The year 2017 was not a great year for the automotive industry in the UAE. The sales plunged to a record low of 17.1 million units. This figure has put a doubt in the hearts of the car makers and buyers alike.

However, the year 2018 is certainly looking good for this industry. It might take some time for people to start building their trust, but gradually the industry will pick up the pace and the sale and manufacturing of vehicles will start increasing.

But the trends of 2017 have put up some questions out there such as, what the carmakers should do in order to up their sales, will car SUV carmakers dominate 2018, and will car insurance in the UAE take a hit. Here are 5 trends that carmakers and buyers should watch out for in the year 2018.

1. Car sales

In 2018, the sales of the car will be great and the reason behind it is that car dealers will offer great incentives to boost their sales. They will be trying to clean out their inventories and that makes it a good time for consumers to avail fantastic deals.

The growing competition and development of multitude independent solutions for the market have made it difficult for the car manufactures to stay afloat. They will find it difficult to retain existing and build a new customer base.

To tackle this competitive market, the car sellers will ensure that they make use of technologies such as CRM to build a relationship with the customer and offer them irresistible deals on various cars.

2. Subscription model

Subscription model service is something that has picked up the pace in the last few years and 2018 is the year when big auto names such as Porsche, Volvo will join this bandwagon. This service allows people to swap their cars for a different model every week for a fee.

The aim behind offering this service is to ensure that people stay associated with their brands. This is one of the best ways to ensure that customers are happy with the brand they are associated and they take this partnership to the next level.

This subscription service bundles roadside assistance, insurance, vehicle registration and tax costs into an easy one monthly payment. This membership availed is often month-to-month basis.

3. Diversification policies to be introduced

The government of the UAE has planned initiatives to promote diversification as a response to the volatile oil prices. The approval of the GCC governments has been at the forefront to ensure that the industry sees a boost in the sector of automotive and insurance in the UAE.

The direct result of this diversification of policies will be a boost in the automotive sector. It will ensure a high impact on the private sectors such as manufacturing of automotive parts in the UAE.

It will also ensure that new component manufacturing plants will set up in the region thus functioning as the backbone of the automotive industry from the year 2018 onwards. The key support for this diversification is expected to come from land allocations and loans.

4. Electric cars

The automakers are now venturing into the sector of electric cars. Electric cars are touted as the future of the automotive industry, the reason being a limited supply of oil around the world. Slowly, but gradually the automakers are preparing themselves for the future in which electric cars will be the choice of the people.

As of now, the downside of electric cars outweighs the benefits of owning one. This is due to the fact that customers are hesitant in buying electric cars because of their reliability in covering long distances.

However, things are changing and companies are making their way towards a cleaner, faster, reliable electric cars. All this is to ensure that when the customers are ready to buy electric cars, the companies are ready.

5. Autonomous vehicles

Tesla is at the forefront of autonomous vehicles and a lot of companies are now following the suit. Each day more and more companies are testing their cars and trying to make them autonomous. It may take years, but 2018 will mark the year when companies would have made a great progress in this field.

As of now, cars come equipped with second-level autonomous features such as rear park assist and automatic parking. This development might be slow, but it is not arguable that it is the future of the automotive industry.

 

It is not deniable that the automotive industry is going under major paradigm shift, and the automakers are in a race to come on top when the trends shift in the favour of this industry. Each day more and more policies are being negotiated and worked upon to make this industry follow the suit of diversification of policies.

Be it the trends in the auto industry in the UAE, or insurance in UAE; companies are getting ready to serve their existing customer base, and target new consumer as well.