The progressing COVID-19 pandemic has still been affecting many important sectors all over the world to a significant degree. The automotive sector is the one among those experiencing the highest losses. However, it can be helped by new technologies. Read about 7 trends that are going to change the automotive market in 2021.

The global coronavirus pandemic affected the automotive sector to a significant degree. According to the quarterly report of PZPM and KPMG "Automotive Sector. Issue Q4/2020", the first three quarters of 2020 brought a decrease in the number of newly registered new vehicles. The difference is high as the number of cars bought in showrooms fell by 28.8% when compared to 2019.

If we consider the prognoses from before the pandemic, the Asian market was to become the new sale market, with the increasing standard of living and, consequently, the demand for more comfortable means of transport. As a result, car manufacturers must attach greater importance to new products which will change the automotive sector.

Eco-friendly cars

Although the environmental awareness of many people has still been low, growing stress attached to environmental protection can be observed. Thanks to that, representatives of and manufacturers in many sectors, including the automotive one, face new challenges which are to improve the standard of living.

Such a solution is offered by more and more popular APV vehicles, usually electricity-driven, not based on a traditional combustion engine using diesel oil or petrol.

The United States and the European Union have been developing the market of eco-vehicles driven by electricity, hybrid cars, and platforms using natural gas as their fuel.

Advanced power steering system

Electronic solutions which are to improve the comfort of driving and steering are more and more popular and future-oriented. The number of vehicles using the advanced power steering system (ADAS) has been growing. Active cruise control, blind-spot monitoring, or park assist system are just some facilities offered by the automotive sector right now.

The dynamic digitalization enables us to believe that more and more passenger vehicle functions will be based on new technologies in the future, aimed at improving the comfort and safety of driving. The most important include:

• Collision hazard warning,
• Automatic emergency braking,
• Road sign recognition,
• Adaptive headlights,
• System sensing the driver's tiredness,

Computer instead of a human driver.

An autonomous vehicle has still been associated with the distant future by many of us. In China, there has been RoboTaxi in use since December 2020. This is a fully autonomous vehicle. What does autonomous mean? We can indicate 5 basic levels of vehicle autonomy:

• Level 0 (no automatic driving)
• Level 1 (driver's assistant)
• Level 2 (partially automatic driving)
• Level 3 (conditional automatic driving)
• Level 4 (high level of autonomous driving)
• Level 5 (a fully autonomous vehicle)

Intelligent Speed Assistance (ISA)

For the time being, this is a tested system, the operation of which is to use the automatic control and adaptation of speed to the driving conditions and limitations on the road based on GPS. At the present stage, however, the system has not been fully developed and does not always interpret the data.

Carsharing

Carsharing or the more and more popular sharing a car. This idea becomes popular primarily in big cities and makes life easier for those who want to use a car not having one.

Carsharing consists of renting a car to get from A to B. Occasional and shorter use of a car reduces exhaust emission and enables to economize on the vehicle use. This is a perfect solution for those who do not need a car every day.

Online vehicle showrooms

In the current global circumstances, more and more sectors are taking their operations and offer online. This trend is followed by vehicle showrooms which come to rely more and more on online sales.

On the one hand, it can be noticed that some distributors open virtual showrooms where they sell, and on the other, many companies are created which transport the purchased vehicle to the customer's door.

"Zero concept"

The "Zero concepts" is a term more and more often used in the automotive sector. In short, it means the strive to minimize all negative side effects of driving a car, including pollution, accidents, safety violations, or drivers' errors.

New technologies versus safety

Technology development is a clear asset and significant facilitation for drivers in the future. However, new technologies are also hazards we will have to face. Although the progress in this field is significant and dynamic, many inventions have still been in their test phase.

To avoid not only accidents but also their financial consequences, it is worth buying a relevant automotive policy matching our needs. The car insurance will give us a sense of safety and will prevent us from being encumbered with sudden, unforeseeable costs of the fortuitous event.

Source: insurance comparison site rankomat