Mercedes-Benz To Charge $1200/yr for EQ Performance Upgrade

MellowJohnny

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Yep, $1200 a year to increase horsepower & drop 0-60 times on certain EQ models.

So, what exactly does Mercedes' $1200-plus-per-year performance upgrade get you? Depending on the model, it's said to reduce the EV's zero-to-60-mph time between 0.8 and 1.0 second. The only models the company lists are the all-wheel-drive EQE350 4Matic and EQS450 4Matic in both sedan and SUV configurations.

Along with quicker acceleration, Mercedes says the Acceleration Increase package increases the maximum output of the electric motors. Along with more torque, the EQE350 models gain 60 horsepower (349 total), and EQS450 models add 87 horsepower (443 total).


https://www.caranddriver.com/news/a...on-increase-annual-subscription-1200-dollars/

Reminds me of a comedian who was riffing on the old Arm & Hammer ads suggesting consumers "sprinkle a little around the rim of the garbage can" to remove odours. He pictured the ad team one-upping each other: "Hey, I bet I can get people to buy it, take it home, and throw it away!"

Merc marketing guys: I bet I can get people to pay for something they already bought!
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Lord Polymath

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1200 per year
 

ohmslaw

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This makes sense to me; other subscription services not so much.
They will be pushing more power; pushing components closer to limits. This will lead to more part failures and more warranty claims. Please donā€™t lump this with heated seat subscriptions and other hardware disabling subscriptions.
 
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MellowJohnny

MellowJohnny

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This makes sense to me; other subscription services not so much.
They will be pushing more power; pushing components closer to limits. This will lead to more part failures and more warranty claims. Please donā€™t lump this with heated seat subscriptions and other hardware disabling subscriptions.
I just don't agree with any of them. I feel like subscription models are all the rage, and car companies are jumping on the bandwagon to cash in any way they can. They make sense to me when it's a service, but when it's other things like unlocking something already there it seems like a money grab.

But I guess it's not much different than paying up front for Polestar tuning on a Volvo (my only point of reference). At least with a subscription you can cancel it if you don't see the value.

Anyway, I thought it was interesting.
 


mdolan92869

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My first 3 cars had crank windows. My first 2 cars had no A/C, or as my dad called it, 4/60 A/C, all 4 windows down and 60 mph on the freeway. I used to buy a Thomas Brothers guide every couple of years and have mapping on my phone. Hell, I used to drive uphill both ways to school! :p I think I could live without subscriptions If this is what auto makers see as the future.
 

Blue highway

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This makes sense to me; other subscription services not so much.
They will be pushing more power; pushing components closer to limits. This will lead to more part failures and more warranty claims. Please donā€™t lump this with heated seat subscriptions and other hardware disabling subscriptions.
I see this differently. Both heated seats and engine power are already hereā€¦. It is simply the next chapter in auto companies trying to move from sales to a renewing revenue model.
 

zephiyr

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Well I guess some aspiring Merc exec saw Elon charging $15k for FSD vaporware and getting away with it so they got some ideas.

Subscriptions for hardware already on the car really rustles my jimmies.
 

Murse-In-Airy

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I paid a few thousand extra for a GT-PE over a GT. If I were making monthly payments on a 3 year lease, I guess that would be fairly close to $1200/yr for my ā€œspeed upgradeā€ (once interest is factored in). But I do prefer to front load my costs so I paid upfront and now itā€™s mine, 5 second limit and all.

For people who lease or trade cars frequently, this might kinda make sense šŸ¤·
 

mkhuffman

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I understand why they are doing it but I don't like it. A car isn't software. If the hardware has the capability, and I own it, I should be able to use all that capability. It seems they think my private property is partially owned by them. I don't like it at all.
 

randomvoice

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Sorry but no amount of mental gymnastics makes this shit right. I get the argument of 'oh you do pay a premium to get a higher performance variant and this is just that money distributed over the years' but something about your car being 'artificially slowed' until you pay a ransom is just taking it too far. We're entering into the world of microtransactions that you see with mobile and now multi-player gaming and it is a very slippery slope.

Where does this shit stop? Pay a yearly fee to unlock wireless charging! Pay a yearly fee to open your frunk/trunk more than n times! Pay a yearly fee to unlock the rear doors so you can ride with your family!
 

Jimrpa

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This makes sense to me; other subscription services not so much.
They will be pushing more power; pushing components closer to limits. This will lead to more part failures and more warranty claims. Please donā€™t lump this with heated seat subscriptions and other hardware disabling subscriptions.
Your argument is that itā€™s ok for them to ask you to prepay increased maintenance costs because theyā€™ve made a deliberate design decision to use lower performance/quality parts with increased failure rates? In a $100K plus luxury vehicle?
 

Jimrpa

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And I thought Hyundai charging $200 a year for their app was ridiculous, of course nothing will be as bad as paying $15k to maybe get the chance to be a beta tester.
Iā€™m being forced to beta test that crappy software against my will and nobody is reimbursing me!
By the simple fact that those vehicles are roaming the public roadways with what the manufacturer openly advertises as beta software is exposing me to an unreasonable risk beyond normal driving that Iā€™ve never agreed to.
 

ohmslaw

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Your argument is that itā€™s ok for them to ask you to prepay increased maintenance costs because theyā€™ve made a deliberate design decision to use lower performance/quality parts with increased failure rates? In a $100K plus luxury vehicle?
No, my argument as an engineer that builds these things is that parts have ratings. If you are a good engineer you design under the limits of the part for a long life. If you start pushing closer to the limits more failures will occur. They did the math and determined that this is what they can charge to make some money and cover the warranty claims.
Take a turbo ICE car for example. There is always more power left on the table. Are you mad that they donā€™t have the boost cranked up to the absolute limit? I mean the hardware is there; use it right?

Boolean things like heated seats or ambient lighting should NOT be a subscription. The hardware is there and warranty claims should not be an issue with things like that. (Unless itā€™s like a MEGA HEAT or SUPER BRIGHT AMBIENT; where they start pushing parts to the limit)
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