Nice New Vauxhalls

It’s an uncertain time in the car market with many sellers reporting sluggish business. However, some areas are performing well with certain models proving highly popular. Such is the case for Vauxhall dealers who have been reporting a significant increase in sales last year.

What brings this on? Well, many of them are putting it down to the launch of the Astra. The old model had been performing relatively modestly running well down its class. However in December 2008 we saw a new model, the British built MK 6 and that has been fairly flying out of show rooms.

The result is a renewal of the brands image within the UK market, something that can’t come a moment too soon for hard pressed Vauxhall Dealers. Some of them have been reporting sales up by nearly 40 to 50%.

So what is this growth down to? Well, customers are increasingly migrating to versatile small hatchbacks. Ideally, anything that can offer good fuel consumption, and low emissions as well as the flexibility to be a good all-use car will perform well, and that’s what the Astra offers. It’s unspectacular but reliable and that seems to be very much in vogue at the moment.

During a recession as severe as this consumer behaviour can be termed with one simple phrase: ‘back to basics’. Reliability and dependability become the most sought after characteristics, replacing performance and luxury.

Economists refer to this as the Mummy syndrome. When times are tough we crave stability. We want the state to offer the security of a mother, rather than the aggression of a father. It’s a cheap analogy, but economists love them and there’s no reason not to follow them.

The same principal applies when analysing trends in the car market. On a subconscious level people are craving the stability in their lives. Remember; we’re in a time in which the banks, pillars of our society have proved to be built on sand. Our politicians have let us down and major retail names are disappearing by the day from the highstreet. At times like that we’ll migrate to anything solid.

Vauxhall dealers are tapping into this desire and presenting their car as the ideal solution to all life’s turbulent problems. It may seem ridiculous to think that a car can provide that, but when you consider the amount of time most people spend driving you can recognise the huge significance they place on the vehicle they drive.

For Vauxhall dealers, and indeed their competitors, the challenge is to find ways of presenting their products as being perfect anti-recession vehicles. For some that will prove difficult. Prestige cars such as Jaguar may have to suffer for the time being, but for the more run of the mill manufacturers, this is their time in the sun.

Dom Donaldson

It’s a trick that many drivers are already familiar with; putting a private registration plate on a used car can give the impression that the car is much newer than it seems. So, if you’re looking at used Vauxhall cars to buy, consider a private registration plate to transform the car.

Not everyone can afford a brand new car and it is frustrating for those with tight purse strings to have to think about shelling out for a new car, simply because the reality of this can’t happen. For some, the only way they can afford a car is to buy a used vehicle. This is fine, but if you’re worried about people thinking you’re driving an old model with 100,000 miles on the clock, a private plate could make all the difference.

You’re probably thinking that a private plate is going to cost a fortune, but this is not always the case. If you’re after a plate that says “3MILY” then you could be expecting to pay out a lot, but many private plates are affordable and add a touch of glamour to a car. It is particularly popular for executive car owners, who buy a used car that’s a few years old, to put a private plate on the vehicle so they can make everybody think it is a brand new luxury car they have just bought. The society that we live in is very materialistic, and although the idea of making people believe your car is newer than it is might seem fake and snobbish, you would be surprised just how many people do it. In London, for example, this is particularly popular, as the money-obsessed capital is home to people that have a façade to uphold.

Of course, you don’t have to be so extravagant like this. The main premise here is that if you buy a used car, such as a used Vauxhall car, you can make your car seem new just by adding a private plate. Plus, since you have saved money on the car by buying used, you can afford to splash out a bit on a private plate. Fancy your name on your car? It’s a good idea – but you might have to start saving up! In the meantime though, why not pick out your used Vauxhall car and then decide which plate you want on it.

Author Mark Woodcock