In 2021, Ford introduced the BlueCruise on the Mustang Mach-E and the F-150. It’s also available in the 2022 Lincoln Navigator, but it’s marketed under a different name — the Lincoln ActiveGlide. Ford delivered on its promise to make the BlueCruise or ActiveGlide one of the most advanced self-driving software currently available. More succinctly, you can drive your Mustang Mach-E or F-150 without putting your hands on the wheel for over 100,000 miles of highways across North America. The Ford BlueCruise will also warn you if you take your eyes off the road so you don’t get distracted while it’s in self-drive mode.
When the Ford BlueCruise was released, the subscription cost was $600 for three years or $200 per year. If your Mustang Mach-E or F-150 doesn’t come with BlueCruise as a standard feature, you would need to pay $995 to install the hardware. However, Ford has recently increased BlueCruise subscription to $2,100 for three years.
“For new Mustang Mach-E orders made after May 2, BlueCruise is available at the time of order for $2,100 for 3 years,” Ford announced the price changes on the Mach-E forum. The automaker also clarified that BlueCruise subscription will cost “$800 per year or $75 per month.” However, if you already subscribed to Ford BlueCruise at $200 for three years, the new prices won’t take effect until your subscription has expired.
Why is Ford adjusting the price upwards? According to the automaker, the $200 per year subscription cost was a discount when BlueCruise was first introduced in the 2021 Mustan Mach-E models. Besides that, Ford upgraded BlueCruise last year with new features such as In-Lane Repositioning, Predictive Speed Assist, and Lane Change Assist. The new BlueCruise 1.2 is a standard feature in the latest Mustang Mach-E models, and it could be another reason why Ford is increasing the subscription cost. Of course, it’s likely that other Ford models like the F-150 Lightning or the gas-powered F-150 truck that will come with BlueCruise 1.2 will also be affected.
Automakers also can’t resist tapping into subscription revenue to increase profits. If there is one thing we’ve learned from Netflix, companies will capitalize on every opportunity to increase their subscription revenue. Sometimes it could be something as ridiculous as paying a subscription to access Apple CarPlay in your BMW, or even unlocking heated seats.
Then again, it’s reasonable for manufacturers to request a subscription for self-driving software since they’re expensive to develop and maintain. But is it worth it to pay $800 per year for a Ford BlueCruise subscription? Well, it’s certainly cheaper than the Tesla’s AutoPilot, which is $99 or $199, depending on the package. Ford BlueCruise is also available with a three months free trial if you want to figure out if it’s worth it.
