What Will Your Dealership Look Like in 2040?

Let’s start with a reasonable assumption.

By 2040, most new cars on European roads will be electric.

Not as a bold prediction, but as a logical outcome of regulation, manufacturer strategies and technological development. Many OEMs are already working towards fully electric line-ups well before that date, and from 2035 onwards the sale of new ICE vehicles in Europe will largely come to an end.

So if we look ahead to 2040, the question is no longer if cars are electric — but what that quietly changes.

And for dealerships, those changes are more fundamental than they might seem at first glance.

Electric Cars Change More Than the Drivetrain

Electric vehicles are often discussed in terms of range, charging and batteries. But their real impact sits elsewhere.

Electric cars:

• have fewer moving parts
• require less mechanical maintenance
• rely far more on software
• are increasingly monitored and updated remotely

That doesn’t mean customers disappear.
It means the reasons they reach out change.

Fewer oil changes.
Fewer mechanical repairs.
More questions about software, updates, usage, range, charging and connectivity.

In other words: less traditional workshop work — but not less interaction.

Fewer Touchpoints, Higher Expectations

As vehicles become more reliable and maintenance cycles stretch, every customer interaction starts to matter more.

If someone contacts a dealership in 2040, it’s unlikely to be for something trivial. Expectations will be shaped by experiences in other sectors:

• instant responses
• proactive updates
• clear communication
• minimal friction

Waiting on hold or being transferred between departments will feel increasingly outdated — not because dealers are doing something wrong, but because the outside world has moved on.

The benchmark won’t be another dealership.
It will be banks, airlines, mobility apps and digital services.

Growth Without More People?

Another quiet shift sits beneath the surface.

If electric vehicles reduce mechanical workload, but customer expectations increase, dealerships face a different kind of pressure:

How do you handle more conversations, questions and interactions
without simply adding more people?

Historically, growth in automotive retail often meant:

• more volume
• more staff
• more complexity

That model becomes harder to sustain when margins are under pressure and talent is scarce.

By 2040, scalability will matter less in square metres — and more in how work is distributed between humans and software.

The Changing Role of the Dealership

None of this suggests dealerships disappear.

But their role is likely to evolve.

From:

• transaction-focused
• reactive
• opening-hours dependent

To:

• service-oriented
• proactive
• always accessible

Human expertise will still matter — but mostly where empathy, judgement and trust are required. Repetitive questions, status updates and routine communication will increasingly be handled differently.

Not because technology replaces people,
but because it frees them.

Thinking About 2040 Starts Today

Looking ahead to 2040 isn’t about predicting the future in detail.

It’s about asking better questions today:

• Which interactions truly require human attention?
• Where does friction still exist for customers?
• How scalable are current processes if expectations continue to rise?

Assuming an electric future simply helps sharpen the conversation.

Because when cars change,
customer behaviour changes.
And when customer behaviour changes,
the dealership has to change with it.

Not overnight.
Not radically.
But deliberately.

What your dealership looks like in 2040 will largely be the result of decisions made long before then.