Nissan’s ‘Hyper-Personalisation’ After-Sales Device In India Soon

Nissan is planning to accelerate the penetration of internet-connected vehicles by offering hyper-personalisation after-sales options through a device to its owners in India and Japan in the near future, the company said on Tuesday. 

The level of this customisation was compared to the one in sneakers as both new and old car owners will be offered features like internet access, safety technology and myriad accessory options by the Japanese automaker. 

The device will allow car owners to get live updates on maintenance needs, make service appointments, and order parts ahead of time. Nissan said it plans to bring the device to other countries eventually and install it in 30 per cent of the 40 million Nissan vehicles that are on the roads at present.

The device contains a Global Positioning System tracker and can transmit information about the vehicle’s health to Nissan through mobile networks. The goal is to give customers a taste of connected-car services that will become available on new cars, Nissan said.

“In the coming years, customers will see sophisticated applications of software and hardware that will keep them connected with work, with friends and family. It will allow them to control their vehicles from their phones in their pockets,” said Kent O’Hara, who runs Nissan’s after-sales division.

O'Hara is projecting that his division's efforts in connectivity, accessories and personalisation will deliver 25 percent of company's after-sales revenue by 2022, whereas it's negligible now.

Devices to connect cars to the net will be offered at dealers, first in Japan and India, expanding to other countries through 2020, he said, stressing that such needs are great in emerging markets, as well as the US and Europe.

Rumours about Nissan introducing a notification system for cars in India have also been doing the rounds. The system in question will notify the driver about required maintenance and/or service.

With Nissan also set to launch a slew of cars in India during the remainder of this decade, the carmaker looks set to follow in the footsteps of its alliance partner Renault’s success.