Subscription features in your car: Are you renting your own vehicle?

Similarly, Ford’s BlueCruise, which enables hands-free driving in certain situations, is available for $49.99 per month or $495 per year.

Credit: Courtesy of McKynzie Steward

Credit: Courtesy of McKynzie Steward

To some, it might make more sense to pay for a subscription to such advanced technology. But automakers haven’t stopped there. For example, remote start is a standard feature in most new cars today. Toyota charges $15 a month for a subscription plan that bundles remote start with other convenience or entertainment features.

In Europe, some Audi models charge owners subscription fees for access to features like automatic high beams, adaptive cruise control and integrated Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.

How this affects consumers

This growing trend raises the question: Do you ever really own your car? Even if you buy your car in full at a dealership, if it comes with a monthly or annual subscription, is the vehicle ever truly yours?

Consumers are rejecting this approach. An S&P Global Mobility survey from 2025 found the number of people willing to pay for connected services via subscription dropped from 86% in 2024 to 68% in 2025.

People are experiencing subscription fatigue. They have too many things they have to pay for every month. For people who are leasing their car and already must make that monthly car payment, adding extra payments for features that come standard on other cars doesn’t seem appealing.

However, some consumers have embraced the subscription model. It allows car buyers to try out a feature and decide whether to keep it or not. This raises questions about what should be standard in a car. Some people enjoy trying out certain features that aren’t necessary, while others think these features should absolutely come with the car at no extra cost, especially for how much they’re paying for the vehicle.

Why have subscriptions become popular?

There’s a big reason car companies can implement these subscription models so easily. Another major trend in car software from technological advances is over-the-air updates. This means instead of having to take your car to a dealer, the software in your car updates automatically, much like your phone does.

OTA updates give automakers an easy way to access your car. They can lock and unlock your vehicle’s features with the push of a button (a virtual one, technically).

Since the world is becoming so accustomed to subscription-based models, car companies are saying, “Hey, why not us, too?” There’s no doubt companies make a lot of money from subscriptions. Netflix alone generated $45 billion in revenue in 2025. Even when these companies raise prices, many people pay.

Some car companies are banking on this sentiment. Often, they start small, like Toyota’s $15-a-month plan. They may believe people might think, “Oh, I can shell out an extra $15 a month, no problem.” But prices are likely to increase. Tesla CEO Elon Musk admitted the $99 monthly subscription for Tesla’s FSD would rise as its capabilities improve. Who’s to say this won’t be the case for any other features?

Automakers are following this trend because they believe people will catch on, just like they do with their other day-to-day subscriptions.

How to push back

Consumer pushback is one of the greatest hurdles for companies wanting to enable in-car subscriptions. Some have already responded to criticism of their attempted subscription-based models. BMW conducted test runs of offering subscriptions for heated seats and heated steering wheels on certain vehicles in multiple countries. The reaction was not positive, and BMW decided to discontinue the subscriptions.

Even lawmakers are stepping in to protect consumers. New York legislators passed a bill in 2025 that would have prohibited automakers from selling hardware-based features as subscriptions if those features already work without additional software. The bill was vetoed by Gov. Kathy Hochul.

The legislation would have prevented features like heated seats, lighting and physical remote start options from costing consumers extra.

But it would not have covered all features. Any features that depend on OTA updates would have remained eligible for subscriptions. This includes features like self-driving modes or navigation systems, which require ongoing data, upgrades and cloud support.

Even though the bill didn’t become law, the legislative effort can still be seen as a step in the right direction. It shows the people are not ready to bear unnecessary extra costs in an increasingly expensive economy.

Before you buy a new or used vehicle, ask the dealership or private seller for a complete list of subscription features and their costs so you can avoid ongoing payments, even after you’ve paid for the car.

McKynzie Steward is an editor for Kelley Blue Book and Autotrader. Her goal is to break down automotive topics by translating complex, technical car information into understandable content for any reader.