‘Son-of-OnStar’ Arrives at Vauxhall
UK carmaker Vauxhall has rescued some of the remnants of its former owner’s OnStar connectivity service and rebranded it VauxhallConnect.
Since the Vauxhall-Opel brand was sold by General Motors to the PSA Group, the consumer connectivity service was doomed to end December 2020 with all new models built after the beginning of January 2019 not being installed with the service. Now fans of connectivity can breathe a sigh of relief that parts of service will now continue, possibly even being rolled out to other brands under the PSA umbrella should demand be sufficient.
However, the automaker has confirmed the existing 24/7 call center assistants currently on call by OnStar customers will be shut down at the end of next year. A Vauxhall spokesman told TU-Automotive: “The current ability to talk to an assistant and have them load data onto your navigation system will stop. This is a completely new system that would have happened irrespective of OnStar which we used when we were a GM company.”
VauxhallConnect mirrors many of the previous OnStar services offering at a push of a button emergency calling, navigation and remote control features, such as locking and unlocking doors, sounding the horn or operating the lights, climate control of electric charging, working in tandem with the MyVauxhall app. It means that should the airbags or seatbelt tensioners be deployed in an accident, an emergency call is automatically made from the VauxhallConnect service. If this receives no answer, the service sends details of the accident to the rescue services, including the time and place of the call, as well as the direction of travel. An emergency call can also be made by pressing the red SOS button.
The service can also report a breakdown call, connecting drivers to the Vauxhall mobility service, and passing on key information such as a location with vehicle diagnostics data. Drivers can also access their vehicle status via the MyVauxhall app, including mileage, average fuel consumption, service intervals and other reminders.
VauxhallConnect will be available as an optional extra for on all Vauxhall models, and is included as standard on Vauxhall models equipped with Multimedia Nav and Multimedia Nav Pro infotainment systems, and on the Corsa-e and Grandland X Hybrid4.
— Paul Myles is a seasoned automotive journalist based in London. Follow him on Twitter @Paulmyles_
Will the new service work on vehicles which are currently equipped with OnStar?
This is a completely new service and so will not be linked to the outgoing one.
This was one of the reasons I bought a GM vehicle, now I considering trading my vehicle to get a Mercedes, GM and Ford are going to the dogs, and they have become inferior in not only quality but luxury and performance as well. I regret purchasing my Cadillac and will find another luxury vehicle. How can a President tell us that he’s making America great again but we’re losing money and reputation to foreign automakers, where’s the greatness of American automakers?
I emailed Vauxhall asking about the OnStar service being removed and they confirmed that this new service will have most of the features of the old one but stuff like asking an advisor for directions will go. Useless feature anyway. So yes, your OnStar enabled car will work with the new service
I know a fella with two merc’s and both needing repairs and can’t get the parts so I wouldn’t rush in too quickly if I was you !
When I bought my Vauxhall on Sept 2017 I thought OnStar was really good for various thing’s from locking the car, to give me info of tyre pressure and how many miles to a gallon it’s using and also in a emergency. Then seven months later I find that by end of 2020 it will be useless. More to the point, the technology that is in the car is now just decorative. Vauxhall/ Opel should either recall all its cars to either do one of two things:
1. Replace it with a fully functional up-to-date version, or;
2. Remove the three buttons and replace them with a facia as if it was never there.
Some owners who have had these units fitted paid £100s. They should be given a full refund of what it cost to install in the first place. I do feel myself and a lot of other customers have been fooled by the old and new owners.
I’m with Nigel, the primary reason we bought both our Insignia and Astra was the connectivity. Concierge not really relevant but the wifi absolutely is… binning it effectively turns my Insignia from a mobile office to a paperweight. Vauxhall are never getting another penny from us.
I bought my 2016, Vauxhall Insignia Elite Sports Tourer, in July 2017 for its electronic package and have been happy with it until this year, 2020, when they told me it would finish! The WiFi service in particular and ability to send destinations to the car from your mobile. I think it’s despicable I was not told this when I bought the car, as I would have looked elsewhere and I will from now on. Customer service 0%!
I know a car’s connectivity system becoming ‘obsolete’ in such a short space of time is galling, John. However, this is not a technology issue but one of business because General Motors, Vauxhall/Opel’s previous owner, did not announce the end of its OnStar service in Europe until a year after you bought the car. The brands’ new owner, PSA Group, has its own system which will not be compatible with your vehicle.
I believe that Vauxhall should be brought to book for this and refund owners of models sold with this installed. I, like many others, bought my Insigna because it was part of the deal. I will not be buying another Vauxhall as it seems they cannot honour their deal. I pay the money but they don’t tell us that part of that deal will be obsolete. How much has that removed off the re-sale value. Owners should be compensated for such a loss. Poor support to customers who have parted with good money in good faith.