The Car Industry Is Not Protected From Following Fads

The automobile industry is equally as much controlled by the vagaries of fads and trends as any other. Look at all the changes that have happened over the last decade in the car market. The Nissan Altima, an incredibly plain car if ever, may possibly have surprised you back in 2002 with its speediness if you test-drove one.

The advent of the 240 horsepower engine hearalded in speeds a great deal higher than what the 90's had made us accustomed to. It didn't stop there either, because today the Volkswagen Passat, a family car, comes with 280 horsepower under the bonnet. Smaller cars like the Mitsubishi, costing $30,000, are leaving Camaros standing. Packing a mean 500 horsepower doesn't elevate a car such as the Dodge Viper to beyond ordinary today. You possibly will not be a speed nut, but there are essentially no cars anymore that are really underpowered. Every single new automobile model is apparently bigger than its predecessor. When the new Toyota Rav4 was launched, it had grown by 14 inches, and if you take a look at Hondas, the current Civics are larger than the older model Accords.

A vehicle that is the same or less than before is not really acceptable, it seems, if you have to pay more for it. People want much larger and better cars if they're going to be paying more. You will find a disadvantage to bigger,obviously, and that's heavier, but car makers will keep on going bigger if that's what the public are looking for. The American public would like to spend less money on the cost of gas, but it seems they won't tolerate going slower in the process. They are still more than willing to pay a premium price, and wait in line to get a hybrid from Toyota Prius. All this, thanks to the same dealership having loads of Corollas left unsold. Sales of hybrids is so great that all auto manufacturers are racing to follow suit, even to the extent that Nissan will use the system developed by their competitor, Toyota, to bring out their Altima hybrid.

Customers these days want style and flair, and gone is the plain styling so common in the 90s. Power steering, automatic windows, airbags and impressive sound systems being standard options are now par for the course. All these have a price, which probably explains the $28,000 price tag of the average new car. Yet sales of SUV's are generally drying up, which could mean a return to saner days, with smaller cars, and perhaps simpler. It had become a craze that has maybe run its course, as the bigger the SUV, the further down the sales have dropped. Consumers seem to have shifted to smaller cars, with the Ford Explorer and Expedition out in the cold while the little cars are getting more and more of the action, even the Neon and Sentra.

Cars definitely don't require being as fast as they are, or so big, so the car companies should recognize this and change accordingly. We are at the start of the hybrid time now, and it will be interesting to see how it pans out. In ten years it's going to be entertaining to look back and see what happened with all of the automotive craziness.