CarGurus Releases Second Annual Self-Driving Car Sentiment Survey

April 26, 2019
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Findings Show Consumers More Excited About Self-Driving Cars

CAMBRIDGE, Mass., April 26, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- CarGurus (Nasdaq: CARG) a leading automotive marketplace, today announced automotive consumer research findings that benchmarked last year's inaugural CarGurus Self-Driving Car Sentiment Survey. This year's survey uncovered that over the past year there was a perception shift regarding self-driving cars. Consumers expressed greater enthusiasm for self-driving car development overall, and also showed a stronger likelihood of owning a self-driving car in the next ten years. The survey found:

  • Respondents that were excited about the development of self-driving cars increased from 21% in 2018 to 32% in 2019, and the respondents concerned about them decreased from 47% to 37%.
  • 28% of respondents specified they could own a self-driving car in the next 10 years, more than double the 13% from last year.

"Consumer sentiment around self-driving cars is changing fast, with enthusiasm rapidly replacing skepticism," said Madison Gross, Director of Customer Insights at CarGurus. "These benchmarked results demonstrate that today's consumers are becoming more comfortable with the idea of either owning an autonomous vehicle, or having them on the road, and it will be fascinating to continue to monitor this perception shift."

When looking into which companies consumers trust the most to develop self-driving cars, the survey found that similar to last year Tesla remains atop the most trusted, and increased its lead:

  • 29% of respondents say they trust Tesla most to produce a self-driving car, up from 25% in 2018.
  • The next-most-trusted companies to produce a self-driving car are Toyota, with 9% of respondents, and Waymo (Google) with 7%.
  • 17% of respondents selected "None" for which company they trust, and this is a shift from the 27% in last year's survey.

Additionally, the research looked into which vehicle owners would consider buying a self-driving car from their current brand, if it were available, and found:

  • 56% of Honda owners would consider buying a self-driving car from Honda.
  • 51% of Toyota owners would consider buying a self-driving car from Toyota.
  • 43% of Chevrolet owners would consider buying a self-driving car from Chevrolet.
  • 41% of Ford owners would consider buying a self-driving car from Ford.

CarGurus asked respondents whether they were ready to take a ride in self-driving cars provided by services such as Uber and Lyft, and learned:

  • 35% of people who currently use ride hailing services like Uber and Lyft are likely to take a ride from these services in a self-driving car.
  • Of those who currently use ride hailing services, 22% trust Uber the most to develop a self-driving car and 13% trust Lyft.

More information about the survey can be found here and by contacting pr@cargurus.com.

Methodology
In March 2019, CarGurus surveyed 1,146 automobile owners. Among them, 137 are Toyota drivers, 139 are Honda drivers, 147 are Ford drivers, and 116 are Chevrolet drivers. In April 2018, CarGurus surveyed 1,873 automobile owners as the inaugural survey of this benchmarking study.

About CarGurus
Founded in 2006, CarGurus (Nasdaq: CARG) is a global, online automotive marketplace connecting buyers and sellers of new and used cars. The Company uses proprietary technology, search algorithms and data analytics to bring trust and transparency to the automotive search experience and help users find great deals from top-rated dealers. CarGurus is the largest automotive shopping site in the U.S. by unique monthly visitors (source: Comscore Media Metrix® Multi-Platform, Automotive – Information/Resources, Total Audience, Q4 2018, U.S. (Competitive set includes: CarGurus.com, Autotrader.com, Cars.com, TrueCar.com)).  In addition to the United States, CarGurus operates online marketplaces in Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, and Spain.

To learn more about CarGurus, visit www.cargurus.com.  

CarGurus® is a registered trademark of CarGurus, Inc.

© 2019 CarGurus, Inc., All Rights Reserved.

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SOURCE CarGurus

Brian Kramer, 617-949-2826, bkramer@cargurus.com