The Automotive Troublemakers: BYD + Uber

It's the first day of a new month and we’re kicking it off by diving into a new survey on the public’s perception of dealerships. Plus BYD and Uber are teaming up around the world and Ford just made its Mach-E go faster.

Urban Science and The Harris Poll have released the 2024 Urban Science Dealership Transformation Index™ (DTI), with the DTI score improving to 56, nearing the strong range (65-74).

• The DTI score is derived from an average of three key dimensions: dealer relevance, trend resistance, and actions. These dimensions capture how buyers perceive dealer roles, their openness to new automotive trends, and their behaviors regarding vehicle purchases.

• The dealer relevance score increased to 62, with 43% of auto buyers agreeing dealers are crucial, up 4 points, 42% finding current dealership tools effective, up 8 points and 38% feel dealerships are optimized for the future, up 11 points.

• Trend resistance decreased with 33% open to online vehicle purchases, up 3 points and 20% seeing personal vehicle ownership as less important, up 4 points.

• Actions saw slight improvement as 48% plan to submit online quotes and 91% being open to purchasing in person at the dealership. An incentive of as little as $35 caused a majority of auto buyers to be somewhat or extremely motivated to visit a dealership for service, test drives, etc.

• The survey was conducted among 3,005 U.S. adults aged 18+ and 250 U.S. OEM automotive dealers, Sales Managers, General Managers, or Principal/VP/Owners.

• Our writers Chris and Kristi did a write up of more of the findings, check out the LinkedIn Newsletter.

Tesla's rival, BYD, has announced a significant partnership with Uber, aiming to provide Uber drivers with discounted electric vehicles.

• BYD and Uber's partnership includes a discount on 100,000 electric vehicles for Uber drivers with an initial roll out in Europe and Latin America along with future expansion plans for the Middle East, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand.

• With a growing presence in North America, BYD has already established a footprint in Mexico with their hybrid truck and EV crossovers as well as a desire to open dealerships within Canada.

• The Uber deal may include discounts on charging, maintenance, and insurance, acting as incentives for drivers to choose BYD vehicles.

• BYD and Uber will also explore autonomous driving technology together, with BYD investing $14 billion in smart car technology.

• Dara Khosrowshahi, Uber's CEO, noted the partnership's potential to introduce more riders to the benefits of electric vehicles: "Many riders also tell us their first experience with an EV is on an Uber trip, and we're excited to help demonstrate the benefits of EVs to more people around the world."

Ford has introduced a new performance upgrade for the 2024 Mustang Mach-E GT, with the upgrade enhancing acceleration, making the Mach-E GT faster than its rivals.

• The 2024 Mustang Mach-E GT now accelerates from 0 to 60 mph in 3.3 seconds, faster than the Tesla Model Y Performance (3.5 seconds) and Porsche Macan 4 Electric (4.9 seconds).

• The upgrade, available through the FordPass App, adds 100 lb-ft of torque, bringing the total to 700 lb-ft and 480 horsepower.

• The Mach-E GT's new features include a MagneRide Damping System and an EPA-estimated range of up to 280 miles.

• The upgrade reflects Ford's shift towards integrating software-driven features and making them accessible via their app.

• Chet Dhruna, GM of integrated services at Ford, emphasized the importance of customization in the ownership experience: “The freedom to move and customize the vehicle to make it your own is an important part of the ownership experience.”

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