I have a Volvo 240. My car and the older Mercedes from the 1980's (W123) seem to be some of the last cars built that were truly meant to last for 20+ years and be easily repaired by the owner. At what point did our society decide cars were disposable items and what other cars do people feel fall into the same catagory (built to last forever)?
2006-12-20 01:48:08 · 6 answers · asked by Ryan 3 in Cars & Transportation ➔ Other - Cars & Transportation
IT is called plan opalescence. The car should break right as you pay the last payment. If the price ever went to were you needed a 20 year loan you would see cars that last 20 years.
2006-12-20 11:17:26 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Preplanned obsolescence has been part of automotive manufacturing since the Great Depression. Cars were made too good prior to this point, and demand for cars went down when the old ones kept running. Companies depend on repeat customers who come back after their car wore out. How many 1954 Pontiacs do you see? How about '49 Chevies, '71 Ford Galaxies, and '86 Hondas? If they all ran forever, the companies wouldn't have enough people to buy the new models.
2006-12-20 10:06:19 · answer #2 · answered by nitr0bike 4 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It's all about economics. If it breaks you have to spend money on parts and labor. Plus, if a car lasted forever then you wouldn't buy a new car, and the manufacture would run out of customers.
2006-12-20 09:54:00 · answer #3 · answered by LuckyChucky 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Technology today changes quite rapidly, as compared to two decades ago. But I think the main reason for what you're saying is psychological. Nowadays, our society has introduced "fashion" into almost everything. People don't hang on to their spouses for 20 years....least of all their cars. The new mindset is to keep changing things, if not every year, then every few years. Someone who drove the same car for even 10 years, regardless of how well it is maintained, is often perceived as outdated, or even cheap. Most people give in to this external pressure, and that's why keep changing or trading in their stuff. Companies merely respond to this need.
2006-12-20 09:53:59 · answer #4 · answered by Peace 3 · 1⤊ 2⤋
when car makers started getting greedy. but that could also apply to a lot of other products as well.
2006-12-20 10:09:10 · answer #5 · answered by Texas T 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
cars now r better than ever.. in the late 70s and 80s they were junk but are great now
2006-12-20 09:52:25 · answer #6 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 1⤋