Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick and GMC are developing brand-specific mobile applications that will leverage OnStar technology to allow vehicle owners to activate all of the functions available on a traditional vehicle key fob — remote start, horn and lights, and door lock/unlock.

Information normally found in your OnStar Vehicle Diagnostics email, such as oil life, tire pressure and lifetime average miles per gallon, also will be available and current as of the last ignition cycle. Important vehicle information, such as current odometer reading, vehicle VIN and OnStar account number, will also be readily accessible within the apps.

Learn more about the mobile technology expansion:

Read the full OnStar mobile app press release.

Of all the typical summer traditions — baseball, fresh strawberries and outdoor festivals — road trips are one of our favorite. So OnStar decided to sponsor four members of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) as they traveled to their annual convention in Colorado.

The road trip took the four journalists from Chicago to Denver for the 28th Annual NAHJ Multimedia Convention & Career Expo, which features training sessions and networking opportunities for young journalists.

Of course, they made the trip in style in a Buick LaCrosse and GMC Terrain equipped with OnStar Turn-by-Turn Navigation¹ and Hands-Free Calling.²

The road trip crew tweeted across the country through their arrival in Denver on June 22, and they’ll continue to send Twitter updates from the convention — just search #onstarnahj. We’ll also have a recap from road tripper Jaime Villarreal (Twitter: @jaimelovely) on OnStar Connections — so make sure to check back soon.

¹ Requires ABS and Directions & Connections plan. Visit onstar.com for coverage map. Services vary by model.

² Visit onstar.com for coverage map, details and system limitations.

OnStar and Google have reached an agreement to enhance OnStar Turn-by-Turn Navigation Service. OnStar eNav, a feature of Turn-by-Turn Navigation, will expand and become available through Google Maps^TM mapping service at the end of June.

OnStar subscribers will be able to search for and identify destinations using Google Maps mapping service and send those destinations to their vehicles. Subscribers can then get directions to their destination from anywhere on the road.

The agreement follows last month’s announcement that OnStar is leveraging the power of Google technology to develop a number of new mobile app features for the Chevrolet Volt.

Read the full release from PR Newswire.

Among the new features for the Volt mobile app is the ability for owners to vocally search for a destination using Google Voice, see where their Volt is in relation to that destination using a Google Map, and send the destination from their Android phone to their Volt. OnStar Turn-by-Turn directions to their destination will be waiting for them when they start the vehicle.

See how the new functionality works:

Chris was appointed president, OnStar on March 1, 2010.  He is responsible for the company’s worldwide infotainment and connectivity initiatives. Preuss has had a notable career thus far with GM, serving as vice president, GM Communications, vice president, GM Europe Communications and director of Cadillac Communications, among other key roles in the company.

We invite you and your readers to join us and participate in the discussion. Chris will answer as many questions as he can and looks forward to receiving your comments.

Click here to join the chat.

Everyone’s had an experience behind the wheel that’s sent their heart pounding, blood pumping and adrenaline soaring. From now until January 31, 2010, we’d like to give you an OnStar travel mug (while supplies last) for describing the details of your close call. Share your scariest driving experience story with others in our OnStar Connections forum.

Here’s an example of what one forum member had to say:

mj2289
Not sure that it’s the scariest, but it’s one that will always be with me. I was pulling a trailer home from Kentucky with a newly acquired thoroughbred brood mare at the ripe old age of 21. My dad was half awake, half asleep in the passengers seat and noticed a pack of dogs on the side of the highway . . . Read the rest in the forum.

And if you don’t have a scary driving story you’d like to share with us, feel free to post a response to one of the other forum topics. We’ll contact you by email and make arrangements to ship your OnStar travel mug (while supplies last).

Because of overwhelming response we have given away our last travel mug, but you can continue to ask questions and tell us about your experiences in the forums. Watch for more giveaways in the future. We will contact you by email and make arrangements if you have already earned an OnStar travel mug.

A Message from
Walt Dorfstatter,
OnStar President

One reason why I love working at OnStar is because I know we are providing great services to drivers on the road. Our services, whether it’s Automatic Crash Response, Turn-by-Turn Navigation, Hands-Free Calling or Stolen Vehicle Assistance, do more than provide safety, security and peace of mind to our subscribers. Our services connect people with their vehicles.

Now, we’re using our 13 years of knowledge, learnings and vehicle connectivity to give people a new way to interact. We are launching the OnStar Mobile application for the Chevrolet Volt, our upcoming electric vehicle with extended range. Volt has technology beyond the battery, and our application is the first fully functional mobile application specialized for an electric vehicle in the industry. We’re proud to be a leader in this field.

Here’s how it works: Users can download the OnStar Mobile app for either the iPhone, the Motorola Droid or the BlackBerry Storm. The app allows Volt owners to control a number of key vehicle functions and OnStar features from their phone 24/7. Drivers will be able to manage vehicle charging, read the state of battery charge and review vehicle history data such as odometer readings, miles per gallon and miles driven in EV mode. In addition, they will have the ability to perform the same functions they would on a traditional key fob, such as locking and unlocking the doors, flashing the lights, and sounding the horn. You can even warm or cool the interior remotely using electricity instead of gas.

In our research, we know Volt drivers will have a strong interest in their driving history and will want the ability to know the charge level of the Volt’s lithium-ion battery when they are not in the car. Using the OnStar Mobile app, they can see the state of charge and estimated EV range and they can even start charging the vehicle without being near it, as long as the car is plugged in. The Volt will come with OnStar’s traditional services as well.

To download the application for the Motorola Droid, iPhone and Blackberry Storm, go to www.onstarmobiledemo.com.

You can follow the announcement of the OnStar Mobile application for the Chevrolet Volt live from the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) beginning tonight at 10 p.m. EST by clicking here.

Be sure to follow @thereal_onstar for more updates from CES.

You can check out the video below for a demo of the app:

Click here to view the embedded video.

We also want to connect with you and hear what you think about the OnStar Mobile app. Nick Pudar, our vice president of Planning and Business Development, will be answering your questions from the OnStar booth at CES in Las Vegas. Click here to submit your questions for Nick by 4 p.m. EST on Thursday, January 7.

Learn how OnStar’s Stolen Vehicle Assistance helped police recover a U.S. senator’s stolen Chevy Tahoe.

Read the story at politico.com.

For more about OnStar’s Stolen Vehicle Assistance service click here.

Source: politico.com

Don’t forget to join us Thursday, November 12 @ 2:00 PM EST for a live Web chat with Jane Speelman, OnStar’s Privacy & Compliance Officer to talk about your privacy misperceptions and get your questions answered.

Click here to join the chat

OnStar takes its subscribers’ concerns very seriously. We are committed to providing subscribers with safety and security, and our privacy policy support that focus. Recently, we’ve noticed conversations in the blogosphere about OnStar and privacy. Many of the conversations discuss misperceptions of our services and privacy policies.

We want to set the record straight.

Jane Speelman, OnStar’s Privacy & Compliance Officer is hosting a Web chat to talk about the privacy practices OnStar has put in place to ensure customer information is not used in a way that is inconsistent with the subscriber agreement. She will also talk about the common misperceptions about OnStar and privacy and why they are wrong.

The Web chat will take place, Thursday, November 12 from 2 –3 p.m. EST. Jane will try to answer as many questions as she can.

Click here to join the chat