Odds are you’ve probably heard of OnStar before.
Maybe you own a GM vehicle with that little blue button up near the rear view mirror? And even if you’ve used the OnStar service, we’re betting there are a few things about OnStar you DIDN’T know?
I was able to attend a press trip with OnStar to learn about their newest technologies for 2014. Here are a few things I didn’t know:
- What Does It Cost Anyway? And Why Should I Pay For It?
OnStar has two plans available for your vehicle – Safe & Sound and Directions & Connections. The Safe & Sound plan costs: $19.95/month and includes all of OnStar’s emergency and security services; – Automatic Crash Response, Roadside Assistance, Hands-Free Calling, Remote Door Unlock, Vehicle Diagnostics, and Stolen Vehicle Assistance.The Directions & Connections plan includes all of the services from the Safe & Sound plan, as well as unlimited Turn-by-Turn Navigation for $28.90 per month. You will save if you sign up for one, two or three year plans as well. The peace of mind of the safety plan is well worth the cost and if you’ve ever been lost and your cell phone’s GPS isn’t working, then having help just a little blue button away is priceless! Your car will automatically ‘talk’ to the folks at OnStar if you are ever in a crash where your airbags deploy, without you doing ANYTHING. Ensuring emergency services will be on the way faster than any other way. - Did you know you can make direct phone calls with OnStar?
You can purchase hands-free calling minutes for your car (separate from your cell phone plan). It relies on a cellular connection that is built in to your vehicle designed for better connections and fewer dropped calls. You can make calls by pushing the voice command button and saying the phone number or the stored contact you would like to call. There have been a number of instances where an OnStar connected vehicle has been able to connect victims of a crisis with help and loved ones when a cell phone couldn’t.During the Boston Marathon tragedy people were able to make calls via OnStar when their cell phones were unable to get through. Read about additional OnStar Hands-Free Stories here and here. - Have you seen the cool new OnStar Commercials? Any guess who the voice belongs to?
I THOUGHT I knew that voice??
It’s John Cusack!
See all the other great new videos on the OnStar Youtube Channel. - OnStar is used heavily for Good Samaritan Calls.
There have been more than 700,000 Good Samaritan calls made by OnStar subscribers to date (more than 6,000 in September 2013 alone). These mostly involve drivers pushing their buttons to report an accident or request emergency services for others. There are some great stories on the Connections blog – http://www.onstarconnections.com/tags/good-samaritan/ - Just how many calls does OnStar handle anyway?
A lot more than I thought!!There are 2 calls every second, 185,000 every day. These are calls of all types including turn by turn directions, remote unlock requests and emergency services.5 million button pushes every monthApprox. 155,000 remote door unlocks per monthNearly 78,000 emergency responses per monthApprox. 4,000 Automatic Crash Responses per month - Did you know you can have access to OnStar even if you don’t own a GM vehicle?
Turns out there is a rear view mirror you can install on your car with the little blue button ready for action. It’s called FMV (For My Vehicle) and it costs around $99. What a great gift idea for a new teen driver, a graduation present or for the college student on your list? The pricing plans are similar to the regular OnStar service. Click to learn more about the FMV OnStar Mirror. - You can record OnStar Calls, then play back later.
No need to pull over to take notes during your call with an #OnStar #Advisor. You can record and play back the call to hear Hands-Free calling instructions, driving directions or other information. During the call, press your blue button to start recording, and press it again to stop. Then hit the phone button and say “Advisor Playback” to hear the recording. - OnStar receives a substantial number of suicide related calls.
This was a big surprise to me. But they have created a plan to help people: OnStar has a relationship with the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline. If a motorist mentions being despondent or depressed, the OnStar advisor will connect them directly with the help they need through the hotline. If there is a threat of imminent danger, OnStar will contact 911 right away. For more information about the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline, please visit http://www.suicidepreventionlifeline.org/. - OnStar has created a huge library of Real Stories. Real people who have been saved by OnStar in one way or another. Go. Get a HUGE pile of tissues before clicking this link. I’m WARNING you.
- And the Big Announcement! OnStar is going mobile with their new RemoteLink App. And on new 2014 vehicles it will be a free service for 5 Years!
GM announced earlier this year that it will offer some of its most popular RemoteLink Mobile App services standard for five years on new vehicles purchased in the US or Canada. This is the broadest mobile app offering in the industry – available on the full range of 2014 vehicles – that’s 36 models.
You’ll be able to use your smartphone to lock, unlock, activate horn & lights and remote vehicle start (if equipped from the factory), you’ll have access to the Assist and Vehicle tab giving VIN, dealer info and your OnStar account number are also available.
More Info about OnStar RemoteLink
The full-functional version of RemoteLink includes these services plus gives customers the ability to send navigation directions to their car and access an up-to-date health report of their vehicle anytime they need it, including fuel tank level and range, remaining oil life, current and recommended tire pressure and lifetime average miles-per-gallon that’s accurate as of the last vehicle start. The larger set of services offered by the existing RemoteLink Mobile App is available only during the OnStar trial period or if the customer chooses a paid OnStar subscription.
Why Moms Love OnStar
I spoke with several moms who wouldn’t drive without OnStar. Why I wondered? I mean my cell phone can give me directions right… and I can call if I’m in an emergency?
Well… that’s the whole point.
There are many situations where you can’t call. Or your GPS doesn’t work. And simply to have the peace of mom-mind knowing exactly where your teenager is, and that if anything bad were to happen… OnStar would know BEFORE you did!
Disclosure: I was invited to participate in a weekend of learning as OnStar’s guest; OnStar provided my travel and accommodations for this event. Observations and opinions are all my own.
Carissa Rogers
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Great post. I am one of those moms who went let my teens drive without it. $20 a month is so worth my peace of mind. Worth buying a GM car just for this.
I have a teen who is about to start driving.. I HEAR YOU Barb!! 🙂
Carissa,
May I know the source of the data that you provided in the point #5. I can’t validate this data anywhere on the internet. Thanks for your help.
5. Just how many calls does OnStar handle anyway?
A lot more than I thought!!There are 2 calls every second, 185,000 every day. These are calls of all types including turn by turn directions, remote unlock requests and emergency services.5 million button pushes every monthApprox. 155,000 remote door unlocks per monthNearly 78,000 emergency responses per monthApprox. 4,000 Automatic Crash Responses per month
Read more at https://agirlsguidetocars.com/onstar-10-things-didnt-know/#P1GatogXEskybOUv.99
OnStar gave us these statistics when we visited their headquarters in Detroit, Michigan. We were part of a group of journalists they gave a tour to; these stats may not be publicly available anywhere else.
Well, I can take OnStar or leave it. I recently had an emergency and I found that calling 911 was ten times faster than OnStar. After I had finished my call to 911, I discovered that OnStar still had me on hold. Frustrating.
What if you were unconscious and unable to make that phone call to 911? OnStar would still make the call for you.
is the remote link app free to use to start my 2013 Chevy or don’t have to subscribe (and pay)?
Free as long as your Onstar subscription is active, so no it’s not free.
is the remote link app free to use to start my 2013 Chevy or don’t have to subscribe (and pay)?
If my car is NOT running can I still use my calling minutes ( purchased through onstar )?
I think that hands free should be free period
Do not waste your money on the service. We pay $31.00 a month for on star for our Cadillac SRX, and they left my husband stranded for 6 hours yesterday. Finally, I had to get a friend drive me 50 miles to take him a key. My husband had called numerous times and could not get a person who spoke clear English, and kept telling him they were dispatching someone.
We are canceling on star and going back to good ole AAA, for $50 a year and better local service.
Boo Hoo one bad experience out ways all the positives, as if you were knocked out hanging upside down in your car, keep in mind it is calling help for you. Just cause your husband locked his key in the car and most likely didn’t know his “INFO” to get proper service like account username/pin number etc… to get his car unlocked you blame it on them.
Wow you said what I was thinking. Yeah if you don’t know the info you set up when you activated the service, you’re kinda outta luck which is a security thing that I understand.
It happened to my husband too But after checking and answering questions only he and I know the answers to, Onstar was able to fix it for my husband. I think it’s a male thing. They don’t think they need to pay attention to things at the time of activation, They think they’ll never need to use it. Just like my dad and grandpa 30-40 years ago, they never need to stop and ask different ever because they never ever get lost.
I do wish Onstar would make available the phone numbers called when using the call feature you pay for so many minutes for. Three months ago, a friend’s 17-year-old daughter failed to return home from school. Car located three blocks from school. Cell phone busted up in street. Without the cell phone on and in the vehicle we could NOT see who the daughter called, if anyone, while driving three blocks after school. Frustrated that Onstar couldn’t provide help in that situation. That ended up being a fight with boyfriend she kept secret from her parents that came out that evening when she came in her front door to announce to her mom and dad she was three months pregnant. Parents so happy to see her not dead or being held hostage by some sick perverts they were not even mad.
If someone else is driving your car, like a teen late for curfew, can you call the car and talk to the driver?
No, but you can ask OnStar to call the driver for you.
Yes you CAN call the car directly, I do it all the time.
Yeah you can call the onstar phone number for your car and if they answer the call you can talk to the driver if you have minutes on your account and have the account with the calling feature.
Yes. The car had its own separate telephone number
Do you have to pay for EVERYTHING ? Nav and just a regular call like uconnect ? Why have to pay for all this when it’s free in other vehicles ? I isn’t get it .. A car equipped with onstar makes you pay for navigation and hands free even if it’s from your own phone? Why not let us use it like uconnect where just all free from our phones ? And navigation ? Why pay when al other cars have FREE hands free and free navigation ? This is irritating ! I want a Chevy and won’t buy one because of the onstar ! There should be a free option
OnStar is now free (basic service) for 5 years. Also, with your phone connected to the system (via Bluetooth or USB) you can push a button and call 911 if you need to. Last, in some new models (Trax, Spark) and we think this is the future, navigation and other functions will actually run from your phone. Thanks for your comment!
You can use your phone via Bluetooth with a Chevy vehicle free. But your Chevy will have its own phone built right inside of your vehicle and that has a stronger and faster connection to cell towers. Allowing u to maintain contact with ur loved 1s when your cell battery dies. And yes it does work by purchasing minutes just as any prepaid phone would.
You can use hands free through Bluetooth and your current phone without onstar service being connected. I use it in my 2013 chevy Cruze every day
Which package comes with the six months of free OnStar with my new Buick? The dealership offered me THREE YEARS free, but I don’t know which package. If it’s the basic, can I add the crash option without having to actually pay for the ENTIRE crash package.
FYI: I’d like to help dispel rumors that On Star is a “public service type that operates to save lives…” In fact, it is quite opposite. On Star is a money making business that operates on creating, subtly, FEAR in the general public realm. This morning, my one year old was locked inside the vehicle with my purse, keys, and phone! Emergency services arrived and was working to open the door, while I called OnStar(because I was told by someone who knew someone….or saw it on a variety television show) to ask them to unlock the door to rescue my child…the operator offered to set up the account for me but refused to assist in unlocking the door! (Did I mention my purse was locked inside the car?)
That’s because you weren’t a subscriber or Weren’t calling in from the vehicle they would have had to set up an account to establish connection with the vehicle and then unlocked your doors. And I’m sorry that happened to you that must have been terrifying
I thought they only needed the vin number to connect to vehicle?
Listen, first off don’t lock your kid in the car. Second, you can’t be mad that a for profit business won’t let you use their services for any situation. If this was the case, everyone with OnStar in their car would have an emergency and need their car unlocked for free. Doesn’t work that way. Pay for the service and you get the benefits.
Hmmmm……So do you buy insurance AFTER you need it….and then get upset cause the company won’t cover something before you bought it? Perhaps you should watch “Forrest Gump”?
My GM vehicle featuring Onstar, since 2002. My system has been upgrade with Gen-6 Digital, to continue use after the FCC stopped all Analog/Digital in 2008.
Paid GM Dealership for the Gen-6 upgrade, OnStar included another 1 year Safe & Sound and at the time, went with their 2 year price plan, and every renewal since.
Signed up with E-Mail GM vehicle Monthly Report, with my Active Account.
Heads Up! 2016, Plan Names and Prices, will change.
They changed my plan without my permission or knowledge. I just so happened to be going over my bank statement and noticed Onstar was significantly higher, $26 and some change. I called immediately, rep stated the plans changed (I was never notified) of this, yet; they still had the $19 Safe and Sound plan which is what i’ve always had. Rep didn’t know how I was involuntarily upgraded, but apologized and changed my plan back to the old one but no offer for the difference I was charged unknowingly. A dry apology was all he could muster.
I’m only interested in the hands free minutes, there’s a Chevy/GM app similar to Onstar that’s no charge. I called for roadside once, rep asked me for my VIN, came back on the line saying they can’t provide me with roadside due to my warranty expiring, really? So, I can’t pay for whatever service I would have needed? I guess I was supposed to sit there and twiddle my thumbs because my warranty was out, there was nothing wrong with my car to begin with, I needed the service to move another disabled vehicle from the driveway (at my expense) I called State Farm, they moved it with no charge.
I was concerned about my price change too but it turns out that they sent an email a while ago but it was in my junk folder. And they also sent notification to the house but we had moved so never got the mailed update. But they were nice enough to change it back for me and no I didn’t receive a difference but that’s because I had the service it’s not that advisors fault that I didn’t use it or didn’t know I had it but they did give me a month free to comp and 30 mins. So that was great
I love the wifi so convenient and easy and I’m glad I don’t have to use the data from my phone unless I wanted too and with wifi I don’t have to worry about my phone battery being drained from the hospot
But your service needs to be active n you paying to get password for your wifi if you forget it
I have a 2014 Chevy Equinox and thinking about adding Remote Start to it. It’s equipped with OnStar. My question is: Do I have to continue OnStar if it is ran through the OnStar system? Or do I do a stand alone remote start system and would it work properly?
My brand new Cadillac CT6 was rear dnded with 1500 miles and the collision was nkt reported. I had to csll local dealer to pick up, znd being 65% aluminum it took 3 1/2 months to repair out of state at Cadillac certified aluminum repair shop….none in Louisiana..on star did not work for me znd i would not purchase sn aluminum vehicle without available CERTIFIED repair shops…just a heads up….Henri Deshotels