For the average motorist in Britain the type and age of their car seems so important. It certainly didn't appear to have the same importance some years ago, when motorists weren't so inclined to judge other road users by the type of car they drove. Today there are massive industries that have grown around our habit of frequently changing our vehicles. Contract hire and leasing is a massive industry built on our desire to have newer and better cars; around 2.5 million are sold every year.
So what happened? How did motoring habits change over the years without the British motorist realizing it? In the 1950's motorcars like everything else were built to last, people bought products such as cars, ovens and fridges and expected them to last a lifetime and they usually did.
In the 50's cars were sturdy and definitely built to last. Unlike today, very heavy gauge steel was used in the body panels; it took quite an impact to dent a car panel. Head on collisions were best avoided. The cars were heavy; there was very little give in the panels.
The British used to hear about the American "throw away society" and it all seemed quite disgraceful; buying things knowing that they were not going to last and then after what seemed like an indecently short period of time, just throwing them away
That however is exactly what people in the UK do today, particularly with anything that is electronic, or that has electronics incorporated within it. If it goes wrong, just buy a new one it's simpler and possibly a less expensive option and this approach has also changed the motorist's attitude towards cars; the experience of contract hire companies is that motorists now generally prefer a contract hire term of two rather than three years and some even seeking out twelve month contracts.
In post war Britain people tended to get things repaired if they went wrong and cars were no exception. Cars could run forever; the bodywork was solid and as long as the parts were available motorists could just keep repairing their own cars. The engines were fairly straightforward and there were no complicated electronics to worry about.
Eventually the penny dropped in the British motor industry, along with the manufacturers of many other products. They started to realize that if they continued to build cars so solidly with the same models that ran for years and years, why would someone go out and buy a new one?
The 50's saw the launch of Ford's Mark 2 Zephyr which followed the American design style but of course was a much smaller version of the typical American car. Vauxhall introduced the Cresta, it's style was very American right down to its white wall tyres and tail fins and it appeared to be a copy of the Packard. Two-tone paintwork was introduced with this model, which was popular. Class was not the first word that came to mind when describing this car but there were no shortage of buyers.
These new multi colour American looking cars that came out in the late 50's early 60's had the effect of making the cars around them look rather boring. Mostly they had the American style bench seats, which were favoured by the young, and column gear change.
A new style vehicle registration plate was launched in 1963 the last digit was the letter A. It was 60 years after number plates were first issued in Britain in1903. At first the new registration plate was only issued in certain parts of the country, but it wasn't long before it became nationwide.
This new version of registration plate in the 60's looked odd at first but then quite quickly motorists fell into the trap of being conscious of their number plate; feeling superior when they first bought their car and inferior a year later when the new registration plate came out. Cars started to sell for no other reason than motorists wanted the new registration.
The E registration plate came out in January 1967 but was replaced on 1 August 1967 with the F registration. As August had always been the quietest month of the year, it was designed to boost sales in this month of low car sales.
Motor manufacturers now had the motorist on the run; what with the number plate changing every year and models changing more frequently, motorists weren't so happy to hold onto their cars for so many years. August was a very difficult month for dealers; that's when everybody wanted to take delivery of their new car, so it went from the quietest month of the year to the most chaotic.
During the 90's it was reported that new cars were being stockpiled in various remote parts of the country, in old farm buildings, aircraft hangers and fields. This was done in preference to manufacturers cutting production levels. Apparently this resulted in some motorists buying a new car to get the latest registration plate, and yet getting an older car than the one they were disposing off.
In the 80's the pressure of having to have the latest model and registration seemed to increase; these were the Thatcher years, the boom years that eventually led to bust. One way out for some motorists was to buy a personalised number plate and then nobody would know how old their car was, or at least not until the manufacturer brought out the new model.
Always one step ahead the manufacturers started to bring out facelift models: This involved making small but noticeable changes to the design. This was a lot less expensive than introducing a new model and still had the desired effect; making those who had the pre facelift model, feel that their car was getting old.
September 2001 saw the next change to way registration plates were laid out;, showing the month and the year of registration. An example of the new plate would be GL 52 FGD. The idea being that it would ease some of the pressure from manufacturers and dealers of having to deliver such large numbers of vehicles in August. Perhaps also making people less aware of the number plate, well perhaps but contract hire and leasing companies say they find it very difficult to get anyone to take delivery of a car in February and August.
The Manufacturers found other ways to discourage motorists from holding onto their cars for too long; engines are no longer straightforward, very few problems can be solved without diagnostics. Very often special tools are needed to do the simplest of jobs and even checking the gearbox oil levels often cannot be done without diagnostic equipment from the manufacturer.
The small garage cannot compete with this as the find themselves, in many cases having to tell the customer to go to the main agent. This is having a major impact on the cost of running a second hand car.
Many years ago many motorists worked on their own cars, for purely economic reasons and although that has reduced significantly, there are nevertheless still many motorists who cannot afford to pay someone else to work on their car. However they are finding that without diagnostic equipment and specialist tools their car cannot be repaired, so cars are now being scrapped much earlier; contract hire release cars onto the market when they are on average, three years old. By making older cars too expensive to maintain, the manufacturers are trying to ensure that there will be buyers for these three year old cars, otherwise they will be in trouble.
One answer for motorists who don't want to, or can't afford to, pay the hourly rate charged by main dealerships, are the small specialist garages that concentrate on one Marque such as Mercedes. They tend to have all the specialist equipment and generally can do anything that a main agent can do; some motorists feel they are better than going to the dealership. They generally charge considerably less than a main agent but are usually more expensive than the small local garage.
Once a vehicle is outside its warranty, it can certainly be worth considering a specialist garage. Sometimes it means travelling to find the nearest one but the savings can make travelling worth while. The marque they have chosen to specialise in is generally the cars they love, so they are often real enthusiasts and still know how to repair, rather than just replace items.
Real worries for motorists whose cars are outside warranty are electronic problems and their worries are not unfounded. Manufacturers wouldn't admit that their motivation is anything other than to build sophisticated cars, however many suspect this is part of a plan to shorten the life of used cars.
Electronic problems can often be extremely difficult to cure; many motorists have experienced these problems whilst their car has been under warranty, returning the car to the dealership time after time, with the dealership apparently unable to cure the problem. Suggesting perhaps that diagnostic equipment is not the instant cure that many thought it to be.
It occurs to many motorists whose cars that are outside the warranty, that they could find themselves in the situation where they have such a fault that nobody seems to be able to cure. Although they often cost in the order of 1,000 per annum or more, at least you have peace of mind if you take out the manufacturer's warranty.
Many motorists would like to attach less importance to the type and age of car they drive and would be happy to change less frequently if others did. But of course others are not going to. It's partly to do with self esteem; many quite illogically, feel inferior if a newer or smarter car drives past them, although interestingly those that drive the more expensive cars do not generally feel superior to those who have a lesser car.
One has to recognize that motor manufacturers have been very clever with their strategy and advertising and it seems that the motor manufacturers and contract hire and leasing companies will, for the foreseeable future, continue to be multi billion pound industries.
Should you have any queries or questions with regard to Fleet Management, Licence checking Contract Hire, Personal Contract Hire, Lease Purchase or vehicle Hire Purchase, please do not hesitate to contact us. Bowater Price plc 01494 536 536. www.bowaterprice.com.
So what happened? How did motoring habits change over the years without the British motorist realizing it? In the 1950's motorcars like everything else were built to last, people bought products such as cars, ovens and fridges and expected them to last a lifetime and they usually did.
In the 50's cars were sturdy and definitely built to last. Unlike today, very heavy gauge steel was used in the body panels; it took quite an impact to dent a car panel. Head on collisions were best avoided. The cars were heavy; there was very little give in the panels.
The British used to hear about the American "throw away society" and it all seemed quite disgraceful; buying things knowing that they were not going to last and then after what seemed like an indecently short period of time, just throwing them away
That however is exactly what people in the UK do today, particularly with anything that is electronic, or that has electronics incorporated within it. If it goes wrong, just buy a new one it's simpler and possibly a less expensive option and this approach has also changed the motorist's attitude towards cars; the experience of contract hire companies is that motorists now generally prefer a contract hire term of two rather than three years and some even seeking out twelve month contracts.
In post war Britain people tended to get things repaired if they went wrong and cars were no exception. Cars could run forever; the bodywork was solid and as long as the parts were available motorists could just keep repairing their own cars. The engines were fairly straightforward and there were no complicated electronics to worry about.
Eventually the penny dropped in the British motor industry, along with the manufacturers of many other products. They started to realize that if they continued to build cars so solidly with the same models that ran for years and years, why would someone go out and buy a new one?
The 50's saw the launch of Ford's Mark 2 Zephyr which followed the American design style but of course was a much smaller version of the typical American car. Vauxhall introduced the Cresta, it's style was very American right down to its white wall tyres and tail fins and it appeared to be a copy of the Packard. Two-tone paintwork was introduced with this model, which was popular. Class was not the first word that came to mind when describing this car but there were no shortage of buyers.
These new multi colour American looking cars that came out in the late 50's early 60's had the effect of making the cars around them look rather boring. Mostly they had the American style bench seats, which were favoured by the young, and column gear change.
A new style vehicle registration plate was launched in 1963 the last digit was the letter A. It was 60 years after number plates were first issued in Britain in1903. At first the new registration plate was only issued in certain parts of the country, but it wasn't long before it became nationwide.
This new version of registration plate in the 60's looked odd at first but then quite quickly motorists fell into the trap of being conscious of their number plate; feeling superior when they first bought their car and inferior a year later when the new registration plate came out. Cars started to sell for no other reason than motorists wanted the new registration.
The E registration plate came out in January 1967 but was replaced on 1 August 1967 with the F registration. As August had always been the quietest month of the year, it was designed to boost sales in this month of low car sales.
Motor manufacturers now had the motorist on the run; what with the number plate changing every year and models changing more frequently, motorists weren't so happy to hold onto their cars for so many years. August was a very difficult month for dealers; that's when everybody wanted to take delivery of their new car, so it went from the quietest month of the year to the most chaotic.
During the 90's it was reported that new cars were being stockpiled in various remote parts of the country, in old farm buildings, aircraft hangers and fields. This was done in preference to manufacturers cutting production levels. Apparently this resulted in some motorists buying a new car to get the latest registration plate, and yet getting an older car than the one they were disposing off.
In the 80's the pressure of having to have the latest model and registration seemed to increase; these were the Thatcher years, the boom years that eventually led to bust. One way out for some motorists was to buy a personalised number plate and then nobody would know how old their car was, or at least not until the manufacturer brought out the new model.
Always one step ahead the manufacturers started to bring out facelift models: This involved making small but noticeable changes to the design. This was a lot less expensive than introducing a new model and still had the desired effect; making those who had the pre facelift model, feel that their car was getting old.
September 2001 saw the next change to way registration plates were laid out;, showing the month and the year of registration. An example of the new plate would be GL 52 FGD. The idea being that it would ease some of the pressure from manufacturers and dealers of having to deliver such large numbers of vehicles in August. Perhaps also making people less aware of the number plate, well perhaps but contract hire and leasing companies say they find it very difficult to get anyone to take delivery of a car in February and August.
The Manufacturers found other ways to discourage motorists from holding onto their cars for too long; engines are no longer straightforward, very few problems can be solved without diagnostics. Very often special tools are needed to do the simplest of jobs and even checking the gearbox oil levels often cannot be done without diagnostic equipment from the manufacturer.
The small garage cannot compete with this as the find themselves, in many cases having to tell the customer to go to the main agent. This is having a major impact on the cost of running a second hand car.
Many years ago many motorists worked on their own cars, for purely economic reasons and although that has reduced significantly, there are nevertheless still many motorists who cannot afford to pay someone else to work on their car. However they are finding that without diagnostic equipment and specialist tools their car cannot be repaired, so cars are now being scrapped much earlier; contract hire release cars onto the market when they are on average, three years old. By making older cars too expensive to maintain, the manufacturers are trying to ensure that there will be buyers for these three year old cars, otherwise they will be in trouble.
One answer for motorists who don't want to, or can't afford to, pay the hourly rate charged by main dealerships, are the small specialist garages that concentrate on one Marque such as Mercedes. They tend to have all the specialist equipment and generally can do anything that a main agent can do; some motorists feel they are better than going to the dealership. They generally charge considerably less than a main agent but are usually more expensive than the small local garage.
Once a vehicle is outside its warranty, it can certainly be worth considering a specialist garage. Sometimes it means travelling to find the nearest one but the savings can make travelling worth while. The marque they have chosen to specialise in is generally the cars they love, so they are often real enthusiasts and still know how to repair, rather than just replace items.
Real worries for motorists whose cars are outside warranty are electronic problems and their worries are not unfounded. Manufacturers wouldn't admit that their motivation is anything other than to build sophisticated cars, however many suspect this is part of a plan to shorten the life of used cars.
Electronic problems can often be extremely difficult to cure; many motorists have experienced these problems whilst their car has been under warranty, returning the car to the dealership time after time, with the dealership apparently unable to cure the problem. Suggesting perhaps that diagnostic equipment is not the instant cure that many thought it to be.
It occurs to many motorists whose cars that are outside the warranty, that they could find themselves in the situation where they have such a fault that nobody seems to be able to cure. Although they often cost in the order of 1,000 per annum or more, at least you have peace of mind if you take out the manufacturer's warranty.
Many motorists would like to attach less importance to the type and age of car they drive and would be happy to change less frequently if others did. But of course others are not going to. It's partly to do with self esteem; many quite illogically, feel inferior if a newer or smarter car drives past them, although interestingly those that drive the more expensive cars do not generally feel superior to those who have a lesser car.
One has to recognize that motor manufacturers have been very clever with their strategy and advertising and it seems that the motor manufacturers and contract hire and leasing companies will, for the foreseeable future, continue to be multi billion pound industries.
Should you have any queries or questions with regard to Fleet Management, Licence checking Contract Hire, Personal Contract Hire, Lease Purchase or vehicle Hire Purchase, please do not hesitate to contact us. Bowater Price plc 01494 536 536. www.bowaterprice.com.
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For more information about contract hire, lease purchase, finance lease or vehicle hire purchase in the UK please contact Bowater Price plc 01494 536 536.
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