GM's Maven car-share service will add outside brands next year
General Motors' Maven car-share will make a big change next year. The brand's Peer Cars service let users share non-GM vehicles, Automotive News (subscription required) reported on Monday. The move could be a step toward Maven allowing users to rent out non-vehicle items, too.
Peer Cars gives Maven members the ability to rent out their GM vehicle when it's not in use, like other rival car-sharing platforms. But Julia Steyn, Maven's vice president, said the platform will add non-GM cars in mid-2019. Like the current requirements for GM owners, non-GM cars will have to be 2015 model years or newer to be accepted on the platform.
GM splits profits between owners and the company 60/40, like other rival services.
The change to let in outside brands comes after research showed 40 percent of those interested in Peer Cars do not own a GM vehicle. Thus, Steyn expects will grow substantially when the service officially greenlights other vehicles for Peer Cars. She added Maven's revenue has doubled each year since GM launched the mobility brand in 2016.
Maven also handles traditional car-sharing (users can book a car for a specific trip or timeframe), rents out vehicles for freelance workers via Maven Gig, and most recently added the peer-to-peer car-sharing service, Peer Cars, this past summer. Most recently, Maven announced Peer Cars would launch in 10 new cities by the end of 2018.
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GM and Maven see the brand's growth as only the start of what could include numerous other sharing services. Steyn said the focus is currently on cars and trucks, but one day, Maven could provide a platform to share and rent out anything that sits idle. Think RVs, lawn mowers, and other equipment.
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