| Motors
Customers won’t buy a car if
their phone doesn’t sync
Just how much our smartphones rule our lives has been revealed for the first
time. Car buyers admit they can like everything about a new model – the
styling, price, fuel economy and how it drives – yet will still walk out of the
showroom because it won’t connect properly with their beloved mobile
phone.
A
study*, used by Nissan to
understand the importance of
developing state-of-the-art
infotainment systems in
crossovers such as the
Qashqai, Juke and X-Trail,
reveals:
• 28% of new car buyers prioritise car
connectivity over other features, such as fuel
efficiency
• 13% would not buy a car that’s not
connected to the internet
• 20% would switch to another car brand for
better connectivity
• That rises to 41% for drivers who spend
more than 20 hours a week in their car
“My job is to make sure anyone who walks
into a Nissan showroom anywhere in
Europe doesn’t walk out again because a
car they want to buy won’t pair with their
phone”
The research has led to significant
investment by Nissan to make sure phones
integrate seamlessly – vital as demand for data
and downloads expands. Leading the
European team is Patrick Keenan… known
within Nissan as ‘the man with 40 phones’.
Patrick explained: “Today’s new cars have a
lifecycle of five or six years before a new
version is launched, but a mobile phone will
only be on the market for less than two years
before it’s replaced. Keeping cars and phones
talking to each other is the crux of my job.”
Patrick’s priority is to ensure that, when it
comes to consumer tech, Nissan is always one
step ahead of the game. His team uses a
network of industry contacts to predict future
trends, as well as ensuring that the latest
Nissan dashboard hardware and software
works with the vast majority of existing and
older handsets.
Based at Nissan’s European Technical
Centre in Cranfield, UK, Patrick’s desk drawers
are packed with dozens of phones, which he
uses to develop and fine-tune connectivity. He
makes and receives hundreds of test calls a
day as he works on future Nissan vehicles.
“My job is to make sure anyone who walks
into a Nissan showroom anywhere in Europe
doesn’t walk out again because a car they want
to buy won’t pair with their phone,” said Patrick.
Part of the future automotive landscape is
Autonomous Drive. Nissan is already
establishing itself as a global leader in the
emerging technology, and ‘ProPilot 1.0’ (singlelane autonomous highway driving) will debut in
Europe on the Nissan Qashqai during 2017.
Outstanding connectivity and data
integration are vital pieces of the jigsaw, and
Patrick is part of a global team of Nissan
engineers which is working on developing
connected vehicle architectures that have
safety and security as their top priority.
* McKinsey and Company, Connected Car:
Automotive Value Chain Unbound
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60 | Farming Monthly | June 2016
www.farmingmonthly.co.uk