Home » Latest Technology Key Reason for Purchasing Domestic U.S. vs Import Vehicles, J.D. Power

Latest Technology Key Reason for Purchasing Domestic U.S. vs Import Vehicles, J.D. Power

fleetnewsdaily | January 15, 2014

New technology offerings in vehicles are important to new-vehicle buyers who purchase domestic U.S. models, as 38 percent of those buying domestic vehicles cite the latest technology features as a reason for their purchase, compared with 33 percent of import vehicle buyers, according to the J.D. Power 2014 U.S. Avoider Study.

Additionally, domestic vehicle buyers who previously owned an import model are even more likely to purchase a domestic model due to its new technology and features (40%).

“Domestic brands in general are carving out a niche for themselves by offering vehicles with the latest technological features, and it appears to be getting the attention of consumers,” said Jon Osborn, research director at J.D. Power.

KEY FINDINGS

Among both import and domestic new-vehicle buyers, latest technology is among the top 10 purchase reasons indicated at the industry level.

For a third consecutive year, gas mileage continues to be the most influential purchase reason at the industry level (15%) and is the second-most-frequently cited reason for rejecting a vehicle, behind price.
Exterior styling remains the most influential reason for new-vehicle buyers to avoid shopping other models in the segment in which they purchased (33%).
Slightly more than eight in 10 (81%) new-vehicle buyers who use the Internet for automotive shopping cite accessing online ratings and reviews prior to purchasing their vehicle.1 Fifteen percent of new-vehicle buyers cite online ratings and reviews as a reason they avoided a specific vehicle, up 4 percentage points from 2010.
Among new-vehicle buyers who purchased an electric vehicle, more buyers say that they did so due to environmental concerns (32%) than gas mileage (29%).

The study also finds that the top five most influential purchase reasons among luxury and mass market new-vehicle buyers are: