BMW is ending its subscription service after two and a half years

BMW is the latest automaker to end its subscription service. The Access by BMW subscription service is ending January 31, The Verge reported Wednesday.

Access by BMW launched in April 2018 as a pilot program in Nashville, giving customers access to a BMW vehicle on demand for a monthly subscription fee, which included insurance, maintenance, and roadside assistance. The base $2,000 subscription included models like the X5, 4-Series, and 5-Series, while a $3,700 monthly subscription netted access to various M models.

BMW never expanded the service beyond Nashville, however, and is now shutting it down completely. Nashville residents looking to sign up in recent weeks have been told the service is ending, according to The Verge, which cited an email from a sales representative saying the program would shut down at the end of this month, and was no longer taking new subscriptions.

2021 BMW M5

A BMW spokesperson confirmed the shut down to The Verge, saying “the program had reached its capacity limits,” but indicated BMW wasn’t done with subscription services.

“We are in the process of developing the next iteration of Access by BMW and will share more information with you as it becomes available,” BMW said. 

Many automakers have experimented with subscription services as a way to attract customers unwilling to commit to a car purchase, or put off by the dealership experience, but results have been mixed.  While Porsche and Volvo remain committed to the experiment, Mercedes ended its subscription service last year. Cadillac closed its own program in 2018, but has discussed reviving it in a different form.