New tech features can cause significant headaches for buyers, study says

New cars are packed with all sorts of tech and safety features, but more isn’t always better for buyers. J.D. Power’s 2024 U.S. Tech Experience Index Study found that the loads of features in new vehicles can be polarizing for owners, with some praising the tech and others saying it was frustrating.

The organization ranks vehicle features on a “problems per 100 vehicles” (PP100) scale. Owners reported 43.4 PP100 for gesture controls, with 21% of them saying that the feature lacks functionality, according to a new performance metric J.D. Power included in this year’s study. Other tech, such as the myriad of hands-free driving assistance systems, received low scores for usefulness, and more advanced versions of those systems didn’t fare much better in the study.

That said, some advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) received favorable ratings. Owners like features like blind spot monitoring, which address a specific need while driving rather than introduce an innovation that they don’t understand.

Few owners responded positively when asked about passenger display screens, with many classifying the feature as “not necessary.” Automakers have pushed to include more screens in higher-end models, but only 10% of vehicles regularly have front passengers, and dealers have struggled to educate owners on how to use the displays.

Tesla is one of the most tech-forward automakers around, but it is experiencing growing pains as it expands beyond eager early adopters into more mainstream buyers. Some features in the company’s repertoire trended downward in this year’s study, with tech such as the direct driver monitoring system causing issues for owners.

J.D. Power collected responses from almost 82,000 owners of 2024 model-year vehicles within 90 days of their purchase. This year, the organization introduced a new return on investment analysis, which it will use to help automakers determine the best tech features for new vehicle models.