Mercedes-Benz India has announced that it will introduce connected car technology into its range of cars and SUVs from November 15, 2019. The tech will be introduced in three phases with Phase 1 seeing the launch of an On-board Diagnostics (OBD) port-based adapter with later phases seeing the introduction of an embedded SIM-based system and the company’s Mercedes-Benz User Experience (MBUX) system with a virtual assistant.

As part of phase 1, owners can opt for an OBD port-based system called ‘Mercedes me Adapter’. The adapter will be available at an introductory price of Rs 5,000 – free for owners who bought their car in 2019 – and can be paired with all Mercedes cars produced from 2007 onwards. The OBD-based system that will link to a registered phone will offer 14 features such as vehicle health information, online appointment booking, roadside breakdown management, refuelling list etc.

Phase 2 will see the introduction of the embedded SIM-card-based ‘Mercedes me connect’ system on select models in the carmaker’s line-up. The system will allow for implementation of greater connected car features such as vehicle tracking, remote lock/unlock, diagnostic functions, vehicle status monitoring, speed alerts and more. Phase 3 will see the debut of the Mercedes MBUX technology with virtual assistant or ‘Hey Mercedes’ with 30 plus connected car functions.

Digitalising sales and service

Mercedes has also announced plans to digitise aspects of its sales and service experience. An online configurator is now live, Augmented Reality technology will be introduced in the retail process in the near future. There’s also a new e-commerce website that will allow buyers to shop for all things Mercedes – from merchandise to cars. Online retail of used cars opens today, while that of new cars commences in January 2020.

An online service estimator as also been introduced. The estimator will allow customers to view dealer-specific service estimates for their cars, along with access to information about various service packages.

Mercedes-Benz is the latest carmaker to go big on digitisation in India. In fact, German compatriot and rival, Audi also introduced its connected car technology and digital initiatives in August.