Rivals to test subscription services

Both Mercedes-Benz and BMW are preparing to launch vehicle subscription pilots in the U.S. this year. Subscription plans offer customers a vehicle to drive for a monthly fee that includes insurance, maintenance and pickup and delivery. Customers typically can switch among available vehicles based on needs. Mercedes will offer a pilot to figure out whether a subscription model has long-term merit. "We need to learn," Seeger said Monday at the Detroit auto show. "In different markets, we want to try this out." Mercedes is also cautious about what Seeger calls a "big threat" to the subscription model: whether the vehicle you want is available. "On the weekend, if it's sunshine outside and if everybody wants to have a cabriolet, and if I apply five times to have a cabriolet and I don't get it, what does this cause?" Seeger said. Mercedes-Benz hasn't determined where in the U.S. it will pilot the program and when, Seeger said. The automaker has active subscription pilots operating in other countries, she said, citing a Smart-brand program in Italy and a Mercedes-brand program in Germany. BMW is “most likely” going to go forward with a subscription model in the U.S. said BMW North America CEO, Bernhard Kuhnt. "We are in the phase of looking at it and evaluating together with BMW Financial Services," Kuhnt said. "And if we are going to do it, we are going to pilot it first to learn more about it." "At the end of the day, the consumer is going to decide if that's something they want to do," Kuhnt said.