The future of mobility is heading toward electric vehicles and autonomous driving. Automakers are certainly spending a lot of time and money on those two technologies. However, consumers may not be ready for plugging in and self-driving.
The first survey by J.D. Power and SurveyMonkey on those two subjects shows there’s a lack of confidence about the future of self-driving vehicles, and a neutral feeling about EV’s. They found 39% are not excited about any self-driving technology, whether it’s their personal vehicle or other ways of transportation like delivery services, public transit, or ride-hailing services. The biggest concern was about tech failures and errors, followed by the risk of the vehicle being hacked, and the legal liability in a collision. It’s important to point out 66% of respondents admitted having little to no knowledge about self-driving vehicles. Researchers say suggest automakers include informing consumers as part of their self-driving technology strategy.
As for electric vehicles, the survey found “consumers have a neutral level of confidence about the future of battery-electric vehicles”. While a majority of those responding say EV’s are better for the environment… price, charging, and range remain key issues among buyers. 64% are concerned about the availability of charging stations and 59% are concerned about range. To put these results in perspective, 68% of those asked have never been in an EV, and among those who have owned or leased a battery-electric vehicle, 75% said they would consider another.
More than 5,000 people responded to the survey about each of these developments in the automotive industry. J.D. Power and SurveyMonkey plan to conduct the survey every three months.
