Volkswagen plotting pay-as-you-go autonomous driving

Volkswagen could soon offer its autonomous driving aids as part of a pay-per-use basis following a radical shake-up of how the German car-maker charges customers for extras.

According to Volkswagen board member Klaus Zellmer, in an interview with newspaper Die Welt, the switch to a subscription model could see customers pay up to €7 ($A11) per hour to use the company's autonomous cruise control.

"Regarding autonomous driving we can imagine to offer it on an hourly basis," said Zellmer, who also heads up VW's sales, marketing and aftersales.

"We assume a price of around seven euros per hour. So if you do not want to drive yourself for three hours you can pay 21 euros to get it done."

According to Zellmer, by offering self-driving tech as a pay-as-you-go service it helps democratise it for everyone.

That's because in the future the cost of 'true' autonomous driving technology is set to significantly ramp up. Level 3 driving, for example, needs lidar, radar and multiple cameras that require advanced software and huge processing power to allow them to offer a hands-off, eyes-off driving capability.

Some systems even employ microphones to ensure the car 'listens' for fast-approaching emergency vehicles.

Offering autonomous cruise control as a software-related upgrade is just one example of numerous options that could soon be offered on a subscription basis as car-makers scramble to find new revenue-generating streams. It could also see some options remain with the owner, not the car, after it is sold.

Volkswagen has already announced that from 2022 its ID range of pure-electric cars will be the first to be offered with new 'digital services'.

Last year Tesla was the subject of investigations by US consumer organisations after owners reported optional extras like Ludicrous Mode and Enhanced Autopilot had been removed post-sale because the second owner hadn't paid for them.