US Car Owners Find Some Vehicle Tech Annoying, Unnecessary: J.D. Power

J.D. Power, the American research firm best known to automotive enthusiasts for its dependability and consumer satisfaction ratings, has released the results of a new study specifically about how vehicle owners in the USA feel about the tech in their cars. The US Tech Experience Index (TXI) study’s findings indicate that people are in many cases indifferent to the increasing number of features and conveniences that car manufacturers promise, and some are even growing frustrated and annoyed with in-car technology. 

The firm says it can use this data to, for the first time, calculate the return on investment that carmakers can expect for various aspects of vehicle technology, which will allow them to focus on what actually works for drivers. This could help them with developing and marketing their offerings as well as cutting costs by trimming features that have low uptake or are perceived negatively.

Last year, Anand Mahindra had suggested that people were getting fed up with "useless" tech in their cars, in response to the previous edition of this report. However, the company does not seem to have slowed down when it comes to tech features with its recent launches.

According to the 2024 study, features that are generally liked and valued by drivers are ones that address specific concerns or have defined use cases. One such example that ranked well was smart climate control, which on more recent cars has been developed leveraging AI. 

On the other hand, drivers responded less favourably to face or fingerprint recognition, gesture controls, and front passenger screens. According to the survey, most drivers are unenthusiastic about ADAS as a whole but responded well to specific features such as visual blind spot indications when reversing. Hands-on and hands-off active driving assistance was not valued much by respondents, who preferred being in control themselves.  

The J.D. Power Tech Experience Index was calculated based on 81,926 responses from owners of 2024 model-year cars between July 2023 and May 2024. The surveys were conducted 90 days after the respondents took ownership of their vehicles. Of the 40 tech features evaluated, seven are new for this year’s edition of the TXI, and three are AI-driven. The new features evaluated this year include OEM smartphone apps, conditional driving automation, impaired driving prevention, smart doors, and smart driver preferences.

According to the company’s own 2023 US Sales Satisfaction Index, 37.2 percent of respondents chose to buy one vehicle model over another because it had the latest technology features. For manufacturers, “J.D. Power transactional data shows that getting the right mix of technology owners want is important to perception, profits, and sales”, Kathleen Rizk, Senior Director of User Experience Benchmarking said in a company statement. 

In the US, Genesis was the top-ranking brand (premium and overall) for the fourth year in a row. Lexus and BMW followed it in the premium category, while Hyundai, Kia and GMC were the highest scoring mass-market brands. Interestingly, the report highlighted Tesla for falling behind. The company, once synonymous with tech and rated highly by early adopters, has fallen behind, which J.D. Power attributes to its audience widening and quality concerns overriding enthusiasm. Direct Driver monitoring was a particularly problematic feature for Tesla in the TXI results.

The features evaluated in the TXI were sorted into four categories: Convenience, Emerging Automation, Energy and Sustainability, and Infotainment and Connectivity. The Toyota Sequoia was recognised in the Convenience category for its rear-view camera technology. The Genesis GV70 (premium) and Kia Carnival (mass market) won in the Emerging Automation category, both for their front cross traffic warning features. One-pedal driving won the Energy and Sustainability category for the BMW iX. As for Infotainment and Connectivity, the BMW X6 (premium) and Hyundai Santa Fe (mass market) were both recognised for their phone-based digital key tech.