"Singin' in the Car. Just Singin’ in the Car.”
The necessary vehicle option- Karaoke
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Vehicles are becoming much more than mere transportation. It’s not just a gearshift, accelerator, and braking system. New cars have infotainment systems. Big screens are taking over the dashboard.
The CEO of Volkswagen recently said, “the car is becoming the most complex, most sophisticated and most desirable internet device.” Each global market has its own intricacies, which car markers ignore at their peril. Drivers want all the features they have on their phones, and more, in their vehicle.
(Credit: Bloomberg-Photographer Jeenah Moon)
That brings us to China. The auto gold rush is still underway there. A little more than two decades ago China started moving from bicycles to automobiles for transportation. It is the largest market for automakers and the VW CEO says his company, which has been doing business in China for 35 years, has just learned an important lesson. Chinese car buyers want what some might consider an unusual option. They want a karaoke system in their vehicle.
THE IMPORTANT OPTION
Karaoke, the interactive entertainment you may have experienced in a bar (the recorded music, text of lyrics, and a microphone to belt out a song), is already available in some Chinese made Electric Vehicles (EV).
(Credit: YouTube: Wheelsboy)
A member of “Wheelsboy,” a Youtube channel about Chinese cars, called the karaoke system his “favorite thing” in a new vehicle from BYD.
VW TO RESPOND
During Volkswagen’s third quarter earnings call, CEO Herbert Diess made a nod to the importance of karaoke in vehicles saying, “some of the software features have to be China specific. You need karaoke functions in the car, for instance.” Diess, knowing that software is important, has added hundreds of computer engineers to the company’s China team. He admits VW is behind the consumer demand and is hoping to catch up.
It’s not just VW. “We’ve identified this as a challenge,” BMW Executive Christoph Grote, the digital car chief for BMW, is quoted by Bloomberg. Grote added, “Chinese consumers are the most demanding when it comes to digital technology in the car.”
Having learned about how German carmakers view the karaoke option, I reached out to Ford and GM to see if they, like VW, are moving to match the Chinese automakers that are adding karaoke.
US RESPONSE
Ford tells me it doesn’t currently offer karaoke. Ford does offer entertainment, saying, ”our vehicles in China run on SYNC+, our in-vehicle infotainment system built specifically for consumers in China. SYNC+ provides significant entertainment content, including music, radio, audio books and news.” Ford is working with the internet technology company Baidu, whose CEO has said karaoke will be part of systems in autonomous vehicles.
GM, which says it has the best selling mini-EV in China right now, does not offer karaoke in its vehicles. A company spokesman would not comment on future plans.
At this point, karaoke is for the passengers to entertain themselves and the driver while traveling down the road. Think of it as live entertainment in the car rather than the radio or your music library. However, the day is coming when even the driver will be able to take their hands off the wheel and belt out their favorite song. When will that be, and what does full self-driving really mean? That is a future newsletter.
Cover Photo Elements: Credit BYD Auto