«The automobile fleet of the future is not going to be electric»

The vice president of this entity, Elisa Gil, takes stock of the current year, which in general terms has been marked by stagnation in sales, a slow takeoff of 100% electric vehicles, and the arrival of new competitors, with a significant number of Chinese brands at the forefront trying to gain a foothold in the market.

With all these premises, Elena Gil affirms that the year 2024 in the automotive sector “has been different, to say the least, not in the sense that the forecasts have actually been met, and even a figure somewhat higher than what we had planned has been reached. and depending on the communities, this positive difference is more favorable in some areas than in others. But in general the behavior of the automotive sector during the year has been positive and favorable.

2025 is also presented as a year with an initially expected market increase of 7% over 2024, “fundamentally based on the changes that will be generated as a result of the transformation of energy to propel vehicles. We believe that the market will tend towards electrification, but probably choosing hybridization over the purchase of pure electric vehicles,” says Elisa Gil. «All this will also depend on the plans that we can enjoy this year and the incursion of some Chinese manufacturers, who have the objective of making this transformation from combustion vehicles to hybrid or electric vehicles with a price approach that favors the acquisition. and the purchase decision by the user.

electric car

«The necessary renewal of the automobile fleet implies the construction of a more sustainable global environment, a safer global environment and a cleaner global environment. I think there is no doubt and we all agree here. What also happens is that we are made to understand that this only comes from the change towards alternative energies, these being understood, only and exclusively, as electricity. And here we probably disagree. I think that if we try to draw what the park will be in 5 or 10 years, even 20 – which we have already started doing that exercise -, of course what we believe is that not everything is going to be electric,” says Elisa Gil. .

«Will the participation of the hybrid grow? Yes, we firmly believe in a future of hybrid vehicles. Do we believe that combustion will tend to zero? Obviously not, because the models that currently exist for gasoline, diesel and LPG are already considering from their manufacturing what is the global set of emissions that must be reached. And we are applying technologies and developments from the factories to create a more sustainable, safer and, of course, cleaner society,” argues the vice president of AMDA.

Difficulties for electricians

From AMDA “we are requesting the exchange of older vehicles for vehicles that are less than five years old or, at least, two years old, because automotive technology has changed in such a notable and progressive way that we have vehicles less than two years old. years equipped with such effective emissions control that they can undoubtedly collaborate in making the necessary transformation of the vehicle fleet that currently exists in Spain and, in particular, that found in the Community of Madrid.

According to the vice president of the Madrid distributors’ association, “all the evolutionary and transformation processes, such as the change from combustion to electric vehicles or hybrids, are being carried out in a way that is not at all in line with what what the market says and without taking into account the position of the user, who is the one who uses the vehicle as an instrument for commuting, but also for vacationing. In short, I am one of those who still think that having a car is undoubtedly one of the emotions that we still keep at home to enjoy. Consequently, this model of imposition, via decree or by mandatory regulations, has all of us citizens too tired and I think that we undoubtedly perceive this from the field of concessions where we are close to the client.

The Community of Madrid systematically and recurrently carries out actions that are closer to the citizen in many areas, highlights the vice president of the Madrid Association of Automotive Distributors. «But in this automotive sector that concerns us, and at this moment, the policies and actions of the Community of Madrid for the acquisition of vehicles seem much more interesting to me than those carried out by the government, since it is much less sensitive to all the real needs that the citizen has. Obviously I believe that the actions carried out by the autonomous communities and the government should be complementary. Although I have to highlight that those carried out by the Community of Madrid are undoubtedly better valued by the buyer. We see this first-hand in the concessions associated with AMDA.”

Attract talent

The vice president of AMDA indicates that «currently our young people can consider a professional future within the automotive field and fundamentally in the after-sales area, since our sector offers a very stable and growing employment model. In this way, new generations in search of a professional future can prepare themselves as potential candidates in training schools aimed at the automotive sector to later develop a second training stage within our dealerships. At AMDA we want this person to grow and train with us, and not only have the general technical profile, but also specialized in our brands.

“The search and retention of talent for this sector has been one of my obsessions for a long time and especially for the year 2025,” says Elisa Gil. «Every time I hear what the situation is in which our young people find themselves when searching for employment, I wonder how we should carry out an attraction process for the automotive sector that is already focused on a new, radically different business model. which, probably, some remember what they were like in the last 15 years.