Tomorrow’s car – for today’s people : can tilting three wheeled vehicles be a solution for the problems of today and the future?

The current automotive industry and todays car drivers are faced with every increasing challenges, not previously experienced. Climate Change, financial issues, rising fuel prices, increased traffic congestion and reduced parking space in cities are all leading to changes in consumer preferences and the requirements of modern passenger vehicles. However, despite the shift in the industry dynamics, the principal layout of a car hasn’t changed since its invention. The design of a ’conventional’ vehicle is still principally a matchbox with four wheels, one at each corner. The concept has served its purpose well for over 100 years, but such a layout is not suited to solving today’s problems. To address the range of problems faced by the industry, a number of alternative commuting vehicles have been developed. Yet the commercialization of these ‘alternative’ vehicles has yet to be successful. This is largely due failure of these vehicles to meet the changing demands of the industry and the limited understanding of consumer behaviour, motivation and attitudes. Deakin University’s Tomorrow’s Car concept tackles all of these problems. The vehicle is a novel three-wheeler cross over concept between a car and a motorbike that combines the best of both worlds. The vehicle combines the low cost, small size and ‘fun’ factor of a motorbike together with the safety, comfort and easy to drive features of a car produce a vehicle with a fuel efficiency better than either car or scooter. Intensive market research has been conducted for various major potential markets of alternative vehicles including India, China and Australia. The research analysed consumer attitudes in relation to narrow tilting vehicles, and in particular towards Deakin’s Tomorrow’s Car (TC). The study revealed that a relatively large percentage of consumers find such a concept very appealing. For the other consumers, the overall appearance and perception of safety and not the actual safety performance were found to be the most impeding factors of such vehicles. By addressing these issues and marketing the vehicle accordingly the successful commercialization of Tomorrow’s Car can be ensured

Strategic business plan : a case study.

by Lee Sai-yin, Patrick, Wong Kim-man.Bibliography: leaves 173-174Thesis (M.B.A.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 198

An investigation into consumer behaviour towards the purchase of new luxury cars in two culturally distinct countries: the UK and Thailand.

The thesis aimed to answer two questions. (1) What distinguishes a luxury car? It has been shown that this is a complex issue involving a multifaceted - subjective and objective factors approach. Hence, there is a need to develop (a) a clarification and definition of luxury cars, and (b) a luxury car price concept/range, to identify customers' profile, and to explore influences on consumer purchase decisions. (2) How do cultural differences between the UK and Thailand explain the difference in purchasing patterns of BMW and Mercedes and provide insights for brand marketing of the two luxury car marques? The research design was based upon a review and synthesis of the academie literature and car data, which helped identify (1) theoretical concepts and hypotheses appropriate for this study, and which also developed (2) a working definition of luxury cars for the selection of samples and research methodology for this study. Methods of qualitative data collection included observation, focus groups, and face-to-face interviews, which was content analysed. The quantitative data collection was by questionnaire survey in the UK and Thailand, which, after elementary statistical analysis, was factor, and discriminant analysed. However, the UK data did not lend ifself to principal component or discriminant analysis, since the questionnaire was modified to facilitate co-operation of British respondents. For the UK, simple statistical analysis and a test of signiflcance for différences in percentage of respondents selecting the key attributes of their own marque were conducted. The findings yielded a comparative study of similarities and differences between UK and Thai customer perceptions of BMW and Mercedes, and insights into brand marketing of their cars in the two countries. The outcomes yielded include: • a detailed profile of BMW and Mercedes buyers in the UK and Thailand; • the technical and non-technical attributes of BMW and Mercedes cars as well as dealer and customer perceptions of the two marques in the UK and Thailand; • commonalities between marques and differences in buyer attitude and behaviour in the UK and Thailand; • a consumer decision model that determines the choice of a new BMW or Mercedes car in Thailand, and criteria that determine the choice of a new BMW or Mercedes car in the UK; • identification of significant cultural determinants of new luxury car purchasing patterns in the UK and Thailand applicable to countries with similar cultural characteristics and socio-economic structures; • marketing implications on customer acquisition and retention as well as upward brand stretching of both marques in both countries. These findings enable this thesis to conclude that buyer perceptions of new BMW and Mercedes cars in the two countries are different. This thesis proposes a strategy of upward BMW and Mercedes brand stretching for both customer acquisition and retention by both marques and provides guidelines for local and global marketing of BMW and Mercedes luxury cars. The limitations of this thesis are outlined in the conclusion and also avenues for future research were provided

Antecedents of Brand Equity: The Chinese Path to Building Brands A Case-study of GEELY and BYD Automotive Brands

Foy many years China was flagged as the world’s premier factory neglecting significant aspects such as brand equity. This study explores the antecedents of brand equity of Chinese brands. The main purpose of this study is to examine the evolution of Chinese brand equity and the impact of selective marketing mix elements and the Country of Origin as attributes preceding the creation of Chinese brand equity. A qualitative approach has been adopted in order to acquire an understanding of Chinese path to building brands. A case-study methodology was applied, with the unit of the analysis being two Chinese automotive brands: GEELY and BYD. The researcher proposes a conceptual framework in which brand differentiators composed of selective marketing mix elements and the COO (Antecedents) are related to the dimensions of brand equity; brand awareness, perceived quality, and brand associations. Throughout the course of study, five questions were explored. The results of the research confirmed that some of the Chinese companies are moving towards building strong brand equity with their steady steps in product quality, joint ventures and co-branding. The researcher also confirmed that Chinese Country of Origin is no longer an obstacle to building strong brand equity. Two research questions - geographical presence and perceived value - were not supported by the cases of GEELY and BYD and were not accepted as positively affecting the brand equity of Chinese brands during the course of the study. While some literature supports this direction, the two cases understudy failed to support them. The research affirmed that certain Chinese brands are on the rise and that the strategic focus of Chinese companies recognizes the fact that brand building is the path to sustainable competitive advantage. For the purpose of triangulation and control for reliability, the accepted questions were further investigated by an external researcher. Discussion, conclusion, recommendations, and future work will then be explored

What If Your Car Would Care? Exploring Use Cases For Affective Automotive User Interfaces

In this paper we present use cases for affective user interfaces (UIs) in cars and how they are perceived by potential users in China and Germany. Emotion-aware interaction is enabled by the improvement of ubiquitous sensing methods and provides potential benefits for both traffic safety and personal well-being. To promote the adoption of affective interaction at an international scale, we developed 20 mobile in-car use cases through an inter-cultural design approach and evaluated them with 65 drivers in Germany and China. Our data shows perceived benefits in specific areas of pragmatic quality as well as cultural differences, especially for socially interactive use cases. We also discuss general implications for future affective automotive UI. Our results provide a perspective on cultural peculiarities and a concrete starting point for practitioners and researchers working on emotion-aware interfaces

A systemic analysis of the usage of safety items among Malaysian private vehicle users

In such a large road transportation system, human factor plays a very significant role in ensuring a desirable balance between transport demand and safe operations. This paper presents a systemic analysis of three safety items, namely seatbelt for adult car occupants, child safety seats (CSS) for young occupants and helmet for motorcyclists, of which the success level is highly reliant on the road users’ willingness to utilise them according to the recommended and proper usage. In a temporal view of road crashes, these safety items were part of ‘during-crash’ passive safety components i.e. to provide protection during the crash impact phase. This analysis includes the safety items benefits and issues, related road safety strategic programmes, current legal framework, and local research findings based on observational studies. The use of both helmet and seatbelt was mandatory but the move has so far produced mixed results. Meanwhile, CSS usage and acceptance are on the rise, although still at a nascent stage. This situation can be considered as ‘below satisfactory compliance level’, hence a more inclusive solution is needed, including the introduction of technology, to influence or compel road users to wear such safety items while on the road

ESF e-Bike Initiative at SUNY College of Environmental Science and Forestry

Electric Bicycles, ore-Bikes, are legal in 35 of 50 US States, as well as most other countries in Europe, South America, and Asia. New York State has been fighting the legal battle one-Bikes, with legalization bills on the floor for the past 11 years. As part of my Honors Fellowship, I have been tasked with preparing an e-Bike Initiative pending legalized e-Bikes in NYS. In this paper, I examine the intricacies surrounding the ambiguous legal battle cunently raging in NYS, provide insights as to what bike policies have worked well in other countries and US States, and then highlight the importance of e-Bike legalization in terms of the three pillars of sustainability. Some of the top recommendations I provide are based on California\u27s new e-Bike policy, the PeopleforBikes organizations\u27 campaigns for bike safety, and a literature review. Also, attached in the appendix is the business plan and materials for an ESF e-Bike Initiative at ESF which would sell and rent e-Bikes to students to support the ESF Honors Program

Post-transaction brand and model line-up integration in the automotive industry: Case studies of European companies as target of acquisitions by Chinese and Indian multinational corporations

Corporations practice company acquisitions in order to create shareholder’s value. During the last few decades, the companies in emerging markets have become active in the acquisition business. During the last decade, large and significant acquisitions have occurred especially in automotive industry. While domestic markets have become too competitive and companies are lacking required capabilities, they seek possibilities to expand into Western markets by attaining valuable assets through acquisitions of developed country corporations. This study discusses the issues and characteristics of these acquisitions through case studies. The purpose of this study was to identify the acquisition motives and strategies for post-transaction brand and product integration as well as analyze the effect of the motives to the integration strategy. The cases chosen for the research were Chinese Geely acquiring Swedish Volvo in 2010 and Indian Tata Motors buying British Jaguar Land Rover in 2008. The main topics were chosen according to their significance for companies in automotive industry as well as those are most visible parts for consumers. The study is based on qualitative case study methods, analyzing secondary data from academic papers and news articles as well as companies’ own announcements e.g. stock exchange and press releases. The study finds that the companies in the cases mainly possessed asset-seeking and market-seeking motives. In addition, the findings refer to rather minimal post-acquisition brand and product integration strategies. Mainly the parent companies left the target company autonomous to make their own business strategies and decisions. The most noticeable integrations were in the product development and production processes. Through restructuring the product architectures, the companies were able to share components and technology between product families and brands, which results in cutting down costs and in increase of profitability and efficiency. In the Geely- Volvo case, the strategy focused more on component sharing and product development know-how, whereas in Tata Motors-Jaguar Land Rover case, the main actions were to cut down costs through component sharing and combine production and distribution networks especially in Asian markets. However, it was evident that in both cases the integration and technology sharing were executed cautiously to prevent on harming the valuable image of the luxury brand. This study has concluded that the asset-seeking motives have significant influence on the posttransaction brand and model line-up integration strategies. By taking a cautious approach in acquiring assets, such as luxury brand, the companies in the cases have implemented a successful post-acquisition strategy and managed to create value for the shareholders at least in short-term. Yritykset harjoittavat yritysostoja luodakseen osakkeenomistajille lisäarvoa. Viimeisten muutamien vuosikymmenien aikana yritykset kehittyvissä maissa ovat myös aktivoituneet yritysostoissa. Viimeisen vuosikymmenen aikana erityisesti autoteollisuudessa on esiintynyt suuria ja merkittäviä yritysostoja. Koska kilpailu kotimaan markkinoilla on kiristynyt ja yritykset ovat vailla vaadittavia valmiuksia, ne etsivät mahdollisuuksiaan laajentaa länsimaisiin markkinoihin hankkimalla arvokkaita etuja kehittyneiden maiden yrityksistä yritysostojen avulla. Tämä tutkimus pohtii näiden yritysostojen olennaisia kysymyksiä ja ominaisuuksia casetutkimuksien kautta. Tutkimuksen tarkoitus oli tunnistaa sekä yritysostojen motiiveja ja brändi- ja mallisto-integraation strategioita että analysoida kyseisten motiivien vaikutusta integraatiostrategiaan. Tapaus-tutkimuksiksi valittiin kiinalaisen Geelyn yritysosto ruotsalaisesta Volvosta vuonna 2010 ja intialaisen Tata Motorsin yritysosto englantilaisesta Jaguar Land Roverista vuonna 2008. Tutkimus on kvalitatiivinen case-tutkimus ja siinä analysoidaan toissijaista tietoa sekä akateemisten ja uutisartikkeleiden että yritysten omien ilmoitusten, kuten pörssi- ja lehdistötiedotteiden, kautta. Tutkimuksen tulokset osoittavat, että tutkittujen yritysten toiminnat perustuivat motiiveihin, joita ajoivat etujen and uusien markkinoiden tarve. Sen lisäksi tutkimustulokset osoittivat, että yritysoston jälkeinen brändi- ja mallisto-integraatio pidettiin minimaalisena. Pääasiallisesti kohdeyrityksille jätettiin autonomia tehdä omat liikkeenjohdolliset päätökset yritysstrategioihin liittyen. Huomattavimmat integraatiot koskivat tuotekehityksellisiä ja tuotannollisia prosesseja. Kehittämällä uudelleen tuotearkkitehtuureja, yritykset pystyivät jakamaan komponentteja ja teknologiaa tuoteperheiden ja brändien välillä. Tämä mahdollisti kustannusleikkauksia sekä kannattavuuden ja tehokkuuden parantamista. Geely-Volvo –tapauksessa integraatiostrategia keskittyi komponenttien jakamiseen yhteisten tuotearkkitehtuurien avulla ja tuotekehityksen ammattitaitoon, kun taas Tata Motors-JLR –tapauksessa päätoiminnat olivat kustannuksien leikkaus sekä tuotannon ja jakeluverkoston yhdistäminen erityisesti Aasian maissa. Yhteistä yrityskaupoissa oli, että brändi- ja mallisto-integraatio sekä teknologian jakaminen suoritettiin varoen ehkäistäkseen arvokkaiden luksus-brändien tuotekuvan vahingoittamista. Tutkimuksen lopputulokset osoittavat, että yrityskaupan motiiveilla on huomattava vaikutus brändija mallisto-integraation strategiaan. Toteuttamalla varovaista lähestymistapaa luksus-brändin hankinnassa ja integraatiossa, yritykset ovat onnistuneet luomaan lisäarvoa osakkeenomistajille vähintään lyhyellä aikavälillä