Access by BMW gives anyone willing to spend at least $2,000 a month access to a fleet of BMW’s at a moment’s notice.
It’s still normal for people and families to buy or lease a new car to add to their fleet, one at a time. Enter the car subscription service, specifically Access by BMW. According to Bloomberg on their report from earlier yesterday (Apr. 5,2018) BMW, in partnership with certain BMW dealerships in Tennesse, is launching a purely app-based car subscription service where a person pays at least $2,000 a month to have access to a fleet of BMWs. No longer do you have to be chained to one car for the duration of your lease or payment calendar, you can own and enjoy a whole fleet of BMWs.
Unlimited access to the Ultimate Driving Machine. The all-new “Access by BMW” vehicle subscription service delivers your own personal fleet of BMWs right to your door. Download the app & learn more: https://t.co/M2EtNNJhQN pic.twitter.com/e1Xi61o3uI
— BMW USA (@BMWUSA) April 5, 2018
Although I was initially disappointed to find no press release for Access by BMW, I quickly realized that I could download the app myself, which I did.
Currently, there are two tiers, a $3700 a month BMW M tier which puts you into their M5, X6M, M4 convertible among other M cars and there’s their $2,000 a month Legend tier which puts you into their BMW 530e 440 Coupe, and X5 but not their M lineup. For each, their’s a $575 activation fee but that’ll be amortized as the months go on.
According to their FAQ you can switch between BMWs as many times as you like, each BMW delivered to your door (or to a location of your choosing) will be hand-detailed on arrival and included are insurance, maintenance, and roadside assistance.
You can keep your car for as short or as long as you like so technically, you can keep a BMW X1 in your garage month after month, but that wouldn’t make sense.
There was a demo which allows you to test drive the app and everything seems simple enough including stats on how much you’re using their subscription service and how you can switch between cars.
At the end of the day, this subscription service will pay dividends in the long run, if you can afford it. You don’t have to worry about maintenance items like tires, oil changes, and other consumables. You don’t have to insure any of your vehicles. And most importantly for some, you don’t have to drive around a year old model.
It’s a novel idea that makes sense. The only way this subscription service will grow and take off is if more people sign up, which has yet to be seen.