Oh, we've been there for decades. My old 2001 Peugeot 307 was sold without the "driving computer" - the function where you could click a button and cycle through fuel consumption/range/speed on the small display.

It was a popular mod to retrofit the appropriate button (the wires were still there) and to have someone with access to Peugeot Planet activate the driving computer feature.

I wonder how long before car companies convince law makers that "unlocking heated seat" impacts critical safety of the car and voids insurance in case of accident.

You can already unlock spec features (called VO codes) in BMWs with a $20 dongle, some pirated dealer software and a simple YouTube video. Maybe they will introduce stronger protections but enabling features you didn't spec in a BMW is already a very common and easy thing to do. The only difference is now you don't need to scavenge the hardware from a breaker's yard.