Share Your MINI to Maximize Your Cash

Lots of people own cars that they do not use very much. So that means an expensive asset just sits there most of the time, doing nothing but costing you money. BMW is moving to help change that dynamic for people who purchase their new MINI Clubman.

BMW co-owns the global DriveNow vehicle sharing network, and when you buy a new Clubman you’ll be able to rent it out as part of the service. A smartphone app allows members to locate available vehicles. Ford also just announced that they are going to be offering a similar opportunity for people who buy their cars.

Why are these two major carmakers jumping into this new business model? It’s actually pretty simple – if they don’t, more and young people are buying fewer cars as sharing services like ZipCar become more popular. For BMW and Ford, the end result of this new move could be more people buying cars, retaining the benefit of not having to reserve a car from a service when they need one, but still being able to reduce their costs by allowing others to drive it when it’s convenient for them to lend it out. And it just might inspire a few more folks to check out BMW’s new Clubman.