Want to choose discrete options, not packages

I don't know the figures but I would suspect the vast majority of new cars are bought off the lot, they are existing built cars, not ordered in advance. Why, because those are the ones that go on sale and that you can make the cheapest deals on. I also don't think the majority of new car buyers know anything about the mechanicals of the car they are buying. After all part of the draw of buying new is that if it breaks you don't have to pay to fix it or fix it yourself, you have this nice warranty that does that. So why would a new car buyer care about ordering a prone-to-break item like an automatic tampax remover when he's going to buy an extended warranty anyway, and sell the vehicle when that runs out? He isn't going to know what's in the vehicle and he is going to care less.

True story - a couple weeks ago I called someone about buying a used van they were selling. I asked them over the phone "does it have ABS brakes, yes or no" the answer was no. I go look at this van that they had owned for years, sure enough yes it has ABS brakes. Now someone explain to me how can somebody own a car for years and not know if it has ABS brakes or not? Don't you think the little warning light that lights up when you start the car labeled ABS would give it away?

This is the typical level of knowledge of a typical car owner, and you think they all want to special-order the options in the cars? Well maybe the cupholders.

Ted

. DRLs are

DRLs equate to a auto insurance discount with some companies. Why would you want to do away with a 5 percent discount on insurance ?

Have you walked into a dealership and tried to order a new car not already on the lot or on some dealers lot within 50 miles of that dealer of late?

Because that is not the case in any state of which I an aware and according to the US Senate Transportation Committee determination DRLs can cause more accidents they may prevent. That is why they are not required in the US.

mike hunt

The vast majority of people do not want to wait several weeks for the exact car they want. Most people want a car right away. Plus, many of the incentives may be gone when the car arrives.

And, people usually want the same group of things.

Jeff

(...)

Most people are ignorant of how their cars work. When something is lit that is not usually lit or blinking, it gets our attention. I can't tell you which lights go on when I first turn the key.

Just like most people don't care that much about what happens after they flush the toilet - as long the stuff goes down the drain without a flood, they are happy. And as long as there are no unusual lights on thier dash, they are happy, too.

Jeff

Back to the thread, nope, they don't always buy what they want. They pick a car and pretty much have to take what is offered. Sometimes it is attraction, sometimes it is the lesser of evils.

What do you actually do for GM, Mike?

I have nothing to do with GM today, except own a bunch of their stock. I'm eighty years old and have been retired for a long time. My engineering degree is in metallurgy. I did work for GM, as a design engineer, when I graduated from college after WWII. After my stint there I worked as a field engineer in VWs short lived assembly plant in Pennsylvania, until it was unceremoniously shut down . I worked as a design engineer for Ford until I retired in 1986. After that I was Group Sales Manager for one of the largest mega dealership groups on the east cost. We sold just about every brand on the market. During that time I started a fleet service business, with a moneyed partner, that serviced thousands of vehicle for corporate and government fleets in six states. I had to buy out my partner in 1990, when the techs decided to join the Machinist Union, because he wanted nothing to do with a Union. Having our techs join a union turned out to be the best thing that ever happen to the business. I sold out to an investment group and retired to do what I do now an that is to try to spend all my money before I die. LOL

mike hunt

wrote in message news:tTJbg.75105$F snipped-for-privacy@newssvr29.news.prodigy.net...

It sure is a lot different from years ago. DVD, Entertainment Systems and now to top it all off, the new Dodge caliber has a place to keep your drinks chilled.

Sounds like another way to sell us something. Why not run lights in the day and night ;-)

You guess? You sound like you don't know much about cars. Why are you posting?

Does that mean you would attempt a 5,000 mile trip in a $700 car ;)

mike hunt

New York State with State Farm Insurance, a national company.

A $700 car does not have to be a crap car.

A crap car is one that fails when you don't expect it to fail, irregardless of how much you paid for it.

Then I guess you would attempt a 5,000 mile trip in a $700 car. I would not if I were you ;)

I have not had a $700 car in a while. The last $700 car I had was a used 1973 Fury with a 360 v8. That was 1981. I ran it till 1985. I guess $700 would equate to two or three times that amount in todays dollars.

I have a car in my driveway I'm thinking of selling for $500. I wouldn't consider a 5k mile run with that one because the tranny needs a rebuild.

My Father bought a 1966 2 door Buick Skylark with a v6 in 1993. He paid $150 for it. It was garaged, well taken care of, never taken out on bad weather days, and had 36,000 miles on the odometer. Owner was afraid of it because it was too old and replaced it with a Tempo (ugh!).

So there you have it. A car I would drive 5k miles in with no qualms that cost less than $500 in today's money and a car that was new that I wouldn't trust for 500 feet (the Tempo with every option Ford could stuff into it).

It is not the cost of the car, but the condition of that car. Cheap does not aways equate to crap. Learned that in the 1970's when buying cars from the NYC repo actions under the Whitestone Bridge. I still miss that 1968 Imperial with 40,000 miles we got for $400 with only a broken seat back.

Yes, well it's been demonstrated that people in society have not been able to adapt to a technological lifestyle, other than being a pure consumer. People today know less about how the food that keeps them alive is created, then at any point in history I think.

I don't think that state of affairs is really going to last, though. Not over the long term, over hundreds of years. Most of the ability of society to exist as a collection of ignorant consumers is due to the availability of cheap energy, and once the oil runs out, cheap energy is going to go away. At that time people will have to go back to the old way of you buy something then you keep it a long. long time, because the cost to replace what you have with something new will be astronomical. And the only way people will be able to do that is to learn to do their own maintainence. (or a good portion of it)

Ted

I own a 1984 Celebrity with a blue book of $500 and I wouldn't hesitate to take a 5000 mile trip in it. Of course, I replaced the engine with a rebuilt engine about 4 years ago, but the car is still only worth $500 to the market.

Ted

I guess you could, as long as you have a valid credit card. ;)

mike hunt