Could you live without your parking sensors? 13,000 drivers have had their say on which features their next car must have – and parking sensors came out on top of the wish list.
Three in five motorists said their next set of wheels must come with sensors to help them get in and out of bays, parallel park and negotiate three-point turns.
The poll also found rear-view and all-round cameras made it into the top ten most desired pieces of equipment, suggesting we Brits might need some assistance getting in and out of parking spaces.
The AA Cars survey revealed the second most important feature drivers want in their next car is a built-in sat nav, which is a non-negotiable for almost two thirds of those asked.
Here’s the full top 10 'must have' features drivers want in their next cars:
1. Parking sensors (60%)
2. Sat-nav (57%)
3. Heated windscreen (53%)
4. USB charging (48%)
5. Bluetooth connectivity (47%)
6. Rear-view camera (41%)
7. Parking cameras (38%)
8. Cruise control (33%)
9. Heated seats (28%)
10. Cup holders (25%)
Something that might come as a surprise – despite the popularity of music streaming and the availability of syncing music from a user's phone to their vehicle via systems such as Apple Car Play and Android Auto – is that almost a quarter of drivers (24%) surveyed still want a CD player in their car.
Unsurprisingly, there’s a generational divide on this one. CD players are most popular among older drivers, with 26% of those aged 55+ regarding them as non-negotiable in their next car purchase, while just 13% of those aged 18-34 felt the need to play CDs in their next car.
The youngest age group seemed to favour Bluetooth connectivity as their most desired feature, with 66% of drivers in this demographic listing it as a 'must have'.
Mark Oakley, director at the AA Cars website, says many of the in-demand features listed as 'must haves' by drivers in 2023 were previously only available as premium-priced options, but now they’re commonly fitted as standard across many of the country's favourite brands, including Ford and Volkswagen.
What’s top of the list for features in your next car? Do you still love a CD player or are you more of a streamer? Let us know in the comments!
