Study: Indians want more safety features in new cars

  • Dec 19, 2014
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According to a study by J.D. Power, new car buyers in India seek features and technologies that aid driving convenience, visibility and safety

JD Power Study suggests Indians want more safety features in new cars

International automobile research and consulting firm, J.D. Power has just released their latest findings from the J.D. Power Asia Pacific 2014 India Automotive Performance, Execution and Layout (APEAL) Study, which sheds light on new-vehicle appeal. 

The APEAL Study, which examines how gratifying a new vehicle is to own and drive, is used extensively by manufacturers worldwide to help them design and develop more attractive vehicles and by consumers to help them in their purchase decisions. 

The study measures satisfaction across ten performance categories, including vehicle exterior; vehicle interior; storage and space; audio/ entertainment/ navigation; seats; heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC); driving dynamics; engine/ transmission; visibility and driving safety; and fuel economy. Overall APEAL performance is reported as an index score based on a 1,000-point scale, with a higher score indicating higher satisfaction.

According to the APEAL Study, visibility and safety is the most influential performance category on new-vehicle customer satisfaction in the smallcar market, contributing 16 per cent to the overall APEAL score, and is the third-most impactful category in the midsize segment, where it contributes 13 per cent to overall satisfaction.

J.D. Power percentage table of smallcar owners that want safety features in new cars

J.D. Power has also shared a table which shows the percentage of smallcar owners that would have liked to have a set of safety features in their new car, along side a table on smallcar owners who have actually gone ahead and opted for those safety features on their current vehicle.

The APEAL Study suggests that about 95 per cent of smallcar owners would have liked or “want” height adjustable driver’s seat but just 35 per cent of small-car owners that “have” this feature in their current car. Similarly 94 per cent would like to have Anti-lock braking system in cars but only 24 per cent have opted for the safety feature in their existing vehicle.

What’s shocking is that although 92 per cent of new car buyers desire airbags in the vehicle, only a meager 12 per cent bought the higher spec car with airbags. The lowest feature in the table is the hands-free communication system in cars, which about 93 per cent of new car buyers desire, but about 10 per cent actually opted for.

“The rapid and substantial increase in demand for safety features by vehicle buyers in India over the last few years underscores the need for automakers to develop innovative and cost-effective solutions to address customer expectations,” said Mohit Arora, executive director at J.D. Power Asia Pacific, Singapore.  “While India shows interest in some of these basic safety features, globally, there is a growing interest in a variety of more advanced vehicle safety features. In developed markets, such as the U.S., we are seeing a rising demand for emerging safety technologies such as low speed collision avoidance systems and fully autonomous parking systems.”

In addition to safety features, owners also value driving convenience. For example, while automatic transmissions are currently found in only 5 percent of the new vehicles sold in India, 82 percent of owners want the option in their next vehicle. APEAL scores among mass market vehicles equipped with an automatic transmission average 869, compared with 854 among mass market vehicles with manual transmissions.

“According to the study data, new-vehicle owners spend nearly 2 hours commuting each day, on average, which is almost a 15 percent increase from 2011. With the addition of more than 2.5 million passenger vehicles to the roads in India in 2013, average commute time is expected to further increase, supporting customers’ demand for technologies and features that make the overall driving experience safer and less strenuous,” said Arora.

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