A new startup called Autonomy launches in California as a Tesla subscription service with a fleet of 100 Model 3 vehicles, which it aims to grow to 10,000 Tesla vehicles by the end of the year.
The question is: Who is it for?
The concept of “subscribing” to a car instead of outright buying it or leasing it has gained traction in recent years.
Several automakers and third-party companies have started such services, which have the main advantage of being simpler and requiring less commitment than leases.
Scott Painter, the founder of TrueCar, announced today his new company, Autonomy, will provide a Tesla subscription service.
They bought 100 Model 3 vehicles, which they are offering through a subscription service in California.
As shown above, the company is marketing it as “the cheapest way to get into a Tesla Model 3.”
The service starts at $550 per month, but it requires a steep $5,500 “start fee,” which is more than a deposit on a base Model 3 lease with Tesla.
Tesla Model 3 leases start at ~$480 for a Model 3 RWD and ~$560 for a Long Range.
Autonomy enables you to pay a much lower “start fee,” but it is going to significantly increase the monthly subscription payment:
Of course, if you go through Tesla, you are going to have to wait as the automaker has some significant delivery wait times on new Model 3 orders in the US.
Autonomy claims that they can get you in a car tomorrow as long as they have availabilities in their fleet of 100 Model 3 vehicles.
The company told Bloomberg that it is still buying a lot of Tesla vehicles with a goal of the fleet growing to 500 cars by March and 10,000 cars by the end of the year:
Autonomy has been able to buy cars from Tesla by being flexible on things like color, configuration and wheel choice – features that consumers who are buying cars often have strong feelings about. The company hopes to have 500 Tesla cars by the end of the first quarter and 10,000 by the end of the year. Customers will have access to Tesla’s Supercharging network.
Of course, that’s assuming that the service proves successful.
Autonomy claims that its main advantage is that there’s no long-term commitment since it only requires a three-month minimum subscription, and it is also simple since everything is done through its app with a driver’s license and credit card.
The subscription includes 833 miles per month, and a fee of $0.25 per mile is added if the allowance is exceeded.
What do you think about this Tesla subscription service? Let us know in the comments below.
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Author: Fred Lambert
Source: Electrek
