Automobile News

In what should set the alarm bells ringing for the automobile industry, car sales have taken a nose dive in the UK, with October 2008 figures standing at 128,352, a sharp decline of 23 percent on October 2007. The scenario is even more pathetic for the private sales which by contrast have seen an uncharacteristic decline of 28.8 per cent.

The situation is so critical that the October decline has been rated as the worst year-on-year monthly drop since June 1991. The unhealthy trend first started in August and September this year, and gained momentum in October. Many automobile peripherals, such as sat navs, entertainments systems, multimedia monitors, and more, have witnessed equally staggering declines in sales figures. Many have credited the slump to the credit crunch that is gripping the nation.

Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) executive Paul Everitt has acknowledged the difficulties surrounding the automobile industry and stressed that firm steps are the need of the hour to restore customer confidence and entice buyers back to the showrooms.

He even hinted that cuts in interest rates with the benefits being swiftly passed on to consumers are a probable solution. Scrapping planned increases in vehicle excise duty (car tax) and maintaining public expenditure on new vehicles are also believed to be essential part of the package required to bail out the industry from the turmoil. Paul in addition, also emphasized that the time is here for the European Union to take a cohesive step towards ensuring support for a continued investment in new, lower carbon vehicle technologies.

Out of control petrol prices have ignited discussions regarding alternative energy sources and the future of petrol powered cars. Indeed, as we mentioned in an earlier article, electric hybrid cars are massively gaining popularity, and many companies, like Tesla Motors or SSC, are even developing electrically powered high performance sports cars. Apparently the British government has now recognised the need for solutions to high priced petrol and decided to embrace the electric car. PM Gordon Brown envisions changing the way Britons drive and hopes that by 2020 nearly all new car sales will either be electric or hybrid models.

Of course, how does the government hope to achieve this rather dramatic goal requiring huge changes in both the behaviour of car buyers and car manufacturers? The British government hopes to give consumers enough incentives and reasons to opt for an electric car, which should lead to a general shift in the type of cars people drive. Among the incentives being considered, one of the most prominent and innovative is the idea of providing customers with electric cars in the same manner as people purchase mobile phones. Essentially, you will get the car for free after signing up for a long term contract, and then pay off the car through the contract. In the case of electric cars, instead of a contract based on the amount of minutes or text messages one can use, this contract will be based on the amount of miles one drives.

The plan does, however, face a number or apparent difficulties and drawbacks that would realistically prevent the goal of a large scale shift to electric vehicles. For starters, the technology for pure electric cars currently only has a range of about 100 miles before the electric battery needs to be recharged. This limitation could quickly become an inconvenience for many drivers, especially those with long commutes to work. Another problem is obviously securing the necessary amount of funding needed to undertake such a massive project, and finally the last concern is whether this method would indeed prove less expensive or more environmentally friendly that petrol driven cars. Nevertheless, even petrol powered automobile fanatics like ourselves agree that electric cars will definitely play a prominent role in the future.