Smart ‘ready to drop+’ service allows package delivery to the car’s trunk (Image: Daimler)
Smart has added a ‘ready to spot’ service to its ‘ready to’ app to help drivers locate their vehicle – whether they’ve forgotten exactly where they’ve parked it, or if it has been stolen.
The app guides people back to their Smart, suggesting public transport or other mobility options if necessary, which can be booked via Daimler’s moovel service. However, if the car has been stolen, the ‘theft recovery’ mode guides the driver through steps from reporting the theft to police and contacting Smart customer services – and the car can be located and tracked via the GPS link.
Owners can also geofence their Smart and receive alerts if it has been moved outside a specified area. Other new alerts integrated into the app include reminders for when paid parking expires, and ‘ready to spot’, activating a flashing of indicators when the driver approaches. The car’s location can be shared with friends or family to make it simpler to meet up or for them to use the smartphone-based ‘ready to share’ keyless access. The latter will be extended to Mercedes-Benz A-Class owners as the Mercedes Me Car Sharing app later this year.
More parking services and solutions
At the recent Mercedes-Benz TecDay event in Stuttgart, Daimler outlined further upcoming parking solutions and related services. These include CHARK.me (Change the way you park) to allow the delivery of parcels, online shopping, laundry and soforth to a car’s trunk. This has already been trialled in Hamburg as the Smart ‘ready to drop+’ service [pictured].
Daimler also reported that since its introduction in March 2018, 68pc of E- and S-Class buyers have opted for the Remote Parking package (which includes remote parking via smartphone app), linked their vehicle to their Mercedes Me account, and activated the service in the Mercedes me portal.
Sajjad Khan, VP digital vehicle & mobility at Daimler, said in a statement that the parking solutions “offer our customers numerous benefits: they save time and frustration, increase convenience, and reduce the risk of parking damage. Our aim is to turn the vehicle into a mobile assistant able to take on tedious routine tasks such as parking.”
–Farah Alkhalisi
