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Remote Start from the App for $86/Year

2750 Views 34 Replies 19 Participants Last post by SDBoltEUV, 4 mo ago

The_Dragon

Discussion Starter · 5 mo ago

I know this can be a controversial topic but I was just able to get a year of OnStar’s lowest level service (all I want is remote start via the app) for $86. This was a low enough amount of money to make it worth keeping for me.

Reactions: 4

21 - 35 of 35 Posts

BoltEUV

· #21 · 4 mo ago

SteveWilson1983 said:
Not a chance I'll get a car w monthly fees. I'd sooner look for a car that includes the features I want, since I already paid for it. Though, unfortunately, there will be enough people willing to pay "just a little bit", that this will undoubtedly grow over time. Can't wait till I have to pay $0.25 every time I want to roll down my window. Iirc, bmw was trying to charge a monthly fee for heated seats..

BMW was also trying to charge a fee of wireless Apple CarPlay until enough customer complained so they made it free for 20 years or sometime silly like that.

Reactions: 2

SpicyBolt

· #22 · 4 mo ago

accelerus said:
It's a joke, and why OnStar will continue to lose money and circle the drain.

Where did you get that information?

I found this just now with a Google search.

www.fool.com

Why Wall Street Loves This New Car Option That Drivers Hate | The Motley Fool

Consumers are resisting automakers' attempts to use in-car electronics to deliver additional services and revenue, but that is likely to change.

www.fool.com

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Reactions: 1

jrfk2

· #23 · 4 mo ago

stevepriority said:
If the car connects to my wifi, why would I pay a monthly fee? I get if I want it to remote start out in a desert somewhere, but when it's at home and on my own wifi? Come on GM.

Whew! I got a newer phone to be able to use the Chevy app .. and was worried I would lose the remote start / charging status as I don't intend to pay for OnStar .. but as long as the car is connected to my home wi-fi (which it is) I'm still good?

I know at home I can start it with the fob, just a little more convenient from the phone.

LoneR

· #24 · 4 mo ago

jrfk2 said:
...was worried I would lose the remote start / charging status as I don't intend to pay for OnStar ...

You misunderstood his sarcasm.

jrfk2

· #25 · 4 mo ago

LoneR said:
You misunderstood his sarcasm.

Ahh ... so without OnStar, the Chevy app is useless?

LoneR

· #26 · 4 mo ago

jrfk2 said:
Ahh ... so without OnStar, the Chevy app is useless?

Specifically, remote start which is included with the "Remote Access" plan.

Vinson

· #27 · 4 mo ago

My chevy app works really good so far. It's not hit or miss when I send commands. But I believe that it might not work for others the same way it's been working for me.
If it starts giving me problems that they can't fix I'll just cancel it. That's the beauty of it for me.

BoltinThru

· #28 · 4 mo ago

Great deal. I got them down to $9.59 a month, but honestly, I didn't think to try to get them to go lower. I use the app to start my car daily due to where I'm parked vs where I work. So for me, totally worth it. Those who are never far from their car, it might seem like a ripoff even at $86 a year, but those folks fail to see that there could be legitimate reasons to need it and assume that we're all time them. And you know what they say about people who assume.... 😉

BobBolt

· #29 · 4 mo ago

Vinson said:
My chevy app works really good so far. It's not hit or miss when I send commands. But I believe that it might not work for others the same way it's been working for me.
If it starts giving me problems that they can't fix I'll just cancel it. That's the beauty of it for me.

I agree. The Energy Assist function can be flaky at times but it calculates distances and charging times perfectly when it works.

accelerus

· #30 · 4 mo ago

SpicyBolt said:
Where did you get that information?
found this just now with a Google search.

Why Wall Street Loves This New Car Option That Drivers Hate | The Motley Fool

Consumers are resisting automakers' attempts to use in-car electronics to deliver additional services and revenue, but that is likely to change.

www.fool.com

When your revenue stream mostly relies on customers forgetting to cancel a useless/outdated service, that means it's a shitty business. There are still people who pay for AOL internet, I know because one of them is a nearly 80 year old family member (who even after explaining they are wasting money) still won't get rid of it. They simply don't know better things exist.

The handful of times I've interacted with OnStar people - the only thing they care about is getting your credit card number. They didn't care what my problem was or how to fix it, but tried to make it seem like all could be solved if they just had my CC number on file. "Oh sir, we can totally help and make sure your family is okay in case pirates attack you and cause a rollover, we just need to have a CC on file"

Reactions: 1

SpicyBolt

· #31 · 4 mo ago

accelerus said:
When your revenue stream mostly relies on customers forgetting to cancel a useless/outdated service, that means it's a shitty business. There are still people who pay for AOL internet, I know because one of them is a nearly 80 year old family member (who even after explaining they are wasting money) still won't get rid of it. They simply don't know better things exist.

The handful of times I've interacted with OnStar people - the only thing they care about is getting your credit card number. They didn't care what my problem was or how to fix it, but tried to make it seem like all could be solved if they just had my CC number on file. "Oh sir, we can totally help and make sure your family is okay in case pirates attack you and cause a rollover, we just need to have a CC on file"

I'm fine with you hating OnStar, and believing it's a shitty business. It makes no difference to me.

I was just wondering where you got the information that it "will continue to lose money and circle the drain".

accelerus

· #32 · 4 mo ago

SpicyBolt said:
I'm fine with you hating OnStar, and believing it's a shitty business. It makes no difference to me.

I was just wondering where you got the information that it "will continue to lose money and circle the drain".

It's old tech, 20 years ago it might have been great, but everyone carries a full on computer in their pocket or on their wrist with more advanced sensor suites. Every interaction with OnStar had one goal, get my credit card number. Nevermind trying to solve the problem I called about... I'm very "be nice on the phone type" but when they push so hard I literally had to say "stop talking, I'm not giving you my CC number" that's pretty bad. It's not that person's fault, they are reading from a script, they are doing what someone is telling them to do.

They gatekeep the few features they have through their aging cellular network, they could honestly get a lot more interest out of me if they allowed things like interfacing with the car directly, wifi/bluetooth/nfc, there's tons of low cost cheaper and faster options but why innovate when you can just ask for a CC number and hope the customer forgets about auto billing?

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SpicyBolt

· #33 · 4 mo ago (Edited)

accelerus said:
It's old tech, 20 years ago it might have been great, but everyone carries a full on computer in their pocket or on their wrist with more advanced sensor suites. Every interaction with OnStar had one goal, get my credit card number. Nevermind trying to solve the problem I called about... I'm very "be nice on the phone type" but when they push so hard I literally had to say "stop talking, I'm not giving you my CC number" that's pretty bad. It's not that person's fault, they are reading from a script, they are doing what someone is telling them to do.

They gatekeep the few features they have through their aging cellular network, they could honestly get a lot more interest out of me if they allowed things like interfacing with the car directly, wifi/bluetooth/nfc, there's tons of low cost cheaper and faster options but why innovate when you can just ask for a CC number and hope the customer forgets about auto billing?

You will get little argument from me. At the moment anyway, enough people seem to continue to support OnStar with their $$$$ such that it's not circling the drain. At least if the article I linked is to be believed.

Auto billing is widely used by many companies, and if people just let GM take their money every month for a service they no longer even use or like, that's on the customer. Personally, I only pay once annually as it's cheaper that way. So, I sit up and take notice when the billing notification comes around. I'll often call and ask for and receive a loyalty discount too. I know, it's a bunch of BS, but that's my choice to deal with it. And OnStar is improving, at least a bit. My subscription now includes a portable emergency phone app for up to 7 users, at no extra charge.

I have a partial season ticket package to the Minnesota Twins. I pay in monthly installments via Auto bill. If I quit going to games and don't cancel, I'm the idiot. It's not the Twins fault if I pay for tickets I don't use, until the day I die.

You are a smart guy, and would never let any company Auto pay you for stuff you no longer want, like OnStar. So, you are happy not having that service, and I am happy having it. Our money, our choices. Nothing really to argue about. After all, I won't convince you to sign up for OnStar, and you won't convince me to drop it.

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Flyingdock

· #34 · 4 mo ago

After seeing the post of a rate of $86 bucks for the year, I decided to call in myself and see what I could get. I didn't realize when I bought the car that Onstar was like XM radio, just keep saying no. I ended up with a "Remote Key" for $74.12 after taxes annually. This will precondition and unlock the doors with the app.

Reactions: 1

SDBoltEUV

· #35 · 4 mo ago

Like many, I find the app disappointing, and as is, have a hard time justifying paying for it. Maybe if I hadn't had exposure to the Tesla app first it wouldn't have colored my expectations so much. Granted, Tesla cars fall more into the luxury category than the EUV and you pay for it. But they (Tesla) must bypass the Smartcar API because everything just works. Conversely, I've been looking at the other digital key apps for my EUV and they all use the Smartcar API...which has yet been able to send me the code via email to use the app, rendering it useless.

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