Electronics company Cisco - which, let us not forget, has a vested interest in pushing the adoption of new technology - has released the results of a customer experience report based on a survey of 1500 drivers across 10 countries.
The question were focused on the car buying and driving experience, technology preferences, trust in future automotive innovation and how car manufacturers can use those preferences to provdidec a more personal driving experience.
From buying a car to servicing, customers are using more advanced communications technologies - cellphones, texting, interactive websites etc. - to deal with manufacturers and dealers. About half (47 percent) take the reputation of a brand for being technology-savvy into account when choosing a car.
RESEARCHING THE WEB
Drivers around the world are keen to see technology-driven advances in personalising their car, safety, and time and cost savings; drivers in Brazil, China and India were the most willing to provide information in their driving habits to save time and money, and would probably be more receptive to driverless cars.
Most customers begin the process of buying a car online: 83 percent of buyers worldwide prefer to do their research online rather than walk into a dealership and ask questions. Conversely, car salespeople need to realise that five out of six customers now know as much as - or more than - they do about their product before they even shake hands.
The good news, however, is that 61 percent of them will actually go to the manufacturer's website for primary information, and 78 percent of them trust what they see online.
TRACKING COSTS
Car drivers, it seems, want to be able to track costs from their vehicles - lowest insurance premiums, availability of roadside assistance, recall information - but the highest percentage of respondents (52 percent) wanted to know where they could get the lowest fuel price, underlining the fact that South Africa is unusual in having regulated fuel prices.
Even more (62) percent said they would buy a device that could keep track in real time of their monthly fuel and maintenance budgets. And 74 percent would allow their driving habits to be monitored to save on insurance or servicing costs.
Sixty percent were happy to provide fingerprints or DNA samples for personalised car security (now that's a scary thought!) and 65 percent would share personal information such as height or weight, driving habits and entertainment preferences if this meant they could get a more personalised car.
AND FINALLY
More than half of the drivers polled (57 percent) said they would be prepared to ride in an autonomous car, especially Brazilians (96 percent) Indians (86 percent) and Chinese drivers (70 percent). But consumer trust dropped to 46 percent when asked if they would let their kids ride in driverless cars, in particular drivers Japan, France, and Germany, where only six percent would let their children ride in an autonomous car.