Mercedes Introduces Annual Subscription To Boost Vehicle Efficiency

Mercedes-Benz Group AG DMLRY plans to charge owners of its upcoming line of expensive electric cars a subscription fee of $1,200 a year to boost their ability to accelerate quickly, New York Post reports.
The subscription package, designed for Mercedes' upcoming EQ all-electric models, resembles Tesla Inc's TSLA "Ludacris mode" introduced in 2016, which gives drivers an acceleration boost for a one-time fee of $10,000.
The package will only cost car owners $100 a month.
Similar performance improvements typically cost well over $1,200 if paid for upfront. Still, the move toward subscription car features means owners cannot resell a vehicle for its features, as they would if the components were built in.
The package will shave off just under one second on getting from zero to 60 miles per hour, Bloomberg reports.
It will deactivate if the customer does not pay the fee again in another 12 months.
"Fine tuning of the electric motors increases the maximum motor output of your Mercedes-EQ by 20 to 24%," the company said.
Mercedes offered the function on some of its flagship EQS sedan and EQS SUV models and some of its EQE sedan and EQE SUV models.
Bayerische Motoren Werke AG BMWYY faced so much backlash in July for trying to charge $18 a month for heated seats that the company released a public statement defending the decision.
Price Action: TSLA shares traded higher by 1.94% at $186.75 in the premarket on the last check Friday.
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