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Vehicle safety has advanced beyond simple features like air bags and basic crash tests. Today’s vehicles include high-tech features like blind spot detection, adaptive cruise control and rear cameras, all intended to make the driving experience even safer. In fact, The Hartford recently reported that older drivers especially value these high-tech vehicle safety features when purchasing automobiles. So how many car buyers will look for such safety features during their next car search? And what features are most likely to entice buyers?
Car Owners
In Ask Your Target Market’s latest survey, 72% of respondents said that they currently own or lease a vehicle. And 45% of respondents said that they would be at least somewhat likely to purchase or lease a new vehicle within the next five years.When considering a new vehicle purchase, safety features ranked fairly high on consumers’ lists, but not quite as high as a few others. 64% of those who plan to buy a new vehicle in the next five years said that cost is their most important consideration. 14% said that the vehicle brand is their most important factor. And 12% ranked safety features as most important. Comfort, tech features, luxury and style were all ranked as less important than safety features.
Vehicle Safety
More specifically, just 18% of current vehicle owners said that their car has high tech safety features like blind spot alerts or automatic braking systems. However, 68% of those who plan to buy a vehicle in the next five years said that they are at least somewhat likely to buy a vehicle with some high-tech safety features. And 78% of those interested in such features said that they would even consider paying slightly more for them. Respondents ages 55 and older weren’t actually any more likely to be interested in vehicles with high-tech safety features. So it seems that those features actually appeal to drivers of all ages.In general, 72% of respondents agreed that high tech features like blind spot alerts and automatic brakes can make driving safer. However, there are also some concerns among consumers. 52% said they at least somewhat agree that high-tech safety features can be distracting. And 59% think that they can make drivers complacent or lazy.
High Tech Features
Of course, there are many different techy safety features for drivers to consider when purchasing vehicles. So which ones are most important? An average of 21% of respondents said that blind spot warnings are appealing to them. 18% like the idea of automatic braking systems. 15% appreciate smart headlights. 14% like the idea of collision alerts. 13% appreciate lane departure warnings. 10% like 360-degree cameras. And 9% like adaptive cruise control.
Key Takeaways
It’s clear that safety features in general are important to drivers. In fact, many potential car buyers already plan to factor high-tech vehicle safety features into their next car buying decisions. But if automotive companies want those features to appeal to even more consumers, there are a few ways they can go about that. First of all, it could be worth it to quell some of consumers’ worries about those features being distracting or making drivers complacent through demonstrations or comprehensive explanations. In addition, it seems that some of the most appealing safety features are those that provide something very specific where it’s easy to understand how and why they could lead to safer driving. However, things like adaptive cruise control could be more difficult for drivers to understand. So if car companies can easily convey what those features do and how and why they make driving safer, it could potentially lead to even more consumer interest.You can view the complete survey results in the widget below and be sure to click “Open Full Report” to take advantage of all the chart and filter options.Photo Credit: Multi Award- Winning Range Rover Evoque Leads The Way With In-Car Technology by Land Rover MENA under CC BY 2.0What do you want to know? If you need some consumer insights on a particular topic, let us know in the comments below and we’ll consider it for an upcoming survey post.
Results were collected on June 26 via AYTM’s online survey panel.
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