Volkswagen Is Locking Horsepower Behind a Paywall

Automackers are embracing subscriptions, whether they like users or not, most of us are moving beyond finding acceptable. BMW tried to receive a monthly fee for hot seats, but consumers did not cut. At the opposite end of the spectrum, Mercedes Benz still offers an increase in acceleration for its EQ models, which initially costs 200,200 a year, and it is an idea that Volkswagen is borrowing for electric ID.3 in the UK.

Auto Express First it was reported that the automaker’s user site in the UK market adds ID.3 Pro and Pro to the list of 201 horsepower instead of a complete 228-HP output. OK prints say that owners “can activate optional power upgrade for fees.” VW owners offer a one -month free trial, monthly or annual subscription, or the ability to buy it for a lifetime of car.

Those costs are: at today’s exchange rate, £ 16.50 per month, £ 165, or £ 649, which is. This is a strange decision and which does not have much financial meaning for the buyer in the car, which costs about $ 50,000. Extra cost is so small to be hidden in the MSRP, and most people will likely be ready to pay the front.

But this paywill feels like an unnecessary obstacle designed for nickel and diamond consumers who are leasing instead of buying. Automoto News Europe It was reported at the end of 2023 that more than 40 % of the lease in the UK had electric vehicles, so the person who has a car for only a few years can save a few hundred dollars.

It does not seem to be worth it, and thankfully VW is not doing so in the United States, but it shows where the industry stands and what it is thinking. The automated industry is looking for a series of new taxes during a complex and expensive time, and the revenue from thousands or millions of drivers is attractive.

You think spending tens of thousands of dollars will guarantee that you can buy a full car and fully owned, but when the software sits between the user and the original hardware, this is not the case. Software licenses and closing user license contracts ban ownership, while the Digital Millennium Copyright Act orders what the user can do and do with this license.

In 2023, Mazda sent a developer a ceasefire and a letter of name that had integration that attached Mazda’s vehicles to Home Assistant, an open source home automation software. The car maker accused the developer of violating the “copyright ownership”, which provided similar activities offered by Mazda through his apps. Although DMCA allows owners to edit themselves, it is illegal to distribute software or tools for it, especially if it violates copyright, and today’s cars are full of copyright software.

US automakers are already arguing in court that consumers do not have the full owners of the vehicles for which they have paid, they have tried to limit the rules of right from the right, pointing to software and software licenses. Since automakers have embedded in more software cars, EVs or ice, it will access and easier pay -walling horsepower, safety features, or other hardware features because you may not own someone else’s copyright code, and VW’s UK experience should be a red alert for car buyers everywhere.