PETALING JAYA: When it comes to their car tyres, Malaysian car owners are largely a practical lot. In a recent GfK study conducted among car owners, a higher proportion (67%) indicated that they will change their car tyres to improve comfort, compared to the lower number who will do it for the sake of enhancing their car’s performance (49%). Even then, three in five (60%) said they will only do so out of necessity.
The study was conducted in December 2015 where car owners were surveyed on various aspects of car tyre purchasing attitude and behavior to uncover consumer purchasing trends for car tyres in the region.
“Our research findings show that car owners generally change their tyres only when needed, such as when there’s puncture or if they are worn out,” said Selinna Chin, managing director for GfK in Malaysia. “Besides this group of consumers, there are others, albeit to a much lesser extent, who would deliberately change their car tyres for greater reliability or better performance.”
Nearly two in five (39%) replace their car tyres by the third year of owning their car, while 37% does it within two years. When it comes to key drivers of car tyre brand selection, findings reveal that brands play a significant role in helping car owners make their selection of what kind of tyres to choose. Over a quarter (26%) said they prefer to go with the original car tyre brand which came with the car when it was first purchased. Another 18 % also said they tend to choose a brand that they often use and are familiar with.
“Many respondents indicated their reluctance to switch to a new car tyre brand unless they have personally encountered a bad experience with the existing one,” commented Chin. “Hence, it is very important for brands to collaborate with car manufacturers to ensure that new vehicles are installed with their brands to improve the likelihood of car owners opting for their brand as the preferred one during tyre replacement.”
