Hyundai BlueLink Tackles OnStar and Sync
Published on Thursday, January 6, 2011
Hyundai is launching a major offensive into the high-tech world dominated by Ford's Sync and General Motors' OnStar, debuting its first vehicle telematics system dubbed BlueLink.
(Photo provided by Hyundai)
The system will be introduced on the 2012 Hyundai Sonata in the spring, followed by the 2012 Hyundai Veloster in the summer, and then roll out across the majority of the Korean automaker's U.S. lineup by the 2013 model year.
Pricing will be announced closer to launch, but the Korean automaker clearly intends to undercut rivals such as OnStar. The system was developed for Hyundai by ATX, which provides similar telematics systems for BMW and Toyota.
The Hyundai system will offer a range of services, including an "eco coach" that improves efficient driving and a "geofence" function that sends a text if a driver has "ventured outside of prescribed borders or time constraints."
"We believe (our) voice technology offers the same experience level (as OnStar), but it happens at a better price point and more efficiently," said Barry Ratzlaff, Hyundai Motor America director of customer satisfaction and service business development in a phone interview with Inside Line. "Some of our consumer research indicates there are times when people don't want to talk with a live agent. Some people just prefer privacy and cleaner interaction. They don't want the chit-chat."
OnStar in its advertising has emphasized its reliance on live operators who respond to customer calls from their vehicles. OnStar users can press a blue button in their vehicle to be directly connected to an agent. The GM service typically starts at $18.95 per month. With the Hyundai setup, the customer will not interact directly with a live agent in many situations, said Ratzlaff.
Ratzlaff said Hyundai's system will be offered in three packages. BlueLink Assurance will be the cheapest and will offer safety services such as automatic crash notification. A midlevel system called BlueLink Essentials will package such convenience features as remote unlock, remote start and stolen vehicle slowdown. A top-of-the-line system called BlueLink Guidance has a suite of features that are navigation-based and include restaurant ratings and gas price search.
Unlike Ford's Sync system, Hyundai users will not be able to make voice telephone calls through the system.
"Our solution is embedded; Ford's system depends on the consumer's phone and there is a ton of variability in getting the phone to link," said Ratzlaff, when asked to explain how the Hyundai system will be different from Sync. "Our system is as simple as pressing a button in the car to do anything."
Hyundai's announcement came just hours after OnStar announced that it will be selling a version of its system through Best Buy starting in the spring. An OnStar rearview mirror will give non-GM customers the ability to tap into the GM communications systems for around $375. Ratzlaff said there are no plans for a retail version of the Hyundai system.
Inside Line says: Hyundai appears poised to start a price war when it comes to in-vehicle communications systems.
Source : Edmunds Inside Line