Study: The 10 Most Wanted Features in New Cars

Marketing research and consulting firm AutoPacific has released the 2024 edition of its Future Attribute Demand Study. From the brands shoppers are considering to the type of powertrain they expect to buy, the study chronicles the demand for 163 different available safety, luxury and tech features. It is based on nearly 15,000 responses from licensed drivers in the U.S. who say they intend to purchase or lease a new vehicle within the next three years.

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The top 10 most wanted features, ranked by percentage of shoppers who say they want them, are as follows:

1. Wireless charging pad for front-seat passengers: 44%

2. Wireless charging pad for rear-seat passengers: 37%

3. Heated and ventilated front seats: 37%

4. Rain-sensing windshield wipers: 36%

5. Moonroof: 35%

6. Driver profile settings: 35%

7. Household 110-volt outlet: 34%

8. Rear-seat sunshades: 33%

9. Rear cross-traffic alert with automatic emergency braking: 32%

10. Built-in air compressor: 31%

Key Findings

AutoPacific notes that both front- and rear-seat wireless charging pads ranked in the top 10 in 2023’s study before claiming the top two spots this year. It bodes well for buyer satisfaction that front-seat wireless chargers are more in demand than rear-seat ones as they are more widely available.

Another big mover in this year’s study is driver-profile settings, which ranked No. 10 in the 2023 survey. That makes sense, as the more features a vehicle has, the more settings can be personalized. The days of drivers in a multi-car household sliding in, adjusting the mirrors and seat, and taking off have given way to multi-way adjustable seats and steering columns, automatic climate control, various audio sources, and even customizable powertrain and suspension settings. Robby DeGraff, AutoPacific’s manager of product and consumer insights, says, “Making your own driver profile settings requires a bit of initial homework, but once established, it’s essentially a get-in-and-go experience with the vehicle automatically setting the seat, mirrors, steering wheel, audio presets, and many other personal settings to your preferences when you get in the vehicle.”

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Reality Check

Some of the study’s results seem to show not just a desire on the part of consumers, but an overall awareness of what is attainable for the average shopper, as well. Semi-autonomous hands-free driving systems are increasingly available from brands as diverse as Mercedes-Benz, BMW, Nissan and Jeep — including GM’s Super Cruise and Ford’s BlueCruise — but AutoPacific notes that simpler, more readily available features such as rear cross-traffic alert make its list.

On the other hand, some of the study’s results have us scratching our heads, such as built-in air compressors, which ranked No. 10. These are typically only available on off-road vehicles for which drivers might need to adjust tire pressure to traverse different types of terrain. That’s hardly the sort of use we expect nearly a third of car shoppers have in mind.

And, while it didn’t make the top 10, AutoPacific notes that unresponsive-driver stop assist fell off the list from third place last year after the survey split it into two different functions this year. Between systems that bring the vehicle to a stop in its lane and those that navigate to the shoulder without driver intervention, the firm says this feature is desirable to 45% of shoppers — with a roughly equal split between the two types — which would have placed it at the top of the list if the scores were combined. But such functionality relies on technology that enables the sort of (hands-on or -off) semi-autonomy that could benefit drivers every day.

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