BMW and other marques...when did they change?
Discussion
I have been spending a lot of time at my childhood home recently as my mum is ill. Walking round the roads I grew up in, I got to thinking how many premium brand cars there are around these days. BMW in the main, but it is not alone.
The area - posh-ish but nothing special - in a well-to do coastal resort in North East England. Houses are a mix of big detatched and large terrace townhouses in the area of the town where I grew up.
I recall when my Dad got a 3 series BMW back in 1984 it was an event in the road. Neighbours mentioned it making admiring comments. His 7 series Volvos were a real talking point when they were delivered. Thinking about the cars in the road at the time, it was in the main, nice high spec Vauxhalls, Cavlaiers, Carltons etc, Ford's Sierra, Granada, Escorts, and offerings from Rover. All mixed in with 70s Tat Chrysler Horizons Renaults etc.
The guy round the corner had a Range Rover and a Merc (Old S Class) and they were the neighbourhood rich people. At the other end of the road there was a garage where a fairly new Alpina 7 series lived. There was a late 7os 320 a few doors down and someone had an old 1960s 911 - it was just a tatty old sports car to me back then.
The posh cars were there, but spread sparingly.
Now as I write this and looking out from my old bedroom window I can see below me a failry new Mercedes Coupe (CLK?) Several 3 series, a 5 series, a host of Volvo S60s, Audi S3, a new Saab 95, and just one Vauxhall - an Omega MV6 owned by mum's 90 year old next door neighbour!
Where did the money come from all of a sudden? I know house prices have risen since the 80s. Incomes too. But a lot of the people in this road are very like the people who were there when I was a kid - ordinary folks with ordinary jobs, Tax Inspectors, Teachers, Small Business Owners and the like.
The area - posh-ish but nothing special - in a well-to do coastal resort in North East England. Houses are a mix of big detatched and large terrace townhouses in the area of the town where I grew up.
I recall when my Dad got a 3 series BMW back in 1984 it was an event in the road. Neighbours mentioned it making admiring comments. His 7 series Volvos were a real talking point when they were delivered. Thinking about the cars in the road at the time, it was in the main, nice high spec Vauxhalls, Cavlaiers, Carltons etc, Ford's Sierra, Granada, Escorts, and offerings from Rover. All mixed in with 70s Tat Chrysler Horizons Renaults etc.
The guy round the corner had a Range Rover and a Merc (Old S Class) and they were the neighbourhood rich people. At the other end of the road there was a garage where a fairly new Alpina 7 series lived. There was a late 7os 320 a few doors down and someone had an old 1960s 911 - it was just a tatty old sports car to me back then.
The posh cars were there, but spread sparingly.
Now as I write this and looking out from my old bedroom window I can see below me a failry new Mercedes Coupe (CLK?) Several 3 series, a 5 series, a host of Volvo S60s, Audi S3, a new Saab 95, and just one Vauxhall - an Omega MV6 owned by mum's 90 year old next door neighbour!
Where did the money come from all of a sudden? I know house prices have risen since the 80s. Incomes too. But a lot of the people in this road are very like the people who were there when I was a kid - ordinary folks with ordinary jobs, Tax Inspectors, Teachers, Small Business Owners and the like.
I suppose you are right. And I guess if you went into those houses in the 1980s you might have found a video Fergusson music centre and Sharp Microwave.
Now those same homes will be packed with SMEG style fridges, computers and other gadgets.
All on the never never.
Still I like the way the 90 year old still has his old Vauxhall Omega. He will have bought it for cash being old school When I was a kid, every August 1st he'd get a new Vauxhall from the now shut dealer in the town. Thought his SRI 130 was the dog's whatsits.
Now those same homes will be packed with SMEG style fridges, computers and other gadgets.
All on the never never.
Still I like the way the 90 year old still has his old Vauxhall Omega. He will have bought it for cash being old school When I was a kid, every August 1st he'd get a new Vauxhall from the now shut dealer in the town. Thought his SRI 130 was the dog's whatsits.
You mentioned that they're likely to be all the same people living there as when you were a kid. Presumably at that time they were in their 20s 30s and 40s, earning much less relatively that they are 30 years on, whilst probably bringing up kids and still paying off their mortgage.
All their kids have now left home, mortgage paid off, more spare cah to go towards a nicer car. I don't see why everyone has pounced on credit as the only reason for this.
Average earnings and changes in social classes have affected the way these 'premium' brands like BMW are seen now. There's a much broader middleclass, as well as the cars being priced such that after a couple of years of depreciation most people on a decent wage can buy one.
All their kids have now left home, mortgage paid off, more spare cah to go towards a nicer car. I don't see why everyone has pounced on credit as the only reason for this.
Average earnings and changes in social classes have affected the way these 'premium' brands like BMW are seen now. There's a much broader middleclass, as well as the cars being priced such that after a couple of years of depreciation most people on a decent wage can buy one.
wildcat45 said:
Now those same homes will be packed with SMEG style fridges, computers and other gadgets.
All on the never never.
Not so much on the never never, more that the price of household gadgets has dropped dramatically. We bought an American style fridge freezer 7 years ago for a last house and the cheapest we could get was something like £1500 for a decent brand. We bought a new one last year for our new house and it cost £650. Laptops are now readily available for £300, 50 inch TVs around £500...All on the never never.
wildcat45 said:
Still I like the way the 90 year old still has his old Vauxhall Omega. He will have bought it for cash being old school When I was a kid, every August 1st he'd get a new Vauxhall from the now shut dealer in the town. Thought his SRI 130 was the dog's whatsits.
That was another common theme back then, those who could afford new could afford to change their cars every year. There seems to have been a different depreciation curve back then compared to the way cars depreciate so quickly up front now.Complex said:
You mentioned that they're likely to be all the same people living there as when you were a kid. Presumably at that time they were in their 20s 30s and 40s, earning much less relatively that they are 30 years on, whilst probably bringing up kids and still paying off their mortgage.
All their kids have now left home, mortgage paid off, more spare cah to go towards a nicer car. I don't see why everyone has pounced on credit as the only reason for this.
Average earnings and changes in social classes have affected the way these 'premium' brands like BMW are seen now. There's a much broader middleclass, as well as the cars being priced such that after a couple of years of depreciation most people on a decent wage can buy one.
Have to agree - we live differently nowadays - two incomes, cheap almost disposable household goods, etc. Plus as you say a BMW is no longer outside the reach of most - especially given a new Focus diesel is an easy £20K these days.All their kids have now left home, mortgage paid off, more spare cah to go towards a nicer car. I don't see why everyone has pounced on credit as the only reason for this.
Average earnings and changes in social classes have affected the way these 'premium' brands like BMW are seen now. There's a much broader middleclass, as well as the cars being priced such that after a couple of years of depreciation most people on a decent wage can buy one.
slightly O/T but i tell you what this thread has reminded me of...
i grew up in buxton in derbyshire, left there in 1979 and never really been back until last year. i went for a walk round my old estate. bearing in mind when i left the next door neighbour had a company mk3 cortina and cars all had chrome bumpers (those who had cars, that is). anyway the estate still looks pretty similar apart from the spaceships parked in each driveway. the sharp contrast in vehicle technology, design and manufacturing was really bought into focus. even the most basic cars looked impossibly advanced.
i grew up in buxton in derbyshire, left there in 1979 and never really been back until last year. i went for a walk round my old estate. bearing in mind when i left the next door neighbour had a company mk3 cortina and cars all had chrome bumpers (those who had cars, that is). anyway the estate still looks pretty similar apart from the spaceships parked in each driveway. the sharp contrast in vehicle technology, design and manufacturing was really bought into focus. even the most basic cars looked impossibly advanced.
Uhura fighter said:
I don't think he is. I wouldn't say a 3 series is either.
Well no, not any more. If people have a certain amount of cash to spend on a car (be it per month or in total) and have a choice between buying a big car from a "volume" manufacturer or a smaller car from a "premium" manufacturer, they'll go for the "premium" one just because of the badge. Big Fords, Vauxhalls and so forth only seem to be bought by fleets these days.
Also, don't forget that 30 years ago we still had Austin-Rover as a major company here in the UK, which changes things around a bit.
Y282 said:
slightly O/T but i tell you what this thread has reminded me of...
i grew up in buxton in derbyshire, left there in 1979 and never really been back until last year. i went for a walk round my old estate. bearing in mind when i left the next door neighbour had a company mk3 cortina and cars all had chrome bumpers (those who had cars, that is). anyway the estate still looks pretty similar apart from the spaceships parked in each driveway. the sharp contrast in vehicle technology, design and manufacturing was really bought into focus. even the most basic cars looked impossibly advanced.
I've often thought that. I have a massive collection of car brochures in the loft. They go back to when I was about 8 which would be 1978. The main bulk are cars from the 1980s.i grew up in buxton in derbyshire, left there in 1979 and never really been back until last year. i went for a walk round my old estate. bearing in mind when i left the next door neighbour had a company mk3 cortina and cars all had chrome bumpers (those who had cars, that is). anyway the estate still looks pretty similar apart from the spaceships parked in each driveway. the sharp contrast in vehicle technology, design and manufacturing was really bought into focus. even the most basic cars looked impossibly advanced.
I often wonder what the little lad of 10 who begged the local Ford salesman to let hism see the new Mk III Escort - a day before it was launched - would make of cars today. To me back then a Rover SD1 with electric windows and lights in the doors was impossibly hi-tech. I wanted my dad to get a Matra Rancho and dreamed of owning a Gord Granada Chasseur Limited Edition when I grew up. I Wonder what that little lad would have thought if he could have seen the cars he owns today. One of them even has a turbo charger and electric windows in the back!!!
Cars in the UK are cheap - and on the used market, even more so.
I'm currently in Finland browsing the BMW website here to find some who might stock RFTs, and took a look at their second hand car stock. Average for a 2 year old 318d saloon is 38,000 €. Just crazy. I own a 335i Touring which I picked up from the UK for the same price as a new Kia C'eed estate but over in Sweden where I live now it would cost as much as a new 3 series would in the UK, at least.
We've all grown up thinking of the UK as "rip-off Britain", but that is far from the truth as far as I can tell. It is very much the cheapest place to buy things in the EU these days - for food, for alcohol, for household goods and for cars. Meanwhile wages are good, the jobs market is historically quite strong even though we are in a recession and disposable incomes are high.
Although, this is all offset by the incredible cost of housing.
I'm currently in Finland browsing the BMW website here to find some who might stock RFTs, and took a look at their second hand car stock. Average for a 2 year old 318d saloon is 38,000 €. Just crazy. I own a 335i Touring which I picked up from the UK for the same price as a new Kia C'eed estate but over in Sweden where I live now it would cost as much as a new 3 series would in the UK, at least.
We've all grown up thinking of the UK as "rip-off Britain", but that is far from the truth as far as I can tell. It is very much the cheapest place to buy things in the EU these days - for food, for alcohol, for household goods and for cars. Meanwhile wages are good, the jobs market is historically quite strong even though we are in a recession and disposable incomes are high.
Although, this is all offset by the incredible cost of housing.
wildcat45 said:
I've often thought that. I have a massive collection of car brochures in the loft. They go back to when I was about 8 which would be 1978. The main bulk are cars from the 1980s.
I often wonder what the little lad of 10 who begged the local Ford salesman to let hism see the new Mk III Escort - a day before it was launched - would make of cars today. To me back then a Rover SD1 with electric windows and lights in the doors was impossibly hi-tech. I wanted my dad to get a Matra Rancho and dreamed of owning a Gord Granada Chasseur Limited Edition when I grew up. I Wonder what that little lad would have thought if he could have seen the cars he owns today. One of them even has a turbo charger and electric windows in the back!!!
that's a good point, glad it's not just me.I often wonder what the little lad of 10 who begged the local Ford salesman to let hism see the new Mk III Escort - a day before it was launched - would make of cars today. To me back then a Rover SD1 with electric windows and lights in the doors was impossibly hi-tech. I wanted my dad to get a Matra Rancho and dreamed of owning a Gord Granada Chasseur Limited Edition when I grew up. I Wonder what that little lad would have thought if he could have seen the cars he owns today. One of them even has a turbo charger and electric windows in the back!!!
fast forward a decade from when i was a kid, i remember seeing a nearly new x reg 2.8i capri on a forecourt and thinking "god i'll never own anything that brilliant". it was the 4 speed, 2 tone blue/grey with pepperpots ffs. same with the manta gte. it just lookes space age back then. they're all but gone now!
i think living through the lifespan of a production vehicle gives you a very useful perspective on car ownership generally.
In the 80's things like Porsches, BMWs, Audis, Volvos and even some french stuff were genuinely special, relatively rare, blooming expensive, (remember, and late 1980's 944 turbo was over 40k, like 80k nowadays!)!
But these marques are no longer "special". Drive a modern veriosn compared to an 80s and whilst capable, they have lost a certain quirkiness, a certain charm and now just feel like any other car really. Oh, and in truth, a mondeo is better than most that a german equivalent can muster, not true of the cortina of the day! (Not that cortinas were bad or anything, but they were pretty basic compared to FI stuff from germany and sweeden of the same vintage).
Oh and finance, and the chav culture requiring status symbold to be parked on drives of s
tty houses to go with the jakuzzy, tampoline in the front garden, fake tan and Jayden and Prinsess, (spelt different like). :-)
But these marques are no longer "special". Drive a modern veriosn compared to an 80s and whilst capable, they have lost a certain quirkiness, a certain charm and now just feel like any other car really. Oh, and in truth, a mondeo is better than most that a german equivalent can muster, not true of the cortina of the day! (Not that cortinas were bad or anything, but they were pretty basic compared to FI stuff from germany and sweeden of the same vintage).
Oh and finance, and the chav culture requiring status symbold to be parked on drives of s
tty houses to go with the jakuzzy, tampoline in the front garden, fake tan and Jayden and Prinsess, (spelt different like). :-)Gassing Station | General Gassing | Top of Page | What's New | My Stuff