The recent rise of Tesla in the automotive space has raised the bar for other manufacturers when it comes to in-car technology. The tech aspect of the automotive sector is now the most competitive it has ever been, as the focus of advertising shifts away from speed and comfort to the features and gadgets that each car offers.
Of course, Tesla is still seen by many as the most forward-thinking car company around with others scrambling to keep pace – or so it may seem. There has been significant ground and progress made in recent years by their competitors to match their innovation and technological proficiency.
Is Tesla the car brand that boasts the most technology as you might expect? Or is there a dark horse that will take the crown as the most tech-heavy car brand?
To find out, Select Car Leasing analysed how many tech features are advertised by the world’s most popular car brands for each of their cars. Continue reading to find out which one comes out on top.
BMW boast the largest number of tech features in their cars
Our research has revealed that the BMW 5 Series advertises the largest amount of tech features on the market, coming in at a grand total of 59. This makes it the most tech-heavy car in our study. Features in the 5 Series include real-time traffic display, Apple CarPlay and BMW Teleservices, among many others. The technology packed into the car means that’s it’s ideal for long journeys while also making it one of the best cars for entertainment on the market.
Other cars that make our top 10 list of tech features includes the likes of the Land Rover Range Rover Velar, which boast the likes of an automatic equaliser and a turn-by-turn navigational directions. The Volkswagen Touareg makes an appearance at number 5 on our list with 9 fewer tech features advertised than the BMW 3 Series.
The cheapest car cost per tech feature is the Mini Cooper
We also compared the price of each car to the number of tech features advertised by the manufacturer to find the best value. The Mini Cooper hatchback finished at the top of our list. At a starting price of around £17,305 and the car boasting a total of 36 tech features, it just pips the Toyota as being the best value ‘cost per tech’ car – coming in at £481 per feature.
The Kia Rio, Toyota Aygo and Toyota Yaris are the only cars on our leaderboard that don’t hail from Germany. Although the Kia Rio doesn’t advertise a great amount of tech features (21), its lower starting price of £12,570 means that the cost per tech feature is also extremely low. This makes it a great alternative if you in the market for a technologically advanced car on a budget. However, if you need more space than what the Kia Rio offers, the BMW 3 Series and Mini Clubman offer alternatives to get your tech fix while also enjoying more legroom.
German brands beat the competition when it comes to tech
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Although German car manufacturers such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz, Audi and Volkswagen tend to be on the more premium side of the automotive market, our research proves they are the best value when it comes to the number of tech features available in your car.
The average BMW advertises 50 tech features, compared to only 43 by Land Rover – the car brand with the third-highest number of car features.
German car brands dominate the top of our leaderboard, featuring 3 car brands out of the top 5. The data ties into the advertising of those car companies, focusing on the technology in each car. Audi boasts that their Intelligent Technology will be drivers’ sixth sense, while BMW says that technology is the beating heart of all their cars. However, Tesla perhaps boasts the most famous tech feature of all time with their Autopilot mode.
Tesla have the highest average cost per tech feature
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Our research has also revealed that Mini is the brand with the lowest cost per tech feature – across models including the Hatchback, Clubman and Countryman. This makes the brand the ideal choice for tech lovers that are shopping on a budget. The premium brands of BMW, Volkswagen and Mercedes-Benz are once again high on our list, with each tech feature in their car costing an average of between £712 and £817.
For more automotive content, be sure to bookmark the Select Car Leasing blog. Our recently released research on how 5G will revolutionize your daily drive takes you on an interactive journey, showing how your daily commuting times will be reduced by more than 25% in the near future.
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