Are you tired of car features that you don’t use? Thankfully, some automakers have turn to pay-to-use features for items that you might not use very often.
Some automakers offer lots of features as a la carte items that can be added one at a time, ensuring you only have the features you want, but others put them into packages. It can be annoying to pay a package price for several features when you only want one or two of the features included in that package. One suggested solution is the implementation of pay-to-use car features.
What are pay-to-use car features?
These features are exactly what the name suggests. You would have to pay a monthly fee to have these items functional in your car. This can be a great way to spend a little less on your vehicle, but it could have some negative effects as well. Some automakers may have gone too far with these items, while others offer these subscription services for certain features that only have to be turned on once the monthly fee is paid. The physical items required to make these features work are already present, but the programming has to be turned on for you.
What features are automakers offering subscriptions for?
It makes sense to have a subscription fee for OnStar, Wi-Fi, or SiriusXM but does that same logic apply to features that have been around and used in many cars for several years? Some automakers ask you to pay a subscription fee for remote locking, advanced cruise control, heated seats, and some advanced safety features. This can seem a bit excessive and ridiculous in some vehicles, especially if the car is paid off and you’re still paying a monthly fee to keep your backside warm.
We’re becoming numb to subscription services?
Automakers have been looking for ways to increase profit margins for years, and pay-to-use car features seem to be a great way to do that. These services can be purchased through monthly subscriptions that don’t cost much individually. Think about how numb you might be to paying subscription services. How many streaming services do you pay for every month? Do you use all of your streaming services regularly, or could you do without some of them? Most of us aren’t willing to give up streaming services because there might be one show or movie that we want to see, and the same can be said of subscription services for car features.
What has made these services possible?
The development of over-the-air software updates enables automakers to control the functionality of anything that requires computer software to operate. You might not think your heated seats would fall into this category, but if those seats are controlled using icons and menus on the infotainment screen, access to them can be turned on and off using over-the-air software updates.
Has there been pushback?
Many car shoppers have pushed back on pay-to-use car features for items they depend on regularly. This means many drivers don’t want to pay extra to use Apple CarPlay or Android Auto. Most of us understand the need to pay for in-car Wi-Fi services; this requires a monthly subscription because it’s often provided through a cell phone carrier. Many drivers don’t want to pay for items that have been functionally part of the vehicle for many years. You should be able to remotely lock and unlock your car, you should be able to remotely start it if that vehicle is equipped with the tech to do so, and you should be able to keep your butt warm in the seat if the vehicle has heated seats.
For most car shoppers, their vehicle is the second-largest purchase they make. Going to a dealership to buy a car includes several added fees that increase the overall price. The last thing shoppers desire is an automaker asking for more money and nickel-and-diming them to death to have functions available that are expected in the first place.
The bottom line
Some pay-to-use car features are acceptable. Most drivers accept the hands-free driving system as a subscription item but don’t want to pay extra in one car for something that comes standard on another vehicle. In fact, many car shoppers will quickly go to another dealership when slapped with the idea of paying for features they can get standard or included without a subscription service in another vehicle. For this reason, automakers must be careful of what they offer as pay-to-use car features.
Leave a Reply