car-sharing

LAS VEGAS--Ford, BMW, and Toyota have them. Now, OnStar is the next in line to take a stab at the development of in-car apps.

At the 2012 Consumer Electronics Show, the General Motors-owned telematics provider announced that it is selecting developers to be given access to an OnStar API for the creation of vehicle-specific and vehicle-safe apps for future OnStar-equipped vehicles.

"We want to give people 1,001 reasons to keep their OnStar subscription active," said Eric Litt, chief information officer at OnStar. "We feel that opening up our proprietary API to developers will ensure that OnStar … Read more

Car-sharing service Car2Go is open for business in San Diego. Starting today, prospective members can sign up to join the service and receive 30 minutes of free drive time in one of the electric Smart ForTwos in the fleet.

The Daimler-owned transportation startup is seeding San Diego with a fleet of all-electric two seaters that members can rent by the minute. Rates start at $0.35 per minute and are $12.99 per hour with a $65.99 maximum per day. Members can travel up to 150-miles per day in a rental. After that, it's 45 cents per mile. … Read more

Move over, Zipcar. There's a new car-sharing service in town.

It's RelayRides, which is looking to cut into Zipcar's market share. Unlike Zipcar, where you rent from the company, Relay Rides sets you up to borrow a car from a person who lives near you. SmartPlanet talks to Shelby Clark, founder of the company about his business and how it works.

Even incumbent automakers think this car-sharing idea has some legs.

General Motors is expected announce a partnership tomorrow with start-up RelayRides that will allow GM vehicles owners to rent out their cars to other consumers using OnStar and a smart-phone. The service will first be offered in California starting by the end of the first quarter next year.

The auto giant is partnering with RelayRides to learn more about car sharing and offer OnStar customers a service to make revenue with their vehicles, said Stephen Girsky, vice chairman of corporate strategy and new business development at GM. It also gives … Read more

The so-called AirBnB of car sharing seems to be taking a lesson from the recent apartment rental debacle and will add new security controls. To make people feel more comfortable handing over the keys to what's probably their second most prized possession, Getaround plans to add a feature that will let car owners restrict vehicle rentals to Facebook friends and friends of friends.

On information Q&A site Quora, a user asked if Getaround members could set up their account to rent only to Facebook friends. Avery Lewis, head of Product at Getaround, responded on the site that … Read more

RelayRides announced that it raised $10 million in series A.2 financing. The peer-to-peer car-sharing start-up raised $5.1 million earlier this year, and the injection of cash will be used to expand its service area and attract more members.

The car-sharing network started in Cambridge, Mass., but moved its headquarters to San Francisco. Rentals at RelayRides start at $5 per hour, and include gas and insurance. Borrowers go through a driving-record check before being allowed to rent a vehicle, and owners outfit their vehicles with an immobilizer that enables renters to unlock their car without a physical key exchange. … Read more

Bay Area's car-sharing service Getaround won the TechCrunch Disrupt award this week, beating out 32 other startups for the top prize. In addition to bragging rights, free press, and taking home the Disrupt Cup, Getaround pocketed a $50,000 check.

Now touted as the AirBnB of car sharing, Getaround lets anyone list their car for rent by the hour. Members use the Web site or newly released iPhone app to request use of a vehicle, and owners approve requests individually. Getaround generated a lot of publicity earlier this year when word spread that an owner posted her Tesla Roadster … Read more

Timed almost perfectly to avoid the swarms of tourists that will descend upon the city for the weeklong SXSW, Daimler's car-sharing program Car2Go will expand its service area and add more cars to its fleet in downtown Austin.

Car2Go is a lot like ZipCar with the difference that its rental fleet consists entirely of Smart ForTwos that you can rent by the minute. Another differentiating perk is that you don't have to return vehicles to the same location where you picked them up--you can drop off a rental in any valid and publicly accessible parking space. But starting … Read more

If you're in the market for a cheap thrill, add Getaround to your list. The start-up car-sharing program lets members rent a fusion red Tesla Roadster Sport for only $25 an hour.

Getaround is a new peer-to-peer car rental start-up that lets people offer their own vehicles for rent, including luxury exotics. Insurance is provided by the San Francisco-based company, and renters are responsible for gas. Its business model is similar to Google-backed RelayRides, but the company requires members to use Facebook Connect for sign-up and rental.

To rent a car, members use Getaround's Web site or its … Read more