Here’s an imaginary scenario to ponder.
You bought a new tractor in the winter and now it’s summer so you decide to turn on the air conditioner.
Only, nothing happens.
When you phone the dealer, you’re asked if you activated the subscription service.
Say what now?
It turns out the air conditioner works only if you pay a monthly fee to the manufacturer, similar to satellite radio.
Seem far-fetched? Maybe, but automobile manufacturers have already started flirting with the idea.
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BMW raised eyebrows two years ago when it unveiled a new subscription model that included its advanced driver assistance systems and electronically controlled shock absorbers.
However, what really grabbed everyone’s attention was the company’s plan to charge an extra fee to use the heated seats.
Then, late last year, Toyota announced it was thinking about charging an extra subscription fee to use its key fob to start its vehicles remotely.
Consumer outrage was intense, and in December the company appeared to back down from that plan.
The argument for adding more features to a subscription service is that it allows vehicle owners to use the features only when they need them. So, for example, they could pay for heated seats in the winter and not the summer. And, in my imaginary scenario, they would pay for air conditioning only in the summer and not when the tractor is sitting in the yard under two feet of snow.
The other argument is that it streamlines production by allowing all features to be built into all vehicles rather than making one model with heated seats and another without. Owners could then decide which features they wanted by subscribing to them.
I’m not sure I buy that because you would think the cost of all those features would be priced into the vehicle when it was first produced, whether they’re used or not.
Anyway, not all car companies have bought into this.
Jim Farley, chief executive officer of Ford, said earlier this year that he would be “surprised if we charged for heated seats.”
So while it doesn’t look like we’re going to have to pay a monthly fee to use our vehicle’s air conditioner any time soon, rest assured that the auto manufacturers are definitely thinking about it.
