Post by Venturi on Sept 23, 2005 9:22:46 GMT -5
September 15, 2005
BY MICHAEL ELLIS
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Your car could soon send you a monthly e-mail telling you if it needs servicing if you drive a General Motors vehicle equipped with OnStar.
In an effort to attract more customers to OnStar and sell more cars and trucks, GM will use the wireless service to automatically check hundreds of electrical systems, even as you are driving down the road, and send an e-mail notifying owners if anything needs further service.
GM will offer the monthly remote diagnostic check at no additional charge for OnStar subscribers who sign up for the service by pushing the OnStar button in their vehicle or going to the OnStar Web site.
"People really value that the vehicle is smart enough to help them like this," said Chet Huber, president of OnStar.
The free OnStar e-mail is in addition to other OnStar services, such as stolen vehicle location assistance, remote door unlocking, roadside assistance, and notification to a call center and emergency personnel if an air bag deploys.
The new service, available to more than 2 million OnStar subscribers driving 2004 model year GM vehicles or newer, taps the electrical systems on vehicles to monitor the engine, transmission, antilock brakes, air bags and the OnStar system. Older GM vehicles are not equipped with the necessary system for the vehicle diagnostic test.
The remote check cannot assess some parts of a vehicle, such as tire pressure or the torque on a bolt, Huber said. But studies show that consumers will value the service, and Huber estimated about 70 or 75% of eligible OnStar subscribers will sign up for it.
The e-mail will also remind customers when their vehicles are due for servicing and keep them up-to-date on their OnStar account and the number of wireless calling minutes left on their account.
OnStar already conducts more than 28,000 remote diagnostic checks on vehicles each month. The system was already available to consumers; the new service makes it more of a selling point to consumers and a way to build loyalty to the OnStar brand and GM vehicles, said Mark LaNeve, vice president of GM North America vehicle sales, service and marketing.
OnStar is offered as standard equipment on all Cadillac, Hummer, Buick and Saturn brand vehicles, and is available on more than 50 GM vehicles. GM plans to make OnStar a standard service on all GM vehicles in the next few years. OnStar is also available on some Acura, Audi, Isuzu and Volkswagen models. But only GM will offer the e-mail notifications.
OnStar is free for one year on many GM vehicles. OnStar costs $199 a year for the basic package or $399 a year for the "directions and connections" service, which also includes driving assistance and directions from an OnStar operator.
BY MICHAEL ELLIS
FREE PRESS BUSINESS WRITER
Your car could soon send you a monthly e-mail telling you if it needs servicing if you drive a General Motors vehicle equipped with OnStar.
In an effort to attract more customers to OnStar and sell more cars and trucks, GM will use the wireless service to automatically check hundreds of electrical systems, even as you are driving down the road, and send an e-mail notifying owners if anything needs further service.
GM will offer the monthly remote diagnostic check at no additional charge for OnStar subscribers who sign up for the service by pushing the OnStar button in their vehicle or going to the OnStar Web site.
"People really value that the vehicle is smart enough to help them like this," said Chet Huber, president of OnStar.
The free OnStar e-mail is in addition to other OnStar services, such as stolen vehicle location assistance, remote door unlocking, roadside assistance, and notification to a call center and emergency personnel if an air bag deploys.
The new service, available to more than 2 million OnStar subscribers driving 2004 model year GM vehicles or newer, taps the electrical systems on vehicles to monitor the engine, transmission, antilock brakes, air bags and the OnStar system. Older GM vehicles are not equipped with the necessary system for the vehicle diagnostic test.
The remote check cannot assess some parts of a vehicle, such as tire pressure or the torque on a bolt, Huber said. But studies show that consumers will value the service, and Huber estimated about 70 or 75% of eligible OnStar subscribers will sign up for it.
The e-mail will also remind customers when their vehicles are due for servicing and keep them up-to-date on their OnStar account and the number of wireless calling minutes left on their account.
OnStar already conducts more than 28,000 remote diagnostic checks on vehicles each month. The system was already available to consumers; the new service makes it more of a selling point to consumers and a way to build loyalty to the OnStar brand and GM vehicles, said Mark LaNeve, vice president of GM North America vehicle sales, service and marketing.
OnStar is offered as standard equipment on all Cadillac, Hummer, Buick and Saturn brand vehicles, and is available on more than 50 GM vehicles. GM plans to make OnStar a standard service on all GM vehicles in the next few years. OnStar is also available on some Acura, Audi, Isuzu and Volkswagen models. But only GM will offer the e-mail notifications.
OnStar is free for one year on many GM vehicles. OnStar costs $199 a year for the basic package or $399 a year for the "directions and connections" service, which also includes driving assistance and directions from an OnStar operator.
Source: Detroit Free Press
