The automotive industry has always fascinated Italians, who over the years have created businesses that have had worldwide resonance. However, over time, all these small companies have experienced moments of crisis that have then pushed them into the arms of larger companies such as FIAT. The Turin company, in particular, has incorporated many brands such as Ferrari, Lancia and others.
The arrival of the Chinese offensive, however, is also pushing the European giants to look around and try to go beyond their national spaces. FIAT itself in recent years has joined other important brands under the multinational holding Stellantis. The reason is simple: the cooperation of these companies enormously lowers production and development costs, bringing cars to the market with a more affordable and competitive price against their Chinese adversaries.
The ecological transition
The financial crisis that has hit the world between pandemic and various wars is having an inevitable impact on the automotive industry. The latter for its part is going through a moment of great changes due to the ecological transition. The idea at a global level is to move from thermal engines to electric ones in the next 10-15 years.
Some brands have already equipped themselves by completely converting their industries. There are now companies that only produce hybrid or EV cars. In this regard, governments around the world are intervening massively with various aids and incentives to push this change. Action has also been taken in this direction in Italy, not without controversy. In fact, some of the Ecobonuses sold out almost immediately.
Do Italians want to change their cars?
In this regard, however, some rather worrying data emerge from a study signed Arete. Apparently, in fact, 6 out of 10 people believe that incentives are insufficient to stimulate the purchase of new cars. The cost of cars is increasingly high, the mandatory addition of ADAS and the new, more expensive electric technology certainly do not help and the incentives on their part are unable to stem these price exploits.
The research shows that 62% of those interviewed would be ready to change cars in the next 12 months, while only 7% would be inclined to do so in the short term. The latter figure has dropped by 5 points compared to the last survey carried out in October 2021. 60% of people judge the incentives to be insufficient, with a growth of 15% compared to 3 years ago.
58% of those interviewed have requested new incentives and are waiting for lower prices to change their car. 76% said they are inclined to buy a new car, while 24% will launch themselves into the used market. In particular, among this last segment of users, 4 out of 10 want a used car because they consider the new market inaccessible. The study also carried out an in-depth analysis on the topic of fuel. From this it emerged that half want to buy a hybrid, 30% a car with a combustion engine and 20% an electric one. In short, even from these data it seems clear that our country is resistant to energy change. We will see in the coming years whether the lowering of the costs of this technology will lead to a turning point.
