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Will People Pay Extra for Self-Driving Cars?

According to a recent consumer poll, Mr. and Mrs. Normal would be open to the idea of  paying an extra $4,900 for a vehicle that can drive itself for a wide range of reasons. At Star Buick GMC, we hope one day soon to see self-driving cars in Leesburg, VA and throughout the world as technology continually improves all of our lives. 

In a report entitled "Are Consumers Willing to Pay to Let Cars Drive for Them? Analyzing Response to Autonomous Vehicles," conducted by Cornell University, researchers discovered that some individuals would pony up an additional $10,000 for a 100% autonomous vehicle. And many people admitted that they would come up with an additional $3,500 more for even partial autonomy, such as a vehicle with advanced crash-avoidance technology, for example.

To come up with these facts, the researchers at Cornell polled a group of 1,260 consumers from all over the country, asking them a series of in-depth and specific questions based on a variety of theoretical purchasing scenarios. The questions dealt with both the participants' interest in an assortment of disparate technology and how much they would be willing to pay for it.

The automation of personal transportation is going to become a reality much faster than people currently anticipate, according to the brilliant Ricardo Daziano, Ph.D., lead author of the poll and resulting study. To be ready for the enormous impact of autonomous transportation, policymakers and carmakers will need to understand all aspects of the entire market.

Not surprisingly, people involved in the study expressed a wide range of varied preferences and perceived value of what vehicle automation could do for them. While many stated that they wanted 100% self-driving capability even if it added more than $10,000 to the cost of the vehicle, others said that they would not be willing to pay anything more at all for even a lower level of vehicle automation.

Increasing acceptance of automotive autonomy on the part of a wide range of consumers is likely a result of their familiarity with some of the automated features that are now available on most mass-market vehicles. Some of these of note include things like lane keeping assist systems, adaptive cruise control systems and automatic emergency braking.

But even if that is the case, it's extremely clear that not all of the car shoppers out there are interested about buying an autonomous car or even willing to pay for advanced features at this juncture. As a result, the authors of this study suggest that carmakers look at the results of this study and start providing consumers with more flexible options as car technology continues to advance today and tomorrow.

Sources: Consumer Report, Business Times and San Jose Mercury News