The quiet revolution in motoring

WHILE the country was shrouded in the fog of virus, motoring was changing dramatically. Quietly, but dramatically, nonetheless. We’ve seen the evidence of far-reaching changes gather pace in the face of adversity as last year wore on.

And we’ll see it even more clearly as the new year unfolds. So, to everyone who owns or drives a car, welcome to the quiet revolution. You have been a vital part of it.

Here are seven ways that motoring has changed forever these past 12 months:

1. The single biggest phenomenon has been the swing to buying online — sometimes without people ever touching the car until it is delivered to their home.

No, it didn’t just start in 2020. Some dealers have been working off digital sales platforms for a while. But the coronavirus forced many more to significantly expand the scope and role of their online buying.

2. There has been greater scrutiny into why we need to own a car. The answer to that for many is they could not survive without one, especially in rural areas, where one is needed to keep in touch with family and friends.

But an emerging generation questions why they’d ever need to own their own means of transport. Or, if they did, why commit to a lifetime of repayments and outlay for the privilege?

3. PCPs are now part of the landscape. They account for upwards of 60pc of the deals done in many outlets. The past year, above all, transformed attitudes towards them as people became more acquainted with the concept and thousands undertook their second/ third deal seamlessly.

4. People buy cars for all sorts of reasons other than just getting to work, school, etc. But did you ever think you’d see the day you’d buy a car to get away from a virus? In effect, that’s what sizeable numbers have done this past year — and plan on doing for this year.

They bought a car to avoid public transport and the inherent risk of contracting the virus on their daily journeys. Now they have a motor, they are likely to stick with it for the time being. And, dealers hope, a whole new clientele has suddenly presented itself. It’s up to them to hold on to them. There is confidence they will. It’s an ill wind...

5. Despite the general fall-off in car buying in 2020, the 15pc increase in the sale of electric vehicles (to around 4,000 registered) suggests a lot of people made their mind up to go EV this year.

Some were able to buy what stock there was. Some were not, due to virus intrusion and disruption of supply. The critical point is that so many did so against the odds of scarcity and garages being closed for important sections of the year, and a falling market generally.

It would be resorting to hyperbole to suggest there was a general awakening but there was a definite refocus of what people decided they wanted to do.

All things considered, including far greater choice and availability, 2020 will be viewed as the year that finally, quietly spawned the surge of EV buying in 2021 and beyond.

6. Notable also is the increased speed and volume of safety and comfort technologies making their presence felt in what we might call everyday cars.

For a number of reasons, including meeting ever-tougher Euro NCAP testing to get four- or five-star ratings (vital for marketing and sales), there was a concentration of features in the past year that wasn’t there previously.

The likes of Adaptive Cruise Control (keeps a set distance to the car in front and can slow right down to stop and take off again automatically) was only for the posh automakers until relatively recently. But it became a fixture on second- and third-tier trim levels across several new models. It’s a hugely welcome addition. As are the myriad others, such as pre-collision assist, parking cameras/systems and virtual cockpits.

7. In 2019 we bought 103,900 second-hand imports from the UK. It was the ‘in’ thing to do and people saved a lot of money — thousands in many cases. But not so much during 2020.

The level of buying fell by a substantial 35pc last year. Why? It was mostly down to the government hitting older diesel imports with a NOx tax. That suddenly made them just not worth the effort any more. It was one of the great examples of just how much change quietly went on in motoring during ‘ the year of the virus’.