Car "features" subscription

[Gragson]

I read about this before with BMW, looks like Mercedes are looking to get into it as well.

Mercedes-Benz to introduce acceleration subscription fee

Owners of some Mercedes electric cars in the US can soon pay a $1,200 annual fee to speed up faster.

www.bbc.co.uk

There's something about this that just feels wrong. You buy something that has the feature already, then pay an annual subscription to turn it on?
Clever money making teasing ploy - would rather pay for whatever option up front which stays with the car when you sell it.

Don't like all this turning stuff on and off at distance, hope it dies a death but probably won't.

 

[MattF]

It's little more than a legal racket.

 

[James1979]

I read about this before with BMW, looks like Mercedes are looking to get into it as well.

Mercedes-Benz to introduce acceleration subscription fee

Owners of some Mercedes electric cars in the US can soon pay a $1,200 annual fee to speed up faster.

www.bbc.co.uk

There's something about this that just feels wrong. You buy something that has the feature already, then pay an annual subscription to turn it on?
Clever money making teasing ploy - would rather pay for whatever option up front which stays with the car when you sell it.

Don't like all this turning stuff on and off at distance, hope it dies a death but probably won't.

John Deere (for sure but probably others) can / will disable the tractor remotely if you don’t keep up the finance repayments.

If Merc can do what the article says, I reckon they’ll be going down the JD route. No payee, no workee

 

[Parm]

My Audi requires a subscription for the internet enabled part of the infotainment system to work, they have been doing this for years, just extending it to more and more “features”

Oh, the Audi is dead. Ad Blue control module fault, car in safety mode and won’t start. Required part is on a 3 month back order from the factory

 

[wyn]

John Deere (for sure but probably others) can / will disable the tractor remotely if you don’t keep up the finance repayments.

I'm sure that happened in Ukraine recently when a lot of Agricultural equipment was "relocated" to another country......They disabled them remotely.

 

[Cato]

Don't like all this turning stuff on and off at distance, hope it dies a death but probably won't.

It will if people stop buying those vehicles. That's unlikely to happen though as people buy a new Merc or BMW based on image*, so to keep up that image they'll put up with whatever the manufacturers decide.

* A couple of decades ago it may have been possible to argue it was reliability, longevity or features unavailable elsewhere, but that's no longer true.

 

[tom2207]

the old dodge was hire a digger for saturday morning ,,, then use it all weekend , getting a day and a half for free ...
now they remotely limit the revs down to tick over outside of the time youve paid for , the machine will start and move , but not enough revs to make using it practical ,,,,

as a side thought why dont cars just shut down to 30 in a 30 , and say 70 on a motorway , speeding could be a thing of the past as more and more tech comes online ,,, maybe an override button for emergency's and loosing your licence ,

 

[James1979]

I'm sure that happened in Ukraine recently when a lot of Agricultural equipment was "relocated" to another country......They disabled them remotely.

Happened here. I don’t know to who as the fitter wouldn’t tell me but he went on a call out to a dead JD and it just kept saying to contact dealer on his diag.

Phoned Aberdeen and they said it won’t run till he clears the debt

 

[Cato]

Happened here. I don’t know to who as the fitter wouldn’t tell me but he went on a call out to a dead JD and it just kept saying to contact dealer on his diag.

Phoned Aberdeen and they said it won’t run till he clears the debt

That seems fair enough to be honest, same principle as getting cut off if you don't pay your electricity bill. If you haven't paid for it why should you be able to benefit from it?

 

[Seadog]

the old dodge was hire a digger for saturday morning ,,, then use it all weekend , getting a day and a half for free ...
now they remotely limit the revs down to tick over outside of the time youve paid for , the machine will start and move , but not enough revs to make using it practical ,,,,

as a side thought why dont cars just shut down to 30 in a 30 , and say 70 on a motorway , speeding could be a thing of the past as more and more tech comes online ,,, maybe an override button for emergency's and loosing your licence ,

It is coming. Be careful what you wish for.

 

[MattF]

It is coming. Be careful what you wish for.

Automatic speed limiting would be no bad thing.

 

[mart]

John Deere (for sure but probably others) can / will disable the tractor remotely if you don’t keep up the finance repayments.

If Merc can do what the article says, I reckon they’ll be going down the JD route. No payee, no workee

Such a bad idea. Regarding the tractors, I can see some lawsuits ahead-especially in America. Consequential losses $$$$$ when farmers can't get the crop in. I also see bad publicity. Do these vehicle manufacturers never learn. Tinkering with emissions not so long ago must have gone in to billions in compensation.

 

[premmington]

Cars/Vans/Tractors are now not "stand alone devices".

I personally think this a bad thing - but everybody else keeps buying into the tech - what "do I know?"

 

[Seadog]

Automatic speed limiting would be no bad thing.

If it stopped there. But, as we know, it never does. Once the first step is taken the inevitability of complete control is there. This is what the new legislation from the EU ( yes, were still buying into it because it suits the powers that be), will allow.

 

[frank horton]

modern carp..........

 

[premmington]

modern carp..........

"carp" no...

It is good when it works.

When it does not - the problems start!

 

[dobbslc]

My Audi requires a subscription for the internet enabled part of the infotainment system to work, they have been doing this for years, just extending it to more and more “features”

Oh, the Audi is dead. Ad Blue control module fault, car in safety mode and won’t start. Required part is on a 3 month back order from the factory

BMW gone?

 

[500e]

Suppose you have a free loaner @Parm

 

[premmington]

BMW gone?

Reset - MAP the adblue Euro system out (break the law everytime you use the car!).

But it will work and run again if you do!

 

[Parm]

Suppose you have a free loaner @Parm

Yes, it’s on a 2 hr like for like replacement, took 6 days !

New motor gets delivered in the morning