HONDA INCREASES THE COST OF SERVICE INFORMATION
Honda has stopped selling subscriptions to ServiceExpress – their service information website intended for use by owners and independent repair shops. ServiceExpress provided relatively low-cost access to repair information, owner’s manuals, accessory information, and a parts catalog and offered searches by subject or keyword. Subscriptions to ServiceExpress were $10 per day, $50 per month, or $350 per year.
Access to service information now requires a subscription to Honda’s Service Information System which costs $25 per day, $125 per month, or $1,250 per year – increases of 250% to 347% over ServiceExpress. The Service Information System was previously intended for use by Honda dealers, but could be purchased by anyone.
Honda states on their website, “In an effort to provide the best experience for our subscribers, American Honda has chosen to maintain one service information website – Service Information System (SIS). SIS offers users expanded search capabilities as well as Tool Integration. We will no longer be selling subscriptions to ServiceExpress.”
The cost of the Service Information System also increased from $20 to $25 per day, from $100 to $125 per month, and from $1,000 to $1,250 per year. The cost for the i-HDS diagnostic software subscription increased from $10 to $30 per day, from $133 to $200 per month, and from $1,547 to $1,800 per year. The i-HDS subscription is the required software component of the Honda Diagnostic System (the Honda-specific scan tool used by Honda dealers). A hardware interface is also required. Subscriptions for Vehicle Security Professionals such as locksmiths, insurers, and members of law enforcement increased by the same amounts.
Subscriptions including information such as removal/installation procedures, diagnostic procedures, wiring diagrams, component locations, specifications, system descriptions, and service bulletins are available here.
While these increased prices are still competitive with offerings from some other automakers, they represent a dramatic increase in the cost to obtain information necessary to learn more about or repair your Honda. Manufacturers continue to move from printed, one-time purchases of service information to subscription-only models. We’d love to hear your thoughts about the increasing cost of service information and the tools and equipment necessary to repair modern vehicles.
