A new study by one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, Continental AG, has found that there is considerable consumer interest in electric and hybrid drive cars.
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Continental is a producer of key electric and hybrid drive technology and is counting on developments in this area to drive its future growth. The company employed an independent market research company, TNS/Infratest, to survey more than 8,000 motorists in eight major markets.
The study found that a total of 36.0% of those surveyed were willing to buy a car with hybrid drive, and somewhat remarkably, according to Continental, 45.8% were interested in purchasing an electric car. Environmental considerations and increasing fuel prices were equally important motivators.
“This trend holds great potential for us as an automotive supplier and provider of environmentally-friendly drive technologies,” said Karl-Thomas Neumann, the supplier’s chief technology officer, at a press conference in Vienna, Austria.
Motorists were surveyed in China, Germany, France, UK, Japan, Austria, Switzerland and the US.
45% of all motorists reported that increasing fuel prices have forced them to change their driving behaviour to lower their fuel consumption. At 62.6%, the Japanese have changed their driving behavior the most in response to higher diesel and petrol prices, followed by Germans at 55.2%. The figure among Americans was 42.8%. 60% of the British and 48.9% of the Chinese do not adjust their driving behavior at all, even when faced with increasing fuel costs, according to the survey.
“The vast majority of car drivers across the countries has realised that conventional fuels such as diesel and gasoline will become even more expensive in the future,” commented Neumann on the current developments at the gas pump.
The upward trend in fuel prices is fueling greater interest in alternative drive systems, but the study indicates that awareness of such systems varies greatly around the world. The British are the least aware of the technology, with only 3.9% of respondents aware, compared to one in five overall. Awareness was highest amongst the Japanese at 46.9%. Only 6.6% of Americans are familiar with the hybrid drive.
With an average recognition of 16.8%, the pure electric drive comes in second. Austrians and French at 33.3% and 31.7%, respectively, mentioned this variant even more frequently than the hybrid drive.
Further fuel-efficient drive systems are diesel (14.1%) and cars powered by natural gas (11.4%). One noteworthy observation is that 81.7% of the Chinese knew nothing of fuel-efficient drives. When asked what they associate with hybrid technologies and hybrid drives, more than one-third (36.4%) of motorists state that the drives are a combination of electric and combustion engines. One in five referenced environmental and economic factors.
A total of 36% of respondents are definitely interested and very likely to purchase a vehicle with hybrid drive. Respondents in high-growth coastal regions of China were even more enthused: After the technology is explained, more than half of Chinese motorists (53.8%) can imagine purchasing a hybrid vehicle. Only 27.4% of Germans – less than one-third – were prepared to make such a purchase decision. A majority of motorists would be interested, though, if the government provides tax incentives for the purchase of hybrid vehicles. More than half of the respondents (64.2%) would then consider purchasing a hybrid car. These incentives are even more decisive for Germans (66.6%), Austrians (67.6%) and British (69.6%).
More than half of international motorists (58.1%) assume that environmentally-friendly hybrid drives have higher purchase costs compared to conventional cars. French assume an average of EUR4,651 in additional costs, but they also expect the greatest reduction in cost at EUR4,411. Americans, in contrast, believe the purchase price to be EUR2,801 above that of conventional vehicles and expect cost savings of around EUR2,364. An average of 50.8% of motorists are not prepared to pay more for a hybrid vehicle. The other half could envisage paying up to EUR2,781 for a more environmentally friendly vehicle.
“Our task is to highlight the additional benefits of alternative drives and to emphasise the added value for the motorist and the environment,” said Neumann.
