The automotive market changes at a fast pace. As soon as a feature or service is introduced, there can be heightened demand for improvements and progression that provide more for customers. Depending on how these features are recieved in the market it can leave some features with impressive growth statistics, and others with quite the opposite.

In this newsletter, a wide range of features will be analysed that have shown signs of fast growth or decline since 2019. Each feature is analysed on the basis of what might be causing their rise or fall in popularity amongst consumers and OEMs alike.

The Features

• Rear-seat Display
• Head-up Display
• Leather Primary Upholstery
• Leatherette Primary Upholstery
• Auxiliary (Aux) Port
• Camera Based Rear View Mirror
• Moonroof / Sunroof 
• Adaptive Cruise Control
• Blind Spot Monitoring
• Cross Traffic Alert

Below is a chart showcasing the trim availability against the penetration rate for 2019 – 2021, showcasing why these features are being included.

Gainers

Head-up Display

Head-up displays are not a new feature in the automotive market, although lower demand and limited growth in the display technology seems to have left consumers less interested in paying for it. However, in recent years, improvements in ADAS systems and AR navigation have led to stakeholders seeing HUDs as a worthwhile feature – pushing penetration up from 4% in 2019 to 10% in 2021.

 

Head-up Display
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
Lincoln	24%	Cadillac	23%
Buick	23%	Lincoln	21%
Cadillac	21%	GMC	19%

 

Leatherette Primary Upholstery

Leatherette primary upholstery refers to materials that look and feel like leather, but are vegan in their construction. The reasoning for leatherette’s gains from 10% in 2019 to 19% in 2021 is largely due to the growth in use of vegan and sustainably sourced materials for vehicle production. In fact, some OEMs such as Tesla, RAM, and Jeep only offer leatherette as opposed to its non-vegan alternative.

 

Leatherette Primary Upholstery
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
Genesis	32%	BMW	57%
KIA	30%	Lexus	49%
Cadillac	28%	Genesis	39%

 

Camera Based Rear View Mirror

Camera based rear view mirrors were very much pioneered by General Motors and, since then, uptake by other OEMs has continued to grow. The increase in the number of sensors and cameras featured on vehicles has provided a foundation for camera-based functionality to grow, including rear view mirrors. As to be expected, brands under the GM umbrella saw the most growth over the last three years.

 

Camera Based Rear View Mirror
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
RAM	60%	Cadillac	48%
Cadillac	46%	GMC	32%
Buick	45%	Infiniti	23%

 

Moonroof / Sunroof

Recent improvements in glass technology and the introduction of moonroof/sunroofs into the structure of the vehicle’s chassis/roof has driven availability and demand from consumers. Brands such as Tesla & Volvo amongst others have driven the greater inclusion of moonroofs/sunroofs, with some featuring a fixed glass roof on every model as standard. Subaru has also been seen to follow the standard fitment approach, with trim availablilty remaining constant but penetration rate increasing greatly due to more premium trims taking a higher trim share. The inclusion of smart glass technologies & solar roofs have also drawn attention in this space.

 

Moonroof / Sunroof
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
Volkswagen	17%	Subaru	21%
Nissan	11%	Hyundai	21%
Dodge	10%	KIA	19%

 

Driver Assistance Features

It is no surprise that driver assistance features are featured prominently throughout this list, with adaptive cruise control (ACC), blind spot monitoring (BSM) and cross-traffic alert (CTA) all seeing strong growth over the last three years. The steady progression to LVL 3 autonomous driving systems on public roads is driving the adoption of driver assistance systems in both premium and volume vehicles, with these features becoming cheaper for OEMs to equip and, therefore, more available for consumers.

 

Adaptive Cruise Control
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
Cadillac	29%	Chrysler	55%
Buick	27%	Infiniti	46%
Volkswagen	25%	Volkswagen	40%

 

Blind Spot Monitoring
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
GMC	40%	Infiniti	25%
Chevrolet	28%	Jeep	24%
Nissan	25%	Buick	19%

 

Cross-traffic Alert
Largest trim availability gainers		Largest penetration rate gainers
GMC	40%	Jaguar	36%
Infiniti	39%	Infiniti	30%
Chevrolet	29%	Jeep	24%

 

Losers

Rear-seat Displays

Rear-seat displays are somewhat synonymous with the premium vehicle market. But in recent times, the inclusion of in-vehicle Wi-Fi hotspots, enhanced mobile phone data speeds, and improvements in portable device technology has meant that children and passengers are choosing to use tablets and mobile devices in vehicles over fixed rear-seat displays. This trend could see a change in the next couple of years, with OEMs such as BMW pushing for widescreen ‘theatre-like’ displays in the rear of their vehicles.  

 

Rear-seat Displays
Largest trim availability losers		Largest penetration rate losers
GMC	-33%	Infiniti	-16%
BMW	-23%	Genesis	-4%
Dodge	-18%	Honda	-3%

 

Leather Primary Upholstery

In stark contrast to the market gains of leatherette primary upholstery, leather figures have been dwindling slightly over the last three years. With pushes from environmental groups and consumers to reduce animal product usage, vegan substitutes of the material are beginning to steal some of leather’s market hold. Sustainability is the word that is regularly being used in modern day vehicle manufacturing, and the effect it is having on leather doesn’t look to be slowing down any time soon.

 

Leather Primary Upholstery
Largest trim availability losers		Largest penetration rate losers
Volvo	-14%	BMW	-51%
Volkswagen	-11%	Genesis	-35%
BMW	-10%	Mercedes-Benz	-32%

 

Auxiliary Port

Auxiliary ports have been around for decades, providing an easy way for customers to play music through the built-in radio unit within their vehicle. Until recently, this was still the case, but the big move from smartphone manufacturers to remove the auxiliary port in their phones, to reduce device thickness, has pushed the automotive market to follow suit – with wireless media streaming methods and multi-purpose charging connections now being the default in all new vehicles.

 

Auxiliary Port
Largest trim availability losers		Largest penetration rate losers
Cadillac	-70%	Genesis	-58%
GMC	-54%	Cadillac	-50%
Chevrolet	-45%	GMC	-46%