Is big always better ? Texans love everything larger and in some cases bigger is in fact better . envisage attempt to sleep two people in a matching size bed and then think of how much easy it would be in a king sizing seam . In that case bigger is definitely better !
For decades theautomotive industryand American machine buyers have held the same belief , that bigger and more herculean was always better . But are thing switch ? Most in spades ! We can give thanks the skyrocketinggas prices , economic turmoil and young governing regulations for altering our dreams of owning a large SUV or V8 powered saloon .
In the retiring few old age the motorcar industry has been adopt a page from the technical school industry , by take more stuff in a small package . Have emptor accepted it ? When the economical downturn start at the end of the last decade many cable car owner were force to abandon their large sport utility and motortruck for small more fuel - efficient models . Three - four years afterwards auto buyers now site even more stress on fuel - efficiency than before . The small-scale - motorcar segment uphold to grow at a faster rate than other segment and through July of this year it was 17 percent of all car sales .
Small Cars
Are thesesmall carsthe same as the small penalty box that small cars were in the 1980′s and 1990′s ? Definitely not . Detroit ’s carmaker have historically put very little effort into their minuscule railcar , since net income were little and the cable car buyer simply did n’t want them . Today Ford and GM have pulled a 180 with role model like the Ford Fiesta and Chevy Cruze . GM and Ford now have small car that are at the top of their respective classes in terminus of fuel - efficiency , quality and styling . Car buyers have taken notice . The Chevy Cruze managed to retain onto the top - sell railroad car post in the U.S. this summer .
So what’s next?
Today ’s car emptor have downsized , but still demand pop features like sailing arrangement , Bluetooth and leather seats . Options that were available on their gas - guzzle SUVs . Automakers have answer this by put up many of these features on example that yr ago did n’t even total standard with air conditioning ! The Honda Civic can now be equipped with a navigation organization and leather seat straight from the manufactory , but in the 1990′s there were Civics on dealer lots without a wide-eyed radio and manually operated windows .
As smaller becomes more of the average , is there a future for small sumptuousness cars that are packed with the latest engineering science ? With car like the Mini Cooper , the answer is yes . Americans have always believe that a luxury machine had to be big . depend at the Cadillac Escalade , a bombastic SUV that guzzled gasoline , but made you sense like the king of the world . Everyone want to be you ! Just as Ford and Chevy now extend more appealing small auto for the sparing automobile buyer , the opulence automaker have part to downsize their lineups . Most lately Audi has drop the magnanimous V10 engines from its eminent - performance mannequin for more efficient turbocharged V8s and Volvo has announced plan to only offer four - cylinder railway locomotive in its succeeding models . Luxury is no longer defined by the sizing of your engine or how big you car is .
sumptuosity automakers have also given many previews of what we can expect to see in the near future . At the Shanghai Motor Show before this year , Mercedes - Benz previewed its next - generation A - course of instruction with the A - Class construct , a compendious hatchback door that is much littler than the Mercedes - Benz S - Class flagship sedan . The A - Class , which is bear to get to the U.S. for the 2013 model yr , will be powered by a modest turbocharged four - cylinder locomotive engine and two-fold - clasp transmission that send off the power to the front wheels . The A - Class construct was packed with technical school features like a hit turning away organisation that is designed to warn driver about possible hit and an infotainment system that fully integrate with your smartphone .
Smaller than the A-Class?
What about something even smaller than the A - course of instruction ? The name Cadillac has always been synonymous with big saloon and S.U.V. , but last class GM ’s luxury sword throw us a flavor at its future with the Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept . At a very brusk 151 inches long , the Cadillac Urban Luxury Concept measured 50 in poor than the standard Cadillac Escalade SUV . Don Butler , vice President of the United States for Cadillac marketing express , “ While small in sizing , this concept is an geographic expedition of what Cadillac could be in the future , as the brand continue to focus on redefining industry standard for advanced vehicle design and integrated applied science . ” A turbocharged 1.0L three - cylinder engine mated to an electrical motor and dual - clutch transmission system power the concept . GM predicted that the tiny concept car could get up to 65 mpg on the highway . Compare that to the 18 mpg that the Escalade gets . TheUrban Luxury Conceptwas also packed full of tech features like unparalleled jot pad control that can connect you to the internet and GM’sOnStarwith advanced voice recognition interaction .
As sumptuousness automakers continue to downsize their example with even more technical school features will automobile buyers be uncoerced to write the check ? Prior to the Mini Cooper in 2001 , it was unheard of for a tiny car to have a toll ticket close to $ 30k . But even though the Mini Cooper was tiny , it was pack full of features that many bantam cars at that time did not offer . The Mini try out a winner and leading to other carmaker moving their pocket-size motorcar ’s upmarket .
As more American ’s have earn that a large sumptuousness SUV is no longer a status symbol and a star sign of a person ’s wealth , more gondola buyer will proceed to downsize , but at the same sentence demand many of the same high - tech features that their anterior vehicles had . A luxury automobile will no longer be defined by its size , but by its attention to detail , style and how technologically advance it is . A small car price at $ 40,000 ? Get quick for it !
