Hi all,
I read
Marty's post re Apple CarPlay subscription not being free. However, I feel that my story is different enough to start a new thread.
I am very close to reaching a deal for an 2020-build M2 Competition.
With all the news about the CarPlay being offered for free, I contacted my dealer and asked them to revise their quote and remove the 'unlimited' subscription fee of $450.
My dealer told me that they received a bulletin from BMW Australia in regards to CarPlay. It is still a cost option!! Thinking that the dealer must have misunderstood, I rang BMW HQ and spoke with the customer service consultant.
The consultant informed me that it is only free for car models running the latest Infotainment system (i.e. iDrive 7). If you are buying a new car, but if it runs older Infotainment system (iDrive 6), the 'activation cost' is $450. So as they put it, revised discounted unlimited subscription is $450.
So, Apple CarPlay is free on a AUD$70,000 M135i, but it costs $450 on a AUD$115,000 M2 Competition. That doesn't make sense to me. If BMW is going to offer it for free, do it across the board.
The BMW consultant offered to speak with ConnectDrive Manager for Australia to seek clarification. I informed the consultant, it was unpalatable when BMW charged everyone for a feature $25,000 Hyundai offered for free (it is wireless vs wired but I would happily use wired CarPlay). Now that their pricing structure discriminates against vehicles with previous generation ConnectedDrive, it is even more unappetising.
I informed the consultant that I will hold off making a purchase of a new vehicle until CarPlay on M2C is offered for free. With plummeting new car sales figures, one would hope that BMW will standardise their pricing across the board.
Let's see if I will hear back from them.