Chevy Is the First Major Car Company with Unlimited LTE Data

Megalith

Megalith

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Those of you who are in the market for a Chevy are getting a pretty cool perk: unlimited in-car data for $20 per month. That’s a damn good price, and the car manufacturer was able to pull that off due to the sheer number of OnStar LTE-equipped cars they have managed to sell so far (over 3 million).

Chevy said last year that Silverado, Suburban and Tahoe drivers consumed the most data using their hotspots for work. After that, it's families amusing their little ones with movies and videos, followed by Spotify and other music streamers. In 14 of Chevy's 2016 models, its MyLink infotainment system is compatible with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, making it fairly easy for nearly anyone to connect their smartphone. Chevy gets its data from AT&T, which rolled out its own unlimited plan last month, then tweaked it with free tethering and video streaming options after a storm of criticism. That follows a new carrier trend to unlimited data, as Verizon and T-Mobile both added new unlimited plans. As car-based LTE is a more niche product, it's hard to say whether Chevy rivals like Ford, with its Verizon-powered SmartLink system, will follow suit.
 
If they offer this one the new Cruze with a diesel I might be interested enough to change my work car.

I dunno about that hatchback though.
 
Ducman69 said:
Yeah, I'd be pissed if someone gave me a Chevy Corvette Z06 3LZ. I'll take an awesome sex-mobile Toyota Camry any day! Sorry, I think I pulled something sarcasming so hard.
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Oh I hate jap cars even more. Still even Chevy's top tier cars are made of cheap ugly plastic.
 
WTF? $20 a month? For a price of a car it could be complimentary for at least a few years.
 
People complain about how "now days" a normal family doesn't have any money where back in the 50's you could support a family on a single income. Well back in the 50's they didn't have Wi-Fi in their cars to pay for. First world problems.

Pass.
 
Krenum said:
We're not talking about Fords here. :smuggrin:
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I think Ford is actually ranked higher than Chevy on reliability, although its totally moot from a powertrain standpoint.

Even the crappiest cars these days generally have very reliable powertrains. Usually what breaks inside of warranty isn't the engine or something, but the boatload of electronics in the vehicle, throwing codes for automatic windshield wiper malfunction or active-suspension computer controlled dampers, etc.
 
WetMacula said:
Just bought a MK7 Golf R and plan on performing surgery soon to remove the CarNet module.
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Why though? Unless you don't own the title, the only possible downside to it I can think of is that they can use the location for repo purposes.
 
Locating the vehicle if stolen would be nice but I'm not paying a monthly fee. Downsides are location tracking, hot mic, remote disabling/unlocking, capturing power train data, remote hacking, maybe adjusting insurance based on driving data (in the future). No desire to have my car connected to a remote network.
 
WetMacula said:
Locating the vehicle if stolen would be nice but I'm not paying a monthly fee. Downsides are location tracking, hot mic, remote disabling/unlocking, capturing power train data, remote hacking, maybe adjusting insurance based on driving data (in the future). No desire to have my car connected to a remote network.
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A lot of those are actually good things IMO.

Someone can say "this car is using way too much oil", and they can come back and say "well, according to this, every weekend you drive at extremely high rates of speed in triple digits, with extreme G-forces, in proximity of a race-track, with sustained RPMs near redline... high oil usage is normal under extreme conditions". Likewise, for people that buy cars they can't afford, VW can locate the vehicle, disable it, and unlock the doors for the tow truck driver. Likewise, insurance adjustments based on driving data would mean that people pay premiums that more accurately reflect their risk (if it shows that the blinker has never been used for example, its an unsafe driver that increases risk and should increase contribution to that risk-pool accordingly).

These are things that reduce the cost of ownership for normal responsible drivers. *shrugs*
 
Ducman69 said:
A lot of those are actually good things IMO.

Someone can say "this car is using way too much oil", and they can come back and say "well, according to this, every weekend you drive at extremely high rates of speed in triple digits, with extreme G-forces, in proximity of a race-track, with sustained RPMs near redline... high oil usage is normal under extreme conditions". Likewise, for people that buy cars they can't afford, VW can locate the vehicle, disable it, and unlock the doors for the tow truck driver. Likewise, insurance adjustments based on driving data would mean that people pay premiums that more accurately reflect their risk (if it shows that the blinker has never been used for example, its an unsafe driver that increases risk and should increase contribution to that risk-pool accordingly).

These are things that reduce the cost of ownership for normal responsible drivers. *shrugs*
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Big brother watching will lead to huge repercussions that benefit the corporations at the expense of the general consumer. It's a nightmare.
 
pretty good deal i would say. i am paying 20 per month for 4 gigs in my audi.
 
you know, LTE only matters if it's actual LTE speed. I'm curious what network they're running on that's giving them LTE speeds effective as an MVNO.
 
I'm going to have to check in on this. I recently bought a silverado high country and when I looked $20 only got you 4GB of data.
 
bos said:
you know, LTE only matters if it's actual LTE speed. I'm curious what network they're running on that's giving them LTE speeds effective as an MVNO.
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They operate on AT&Ts network. I had my ATS data plan attached to my AT&T family plan. I may switch back over.

Unless I am out in the middle of no where, I have gotten LTE/broadband speeds everywhere in the car, where you would expect to get LTE on your phone. Sometimes I have been able to get a signal in places where phone by itself would not (better/larger antenna?).

You will of course get a slower connection speed if you are in an area that there is no LTE coverage, that is a given.
 
No way would I add an extra bill on my plate for this when I already have to pay for my cell phone. I'm not going to sit in my car and stream video while driving.
 
Or you could just tether with your phone. How much data are you using in your car? It better be a lot to justify adding 20 bucks to your cell bill (which is what they're doing).
 
Both my Chevy's have the LTE (2016.5 Cruze and 2016 Traverse). I'm paying $10 for 2GB a month. I use ~500MB or so, MAX. I really should use it a lot more. Time to kick it up a bit and use it for streaming music in the car.
 
I am so glad my car does not have that crap.... it might be nice if you have a family on a road trip... but since I have no kids and I only stream music when driving. I'm good using my phone.
 
B00nie said:
So when it breaks down and leaves you stranded, you can at least surf while waiting for the tow car...
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It is funny you say that, because last June I purchased a new Ford Focus and it broke down 5 times in 3 months. Let not even talk about the 2 recalls that have already been done on it plus I received a recall letter a couple weeks ago about the fuel system.
 
YeuEmMaiMai said:
I am so glad my car does not have that crap.... it might be nice if you have a family on a road trip... but since I have no kids and I only stream music when driving. I'm good using my phone.
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Supposedly the advantages are:
1) Bigass antenna in the car is supposed to get great reception in the boonz.

2) You can toss a couple regular tablets in the car, which is cheaper than sourcing far less common 4G LTE tablets.

3) If you bring your laptop out with you on occasion, you can do some browsing without having to put your phone in hotspot mode (if your carrier even allows that without an additional fee), which is also a hassle to do regularly compared to an instantly available hotspot.

4) It allows the manufacturer's own proprietary hardware to have an internet connection, so the headunit itself can hit up streaming audio services.

5) If Chevy is using a different carrier, you have redundancy with your mobile device, because sometimes one carrier will drop while another will have a tower in range while traveling. Its what I specifically looked for in my 4G tablets in my car to not be the same Verizon carrier as my phone, as its important to me to have two carriers and two GPS capable units for peace-of-mind redundancy. Not having that is like driving without a spare tire... fine most of the time, but potentially a headache waiting to happen.
 
Will this apply to cars a couple years old?

Looking for a family sedan wife and Chevy SS is on the list. Looks like SS got the LTE stuff starting in 2015.
 
Instead of having a dish on a house which some people can not get...Internet for my house from my car?
Maybe connecting the two by some broad band over powerlines method?
 
lostinseganet said:
Instead of having a dish on a house which some people can not get...Internet for my house from my car?
Maybe connecting the two by some broad band over powerlines method?
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I like your thinking.....tether a laptop and then "share" the connection to your house.

I'm sure they have a plan in place for this abuse, but then again.....
 
Hate to say it, but the unlimited LTE offering wont help my decision of the '18 ZL1/1LE vs the '18 JGC TrackHawk.
 
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