Tesla had earlier announced that it will be planning to implement fees on a few of the in-car data from July 2018. But, due to some reasons, the implementation did not take place. The owners have finally coughed up saying that the automakers will have the charges applied to customers who have ordered on or after July 1, 2018. The company will switch the customers to 30-day trials of Premium Connectivity followed by a subscription for $10 per month in order to enjoy using the functionality. The customers who have made orders before July 1, 2018, will have access to all features without any charges.
It is not that bad but the only drawback is that the customers will not have access to satellite maps and live traffic visualizations in the basic tier (Standard Connectivity). The accessibility to web browsing, media streaming, and Caraoke would still be available but for that, one must be connected to the Wi-Fi. The phone data can help the customers reclaim all the functionality. However, the phone data cannot help one get through the entire tour of the in-car data. Tesla had started displaying the changes in the data caps right from September 2018. However, the basic concern is that the increase in data costs. The cost hike is not actually a burden for the customers as purchasing an SUV and putting in $120 per year to enjoy the satellite and music facilities is not that bad. All these years, the no-charge access to data features has been Tesla’s plus point and there are definitely going to some unhappy customers.
Similarly, Tesla’s Model 3 that was built in the Shanghai car plant has been added on a list of vehicles eligible for subsidies, as per the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. The buyers will be eligible for a subsidy of approximately 25,000 Yuan from the government. The subsidy is, in fact, a bonus for the automaker as the company plans to sell the vehicles right from the car plant in China. Earlier in October, Tesla had stated that it will be selling the locally built vehicle for $50,000. In short, China-made vehicles will be qualified for subsidies.