Be Sure To Ask About Your New Car’s Subscriptions

There was a time when buying a new car was pretty simple. You bought the car, and everything installed on it was yours. The radio worked. The navigation system worked. You pushed the remote-start button and the engine started. Nobody came back three years later and said, “Your free trial has expired. Would you like to continue using that feature?”

Those days are disappearing.

Today’s vehicles are becoming rolling computers, and along with all the amazing technology has come something consumers are already familiar with everywhere else in their lives: subscriptions.

I’m not suggesting subscriptions are inherently bad. Some connected services cost automakers money to provide continuously, and many are genuinely useful. What bothers me is when somebody spends $40,000, $60,000 or $80,000 on a new vehicle and doesn’t understand which features are included permanently, which come with a complimentary trial and which will require another payment later.

That’s why I think every new-car shopper should add one question to the list:

“Show me everything on this vehicle that I’ll eventually have to pay for again.”

And don’t settle for “I think that’s included.” Get the details.

Ford provides a good example of how much the automobile business is changing. Its Connected Navigation is currently offered on select vehicles for $7.99 per month or $79.95 annually after the applicable complimentary trial. Ford also offers a broader Connectivity Package on certain models that can include navigation, an unlimited Wi-Fi hotspot and entertainment and connectivity features. Ford currently lists that package at $14.99 per month or $149.95 per year after its included period, with a $745 seven-year option also available on eligible vehicles. Features, availability and trial periods vary by vehicle.

Toyota has its own approach. On eligible vehicles, its current Connected Services offerings include a $15-per-month Music Lover plan, a $15-per-month Go Anywhere plan and a $25-per-month Premium plan. Depending on the plan, services can include Remote Connect, cloud navigation, Destination Assist, Intelligent Assistant and integrated streaming. Toyota says Remote Connect can provide functions such as remote starting, locking and unlocking doors, locating the vehicle and checking vehicle status.

BMW says the initial setup and basic ConnectedDrive features are complimentary, but additional subscription services may be available after an initial trial period depending on the vehicle. Its connected ecosystem can include features such as real-time traffic information, remote functions and other digital services.

Mercedes-Benz similarly offers connected-vehicle services that can include navigation assistance, emergency services, remote engine start and maintenance alerts, depending on the vehicle and service.

The point isn’t that Ford, Toyota, BMW or Mercedes-Benz are doing something wrong. They are examples of a much larger change taking place across the industry. Connected services require cellular networks, servers, software development, mapping data and continual support, so there are legitimate ongoing costs associated with providing many of them.

My concern is consumer awareness.

If I’m buying a vehicle, I want to know what I’m buying.

There is an important distinction between paying for an ongoing service and paying repeatedly to use hardware that’s already sitting in the car. Navigation with constantly updated traffic information is a service. An onboard Wi-Fi connection is a service. Satellite radio is a service. Emergency-response systems and cloud-based features require infrastructure long after the vehicle leaves the assembly plant.

Consumers can decide whether those services are worth the money.

Where buyers tend to get aggravated is when something they thought was simply a feature of their vehicle stops working because a complimentary period ended.

Imagine test-driving a new vehicle. The salesperson remotely starts it from a smartphone, demonstrates the built-in navigation, shows you real-time traffic information and walks you through the connected app. You love all of it.

Three years later, an email arrives telling you that some services are expiring.

Were you buying those features, or were you test-driving a subscription?

That’s something you should know before you buy the car.

It can become even more confusing with used vehicles. Depending on the manufacturer and vehicle, a used car may come with a complimentary trial of certain connected services. That means a feature demonstrated on the used-car lot may not necessarily remain available indefinitely without a subscription.

This is why I want shoppers to spend a few extra minutes on technology during the buying and delivery process.

Ask the salesperson to show you every connected service included with the vehicle. Ask which ones are permanent. Ask which are trials. Ask exactly when each trial expires and what each service costs afterward. Ask whether the price is fixed or subject to change. Ask what functionality remains if you don’t renew.

That last question may be the most important one.

For example, Ford says that when a Connected Navigation subscription expires on certain systems, functionality can be reduced to a moving map without destination routing or turn-by-turn guidance. On some older Connected Built-In Navigation systems, offline turn-by-turn navigation remains but live services such as traffic, weather and map updates go away.

That’s the kind of distinction I want to understand while I’m still deciding which vehicle to buy.

I’d also ask whether there is a prepaid option. If you know you’re going to keep the vehicle for seven or eight years and you absolutely love a particular connected feature, a multiyear option may make more sense than paying monthly. But do the math yourself. Don’t buy seven years of something simply because the monthly equivalent looks inexpensive.

And remember that subscriptions accumulate.

Fifteen dollars doesn’t sound like much. Neither does $10. Nor does $25. But start adding connected services to the subscriptions many households already have for streaming television, music, phones, cloud storage and everything else, and suddenly you’re paying a significant amount of money every month for things that once weren’t part of the family budget.

This also matters when comparing two vehicles.

Suppose Vehicle A costs $500 more than Vehicle B, but a feature you consider essential is permanently included on Vehicle A while Vehicle B requires a subscription after the first year. The less expensive vehicle may eventually become the more expensive one.

That’s why I think we’re reaching the point where consumers need to consider subscription costs as part of the cost of ownership, right along with insurance, fuel, maintenance and depreciation.

I don’t expect automakers to stop offering subscription services. In fact, I expect we’ll see more of them. Software-defined vehicles make it increasingly possible for manufacturers to add, upgrade and sell features long after a car leaves the factory. There are benefits to that. Your vehicle may gain capabilities years after you bought it, and you may be able to purchase a feature later that you didn’t think you needed on the day you bought the car.

But transparency is everything.

I don’t object to paying for something I want. I object to discovering later that I was only borrowing something I thought I’d already bought.

So, the next time you’re sitting in a new vehicle and the salesperson demonstrates all those impressive screens, apps and connected features, don’t just ask what they do.

Ask what they cost.

Ask how long they’re included.

And most importantly, ask what happens when you stop paying.

Because these days, the payment on your new car may not necessarily end with the bank.