Who actually Said The Auto Industry Ignores Fads

By classification fads and trends appear and disappear, and seem to affect all parts of society, including the automobile industry. During the last several years of the new millenium, there've been some intriguing turns in the culture of cars. Back in 2002, you would most certainly have been surprised at how fast the new models could go, even ordinary, budget cars like the Nissan Altima.

It came with a 240 horsepower engine, which made it capable of doing speeds way faster compared to what we knew in the nineties. Now a family car like the Volkswagen Passat features a 280 hp engine. Camaros are now being left for dead by little Mitsubishis that set you back $30,000. So, who would have thought that an ordinary car nowadays could be something so powerfully engined as the 500 horsepower Dodge Viper. You'd be hard-pressed today to get a car that was under-powered. Every single new vehicle model seems to be bigger than its predecessor. The latest Toyota RAV4 is 14 inches longer in comparison to the last one, and current Honda Civics, are bigger than the Accords from the past.

Nobody wishes to pay more for their new car, but get one that's the same size or smaller. If it is gonna cost more, then it must be not only better but also bigger. Bigger, unfortunately, comes packaged with heavier, nevertheless the car makers are not going to stop because of that, as long as consumers keep buying. It seems driving slower cars is not a suitable option, despite car owners in America wanting to spend less on gas. They are still more than willing to pay a premium price, and wait in line to get a hybrid from Toyota Prius. While Corollas stay without a buyer in sight in the same dealer's showroom. In the dash by all car makers to compete, even pride seems to have taken a back seat, as in the case of Nissan with their Altima, which uses the same system as Toyota, their competitor.

Consumers these days want style and flair, and gone is the plain styling so common in the 90s. Nearly all cars are now built with power locks and windows as a standard feature, as well as six airbags and powerful stereos. Which happens to be probably why the new car or truck you are targeting goes for around $28,000 on average. But sales of SUV's are drying up, which could mean a return to saner days, with smaller cars, and perhaps simpler. Maybe it was a fad that had its day, because the worst-hit in terms of sales are the bigger SUVs. Sales of the Ford Explorer in addition to Expedition are low, despite the fact that sales of little cars are getting better all the time, even the Sentra and the Neon.

traverse city business expo Vehicle companies aren't able to stand still, but someday they need to stop needing to be so fast, and also so big. Hybrids are the new item, and it's destined to be interesting to follow them over the longer term. It's going to be fun to look back in 10 years time, and see all the outrageous fads that came and went.