S.O.S. system on 4runner Limited

[kmiller8821]

Ok, so I've had my truck now since june. I know I get a year of this S.O.S system, but I've honestly not had to use this thing once. I pressed the button to test it after I activated it, and that's it. The fees to renew this thing seem pretty high to me, given the services offerred.

I'm just curious, to those who have this, has anyone had to use it? If so, how was the service?

Personally, Tripple AAA and my cell phone are all I need. I do like that it notifies in a crash, and can track my stolen truck. However, since my truck is 100% stock, I don't really care about tracking it. I'll just get a new one if that's the case, but I can see how goes who spend tons on mods would find that useful. But then, most guys that mod get a trail which doesn't have S.O.S. anyway. So really, whats the point?

 

[4RFan]

Fortunatley, I haven't needed it.

How much does it cost for another year? Unless it's crazy expensive, I will most likely renew after the 1st year becuase to me it is like most forms of insurance - better to have it not need it than to need it and not have it.

I hope they expand the service in the future to allow some of the nice features of On-star.

 

[kmiller8821]

Fortunatley, I haven't needed it.

How much does it cost for another year? Unless it's crazy expensive, I will most likely renew after the 1st year becuase to me it is like most forms of insurance - better to have it not need it than to need it and not have it.

I hope they expand the service in the future to allow some of the nice features of On-star.

From Toyota's website "One-year renewal subscriptions to Safety Connect will be available for $139.95, with multi-year subscriptions also available."

Seems pricey to me.

 

[enduro]

Never used it, but like knowing it's there...

I'll be renewing mine in Apr '11. $140 for a year doesn't seem like much to me.

 

[kmiller8821]

I'm bumping this thread up because I just got my renewal letter today. My SOS will expire on 6/26. I'm curious now that more time has passed - please only respond if your Runner is so equipped with this feature.

1. Have you used this service? If so, how responsive was it? What did you use it for? (fuel, towing, tire change, jump start)

2. If you've been in an accident with airbag deployment (I hope nobody responds to this one), did Toyota promptly call the vehicle and dispatch help?

3. If your vehicle was stolen (again, I hope nobody responds to this), was Toyota able to help recover the vehicle?


I've got triple AAA and an iPhone. I'm really not sure I need this service as I've only used it once to test it and haven't had the need since. I realize one year boils down to about $12.00 a month, but I don't really think there's enough services offered to justify paying for this.

Any options/comments are welcome here - I'm just deciding if I'm going to renew and looking for feedback from those who used the service.

:thanks:

 

[pimpsta]

This may or may not help you. But you may want to check with your insurance company to see how much money you are saving by having this system active on your car. Maybe that will offset the cost of renewal.

 

[kmiller8821]

This may or may not help you. But you may want to check with your insurance company to see how much money you are saving by having this system active on your car. Maybe that will offset the cost of renewal.

I actually was thinking about that as well, but I really don't think the insurance company has a way of "knowing" if it's active or not... I will check with my agent and ask her how much of a discount I get with this feature, however, as I agree with you. Thanks for the reply!

 

[westwind77]

I do like that it notifies in a crash, and can track my stolen truck. However, since my truck is 100% stock, I don't really care about tracking it.

My brother has a Yukon (01'), it is equipped with On-Star however he has never activated or used it. It was stolen a few years ago, he told the police it was stolen, he then called On-Star and they tracked the vehicle, they told the police where it was, caught the guy red handed.

I am not sure if they are legally obligated to assist with a stolen vehicle even if you do not have the service active, but they did it with him. Wonder if anyone knows the ins/outs of the law with those services.

I would be surprised if you called in a panic about your 4R being stolen and the guy/girl on the other ended laughed and said 'well, bet you are kicking yourself for not renewing that subscription now aren't you!'

 

[SeattleMike]

I prefer AAA. I also prefer that people who want to track me have to get a warrant, not just activate a switch.

 

[TOYSTRY]

Lo-jack offers the same feature of (if my vehicle is stolen) the police will track it down feature for about the same price per year.

The fee per-year doesn't seem bad..........but it's when you don't have it and need it that you'll be wishing you had it. I don't think I'll renew mine, but instead just add AAA to my 4Runner.

 

[fxoffroad]

My primary reason for paying for the Toyota Safety Connect service...

I often day-trip up to the mountains during the week by myself. If I roll the 4R or (pray Christ I never) slide off the side of some trail - the SOS button is right there. (And I have visions of my phone flying out the windows as it rolls.)

That button and GPS locating gives me some peace of mind, knowing that I could/would be located. Now the question is... would rescue services actually come find me?

This is probably a ignorant question... if there is no cell service where I'm at... does the SOS system do some magic and connect via satellite? Secondly, if you turn off the side airbags... and the system is designed to automatically contact Toyota if they deploy (but they don't cuz I turned them off), what happens?

I also have AAA and my insurance company provides road-side assistance. Dunno about trail-side assistance.

 

[kmiller8821]

My primary reason for paying for the Toyota
This is probably a ignorant question... if there is no cell service where I'm at... does the SOS system do some magic and connect via satellite? Secondly, if you turn off the side airbags... and the system is designed to automatically contact Toyota if they deploy (but they don't cuz I turned them off), what happens?

According to the SOS renewal I recieved "SOS service is contigent on a strong cellular and satelllite signal for emergency transmission systems to function" - So, I'd say if you have no cell service, your SOS won't call anyone but the GPS locator could probably still be used to find you (even tho its doubtful you could initiate a call thru it)

I'm not sure on the airbag thing, that's a great question, I'll see if I can find out...I'm curious on that as well.

 

[SeattleMike]

This is probably a ignorant question... if there is no cell service where I'm at... does the SOS system do some magic and connect via satellite? Secondly, if you turn off the side airbags... and the system is designed to automatically contact Toyota if they deploy (but they don't cuz I turned them off), what happens?

I also have AAA and my insurance company provides road-side assistance. Dunno about trail-side assistance.

The SOS antenna is located in the sharkfin on the roof. It is independent of the one used in the Navigation unit, and does not have any magic uplink if there is no cell service. It uses the cell service to report it's location when activated, most likely via SMS text message, but it could use a regular GPRS data connection, too. On-Star works the same way: the GPS gets info from the satellites and transmits it via cellular connection. Since the satellite info is one-way only, no cell service in an accident means no help is coming.

I don't have any info on the airbags, but I suspect that turning the RSSC airbags "off" might only change the point at which they activate.

 

[Capt Goldtop]

I've had my 4Runner Ltd for a month now and haven't activated the service.

Also, why would anyone turn off the side curtain airbags? curious...

 

[Johnny Utah]

I thought SOS was standard on all toyota vehicles now. Is that wrong? I don't have it on my SR5

 

[Johnny Utah]

I've had my 4Runner Ltd for a month now and haven't activated the service.

Also, why would anyone turn off the side curtain airbags? curious...

Off-roading. There's a RSCA off thread that was bumped recently.

 

[Capt Goldtop]

Ok, that makes sense. After seeing how effective they can be in roll-over crashes, I guess it never occurred to me why anyone would turn them off!

Boy, that would be a mess if they deployed while doing some heavy-duty off-roading...

 

[kmiller8821]

I thought SOS was standard on all toyota vehicles now. Is that wrong? I don't have it on my SR5

SOS is:
Safety Connect® [21] includes Emergency Assistance, Stolen Vehicle Locator, Roadside Assistance and Automatic Collision Notification. Available by subscription. Complimentary 1-year trial subscription

This is currently ONLY available on the LIMITED trim level.

 

[Johnny Utah]

SOS is:
Safety Connect® [21] includes Emergency Assistance, Stolen Vehicle Locator, Roadside Assistance and Automatic Collision Notification. Available by subscription. Complimentary 1-year trial subscription

This is currently ONLY available on the LIMITED trim level.

oh. I mean, that does make sense. I swear i saw it was standard now on all models, or at least all 4runner models. I'll have to go look for where i saw it.

thanks anyway

edit: i guess i was thinking of the "star safety system"

http://www.toyota.com/4runner/features.html?trim=8642

 

[FJ 100]

I have it in my Limited.

From Wikipedia:

Models that have adopted the Safety Connect system to date, listed by model year:

2010 Toyota Prius
2010 Toyota 4Runner
2011 Toyota Sienna
2010 Toyota Land Cruiser

Selected models began offering the service in August 2009. Models that have adopted Lexus Enform with Safety Connect:

2010 Lexus HS 250h
2010 Lexus RX 350
2010 Lexus RX 450h
2010 Lexus IS 250/350
2010 Lexus IS 250/350 C
2010 Lexus ES 350
2010 Lexus GS 350/460/450h
2010 Lexus LS 460/460 L
2010 Lexus LS 600h L
2010 Lexus LX 570
2010 Lexus GX 460