service block. The service block filename contains the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).
  • Copying the parsed service-block report to the clipboard. That content contains the Vehicle Identification Number (VIN).

Storing and sharing the exported files is under your control. Please bear in mind that they contain the VIN if you share them with a third party.

▶︎ Network communication

The only external communication the App performs is a single request to the App's own address, to check whether a newer version exists. That request contains no identifiers and no parameters of any kind.

Accordingly, the App uses no cookies, no analytics, no advertising, no crash reporting, no cloud synchronisation, and no third-party CDNs or scripts.

▶︎ Hosting

The App is served from GitHub Pages (GitHub, Inc.). The ordinary connection records that accompany serving any website (such as IP addresses) are handled under that company's control, and we have no means of accessing them.

▶︎ How to delete your data

All data the App has stored can be erased by clearing the App's site data (IndexedDB and localStorage) from your browser settings. The retention period is under your control; we set none.

▶︎ Disclaimer regarding use of the App

The App erases and writes to the ECU, and may cause serious consequences including immobilising the vehicle. Use is at your own risk, and we accept no liability whatsoever.
Please use tuning only within legally permitted purposes, such as competition and off-road use. Responsibility for compliance regarding public-road use, emissions and safety standards rests with the user.
For details, see the Terms of Service and "11. Disclaimer".

10. Copyright

▶︎ Rights and quotation

Copyright and portrait rights in the content published by the Service (articles, images, video and so on) belong to us or to the rightful rights holders.
Reproduction without permission is prohibited; quotation requires attribution and a link to the Service.
Where there is a problem, we will respond promptly upon contact from the rights holder.

11. Disclaimer

▶︎ Scope of disclaimer

While we strive to provide accurate information, the content published by the Service may contain errors or out-of-date material. All information we provide (data, manuals and so on) is reference material and carries no guarantee of outcome. Any damage arising from work or decisions made on the basis of that information is entirely the user's responsibility.
We accept no responsibility whatsoever for information or services provided by sites reached through links from the Service.
Problems and faults arising from work performed are entirely the user's responsibility. We will, however, cooperate towards a resolution, with any costs so arising borne by the user.
For oils we sell, judging suitability is the user's responsibility, and we accept no responsibility for problems following use. Damage or loss in transit is subject to the carrier's compensation scheme.

12. Security measures

▶︎ Measures to protect personal information

We take the following security measures in order to handle personal information safely:

  • Encryption of communications, by SSL and similar
  • Management of server access privileges
  • Measures to prevent unauthorised access
  • Security training for administrators

13. Outsourcing

▶︎ Subcontracting and personal information

We may outsource part of our operations (server management, payment processing and so on) to external contractors.
Where we do, we conclude a confidentiality agreement with the contractor and supervise them appropriately.

14. Children's privacy

▶︎ Collection of information from children under 13

The Service does not knowingly collect personal information from anyone under 13 years of age.
Should any such collection come to light, we will delete it promptly.

15. International users' rights and cross-border transfers

▶︎ Scope

The App is available worldwide. This section sets out matters applying to users resident outside Japan.

▶︎ Cross-border transfers

As set out in "9. How the tuning tool handles information", data handled in the App never leaves your device. Accordingly, no cross-border transfer of personal data by us arises in connection with use of the App.

Only where you browse the Site may statistical information obtained by Google through GA4 be processed by that company in the United States or elsewhere. For details, see "8. Analytics and advertising (the Site)".

▶︎ If you are in the European Economic Area (EEA) or the United Kingdom

Under the GDPR and the UK GDPR you have the right to request access to, rectification of, erasure of, restriction of processing of, and portability of your personal data, to object to processing, and to lodge a complaint with your local supervisory authority.
We hold personal data subject to these rights only where you have provided it to us directly, such as through an enquiry. Please direct requests to "16. Contact (data controller)".

▶︎ If you are in California

We do not "sell" or "share" personal information as those terms are used in the CCPA and CPRA.
For rights to know and to delete, please likewise contact us at "16. Contact (data controller)".

16. Contact (data controller)

▶︎ Controller and contact details

Please direct enquiries about this Policy, and requests for disclosure, correction or deletion of personal information, to:

  • Controller: Kazuhiro Muto ("M" / TSUNAGI GARAGE)
  • Address: 609-1 Shirasu, Hakushu-cho, Hokuto-shi, Yamanashi 408-0315, Japan
  • Email: e46m3.as.a.service@gmail.com

Full business details are given in the Japanese Specified Commercial Transactions Act disclosure.

17. Changes to this Privacy Policy

▶︎ Review and revision

The Service complies with the laws of Japan, and will review and seek to improve this Policy as necessary.
The current version is published on this page as it is revised.

▶︎ Language versions

This Policy is published in Japanese and in English.
In the event of any discrepancy between the two, the Japanese version prevails.