There are conflicting studies on who wants connected cars, who has heard of them and why. However, a Parks Associates study found that over 75% of U.S. vehicle owners with at least one connected car feature said these services will influence their next vehicle purchase. And over 50% rated connected services as “very important” in deciding a what new car to buy.
Smartphone penetration is at 80% with the smartphone acting as a gateway device.
The most common connected car feature is the ability to make phone calls using the car’s built-in Bluetooth connectivity. The most desired feature is the ability to view maps or receive directions.
For all connected car features, smartphone users are much more likely than non-smartphone owners to find connected car services appealing:
- 37% of current vehicle owners in U.S. broadband households are very interested in the ability to view maps or receive directions.
- Among smartphone owners, the percentage of those interested increases to 48%.
The report predicts the rapid growth of usage-based insurance (UBI) programs over the next five years. These programs currently represent less than 5% of all private passenger auto policies in the United States, but analysts say the auto and insurance industries will move quickly to leverage the vehicle performance and driver behavior data generated by connected car solutions.
JD Power suggests car makers should forget about advanced features and get voice recognition to work as well as smarpthones. A new study by Telefónica showed there is global demand for connected car services. SBD rated many of the luxury brand connected car systems as poor with Tesla and Nissan the best.
Whatever drivers want by 2018, 420 million automobiles will be connected to the tune of over $11Billion.