Dive Brief: - Automotive research and consulting firm AutoPacific found that heated seats are the number one must-have feature in a new vehicle for car shoppers, according to its recently released 2026 Future Vehicle Planner. - The study, in its fifth year, surveyed over 19,000 licensed drivers who intend to purchase a new vehicle within the next three years about the features and technologies they want most. A total of 160 vehicle features were surveyed for the study and sorted by the top 15, which range from all-wheel drive to auto park, wireless charging and adaptive cruise control. - “Our study is structured to enable deep dives into who specifically wants each feature and where it is most applicable by using extensive demographics, psychographics, vehicle use, and purchase intention data to uncover the whys, “ AutoPacific Director of Marketing and Consumer Insights Deborah Grieb said in a statement. Dive Insight: AutoPacific was founded in 1986. It conducts extensive proprietary and syndicated research and consulting for OEMs, distributors, marketers and suppliers worldwide, according to the company. The Future Vehicle Planner survey collects vehicle considerations and intentions, as well as thoughts from car shoppers on new vehicles and available technology, such as autonomous driving systems. This year’s survey included 25 vehicle features new to the survey, as well as some restructured questions to gain more detailed insight into consumer preferences, according to AutoPacific. AutoPacific noted that automatic parking, which ranked number 10 on the list, was included in the top-15 vehicle features for the first time this year, as more OEMs are offering the parking-assist technology as an option. Following heated seats as the most-wanted feature, front and rear parking sensors were second, followed by rear automatic emergency braking in the number three spot. AutoPacific’s data also showed that demand for advanced