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View Poll Results: Will you give-up on your additional cars, if a reliable & low-cost alternative service is availa
Yes, will give up ownership of extra cars but will retain primary car. 131 41.07%
Yes, will give-up complete car ownership! 18 5.64%
Already convinced, wishing & awaiting for such service. 12 3.76%
No, will not give up on driving pleasure. 74 23.20%
No, I am anxious about the dependability of such services. 77 24.14%
Other reasons(mention below). 7 2.19%
Voters: 319. You may not vote on this poll

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Old 21st October 2019, 07:47   #1
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Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?-screenshot-number-singlecar-vs-multicar-households-teambhp.png

So according to the poll (Number of single-car vs multi-car households on Team-BHP), there are a number(~68%) of multi-car households wherein the non-primary cars are less frequently used compared to the primary cars. Will these households ever give up on the extra cars, if there is a subscription-car with driver always available at your doorsteps(or immediate surroundings) which costs much lesser than total-cost-of-ownership of buying & owning a car? What are the negatives & positives you find with this model? As a multi-car household, what are you expecting from the subscription model which helps you give up on ownership of extra cars?

Positives of going the subscription model way:
  1. Save big amounts as one doesn't have to make an outright purchase.
  2. Save big on amounts that go into acquiring parking spaces at the apartments.
  3. Saved amounts can be invested on appreciating assets.
  4. No hassle of owning a car:
    • Don't have to check and pay for insurances & pollution certificates regularly. And also no tension of following up with insurance companies for claims in case of accidents.
    • Don't have to worry about finding a honest & capable service center.
    • Don't have to care about dents and scratches.
    • No hassle of cleaning the car.
    • No hassle of regular service and maintenance.
  5. Don't have to drive ourselves through the stress creating city traffic.
  6. No hassle/tension of finding a parking space wherever we go.
  7. Non driving members of the family/home don't have to depend on driving members of the family for going out. Driving members of the home can concentrate on the work at hand.
  8. For instance, if everyone in a gated-community goes the subscription way, a lot of parking spaces at the apartment can be freed which can be used for other purposes like kids' play area etc. Also shopping-malls and other commercial spaces don't have to allocate huge spaces for parking purposes as the cars are always on float.
  9. Giving up car ownership makes way for the more efficient usage of resources which is good for economy and environment. Also generates a lot of employment opportunities for full-time and part-time drivers.
Negatives of subscription model:
  1. Takes away the pleasure of driving a car.
  2. Anxiety about if the service is always available with minimal or no downtime. Anxiety about if we can depend on the service to safely move/transport our loved ones(kids, ladies, & elders).
  3. Price-protection, what if the prices were increased afterwards and subscription model turns out to be costlier than owning a car?
Request members of the forum to add/share your thoughts and opinions on this model of mobility.

Note: Unlike Ola/Uber and the likes, in this model one doesn't have to look for, book, and wait for the cabs to arrive, a car is always available at your disposal just like the own car.

Last edited by GTO : 22nd October 2019 at 09:38. Reason: typo edited
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Old 21st October 2019, 08:14   #2
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

The scenario seems unclear. 'Always available' + 'no parking hassles' means a large inventory of chauffeur-driven vehicles. I wonder what the cost would be. Adding 'lower cost' to the mix may well be impractical. It is like cheap, light and strong: choose any two.

The answer to your question depends on the price, for most. I, for one, am not giving up any cars for glorified taxis, unless they prove their worth in practice.

Last edited by vipul_singh : 21st October 2019 at 08:23.
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Old 21st October 2019, 08:37   #3
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Quote:
Originally Posted by vipul_singh View Post
The scenario seems unclear. 'Always available' + 'no parking hassles' means a large inventory of chauffeur-driven vehicles. I wonder what the cost would be.
Suppose in a gated community having hundred households and around 110 cars, of which 80 of them remain idle most of the time, in that case always availability of 5-10 cars would suffice which will free up space of ~100 parking lots. Every time a car moves out of the gated community on a ride, another car from the nearby buffer arrives to the gated community thereby ensuring full time availability for the users.

Yes, it calls for a large inventory of chauffer-driven vehicles, but the size of the required inventory is always < the total number of personal cars required. The costs would definitely be always private car ownership, but the advantage is the hassles of owning the car were removed while providing employment opportunities to many. It can be worked out to be multi-party win-win.

We may have lots of daily-drivers here, but trust me 90% of personal cars, 90% of their lifetime remain idle parked somewhere.

Last edited by wheelguy : 21st October 2019 at 08:41.
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Old 21st October 2019, 09:33   #4
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

How is this any different from the likes of Uber/Ola or Zoomcar? Things like Uber Pass and Ola Select try to solve some of the issues you have highlighted.

A subscription model might work (and such services do exist) for niche/luxury cars but for mass market solutions, a subscription model is just the same solution in different packaging.

Quote:
Originally Posted by wheelguy View Post
Unlike Ola/Uber and the likes, in this model one doesn't have to look for, book, and wait for the cabs to arrive, a car is always available at your disposal just like the own car.
When the number of subscribers start adding up, inventory cannot keep up with demand. If it can, the supply will essentially be similar to the number of cars owned privately in the first place.

The reason getting an Uber/Ola during peak hours is a problem is, there are far too many seekers. A similar problem can arise for the subscription model. Think of school vacations or weekends. How can you "guarantee" that you will get a car allotted to you when you need it.
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Old 21st October 2019, 10:14   #5
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Quote:
Originally Posted by libranof1987 View Post
When the number of subscribers start adding up, inventory cannot keep up with demand. If it can, the supply will essentially be similar to the number of cars owned privately in the first place.
When the number of subscribers keep adding up, it adds to better utilization rate of the fleet. Though it requires a bit of pilot-testing, I assume and I am sure that the required fleet size will definitely be lesser than the total number of privately owned cars.

Quote:
Originally Posted by libranof1987 View Post
The reason getting an Uber/Ola during peak hours is a problem is, there are far too many seekers. A similar problem can arise for the subscription model. Think of school vacations or weekends. How can you "guarantee" that you will get a car allotted to you when you need it.
Though it calls for complicated study and planning, again I assumed that it can be handled. Peak-hour requirements can be anticipated over time, few identifiable peak-hour requirements are office/business/school going & coming back hours, and rainy hours. Office/business/school commutes can be handled by clubbing people having similar routes, and by using ac & non-ac mini-buses/vans just for those peak hours.
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Old 21st October 2019, 10:16   #6
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Agree with @libranof1987. I think everybody well understands that increasing the utilisation of assets creates an advantage. But that advantage is eaten away by driver earnings, the need for profit, and the logistics of running a company to support this activity.

So, I still don't understand practically how the combination of availability, no parking hassles and cost would be achieved better than existing services.

Until that becomes clearer, it is just a theoretical discussion, IMO.
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Old 21st October 2019, 12:56   #7
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Voted Other. The answer is a bit more complex. As BHPians, we love our cars and each car serves a purpose. For e.g., we are a 2 car household (dad and I) + have 2 other cars. One of them is used for a different purpose while the other was a recent buy for its novelty (it's a 17-year old car).

Now, coming to the point of availability of alternate service, turns out its not that great. Though we use Ola/Uber, these days airport pickups and drops are done in our car as Uber is too expensive ~1000 bucks for a 40 km ride. Plus, there is just nothing available at odd hours at reasonable price despite living in such a large city. Even Zoomcar inventory is not that reliable.

Yes, we like our cars, but there are times when we prefer to use the auto-rickshaws, buses and local trains due to convenience / lack of parking / traffic etc. So ideally, the solution should be better public transport combined with last mile connectivity. Just this Sat night, I got a bus at 11.40 pm from Belapur. So public transport is not an issue in Mumbai atleast, but the last mile connections need good planning.

Lastly, the convenience of traveling in own cars is unbeatable. No restriction of location, time, availability etc. Having grown accustomed to this way of travelling, getting rid of a car will be really difficult, especially in favour of something which doesn't have any guarantees.

I think subscription service will be of value to those looking at saving tax, having a fixed schedule (office trips / planned holidays etc.) rather than your average car owner.

Last edited by blackwasp : 21st October 2019 at 12:58.
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Old 21st October 2019, 13:09   #8
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Quote:
Originally Posted by wheelguy View Post
When the number of subscribers keep adding up, it adds to better utilization rate of the fleet. Though it requires a bit of pilot-testing, I assume and I am sure that the required fleet size will definitely be lesser than the total number of privately owned cars.

Though it calls for complicated study and planning, again I assumed that it can be handled. Peak-hour requirements can be anticipated over time, few identifiable peak-hour requirements are office/business/school going & coming back hours, and rainy hours. Office/business/school commutes can be handled by clubbing people having similar routes, and by using ac & non-ac mini-buses/vans just for those peak hours.

If you extend the model from an apartment complex to an area and to a city you get Ola or Uber. Voila!!! And if you offer guaranteed (limited with T&C apply) you get Ola Select or Ola Pass or whatever they choose to call it from time to time. Just that it doesnt work the way it is meant too, as during peak time cars arent available and they arent well maintained.

So this question is just another way to get perhaps to the same answer.

~SM
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Old 21st October 2019, 13:17   #9
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Will surely give up the ownership of secondary car. Only catch is that subscription is never financially viable compared to owning a second car.
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Old 21st October 2019, 13:17   #10
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

I only have one car. The second car if I keep will be for something recreational like a offroader like Thar etc or something for the weekend and long drives which is not really a daily car. So no i won't. Such cars are typical like ones you are proud to own eg a well maintained Honda Civic with body kits, mods etc etc.

Last edited by sumeethaldankar : 21st October 2019 at 13:19.
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Old 21st October 2019, 13:27   #11
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

I'd like to drive. [I've voted for 4) No, won't give up on driving pleasure] I'll not give up on that. Subscription service provides a driver?? I didn't know that. I've made use of call drivers but I feel bored not able to pilot the vehicle. If this service gets stream lined many would just give up on driving. I've seen my kids aren't that inclined to drive: recreational driving like a Sunday morning drive with friends: YES! Drive to get a job done: NO! If the subscription service allows me to drive, I'd do away with car ownership altogether! That way I can sample and drive the cars of my choice: but the costs as of now are prohibitive: more equal to EMI's for car ownership. If Mukesh Ambani can do some disruptive pricing like a 'Jio' in subscription of cars, I'd consider it!!

Last edited by Durango Dude : 21st October 2019 at 13:30.
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Old 21st October 2019, 16:55   #12
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Firstly I would like to say that I am one of unfortunately what seems to be the few, who would prefer to keep my own vehicles. As I am passionate about driving.

Now I want to ask, how is it economically possible for such a service to exist where a car and driver is always available to me at anytime while also being cheaper than owning my own car? Who runs this service and how do they hope to turn a profit? Underpaid drivers that lack skill and experience? Maintenance shortcuts? Dirty diesel fueled fleet?
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Old 21st October 2019, 17:34   #13
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

4. Not sure how the driver would be. The Ola / Uber trump the list of being the worst in terms of skill, behaviour, lawlessness, all civil manners.
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Old 21st October 2019, 17:38   #14
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

Quote:
Originally Posted by wheelguy View Post
Will these households ever give up on the extra cars, if there is a subscription-car with driver always available at your doorsteps(or immediate surroundings) which costs much lesser than total-cost-of-ownership of buying & owning a car?
This is nothing but radio taxi service, which Uber/Ola are already doing. And the weakest link is not vehicle availability, it is drivers!

- Everytime I request an Uber at work, atleast one cancellation happens. The highest being 8 before someone accepted the ride. The common reason for this seems to be the roads/traffic to the pickup point.

- The above experience was at 830 pm for a place very much inside city limits, I have least hopes for late night rides or far off places.

- We are also presuming that the rides would report on time and drop on time, which simply never works

- For a single car family like mine, the daily driver overworks and we do maximum 1-2 rides/month. It works to pay by ride than pay a subsciprtion fee.

- How will businesses/drivers make profit here? Without this it is not going to sustain.

And if things go south and whoever takes the loss, this goes to affect the customer experience of the model.

- Last but not least, Safety!

I have not even talked about being petrolhead or dieselhead here.
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Old 21st October 2019, 18:05   #15
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re: Will you give up your 2nd & 3rd car if a subscription car is available 24x7 at a lower price?

I will give up complete car ownership if my daily usage of office commute and weekend market trips and some outstation trips can be efficiently managed by subscription/service based model. The reason

- I do not want to spend money on dead asset. Maintaining it cleaning it, hassle with service centers everything is time consuming and taxing.
- If I miss driving then I will not miss something important from my life. Instead;
- If I am driven by Chauffeur, then this is time saved can be utilized in more recreational and productive work. At least I can get peaceful sleep during being driven. I can watch tv, speak on phone, read, play, imagine in these two hours of the day.
- I will be saved from mental agony of navigating through completely destroyed society on the road. ( From India Perspective )
- But I would like to drive myself on outstation recreational trips. I do not need my own personal car for this pleasure. Any good well maintained car will do which suit the purpose.
- Even I am ready to switch to Public transport if I get comfort and convenience.


Basically I am desperately looking for the reason for not using the car. So yes, I will get rid of cars and related problems.

Last edited by sushantr5 : 21st October 2019 at 18:08.
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