Partner News: NAVTEQ to undertake study on automotive residual values

Date: 05 February 2008

ERTICO Partner to investigate how navigation systems affect vehicle resale prices.

ERTICO Partner Navteq, a leading global provider of digital maps for vehicle navigation and location-based solutions and EurotaxGlass's, a leading European supplier of automotive business intelligence, are together undertaking a study looking at the impact of navigation systems on residual values.

NAVTEQ notes that thanks to this undertaking, the development of vehicle resale values in relation to navigation systems will be regularly checked and tracked over a period of three years.

A key area of interest for both NAVTEQ and its customers in the automotive industry is the factory fitted, in dash navigation system. More and more vehicles are being fitted with this technology – current annual sales are reaching over two million and there are already in excess of nine million vehicles outfitted with navigation systems on Europe’s roads.

Sales are growing rapidly and the trend is expected to continue as more affordable navigation systems for vehicles in all price ranges are introduced and as driver assistance systems emerge (e.g. ADAS - Advanced Driver Assistance Systems). NAVTEQ notes that the quality and accuracy of the digital map plays, and will play, a major role in terms of system performance and driver satisfaction.

NAVTEQ affirms that due to the importance to the customer and its cost (currently 3-6% of the new vehicle purchase price), factory-fitted navigation is important to the entire automotive commercial chain - from car manufacturer to dealer and car rental companies to used car retailers.  It has already been established that the positive impact of these systems on residual values forecasts and TCO (total cost of ownership) is often underestimated – which could negatively influence the purchasing decision. 

NAVTEQ and EurotaxGlass’s have a common industry vision, believing that it is important to address a fast growing fleet market which is sure to be particularly interested in any new or changing influences on residual values.

Survey includes seven European countries
At the beginning of 2008, EurotaxGlass’s and NAVTEQ will conduct the first survey in seven European countries – Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom. This survey will be repeated in 2009 and 2010 to identify any changes and developments and update the results and recommendations.

Bruno Bourguet, NAVTEQ’s Vice President and General Manager Vehicle Applications EMEA commented, "In an earlier NAVTEQ study with drivers, more than 50% of respondents shared they would update their navigation devices at least once a year, demonstrating the value they placed on having an updated map in their system.” This additional study,” added Bourguet “will demonstrate the impact that regular maintenance and improvement to the in dash navigation systems, by, for example, regularly updating maps, has on the resale value.”

"The conclusions of this study,” added Kevin Gaskell, President of the EurotaxGlass's Group, “should result in a significant reappraisal of the impact of regular system updates on residual values. This is a key point not only for fleets but also increasingly for individual drivers."

For more information, please visit www.navteq.com