Tesla Cars Have Free System-Wide OTA Updates, While Ford Charges $149 for a USB Map Refresh

Image credit: Salomondrin/YouTube and u/110110 /Reddit

OTA updates have long been a common thing for Tesla's vehicle owners. However, they carry a lot of value as they are unique in the industry.

Tesla Model 3 owner Glenn Fischbach, who also owns a 2017 Ford Focus Electric, recently received a letter from Ford informing him that his car needed a Sync 3 navigation map update, which also detailed how it would benefit, reported TechAU.

Normally, in order to receive the update, such owners must make an appointment with a Ford dealership and take their cars there to get it installed. But, given the pandemic, it is understandable that many people choose to avoid unnecessary contact.

In addition to contacting a Ford dealership directly, customers can also get an update that is pre-loaded onto a USB drive. But, this method is overshadowed by an unfortunate fact. Customers have to request a USB drive, which costs $149.

Model 3 has free, OTA updates, and recently seen coming with included/free flash drive.

Ford charging $149 for a USB that has a map update on it. 🤷🏻‍♂️$TSLA https://t.co/l9HHWGH8EE

— Smokey Shorts (@SmokeyShorts) November 21, 2020

This situation is absurd, not only because Ford refuses to take full responsibility for its vehicles, but is also looking to make money on its customers who simply wish to avoid unnecessary contact with others during COVID-19.

Frankly, the fact that other automakers other than Tesla are not able to implement wireless updates in their new cars is disappointing in and of itself. Rather than compensating for its inability to provide high-quality service and giving customers a free option to update their navigation maps, Ford is trying to cash in by selling $10 USB drives for $149.

Fischbach, who is well aware of the benefits of OTA upgrades through his experience of Model 3 ownership, said he did not intend to pay for the upgrade.

Tesla provides a completely different service. Constant updates, which bring various improvements, from small and pleasant nuances to fundamental improvements in vehicle performance, are delivered to customers via the Internet. There is no need for owners to risk their health and visit a service center or pay extra money in order to download updates onto their vehicle. Just connect the car to the Internet, a few taps on the screen and the update will start downloading. Within 20-30 minutes, your car has a number of improvements and is completely ready for use.

H/T @techAU/Twitter

© 2020, Eva Fox. All rights reserved.

_____________________________

We appreciate your readership! Please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

Article edited by @SmokeyShorts, you can follow him on Twitter

Follow @EvaFoxU