Saki GT

BMW made the news for trying to make heated seats a subscription, but far more common and less visible has been remote start. We used to get it on our key fobs, but several automakers like BMW, MB, and now Mazda, decided to move that feature behind a paywall - if you want to use it, get a mediocre app on your phone, and start paying.

https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/techn...pp/ar-AA1ohKBF

Even better, now that these features are tied to mobile apps, they only work so long as the app is available and able to talk to your aging car - planned obsolescence?

From BMW's brochure on buying the feature:
https://www.bmwusa.com/content/dam/b...ngineStart.pdf


Thoughts?

sam_spider

Using an app to remote start a car is much better than it being on the fob imo. Our Volvo & Land Rover both have apps that we use to remote start the cars, works very well, have never encountered a time where it didn't work. Fob only works if you're somewhat close to the car, not a huge deal, but limits you. Only time it won't work is when the car has been sitting for a 10 days or so, app says car needs to woken up via the key/door or fob.

The service on the Rover and the Volvo were free for 4 years, I renewed the Rover one last year. I think it's $100 but it's not just for remote start, does a few other things too. Porsche has an app which I have for the 911 but it doesn't do much, no remote start on my 911 but not a big deal. The Porsche one is free as far as I can tell, I've not paid for it.

I would definitely have issue with having to pay to use heated seats on top of buying them in the first place, that would piss me off immensely.

For the record, none of my MB's had remote start on the fob or any BMW's I've had. Not sire that was ever a thing.

TommyDeVito

I run Compustar alarms on my vehicles. Fob will go 1 mile unobstructed but still pretty incredible distance inside a building or with concrete building obstructions. I rarely use the fob however, and use the app instead. And since I rarely carry a phone with me just use the app on my watch. They charge for this functionality as well so the aftermarket charges for it too. For each vehicle it’s something like $150 for 5 years. It has a 12v function built in and will send push notification if the 12v is getting low. IE, it needs to be started for a bit to charge up the battery. I’ve remote started while viewing on a surveillance cam 4000 miles away. If the aftermarket does it, expect the vehicle mfr to do the same.

Now a simple fob function, paywall, etc? If they also provide an app, sure. But if it doesn’t work over cellular and just distance based from the factory fob, meh, indifferent. Factory fobs suck anyway for distance. And the more I hear about BMW’s bullshit the more I loathe that company and happy I skipped the M2C as I was very close to purchasing one.

darcyw

Manufacturers with "pay for use" options can go fck themselves. I don't own a cell phone anyway and I only buy old Hondas. I wear a tinfoil hat at night too.
darcy

TheDonEffect

The scam here is that they're making like they're giving us the hardware for free, but then charging us the app to use it, when in fact you are paying for the hardware, and then paying for the app on top of it.

Over the air functionality I get, because that requires cell or some other shared network access, but heated seats? What's next, Adroid Auto, oh wait they already charge for a feature that costs them next to nothing to add.

engifineer

Yeah as long as people accept this crap and buy the cars they will keep doing it. And Software as a service has enough issues on its own, let alone having it applied to simple vehicle functions. There is a reason at the engineering firm I work for we coined the term SaaSHoles.

And here is where it gets even worse.

With traditional keyless entry/remote start they had to include a transceiver for that operation (433mHz or some other flavor)
These cars almost all now come with an infotainment system, which has a cellular modem installed for the data connection.
And if you signed up for said infotainment package (which I assume you pay monthly for) that cellular connection is already enabled and remote start uses such a trivial amount of data it is insignificant cost wise.
Even if you did not sign up for it, I guarantee that a minimal data plan is already in place for said connection because it also likely ties into diagnostics and other features you may not use. So again, not costing any more to send remote start commands.
But the kicker is, by pushing all of these features to cellular, they are now able to not include the extra transceiver hardware but are not charging you less due to this, but now are charging you more to use the remote start features.

But people keeping buying this stuff. And I just cannot ever convince myself to do so.

Our 13 tacoma had a remote start system installed by a previous owner with about 4000' of range and two way remotes. Still works great.

TheDonEffect

Agreed, a solution to a problem that was already solved, and solved well at that.

vader1

My fleet of two cars has a total of 65,000 miles. I would rather find another car to add, pre-2024 with a bit of analog still left in it that has acceptable mileage and drive the three of them into the ground over the next 30 years or until I am drive into the grave. I still don't own a cell so an app is meaningless to me, but I would never pay a cent on an ongoing basis to use a feature. Rather have a pile of old cars where they are paid for an permanent, even if the old cars are not the new cool thing.

I suppose I should just go find a Taco that will last 300,000 miles before Toyota gets on the bandwagon.

As a tin foil hat aside, they stopped selling the Cayman/Boxster in Europe because they did not meet EU "cyber security" requirements, which essentially meant the car had to be connected to the internet at all times, which will either be to spy on you or to limit your driving by force when you pass your carbon footprint quota. No thanks. I'd rather just have one that is never connected so I am left alone. The overlords keep getting creepier.

QUIKAG

Wait, you don't own a cell phone?

TommyDeVito

That would be great if we all could follow his example. Our country would be a 1000% better.