From Trader to Autotrader and now Wagonex, a new subscription service launched in 2017. The automotive industry and the way that we view and purchase cars is changing rapidly.
Owning a car is an expense that many of us would like to do without. The average Brit spends an estimated £700 per year on car maintenance and the average depreciation sits at around 20% per year if you are lucky.
We no longer have a desire to be tied to one car for a long period of time; car ownership needs to be flexible to fit into our modern-day lifestyle. Research by the RAC has shown that 96% of the time our cars are stationary on our driveways, proving that cost-per-use when you own a car has become unreasonable. A car on subscription gives owners the ability to swap from commuter wagon to flash drive in one month and without the costs of permanent ownership.
How we search for cars (both new and used) has changed, and so has the decision as to whether we purchase them outright or choose a flexible subscription service. Technology has played a huge part in changing the industry. With the subscription model transforming several other industries, it seems fitting that this model can also provide a solution to the issues facing the car industry — depreciating asset value, cost to maintain a vehicle, rising interest rates, and a need for flexibility.
Aside from the changes in car ownership, the past 15 years alone has seen Tesla prove that electric cars are the future, with the latest model — which currently has a two-year waiting list — being marketed as the model which is hoped to make electric cars mainstream. It was in 2000 that hybrid cars were first introduced to the market, changing the future of fuel consumption and how our cars are run. The latest Tesla model costs £25,000 and buyers are required to put down a £1,000 deposit. However, one of the main issues holding electric cars back at present is their 100-mile driving range — because running out of battery and being stranded is no-one’s idea of a good driving experience. Tesla are currently upgrading their battery to hold in excess of 300-miles, the first in the electric car market to do so.
How Has Tech Transformed Our Driving So Far?
Go back to 1996 and vehicles had only just introduced OBD II to provide on-board diagnostics, to enhance vehicle performance and improve fuel economy. Since then vehicles have been able to tell us how many miles we have left in the tank before we fill up; information which is invaluable to drivers in improving the running of their vehicles.
It was only in 1998 that electronic key fobs made their way onto our keyrings, meaning that you don’t even have to push a button to open a car door — simply approach the car with your fob in your pocket, and the doors open as you touch the handle. In newer car models, we don’t even need to turn the ignition, we simply push a button instead. Previously a novelty, these advancements have become so normalised to us — especially for millennials — that this level of convenience has become the base levels of what manufacturers should be offering.
While many of us use our phones to navigate our way, when satellite navigation systems were introduced into our lives they were seen as completely revolutionary in helping us locate exactly where we should be, allowing us to uncover new routes and places of the world without a handheld map. However, early routing algorithms were a little shaky, the early 2000s saw systems become integrated into vehicles, thus improving the user-experience once again.
From 2000 onwards, cars have become more connected, with many vehicles holding the power of 20 PCs, optimizing their performance and providing the driver with a ‘smarter’ experience. Whether it’s being able to chat via Bluetooth systems, navigate through Europe, watch a movie in the backseat or listen to our favourite Spotify playlist, cars have become a hub of connected activity on the road.
What’s next?
Driverless cars, perhaps? In April 2017, Apple were given the go-ahead to test autonomous vehicles in California, with motorway trials in the UK set for 2019. With an aim to drive cars without human input (although a human driver is, of course, required to take control if needed) driverless cars are set to be the next big development since electric vehicles.
The Consumer Electronic Show 2017 allowed many automotive brands to debut new concepts and technological advancements which are set to improve the car experience further.
Faraday Future, an electric car makers based in California revealed its supercar — FF 91 which is set to be the most connected vehicle ever. With 30 sensors which encompass facial recognition and learn driver behaviour, the vehicle is also able to account for weather conditions and other situations to help make itself more suitable to the driver’s needs, adjusting car setting to aid performance, safety and comfort. Its autonomous functionality will enable a driverless valet, and return automatically when you summon it via the app. Nevertheless, during its presentation, the car functionality wasn’t as seamless as expected and the project itself had mixed reception among the industry experts but it shows one of the way car industry might follow.
Additionally, car dashboards are changing, with cabins becoming sleeker in design and in the functionalities that they offer drivers, with digital displays replacing current display units. BMW is saying goodbye to buttons and introducing a free-floating projection screen, which invites users to wave their hands in front and will mimic a touchscreen.
Nissan is working with Microsoft to integrate Cortana into its car’s windshield to allow drivers to make reservations or see locations on a virtual map.
At Wagonex, we believe that future is not only changing in terms of the car drive and user experience. Recent survey shows that 75% of industry executives agree that more than 50% of us will no longer own cars by 2025.
For us it’s a clear sign that subscription model has the potential to change car ownership for the better.
