Features of future autonomous cars: Beyond interior design. A global survey on user preferences

The product ""car"" as it is known since more than 100 years is going to change dramatically over the coming decades. Autonomous vehicles will enable an entirely new travelling experience. Accordingly, the interior concepts and equipment of vehicles are set to shift from a driver-oriented to a ""quality of time""-oriented design. In a survey among 2,500 consumers from five different countries (CN, FR, GER, JP, US), this study examines five relevant use cases for autonomous individual transportation and identifies the desired car features correspondingly. The results indicate that ""Sleeping & Relaxing"" is the most accepted use case, and that a convenient seating/lying position and smooth driving dynamics are seen as key features.