automotive

General Motors, Tesla Offer Hurricane Help

To help keep people who are in the path of Hurricane Michaelsafe, General Motors is activating OnStarCrisis Assist services for owners of all properly equipped Chevrolet, Buick, GMC and Cadillac vehicles.

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GM most recently activated OnStar for those in the path of Hurricane Florence. OnStar is typically a subscription-based service, but GM will provide the service free of charge to nearly 310,000 connected GM vehicles in parts of Florida, Alabama and Georgia affected by the storm, and will keep the activation up for one month after the hurricane.

A majority of GM vehicles from 2006 on are equipped with OnStar that can easily connect consumers with its call centers for help.

Services include coordinating emergency rescue and evacuation services, routing away from danger and connecting callers with loved ones, family and friends.

The advisors will also direct those affected by the storm to available resources like shelter, food and water and will book hotel rooms where feasible. They will handle “good samaritan” calls made by OnStar users to help others impacted by the storm. GM will provide hands-free calling minutes and will add data for available in-vehicle Wi-Fi Hotspot (data plans provided by AT&T).

Tesla is offering faster charging and more driving range to its owners in the affected region. The electric vehicle company has temporarily activated Supercharging on older cars that didn't have it enabled when they were purchased. It has also unlocked extra battery capacity on Model S and X cars that only purchased 60kWh but have 75kWh batteries, according to engadget.com. Owners should see a notification on their screen about the change.

 A Tesla owner's club for the affected region has collected relevant info for potential evacuees,

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