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Car Buyers Don’t Want In-Vehicle Shopping, Study Says

A recent study referenced by Kelley Blue Book indicates the majority of car buyers are not interested in having the ability to purchase items through their vehicle’s infotainment system.

KBB recently cited a study by auto research firm AutoPacific that determined the features car buyers want most in their vehicles and the features they could definitely do without. Fully autonomous, hands-free driving without a steering wheel was the least popular feature, according to the study, although it was tied with gesture controls for most unpopular. The ability to purchase items from the infotainment system (or in-vehicle shopping) was the third least popular, followed by electronic engine noise enhancement and an augmented reality head-up display.

The features that car buyers want most in their new vehicle include heated seats, which was the number one most in-demand feature, as well as blind-spot monitoring, front and rear parking sensors, all-wheel drive, lane departure warning, Apple CarPlay/Android Auto, power front seats, LED accent lighting, ventilated/cooled seats and driver’s seat position memory.

The most in-demand features sit in stark contrast to the least popular features. While many of the most popular features are highly practical and make the overall ownership experience of a vehicle better, the least popular features are all unnecessary gimmicks.

These findings were backed up by the recent J.D. Power Tech Experience study, KBB says, which found that 61 percent of owners who had a vehicle with in-vehicle shopping never used this feature. Furthermore, 51 percent of these buyers said they had no need for in-vehicle shopping features and couldn’t see themselves ever using them.

Knowing which tech features to include in a vehicle and which to leave out will be hugely important in the coming years, explains Kristin Kolodge, executive director of human-machine interface at J.D. Power, as vehicle prices are rising rapidly due in part to the presence of unnecessary, unpopular technology.

“New-vehicle prices are at an all-time high, partly as a result of an increased level of content,” said Kolodge. “This is fine if owners are getting value for their money, but some features seem like a waste to many owners.”

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Sam loves to write and has a passion for auto racing, karting and performance driving of all types.

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Comments

  1. I want to drive my car not ride in it.

    I have a phone that does everything else so I don’t need a slow and unresponsive infotainment system that is unusable while driving.
    Another reason why those big screens that everyone BEGGED gm for are pointless.

    Just give me a place to insert my phone and it can be the screen. Want a bigger screen? Buy a tablet that will work 100 times better than the garbage screens all manufacturers have now.

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  2. … all what car industries do… it is not for customers… but only exercises for their selves…

    if buyers come and purchase a car, this is a plus bonus they were not count on.

    we were never asked by car industries how we would like a car to be

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  3. gm is so stupid what a pathetic company

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    1. … when worked for GM or GMB with Opel Cars in 1995 had a hope, but after in 1997, seeing was slippering on same ice, asked my demission… and after saw Oldsmobile, Saturn, Pontiac, and other dying even Opel with GM… so understand your statement, because for example, the Impact EV1 they took back and destroyed, yesterday saw which cars Cadillac sells, and could only open Cadillac in Mexico because the Cadillac US site was not working, neither saw much, Buick the same, some 6 SUV and that is it… GM Shanghai seems having much more models with joint ventures, which impressed me, GM disappeared since 2017 in whole Europe, neither exist Chrysler anymore.. The Strange point when you look a good compromise car in your taste, you do not found in any car maker. So really do not know for whom those cars offered are,,, seems not to the major population ! … or are we Aliens ?

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      1. Lol exactly

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  4. add to the list of stupid items (which includes shopping in the car icons)…..why would anyone want an icon for NY Times or any other newspaper or Magizines to be on the Infosystem…..talk about taking your eyes off the task of driving to read a story….WHY….who thought that was a good idea……its bad enough using the touch screen to adjust the climate control without hitting a tree

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    1. Yeah, you have no idea what you’re talking about. The NY Times app plays podcasts. Kind of like how people listen to news radio.

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      1. still a useless distraction from your main goal…..DRIVING SAFELY

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  5. Who are they polling?
    It is definitely not younger people. If we are to believe the Automakers that Autonomy is for sure happening, what do these Automakers think will happen within their Infotainment Screens?
    It’ll become just like your Cell phone. Do you not shop from your cell phone?
    Cars will become rolling iPads. We will be watching shows, YouTube, playing video Games, and yes shopping.
    Not saying this is what I prefer just stating what will happen whether I want it to or not. I am all for Autonomy but only as long as I have a choice to driver or not.

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  6. J. D Powers again shows they don’t know what the hell they’re talking about.

    One, in-car commerce is an app, it has zero hardware costs. Two, the idea is to lower the price of the car because the maker charges all the merchants to put their content in, so it’s a profit generator, not a cost.

    That said, this is typical GM failing at software. Instead of gaining some core competency, they outsourced Marketplace to an equally clueless supplier (Lear), creating an unusably laggy, non-integrated, featureless app that’s been stagnant ever since it came out.

    Wait until Google or Apple gets their hands on it. Right way: pull up to Exxon and it automatically pops up a payment screen asking for the pump number. GM way: 30 seconds of flipping through menus fiddling around and finding that it logged you out.

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  7. Shopping is a euphemism for advertising. They want to pipe advertising to your car.

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  8. We don’t want touch screens, either. Get back to regular car stereos with 6-CD changer and call it a day (Manufacturing a touch-screen cost less than manufacturing a proper car stereo with CD and Bluetooth)

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    1. Here in the midwest we are not interested in EV’s with limited range, nor are we interested in shopping from our vehicles.

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  9. The real challenge to automakers on these subscription services is that most people just use a phone. On star is hurt by this snd the shopping thing is the same.

    My sit in your car shopping when you can be anyplace and shop.

    As for the autonomous driving. It is not a perfect thing for many drivers who rather decide what the car does and how fast they go.

    Systems like the Cadillac subscription for auto pilot will struggle till it is standard. Some will pay extra most will not.

    Also the media covering all the Tesla crashes are not ensuring to a public that may not fully understand.

    Just wait till people find if they are late to work the car does not choose the short cut they know or will not go faster than 40 mph on an empty road to make up time. It is the little things that will challenge this.

    Right now yes the car will drive you but most grow tired of just sitting and watching as it is not full autonomous.

    Later if we have full autonomous and say the government takes charge on where and when you go in the name of traffic control. They will chant more than let’s go Brandon.

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  10. Ever since “On Star” creation was placed in GM vehicles, the main goal of ever single company now is subscription services. They want the monthly income whether you use it or not. You can hardly buy software anymore, it’s always $$ per month. Super Cruise is a monthly subscription but that is never explained in any GM advertising.

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  11. Placing more APPs on the screen is a sticky situation all in the name of safety. Some are blocked while the vehicle is in motion, some others are not and with most NAV programs only menu selection is allowed during vehicle motion, no typing allowed. As soon as someone is killed or hurt using a APP while driving, the lawyers will be lining up at the court house claiming profits over safety, etc, etc. GM and Uconnect (RAM) screens have a warning of use during vehicle motion on power up. Does anyone really read it?

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  12. What is this augmented reality head-up display?

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  13. Internet shopping in a moving vehicle should not be allowed\ you are operating a moving vehicle stop and go in a store to shop

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  14. Wonder how all the flavor of the moment electronic gadgetry will sustain it’s performance after 10 years of hot summers and cold winters? I think not..
    Automakers want us to flip cars every three years to sustain their business models. Built in obsolescence with the electronic gadgetry is the order of the day.

    Reply

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