Soon: Drive your dream Audi, Mercedes, BMW, other luxury cars, pay to Ola
Ride-hailing platform Ola is in discussions with luxury carmakers, including Audi, Mercedes and BMW, to launch a subscription-based service under its self-drive offering
Ride-hailing platform Ola is in discussions with luxury carmakers, including Audi, Mercedes and BMW, to launch a subscription-based service under its self-drive offering, according to sources. Ola has been running a small-scale pilot of the self-drive service in Bengaluru currently, and is expected to launch the offering in the next few weeks through Ola Fleet Technologies. The company is also believed to have earmarked an investment of up to USD 500 million (including debt) for the self-drive service.
According to sources privy to the development, the company is in talks with carmakers like Audi, Mercedes and BMW to bring to India a model where users can get access to luxury cars by paying a subscription fee.
Email queries sent to Ola, Audi, Mercedes and BMW did not elicit any response. One of the persons said the format is available in developed markets like the US, but given the high cost of luxury vehicles in India, a direct-to-customer model may not be not feasible in the country.
The person added that Ola sees a lot of potential in bringing this model to India given its scale of operations across multiple categories and cities.
Ola already allows customers to book rides in luxury cars through its 'Lux' offering. In October 2016, the Bengaluru-based company had partnered with BMW for expanding the category.
The company, which competes with the US-based Uber in India and international markets like Australia, has been aggressively ramping up its rides business as well as food delivery operations (through Foodpanda). It had recently announced that Hyundai and Kia are investing USD 300 million in the company.
Ola, which counts names like SoftBank Group and China's Tencent Holdings among its investors, had received Rs 650 crore funding from Flipkart co-founder Sachin Bansal in February this year.
Watch Zee Business TV Live Streaming
Ola's electric mobility arm Ola Electric Mobility has also raised Rs 400 crore from Tiger Global, Matrix India and others.
Get Latest Business News, Stock Market Updates and Videos; Check your tax outgo through Income Tax Calculator and save money through our Personal Finance coverage. Check Business Breaking News Live on Zee Business Twitter and Facebook. Subscribe on YouTube.
RECOMMENDED STORIES
Senior Citizen Latest FD Rates: Know what major banks like SBI, PNB, Canara Bank, HDFC Bank, ICICI Bank are providing on fixed deposits
Gratuity Calculator: Rs 38,000 as last-drawn basic salary, 5 years and 5 months of service; what will be gratuity amount?
Top 5 Small Cap Mutual Funds with best SIP returns in 1 year: See how Rs 25,000 monthly investment has grown in each scheme
Top 7 SBI Mutual Funds With Best SIP Returns in 1 Year: Rs 25,000 monthly SIP investment in No.1 fund has jumped to Rs 3,58,404
SBI 5-Year FD vs MIS: Which can offer higher returns on a Rs 2,00,000 investment over 5 years? See calculations
12:14 PM IST