Remote start and subscription

I did a search first but didn't find anything. After my free year was up I quit paying attention but I just saw yesterday the free trials are now "up to 10 years". I can still pay for it if I want which appears to be required to use my app to start the truck. Did someone get sued? How late am I to this party? All I know is I can remote start the truck again.

 

Unless something has changed, it's the Service Connect and Safety Connect that last 10 years. The Remote Connect was only a year. Im sure someone will let us know if anything changed.

 

Goto the app then shop then manage subscriptions. I got the remote connect and drive connect free for 3 years when I bought the truck.

 

Those are all that is required to start the truck with the fob. I just now figured it out with the help of a dealer on a youtube video.

 

So you're saying after it expired you now have the ability to still remote start? I checked mine it says I have to pay.

 

I got a little mad at the dealership I bought my truck from. I finalized pricing 2 weeks before the end of the month and picked up my truck 2 weeks after the first, so basically a month later. I gave them my CC to hold the truck but they never charged it. Signed the final papers upon picking it up and drove home. The next day while learning all the features I saw that the 2 year trial was only 1 year and 11 months. I called the salesperson and asked why it wasn't reading one day shy of 2 years, he said they had to start the subscriptions in order to reserve the truck for me. I called BS and told him I didn't own the truck at that time and was only putting a deposit to hold it. He told me that was the way it worked. I called corporate to verify that and they told me it should start of date of receipt of the truck, told them what happened and they told me only the dealership could fix it. After many exchanges they stuck to their story even though I told them that was not what corporate told me and refused to do anything. The shameful part about it is that I negotiated the sale of my truck and 2 days later negotiated a deal on a Tacoma for a friend, gave them $130,000 worth of business.

 

Yes, but only with the FOB.

 

As long as you have the safety connect and service connect active you can start with the fob. Those are both no charge. Think the charge adds the phone features. Don't know if it works with only one of the free ones activated. May be worth testing.

 

Remote Connect is what you need in order to use the app to start the truck. It's bundled with Drive Connect for $15/month.

 

Maybe that was a special Toyota offered in 2022 ? ..or did you negotiate it in contract ?

Mine expired in Oct and been paying the 15 per month now. I can put on hold on it during months not using so no charge.

 

They advertise the free trail as 3 years. I was looking online and it shows it in the build process and I was told by the salesmen that I can pay for the app remote start in the winter months only after subscription is up if I liked. I do enjoy both and will purchase the subscriptions.

 

So is the $15 for the phone connection, and does that include location and hot spot? Locating the rig on my phone is a nice feature. Is remote start available via either wifi and cellphone, and the cellphone mode $15 per month?

 

For my truck, I let the Remote Connect and Drive Connect subscriptions lapse so I can't remote start or see its location (I can remote start using FOB). I can still see the tire pressure and distance to empty in the app so Toyota still has a connection somehow. Not sure if it's when my phone connects to it or what, but I do know the truck does not connect to my home wifi because I never set that up. You have to subscribe to Remote Connect and Drive Connect to get the location and remote start. Not sure if this fully answers your question or not, just relaying my experience so far.

I don't know anything about the hotspot. I don't see any need for that since I have unlimited data on my phone and if for some reason a passenger needs a hot spot, (can't they just use their own damn data?) I can turn mine on. To me, hot spot from a vehicle is an advertising gimmick...

 

My 2024 only come with 1 year

 

It is a gimmick for sure. Would pair great with the GMC EV crabwalk. Serves no real purpose.

 

Same.
I have a week to decide if I'm going to pay up or not. I do enjoy getting into a warm truck when it's stupid cold outside.
I can't remote start at work from the fob without going out to the parking lot. Not enough range.

What we need is a mini signal booster for our key fobs!

 

Try holding it under your bottom jaw with your mouth open. Some people say it works, I never have tried.

 

Buy a year and its way cheaper than a monthly plan

 

The skull antenna! I forgot about that trick, will give it a try.

 

How much for a yearly sub?

 

How did you go about getting a yearly subscription? My Toyota app only has the $15/month option. I tried logging on to my account through a browser but when I click on "manage subscriptions" it sends me back to the app. Not sure if i really want it for a year but it nice to know my options. TIA...

 

In Canada we can do an annual works out to $10/month. A beer at the golf course is $8, and let me tell you, I consume lot of those in the 7 month golf season. Drink one less beer a month pretty much pays for it

 

I hear ya. I never go to Starbucks so I'm up at least $25 bucks a week .

 

Re- the subscription and hot spot, what company does Toyota use? AT&T, Verizon, or ? Sometimes AT&T works where Verizon doesn't. Can the hotspot hook up via wifi, what's the range, and can it function when the vehicle is off?

 

Past posts in other threads indicated that Toyota uses AT&T. Not sure what you mean by hook up via wifi? Very doubtful it works with the truck off.

 

If you let everything lapse, does Apple CarPlay/Android Auto still work?

 

Yes. At least on mine it does.

 

Cell access works with the truck off, so I was wondering if the wifi does too...

 

Ok. I've never connected the truck to any wifi so not sure on that one. It's a good point though. I wonder if the truck wakes itself up occasionally to talk to the mothership? I did a little test the other day where I let some air out of one of the tires. I did not have my phone with me on purpose to make sure the truck couldn't connect to the phone. I checked the app occasionally and it took 16 hours before it updated the air pressure in the app. I did not start or go near the truck during that 16 hour period.

I'm betting you can't use the hot spot with the truck off. I say this because if you are sitting in the truck listening to the radio with the truck off, the radio automatically shuts off after 10 minutes or so.

 

I can live without the other connect features but paying $15 a month just to able to remote start my own vehicle really irritates me. The FOB should work in lieu of having the app connect features.