Indian car buyers open to innovations like autonomous driving: Capgemini study

If the findings of consulting, technology and outsourcing services provider Capgemini’s annual study ‘Cars Online’ are anything to go by, then Indian car buyers are probably among the most receptive customers in the world to upcoming innovations like autonomous driving and connected car technologies.

Every year, the Cars Online survey includes nearly a thousand people per country and more than 7,500 people from seven countries were a part of Cars Online 2015. 

According to Cars Online 2015, a large number of respondents in India (90 percent) are in favour of low speed autonomous driving (covering parking and de-parking) while a similar figure (90 percent) show keenness for medium speed autonomous driving (covering city traffic, congestion driving). A staggeringly high number of respondents (89 percent) are open to high-speed autonomous driving which covers highway and speed travel, thus showing their keenness to accept disruptive and innovative technologies.

Speaking to Autocar Professional, Nick Gill, global head of automotive practice, Capgemini, said: “What differentiates the Indian consumer from any other consumer is that they are more receptive to anything new. For example, as regards new areas like autonomous driving and mobility services Indian customers are more receptive and look forward to these services being offered to them. It is pretty clear from our survey, if someone says that there is no demand for autonomous cars in India, he is just beating around the bush. It is just that supply will create demand as the consumer is open for it.

“Things like ride sharing services have picked up in India because of the supply at an affordable price point. So the OEMs in India need to think about these smaller segments that are propping up.” 

STAYING CONNECTED

This year’s study also highlights that Indian respondents are very open to the connected car experience with the majority saying that although they do not have connected car services, they look forward to it in their next purchase.

A significant number (25 percent) mentioned that they are already using connected car services. While a large number (70 percent) of respondents chose connected car services as a determining factor for their next car purchase. Manufacturers or dealers, telecommunication provider, IT services, insurance and roadside assistance are preferred partners for sharing data with connected car services.

In India, acceptance of social media as an established and trusted source for vehicle research and dialogue, and openness to connected car and autonomous driving, show an increasing inclination towards innovative technologies and online conversations and transactions.

The Indian respondents, which accounted nearly 14 percent of the overall growth market globally, also highlighted the following:

General considerations: An overwhelming 94 percent of the Indian respondents would prefer to buy a new car when they are thinking of purchasing or leasing one. While purchasing the standard configuration car the priority features are more safety (61 percent), fuel efficiency (59 percent), in car technology (45 percent), and surprisingly the least important being comfort and driving performance.

Quick information exchange and responsiveness a priority: A majority of the respondents expect the dealer or manufacturer to respond to a customer request made by website or email within 1-4 hours while 20 percent expect immediate response. The repercussions of delayed and poor response are high with 46 percent of respondents choosing to opt for another dealer and about 30 percent choosing to switch the brand or manufacturer. Responsiveness and dialogue is also key for purchase, as knowledgeable sales staff (for 40 percent of respondents) and faster, personalised response from manufacturer or dealer to enquiries (for 36 percent of respondents) resulted in satisfaction during purchase.

Social media a significant influence on buying decision: A large number of the respondents (45 percent) said that positive comments about a car, dealer, or manufacturer on social media would very likely influence their purchase decision. Social media also has impact in other critical areas, not only as a source of news and insights about the brand, product and services, but also as a channel for dialogue – customer service, enquiries and complaints.

Dealer and online buying experience – the trend towards online: A majority of the respondents (65 percent) said that they would visit the dealership to have a test drive and many (53 percent) preferred to visit the dealer to see the car in real life. At the same time, 30 percent of the respondents considered it very likely, and 27 percent of the respondents were inclined, to purchasing a car on the internet, indicating a tremendous opportunity for augmented reality for experiencing the car. Customers also expect discounts and the ability to order a car not available locally via the online medium. Respondents are also very likely to purchase car parts and accessories over the internet citing price discounts (36 percent) and ease and speed of transactions (19 percent) as the major reasons.

Post-purchase communications: Forty eight percent of the respondents expect to receive weekly information from car manufacturer or dealer between purchase and delivery for which the preferred communication media were email (35 percent), smart phone (22 percent) and website (15 percent).

Service experience: The majority of the respondents are happy with the current service experience, but a large segment (38 percent) still seek better quality of repair and maintenance, and another large chunk of respondents (34 percent) seek a pick-up and delivery service. This is a great opportunity for predictive maintenance within connected car services.