Different countries and their cars
Discussion
Having visited various countries in western Europe, Hong Kong, Japan and currently visiting New Zealand I've observed many different car ownership traits.
In NZ most cars seem to be much older and tatty but seemingly road legal and 'kept legal' with the ocassional tuned v8. Lots of used Japanese cars in various states of modification.
What's your experience of different countries.
In NZ most cars seem to be much older and tatty but seemingly road legal and 'kept legal' with the ocassional tuned v8. Lots of used Japanese cars in various states of modification.
What's your experience of different countries.
Riley Blue said:
French cars are quirky and individual so not universally liked. German cars are well engineered but can be bland. Italian cars are stylish but can be temperamental. Japanese cars are reliable but lack character. American cars appeal to no one but Americans. Is that what you mean?
No, you've missed the point. I mean how different locations own their cars. Not the country of origin of the vehicle. Generally the French and Spanish don't seem give a s
t about cars. Nobody ever judges anybody else by what they drive, they just get on with it collecting the odd dent and scrape along the way. It's not uncommon to see even quite new cars filthy dirty with chunks out of the metalwork.
Older cars tend to get more and more battered with shredded interiors, overflowing ashtrays and sun bleached peeling paint adding to the general air of decay. So long as it works and the tyres aren't all completely bald then that'll do just fine.
Quite liberating really...
t about cars. Nobody ever judges anybody else by what they drive, they just get on with it collecting the odd dent and scrape along the way. It's not uncommon to see even quite new cars filthy dirty with chunks out of the metalwork.Older cars tend to get more and more battered with shredded interiors, overflowing ashtrays and sun bleached peeling paint adding to the general air of decay. So long as it works and the tyres aren't all completely bald then that'll do just fine.
Quite liberating really...
I don't understand the car buying logic of the UK. Its all a big fashion show with most wanting the newest shape to show off. They'll happily take out some ridiculous finance to prove to their friends they can own a car they can't really afford. They also won't spend a penny more than they absolutely have to to keep it on the road...
No wonder our second hand market is flooded with ste.
No wonder our second hand market is flooded with s
te.In the Philippines people tend to look after their cars pretty well. Although there is not MOT per se, I *think* there's an Emission test which needs to be done occasionally (although I might well be wrong).
Due to the hard life Manila cars have , they're very often a bit tatty inside and have the usual battle damage associated with City driving, but on the whole they are fairly well maintained and valued by the owners. Tyres are one area of neglect though. As there are no laws governing their condition, it's safe to say the only time a car sees a decent set is when it's fairly new. I see more 70's and Mid 80's / 90's cars out there in good but well used condition than anywhere else I've been.
Due to the hard life Manila cars have , they're very often a bit tatty inside and have the usual battle damage associated with City driving, but on the whole they are fairly well maintained and valued by the owners. Tyres are one area of neglect though. As there are no laws governing their condition, it's safe to say the only time a car sees a decent set is when it's fairly new. I see more 70's and Mid 80's / 90's cars out there in good but well used condition than anywhere else I've been.
Edited by texaxile on Saturday 3rd May 08:54
I agree completely with the Lemon.
France has older cars than the UK, much older. I see cars I'd forgotten about regularly. Cars here are really expensive, maybe that's why they value them more. We are starting to see more newer cars, personally I think it's all lease or finance taken out by self employed people trying to claw back a bit of the 48% stoppages everyone has to pay.
I remember about 10 years ago we went to Greece on holiday, as we'd been doing for years but this year a lot of the locals had chopped their donkeys and rotavators with trailers in were driving round in new Audi TT's or BMW Z4's. They had found finance! An ex-pat who lived there forecast their future with amazing accuracy. They got given credit, something new to them and got them selves deeply in the st with it.
France has older cars than the UK, much older. I see cars I'd forgotten about regularly. Cars here are really expensive, maybe that's why they value them more. We are starting to see more newer cars, personally I think it's all lease or finance taken out by self employed people trying to claw back a bit of the 48% stoppages everyone has to pay.
I remember about 10 years ago we went to Greece on holiday, as we'd been doing for years but this year a lot of the locals had chopped their donkeys and rotavators with trailers in were driving round in new Audi TT's or BMW Z4's. They had found finance! An ex-pat who lived there forecast their future with amazing accuracy. They got given credit, something new to them and got them selves deeply in the s
t with it.Edited by crossy67 on Saturday 3rd May 09:04
MysteryLemon said:
I don't understand the car buying logic of the UK. Its all a big fashion show with most wanting the newest shape to show off. They'll happily take out some ridiculous finance to prove to their friends they can own a car they can't really afford.
I haven't been to the UK, but thats definitely the impression I get on here.
The OP is probably right to a degree about NZ - most people down here don't really care about having a new car as a status symbol. For example, I know a successful lawyer (owns a practice) who generally drives a 90s Toyota (or Nissan Patrol with haybales in the back). And that's considered pretty normal for a rural town - he's a petrolhead and also has an assortment of classic bikes and old sportscars which come out from time to time, but doesn't feel the need to show off. People who do have nice new cars don't generally get judged the other way either, they're just people who wanted a new car.
Sometimes PH makes me think I wouldn't like the UK very much!
MysteryLemon said:
I don't understand the car buying logic of the UK. Its all a big fashion show with most wanting the newest shape to show off. They'll happily take out some ridiculous finance to prove to their friends they can own a car they can't really afford. They also won't spend a penny more than they absolutely have to to keep it on the road...
No wonder our second hand market is flooded with ste.
But on the flipside you can pick up absolute bargains when a car hits 3-4 years old; I work in the trade and have done for 15 odd years and I'm still amazed at what you can pick up for relative peanuts.No wonder our second hand market is flooded with s
te.crossy67 said:
I agree completely with the Lemon.
France has older cars than the UK, much older. I see cars I'd forgotten about regularly. Cars here are really expensive, maybe that's why they value them more. We are starting to see more newer cars, personally I think it's all lease or finance taken out by self employed people trying to claw back a bit of the 48% stoppages everyone has to pay.
I remember about 10 years ago we went to Greece on holiday, as we'd been doing for years but this year a lot of the locals had chopped their donkeys and rotavators with trailers in were driving round in new Audi TT's or BMW Z4's. They had found finance! An ex-pat who lived there forecast their future with amazing accuracy. They got given credit, something new to them and got them selves deeply in the st with it.
France is a big place. Cities and big towns have (I reckon) about the same proportion of new or very young cars, while the more rural the area the greater proportion of old motors.France has older cars than the UK, much older. I see cars I'd forgotten about regularly. Cars here are really expensive, maybe that's why they value them more. We are starting to see more newer cars, personally I think it's all lease or finance taken out by self employed people trying to claw back a bit of the 48% stoppages everyone has to pay.
I remember about 10 years ago we went to Greece on holiday, as we'd been doing for years but this year a lot of the locals had chopped their donkeys and rotavators with trailers in were driving round in new Audi TT's or BMW Z4's. They had found finance! An ex-pat who lived there forecast their future with amazing accuracy. They got given credit, something new to them and got them selves deeply in the s
t with it.Edited by crossy67 on Saturday 3rd May 09:04
In HK, most car owners are a bit pants when looking after their cars, most owners don't really know how to look after their cars, they just think as long as it starts and go then it'll be alright, but they'll go nuts if there is a scratch on the paint work, some people will go as far as fixing a scratch or dent the next day, but will leave their car running rough on the inside and only fix it when it completely dies.
In China...well, I don't know how to say it in a nice way, I'll just be direct, most of them are just a fking stupid car owner. Therefore there is st loads of st cars on the roads in China, it's just fking stupid.
In China...well, I don't know how to say it in a nice way, I'll just be direct, most of them are just a f
king stupid car owner. Therefore there is st loads of st cars on the roads in China, it's just fking stupid.In Cambodia and Vietnam I'd say at least 75% of cars (not 4x4) are Toyota Camrys - Strange as you never see them here. At least half of all 4x4's are variants of Lexsus. There is much less variety with the rest of personal vehicles predominantly Toyota, Honda, Hyundai. Vietnam has 1 motorcycle for every 3 people
dtmpower said:
Riley Blue said:
French cars are quirky and individual so not universally liked. German cars are well engineered but can be bland. Italian cars are stylish but can be temperamental. Japanese cars are reliable but lack character. American cars appeal to no one but Americans. Is that what you mean?
No, you've missed the point. I mean how different locations own their cars. Not the country of origin of the vehicle. dtmpower said:
In NZ most cars seem to be much older and tatty but [b]
seemingly[/b] road legal and 'kept legal' with the ocassional tuned v8.
seemingly[/b] road legal and 'kept legal' with the ocassional tuned v8.
Yep, definitely seemingly. Also I don't think MOT standards here are as good/strict in the UK which is a bad thing.
dtmpower said:
Lots of used Japanese cars in various states of modification.
None of them ever good and normally involve rattle can paint jobs, illegal suspension, and front seats put so far back they might aswell just remove them.But basically what GravelBen said about NZ, that and in my experience unless you're into the US Muscle car scene not many people really care about their cars.
At work other than my 2 bosses I'm the only person who has up to date WOF and Rego and fully comp insurance.
Add in the fact any form of insurance is optional and you end up with a mindset of cars are just transport, so people don't care if they get scratched/damaged. Which is incredibly annoying when you do care.
Tony Starks said:
Add in the fact any form of insurance is optional and you end up with a mindset of cars are just transport, so people don't care if they get scratched/damaged. Which is incredibly annoying when you do care.
Yes and no. You get 3rd party insurance with your Rego. I like it as it allows anyone to drive any car, whereas in the UK its very restrictive. Things like taking a group of friends to the pub, it was easier if anyone could drive home. Or if your car was at the back of the drive you would just take whatever was closest. In Oz the people in the cities generally have quite a lot of pride in their Ford and Holdens, whereas in the bush and outback they just want something which works. No point being precious about something which is covered in red dust all the time, but you need to rely on to do journies into the middle of nowhere.
In Australia, quite a mix of local, Japanese, European and Korean. A few American cars, not many.
Lots of 4wds and utes.
Most cars are reasonably well-kept and fairly clean (at least on the outside). We don't have a large percentage of diesel cars, although many (most?) of the 4wds are diesel.
Lots of older cars, often very well kept and often modified (lifted 4wds and v8s mainly).
Quite a few performance Japanese imports. Lots of v8s, quite a few WRX and EVOs.
It depends a lot where you live / drive : I work in a factory and commute via industrial outer suburbs, so see more utes / crewcabs and blue-collar performance cars; the suburb I used to live in was a sea of silver German four wheel drives that never saw a speck of dust.
Quick survey of cars at work - (from memory)
1 Toyota landcruiser modified for long-range desert touring
1 Nissan patrol (raised, winch, 35" tyres)
1 Holden v8 ute (new)
1 Ford falcon (s/charged ohc v8 - new)
1 Ford falcon (t/charged 4l six - a couple of years old)
1 Ford station wagon
1 Toyota camry
1 Toyota landcruiser (about 10 y old)
2 Mitsubishi 4wd van
Sundry work vans / utes
1 BMW diesel (the boss).
Many of us have another car / bike, but that's what I recall parked up on friday.
Lots of 4wds and utes.
Most cars are reasonably well-kept and fairly clean (at least on the outside). We don't have a large percentage of diesel cars, although many (most?) of the 4wds are diesel.
Lots of older cars, often very well kept and often modified (lifted 4wds and v8s mainly).
Quite a few performance Japanese imports. Lots of v8s, quite a few WRX and EVOs.
It depends a lot where you live / drive : I work in a factory and commute via industrial outer suburbs, so see more utes / crewcabs and blue-collar performance cars; the suburb I used to live in was a sea of silver German four wheel drives that never saw a speck of dust.
Quick survey of cars at work - (from memory)
1 Toyota landcruiser modified for long-range desert touring
1 Nissan patrol (raised, winch, 35" tyres)
1 Holden v8 ute (new)
1 Ford falcon (s/charged ohc v8 - new)
1 Ford falcon (t/charged 4l six - a couple of years old)
1 Ford station wagon
1 Toyota camry
1 Toyota landcruiser (about 10 y old)
2 Mitsubishi 4wd van
Sundry work vans / utes
1 BMW diesel (the boss).
Many of us have another car / bike, but that's what I recall parked up on friday.
USA...
Depends where you visit.
In the heartlands and south of the country most people drive large domestic market pickup trucks and SUV's.
Towards the coast the balance starts to shift towards large Japanese saloons.
Plenty of older cars on the roads... americans seem to keep their cars far longer than Brits... usually to stratospheric mileages
Compact cars and hatchbacks are quite rare.
Depends where you visit.
In the heartlands and south of the country most people drive large domestic market pickup trucks and SUV's.
Towards the coast the balance starts to shift towards large Japanese saloons.
Plenty of older cars on the roads... americans seem to keep their cars far longer than Brits... usually to stratospheric mileages
Compact cars and hatchbacks are quite rare.
Edited by skyrover on Saturday 3rd May 12:30
MysteryLemon said:
I don't understand the car buying logic of the UK. Its all a big fashion show with most wanting the newest shape to show off. They'll happily take out some ridiculous finance to prove to their friends they can own a car they can't really afford. They also won't spend a penny more than they absolutely have to to keep it on the road...
No wonder our second hand market is flooded with ste.
This is true. We lived and worked in Northern Italy for three years, and most drove around in battered old cars (TBH, even the new ones looked battered...). Not much car snobbery there.No wonder our second hand market is flooded with s
te.In the UK, I remember my wife telling me what one of her workmates said - something along the lines of their car was better than ours because it had a brand new plate. She was talking about our then 3 year old TVR Tamora and their new Daewoo Matiz (I kid you not)
This is the mentality of some UK car owners - the newer the car, the better it is, no matter what the car. Quite funny, really...
Brazil (north east)
It's all about image in Brazil. Everyone wants a brand new car. It's actually difficult to buy a 2nd hand car (no private classifieds). Car's not made in Brazil are taxed very heavily. The main cars made there are Peugeot, Renault, Ford, VW, Toyota, Chevrolet and Hyundai (marketed as a premium car over there, I actually rented one as a wedding car). They get the thin end of the wedge over there, the majority of cars are old generations re-hashed with newer front ends. Anything imported is a major status symbol.
It seems people don't generally look after cars, lots of battered up new cars driving about. I predict it'll go the way of Greece. Cars are really expensive, everyone is financed up to the eyeballs. The country is built on credit (at extortionate interest rates). You can pay for petrol in installments.
Brazil is hell for a car enthusiast.
It's all about image in Brazil. Everyone wants a brand new car. It's actually difficult to buy a 2nd hand car (no private classifieds). Car's not made in Brazil are taxed very heavily. The main cars made there are Peugeot, Renault, Ford, VW, Toyota, Chevrolet and Hyundai (marketed as a premium car over there, I actually rented one as a wedding car). They get the thin end of the wedge over there, the majority of cars are old generations re-hashed with newer front ends. Anything imported is a major status symbol.
It seems people don't generally look after cars, lots of battered up new cars driving about. I predict it'll go the way of Greece. Cars are really expensive, everyone is financed up to the eyeballs. The country is built on credit (at extortionate interest rates). You can pay for petrol in installments.
Brazil is hell for a car enthusiast.
MysteryLemon said:
I don't understand the car buying logic of the UK. Its all a big fashion show with most wanting the newest shape to show off. They'll happily take out some ridiculous finance to prove to their friends they can own a car they can't really afford. They also won't spend a penny more than they absolutely have to to keep it on the road...
No wonder our second hand market is flooded with ste.
Mainly 4 pot diesels too, if you want a decent spec or petrol when looking to buy a used car the choices are few and far between. No wonder our second hand market is flooded with s
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