The American Love Affair – Automobiles
American’s love their cars. They write songs about them, name them, and treat them like precious treasures. Automobiles are classified as everything from rugged work vehicles to status symbols. Cars have been a part of the American lifestyle since their invention.
Originally, cars were only available for the very wealthy. It was a sign of status long before they were produced as work vehicles. You had to have considerable funds to afford a vehicle. This was applicable for businesses as well. You had to be a successful business in order to afford vehicles. Even as vehicles were mass-produced in the beginning, it was far more common for businesses to own them than individuals.
It did not take long however, for the automobile to be manufactured so that not just the upper class and businesses could afford to purchase them. It became a sign of upper middle class, then middle class, to have a vehicle. It soon became the norm, that the type of vehicle you drove was used as a status symbol. Eventually, even people who were below the federal poverty guidelines could afford a vehicle. Automobiles became something that everyone had access to, albeit not everyone could afford to have and maintain properly.
However, the majority of people within the United States have the ability to own a vehicle and in many cases, they are necessary in order for people to be able to function. Stores are no longer located on every corner or within a few streets, in many cities public transportation is not effective enough to be able to accommodate the volume of people, or the locations that people need to access.
Recent years however, have seen a drop in the number of cars that people have, as well as the number of miles driven. At one point in time, the increase in driving was a good indication of the level of the economy. The better the economy, the more people were out on the roads, and the more miles they traveled. As the economy suffered a recession, the number of vehicles on the road dropped and the number of miles driven per person declined.
Even with declines in certain areas, America still has the largest % of the population that spends its hard earned dollars on custom modifications or additions for its vehicles. In addition, America restores more vehicles per population than any other country in the world. Even through the recent economic downturn, a vast number of American’s spent their disposable income on car care and improvement, the US has more TV shows dedicated to the automobile than any other country in the world.
Even with used car prices at their highest level ever, America is still obsessed with ensuring that the vehicles that they drive are somehow unique to those that their friends and neighbors drive. This is easily represented by America leading the way with aftermarket cell phone/mobile phone integration into vehicles.
With the economy strengthening month after month, 2014 is shaping up to be a great year for new car sales, with many companies reporting the 4th quarter of 2013 as the strongest in years. This will see a greater number of used vehicles being traded in or sold privately and this is great news for the market in general.
If you are in the Charlotte NC area and you are interested in a late model used vehicle, please give Ride Now Motors a thought. View our inventory at: Used Car Charlotte NC