Subscription Services the Future for Carmakers?

[GodzillaDude]

With OTA updates appearing on the MY22 will this be a strategy that Ford adopts?

I can’t imagine having to pay a subscription for features like heated seats or a heated steering wheel

 

[Forever & Ever Woods]

With OTA updates appearing on the MY22 will this be a strategy that Ford adopts?

I can’t imagine having to pay a subscription for features like heated seats or a heated steering wheel

Good thing my Heated Seats and Steering Wheel are part of my price on the '22 MY.

 

[GodzillaDude]

Good thing my Heated Seats and Steering Wheel are part of my price on the '22 MY.

We better read the fine print when we take delivery. The point of the video is that carmakers may be able to turn on/off that feature and require you to pay a subscription to access the hardware that is already in your vehicle

 

[PapaRaptor]

Seems like my Ford app gets less features with every update.

 

[TheBeerFather]

We better read the fine print when we take delivery. The point of the video is that carmakers may be able to turn on/off that feature and require you to pay a subscription to access the hardware that is already in your vehicle

Unlikely, as that would piss a lot of people off.

We had 2 GMC Sierras. The 2016 we were able to use the app to remote start and unlock free of charge. The 2019 we had required a monthly subscription. No chance I was paying monthly for a feature my remote can do.

My personal opinion, I’d drive this truck right back to the dealer and sell/trade it for an older one if they tried pulling that shit.

 

[ccw]

Ford can’t disable anything if they can’t communicate with the truck…

Disabling the modem (pulling the fuse)

I wanted to disable the modem in my truck to guarantee it can't phone home to Ford. Consider it a privacy hack. :) It's pretty simple by pulling the fuse, but still wanted to document the process since it's a combo fuse - one fuse powering two circuits. Of note: I did this to a 22MY truck with...

www.fordtremor.com

 

[GodzillaDude]

Unlikely, as that would piss a lot of people off.

We had 2 GMC Sierras. The 2016 we were able to use the app to remote start and unlock free of charge. The 2019 we had required a monthly subscription. No chance I was paying monthly for a feature my remote can do.

My personal opinion, I’d drive this truck right back to the dealer and sell/trade it for an older one if they tried pulling that shit.

Imagine them not only turning off that function on on app, but actually making the remote keyfob not function that way either unless you pay for a subscription to remote start

 

[GodzillaDude]

Ford can’t disable anything if they can’t communicate with the truck…

Disabling the modem (pulling the fuse)

I wanted to disable the modem in my truck to guarantee it can't phone home to Ford. Consider it a privacy hack. :) It's pretty simple by pulling the fuse, but still wanted to document the process since it's a combo fuse - one fuse powering two circuits. Of note: I did this to a 22MY truck with...

www.fordtremor.com

You don't think that they will just have the software programmed to disable all subscription services if you do that?

 

[ccw]

You don't think that they will just have the software programmed to disable all subscription services if you do that?

Possibly in the future, but was mainly responding to the idea of them doing that to existing trucks.

 

[GodzillaDude]

Looks like Toyota has already tried to “sneak this in” on their remote start

 

[Loshad]

What a load of hooey.

 

[Himni]

Ford can’t disable anything if they can’t communicate with the truck…

Disabling the modem (pulling the fuse)

I wanted to disable the modem in my truck to guarantee it can't phone home to Ford. Consider it a privacy hack. :) It's pretty simple by pulling the fuse, but still wanted to document the process since it's a combo fuse - one fuse powering two circuits. Of note: I did this to a 22MY truck with...

www.fordtremor.com

You don't think that they will just have the software programmed to disable all subscription services if you do that?

Possibly in the future, but was mainly responding to the idea of them doing that to existing trucks.

I sure hope they don’t try this. They could easily make it a nightmare with no easy way around like pulling the modem fuse. I do think there would be motivated people to crack the system and hack it though if they tried this.

Would open up a can of worms regarding warranty issues and be like the jailbreak scene for smartphones.

 

[GodzillaDude]

This is why the right to repair laws are so important. I can easily imagine a future where you own the physical car, but not the software that runs any of the features. The car manufacturer owns the software and you have to pay a subscription licensing fee to access the features. Carmakers will love this because it will be a source residual revenue stream. But imagine having to pay a recurring monthly fee for the life of the vehicle for access to something you already paid for like the massaging seats in the platinum trim

 

[TJ Carr]

Seems like my Ford app gets less features with every update.

From what I understand FCA is already doing it with its U Connect program, once the free trial subscription runs out it goes dead & it’s like ford pass, but you have to pay for it to work

 

[TJ Carr]

Possibly in the future, but was mainly responding to the idea of them doing that to existing trucks.

They can turn off the ford pass app without any issues & force you to pay for it

 

[ccw]

They can turn off the ford pass app without any issues & force you to pay for it

That's fair. I guess since I pulled the modem I essentially disabled the Ford Pass app for myself.

 

[Truck]

Unless you're renting, it makes little sense in the context of vehicles since you already paid for the physical items that facilitate that feature

 

[GodzillaDude]

Unless you're renting, it makes little sense in the context of vehicles since you already paid for the physical items that facilitate that feature

It makes no sense at all for owner/consumer and a lot of dollars and cents for the manufacturer because they get to keep collecting money as long as the vehicle is still in service

 

[Jericho]

It makes no sense at all for owner/consumer and a lot of dollars and cents for the manufacturer because they get to keep collecting money as long as the vehicle is still in service

You will own nothing and you will be happy.

 

[Driftwood]

I think this is a terrible idea. I hope FORD stays well away from this.