Your car just gave out on you at the worst possible time? What am I saying… There is never a good time. So you immediately decide to get a new car, drop into the first dealership you come across—just to look around—and come out with a new car.
Buying a new vehicle is generally a pleasant experience: that new-car smell, which is sometimes an actual perfume (in the Rolls Royce, for example, a wood and leather scent is sprayed), cleanliness, reliability and, usually, a strong sense of pride. But buying a new vehicle also contributes to other things.
It’s no secret… the American economy is collapsing and one of the boldest plans from the leaders of Uncle Sam’s country was to save the national automobile industry by literally acquiring Chrysler and GM. Moreover, this week, GM just went back onto the stock market, and Washington will now start getting its money back. For the first week of Barack Obama’s reign, part of the recovery plan involved encouraging Americans to buy a new car. The heavily promoted “Cash for Clunkers” program allowed our neighbours to get rid of an old vehicle and receive $4,500 toward the purchase of a new one. We did not have the same promotions, but we do benefit from some advantages: you just have to look at an old car guide from the 1980s to see how we are still paying the same price as we did 20 years ago for a new entry-level car.
Purchasing a new vehicle, or rather replacing an old car with a new one, also has positive effects on the environment. Statistics confirm that older cars (2003 and older) pollute 20 times more than new ones. Some figures are more impressive than others and claim that older vehicles are 40 times more polluting. In fact, it seems to depend on the location. Certain governments require regular inspections of older vehicles, and others, like our own, allow any “vehicle” to travel our roads. I have heard sarcastic remarks about our roads having the vehicles they deserve.
Studies on pollution emitted by new vehicles, however, all have one thing in common: they fail to take into account the pollution related to the scrapping of old cars and the energy used to manufacture, develop and market new cars. Statistics on this subject are becoming rarer, but that is not so surprising since it is more profitable to fund a study on the environmental impacts of old vehicles than the effects of the manufacturing of new ones!
Lastly, insurance for a new vehicle is sometimes not as expensive as you might think. With a good driving record and a no-frills vehicle, you could obtain coverage at reasonable cost. For example, we just have to think of the mechanic or repair man who does not lower his hourly rate for, let’s say, a 2002 or 2004 model car. Another factor, this time for marketing, is that an insurance company that gives you a good insurance rate for your new vehicle will have a good chance of keeping you as a client!
Are you planning to buy a new vehicle, and want to obtain a quote? Contact our specialists or try our online auto quote service!
