The last car to come with a factor cassette player as standard equipment was the 2010 Lexus SC430. And now we’re rapidly approaching a time when no vehicle will come with a standard in-dash CD player.
The first car to come equipped with a factory CD player was an S-Series Mercedes-Benz in 1984. Now it appears that it’s only a matter of time before the car CD player goes the way of the cassette machine.
For example, no cars made in the UK right now come with a CD machine, something that is of great concern to the Entertainment Retailers Association. They claim that 15% of UK drivers still want to listen to CDs while they drive. Meanwhile, in the US, just 9% report “owned music”—that is, CDs, cassettes, and downloaded music files—are what they listen to when they drive. With that declining usage, it’s just a matter of time before all new vehicles omit a CD player.
What’s the number one form of audio listening in cars? It’s still radio.
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