The future of green motoring?
New research carried out by BMW has confirmed what many of the cynics among us had assumed - namely, that the recent shift in new car sales toward greener, more fuel-efficient models is being driven by consumers' desire to save money, not to save the planet.
BMW quizzed 2,068 motorists, and found that 59% of their respondants cited cost-cutting as their major motivation for buying a more environmentally-friendly car, whereas just 13% considered the environment itself their main reason.
These results offer some support for the government's strategy of using the taxation system to encourage people to buy more efficient and environmentally-friendly cars. However, with new car sales down everywhere and most consumers tightening their belts, it'll take some time for these new cars to circulate into the used market and become more affordable to many people.
BMW also reported that respondants were not prepared to sacrifice much in the way of performance for the sake of going green, even despite the potential financial savings from doing so. The survey cites BMW's own EfficientDynamics program as the answer to this dilemma, however similar sub-brands from comptetitors such as Ford's Econetic, Volkswagen's Bluemotion, Peugeot's Blue Lion and Seat's Econetic are striving for the same new sector of the market.
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