In this day and age, it seems that the question lurking in the back of most people’s minds is “Does size really matter?” Car size, that is. What did you think we meant?Most auto buyers nowadays are shunning gargantuan SUVs in favor of smaller statured hatchbacks or mainstream sedans with an inline four. Even though the reason for the purchase is no doubt to save money on gas, buyers are often times looking to saddle them with every option available. Huh. Doesn’t spending an extra $5 grand on your fuel sipper sort of defeat the money saving purpose?
The first vehicle to really prove that small vehicles can still demand premium prices was the ultra-successful MINI Cooper. Buyers were attracted by the low base price and fuel efficiency and stayed on to order thousands of dollars in personalizing extras.
Next in line came Toyota’s Scion division, which also advertised low base prices for their economically minded lineup. Funny thing is, though, most purchasers wound up tacking on thousands of dollars of extras ranging from interior ambient mood lighting for your cup holders to an audio subwoofer bazooka tube that takes up most of your cargo space. Not the most practical of options, but big money makers for Toyota nonetheless.
One shocking story from this time of vehicular downsizing is the runaway success of the new Ford Focus.
More important, though, is which models Ford is managing to sell. The most popular versions are the ones most heavily loaded with options like the ultra cool SYNC from Microsoft and a sunroof. Ford initially planned to have 20% of its production run be made up of fully loaded versions priced around $17,000. Currently the mix is running above an estimated 30% for fully loaded Focus sedans and coupes.
It doesn’t stop there. Ford also plans to introduce an even fancier SEL model with heated leather seats, polished aluminum wheels, ambient interior lighting and still more plastic fantastic chrome for the exterior.
Heated leather seats on a Focus? What’s next? Actual leopard skin seats on Barbie’s dream car?
Things are happening in a similar fashion for General Motors. When comparing the current Malibu four cylinder with the previous model, the automaker tells us that purchases of sunroofs have gone up from 1% of the model mix to nearly 20%. Remote starting now features on 50% of new Malibus as opposed to the previous 10%. That is a big jump in number of options purchased for what was once considered an entry level vehicle.
These figures show that even though mainstream sedan purchasers are avoiding the more glamorous and high powered 6 cylinder variants, they still want all of the luxury features. This has rarely been the case in the North American market where you pretty much only paid more for a higher cylinder count, not for improved fuel economy.
One curious side note to this new economically and ecologically minded new car market comes in the form of the ever popular and ever controversial Toyota Prius. Most of the Prius models sold come loaded to the gills with options like navigation, a moonroof and even leather upholstery. We just wonder why a vehicle with such ecological aspirations would even offer leather. In fact it is the methane gas created by cows—the source of leather if you need to be reminded—that is most contributing to the increase in global warming causing greenhouse gasses, not the emissions from the world’s automobiles.
Our take? While we do question some of the economic sense it makes in buying tons of options for your new fuel sipping automobile, we applaud the general downsizing going on in the auto industry. Just because you have a “small” vehicle or one with a “smaller” engine, it doesn’t mean you can’t roll like the “big” boys.
Source : Wall Street Journal
