Half of Car Buyers Pick Tech Ahead of Brand

Cars and Drivers

Published: January 9, 2017 6:15 am

Last Updated: January 12, 2020 4:03 pm

Car technology, once considered a nuisance by many drivers, has apparently come of age. A new study shows that 48% of car buyers put the latest auto technology offerings ahead of brand, style or color.

The study, done by Cox Automotive, showed:

A growing number of car shoppers believe certain safety technologies, including blind-spot detection and forward collision warning, should be standard on all vehicles sold in the U.S., according to the findings of the 2017 Autotrader Car Technology Impact Study, released today. In its third year, the latest study reveals insight into how vehicle technology impacts consumer vehicle purchase behavior.

Another finding is that two-thirds of people would pay extra for the tech features they want.

Drivers had strong preferences for wireless device charging, advanced camera parking display and automatic parking.

Drivers also believe that a number of features should be standard rather than ones that buyers should pay for. Among them are blind spot detection, forward collision warnings and forward collision avoidance.

Coming full circle to the issue of nuisance, 67% of people said it would take over a half an hour to how to figure out the tech features of their next car.

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