Study Finds The People's Car of Choice While Looking To Upgrade
JunkCar Traders conducted a study and I am here to report on it.
During the pandemic, car prices have dropped dramatically due to people not getting out and buying new cars. As far as things have come, COVID-19 has given people a new way to move about due to being home for long periods of time. JunkCar Traders said, "As more people were faced with extended periods at home, we wondered how the new normal of the pandemic impacted people's decisions around their personal vehicles. We surveyed people on the impact the pandemic has had on their personal transportation and the changes, if any, they've made to theirs based on the events of the past year." Below are the findings which they found with their subjects. For the full survey, click the link here.
Less Time Moving About
"...since i am..."
"When leaving the home carries the risk of becoming infected with COVID-19, transportation habits are bound to change. The people we surveyed appeared to confirm that. The average weekly car trips people reported taking were nearly cut in half, down to 5.4 from 9.8." As for me, my car trips never really changed. I have been going to work and my job never closed down due to COVID since I am considered an "essential employee." My wife and I still took trips to places near and far. This past year we traveled to Maine, Rhode Island, Cape May, Tennessee, the Carolinas, and Georgia. We still have several plans to vacation throughout the rest of the year. One of the best things to have happened during COVID was the traffic or lack thereof. Roads were damn near open for people to go to work. My job is usually a 15-minute drive from my apartment. With COVID, in the beginning, it only took me 10 minutes.
Changing The Way People Transport Personally
"...couldn't pass on..."
"Overall, 57.6% of people said they’d made some type of change to their personal means of transportation since the onset of COVID-19. The most common change people reported was buying or acquiring a vehicle (27.2%) followed by reducing the number of cars in their household (21.5%). For some, though, size was a factor, with 13.6% saying they downsized to a smaller vehicle. Conversely, 14.8% of people sought an upgraded vehicle." The only thing for me is that I landed a steal on my 2005 Scion tC. I bought it before anything because I couldn't pass on it due to it being a good investment to make money in the near future. Pretty much a Toyota Corolla with 40,000 miles at the time for $1,800 that was a 1 owner vehicle could not be passed. I saw it as something I can sell for more in the future. But I do not think it would fall into this since we went into "shutdown" more than a month later after buying it.
Why People Made A Change
"...first thing to..."
"Financial strain was also a major factor, with 32.5% of people citing it as a reason they made a change. The financial impact of the pandemic has been an unfortunate reality for many across the country. As lockdowns hit the U.S. in March 2020, the unemployment rate shot up from 3.8% in February to 14.4% in April. Even if people managed to maintain employment, furloughs and pay cuts were not uncommon as companies tightened their proverbial belts." I can understand why financial strain would be the main factor. As we saw, people became either unemployed or went into a sort of hiatus from work since places shut down. People could not afford car insurance or payments, or worse, rent or their mortgage. Usually, the first thing to go is a vehicle. I feel pity for those who have had to face the worse part of the pandemic and my heart goes out to them. I am just thankful I maintained a steady income since I am an "essential employee."
Manufacturers That Were The Most Desired
"...are way better..."
"Tesla (16.3%) took the top spot in the 10 brands people were most interested in owning. Mercedes-Benz (13%) and BMW (12.4) rounded out the top three. Toyota (10.6%) took the fourth spot and was most popular among baby boomers." What I don't get is why Hyundai was "Number 10." I am happy it made it in the "Top Ten" but to be last on the list is a bit crazy. It should almost be on par with Toyota at the very least with the prices of Hyundai models and the warranties offered. And there are way better manufacturers out there than Tesla. Some people must not really do their research on cars. Especially Gen Xers. They are only trend followers at the moment.
For the rest of this study, click the link here.
I would like to take a moment and thank JunkCar Traders for allowing me this opportunity to show and give my take on this study and its findings.
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Comments (5)
What the lockdown proved is that we need transport, but not to the extent we use it now. I'd say about 60% of our travels for those of us in urbanised areas can be made by foot, about 60% or so can also work from home and for those who don't, public transport should be the made best option and invested in significantly, as this is where we should trial the mainstream fuels (after this covid shenanigans of course). Personally I think that the best if those now is synthetics when prices become viable as we won't need new infrastructure which is very important as what we're looking at now must be a short term option. Reducing the number of vehicles in use will significantly cut our emissions more than a few rich environmentalists in Teslas killing children in Argentinian mines for Lithium batteries. CCS units can do the rest. Cars should only be allowed on the road for trivial pursuits, but under renewable and ultra low carbon fuelling only. This is a far more viable way of cutting our emissions than setting up new infrastructure that will only be used for 15 years, cars that people often don't like much and cars that don't really cut our emissions that much.
I see. Interesting.
As a Gen-Xer, I politely disagree with your assessment of my entire generation as trend followers (which are present in every generation). Elon Musk himself is a Gen-Xer and although I'm surprised to find myself saying something which could be construed as supportive of him, he is no follower of present-day EV popularity, but is instead the vanguard (for better or worse). Indeed, without any followers, no trend could be called a trend. Annnnywho, being a follower isn't always bad—ask any of the millions of owners of Corollas and Camrys who hopped on those low-maintenance bandwagons! 😄
Hahaha. Corollas and Camrys are low-maintenance. Haha.
@tribe New article is up! What do you think?