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Dacia does. The Spring and Sandero are hugely popular in Europe as no-frills cars.

by rahen 4y ago

globalise83 4y ago
Seconded. Their 3rd gen Sandero and new Jogger (basically Sandero Stepway estate version) are really great value for money, and have physical controls for almost everything important.
cheschire 4y ago
"Great news!" -James May Joking aside, I wonder if it's a difference in much pride is tied to cars in USA vs Europe, or if there's the same amount of pride but just fewer predatory loan offerings allowed in Europe. Is it a legal limit, or just people unwilling to commit to 8 year loans? I suspect if there were some government mandated limit of 5 years on car loans you would see no-frills cars take off like gangbusters in the USA as well.
- nicbou 4y ago
  It varies wildly, but I think that credit is perceived and granted differently in Germany, compared to Canada. Where I live, we also need to drive less than in North America, so many of my friends don't have a driving license. I'm tempted to say that cars matter less here - they're usually parked out of sight - but I bike to a different neighborhood and there are young guys in pristine luxury cars cruising around. If you visit a different part of the countries the composition of cars changes too. It definitely varies according to nationality, too. Perhaps it's a function of culture, insurance prices and petrol prices.
- dublin 4y ago
  There are three groups of people buying high-end cars that might require a 5+ year loan in the US: 1) The independently wealthy, who don't finance anyway, but pay cash (unless the manufacturer offers 0% financing - never turn down a chance to use someone else's money for free...) 2) Those who want to keep up appearances with their richer friends (often in group 1), but are financially savvy enough to lease rather than finance a loan, especially since they would not be caught dead in a five-year-old car. This is by far the largest group, and why there is (or has historically been) such huge depreciation on high end luxury/sports brands, excepting Lexus. 3) The group who really wants to fool people into thinking they have more money than they do, and actually takes the idiotic road of financing a depreciating asset in such a way that they will be perpetually "upside down" on it, and responsible for horrendous maintenance and repair bills once the warranty period is up.

Dacia does. The Spring and Sandero are hugely popular in Europe as no-frills cars.

by rahen 4y ago

Dacia does. The Spring and Sandero are hugely popular in Europe as no-frills cars.

Seconded. Their 3rd gen Sandero and new Jogger (basically Sandero Stepway estate version) are really great value for money, and have physical controls for almost everything important.

cheschire 4y ago

"Great news!" -James May Joking aside, I wonder if it's a difference in much pride is tied to cars in USA vs Europe, or if there's the same amount of pride but just fewer predatory loan offerings allowed in Europe. Is it a legal limit, or just people unwilling to commit to 8 year loans? I suspect if there were some government mandated limit of 5 years on car loans you would see no-frills cars take off like gangbusters in the USA as well.

nicbou 4y ago
It varies wildly, but I think that credit is perceived and granted differently in Germany, compared to Canada. Where I live, we also need to drive less than in North America, so many of my friends don't have a driving license. I'm tempted to say that cars matter less here - they're usually parked out of sight - but I bike to a different neighborhood and there are young guys in pristine luxury cars cruising around. If you visit a different part of the countries the composition of cars changes too. It definitely varies according to nationality, too. Perhaps it's a function of culture, insurance prices and petrol prices.
dublin 4y ago
There are three groups of people buying high-end cars that might require a 5+ year loan in the US: 1) The independently wealthy, who don't finance anyway, but pay cash (unless the manufacturer offers 0% financing - never turn down a chance to use someone else's money for free...) 2) Those who want to keep up appearances with their richer friends (often in group 1), but are financially savvy enough to lease rather than finance a loan, especially since they would not be caught dead in a five-year-old car. This is by far the largest group, and why there is (or has historically been) such huge depreciation on high end luxury/sports brands, excepting Lexus. 3) The group who really wants to fool people into thinking they have more money than they do, and actually takes the idiotic road of financing a depreciating asset in such a way that they will be perpetually "upside down" on it, and responsible for horrendous maintenance and repair bills once the warranty period is up.