Audi On Demand car-sharing program launches in the UK
The short-term loans can run anywhere from an hour to almost a full month.
Audi on Demand, the automaker's fledgling car-sharing program, is only available in one US city at the moment, but its presence in the UK is set to be much bigger.
Audi announced on Monday that it has started a pilot program for its Audi On Demand car-sharing service in the UK. The pilot will start in Manchester, but the automaker plans to expand it to multiple cities before year's end.
Unlimited mileage is always a nice perk. Want to drive to Italy without putting miles on your own car? Here you go.
Here's how it works. Prospective users can sign up on the UK-specific Audi On Demand site. After registering, you can select loan dates and the type of car you want to drive. The car can be picked up at the Audi Centre in Manchester, or it can be delivered within a 30-minute radius -- if you're picking up from the hub, acquiring the car is as easy as flashing the QR code generated when booking online.
The list of available cars will keep growing as the program matures. Right now, it includes a wide variety of cars and SUVs , including the A1, A3, S3, S5, Q3 and Q5. Prices vary from £70 (about $90) to £190 (about $240) per day, and that lump sum covers unlimited mileage, insurance and roadside assistance if necessary. You can rent out the cars for as little as an hour, or as long as 28 days.
Manchester is just the beginning. Later this year, Audi intends to expand Audi On Demand to Edinburgh and Glasgow this month, followed by London, Birmingham and Newcastle by the end of 2018. The company also hopes to expand its scheme to cover business and residential uses in 2019.
Audi On Demand currently exists in China, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the US. Audi launched its pilot in North Carolina in 2016, but right now, it's only available in San Francisco. We tried the system out early in 2017. It was good, but expensive -- the cheapest car ( A3 sedan ) cost $130 per day, with our Q5 tester commanding a hefty $200 per day.
