Subaru needs to keep up with market demands – big screens, tech features, more gimmicks than actual functional use in the car, but at the same time Subaru needs to listen to its loyal customers – they expect something different when they buy a Subaru than a Honda and Toyota. .
Apparently, their research somewhat disagrees with this statement. After all, why would a company do something in direct opposition to what market research says is necessary?
Today’s buyer is not the buyer of two or three generations ago, those people have moved on, grown up and now most likely have different views of what they need and want in a car. No, today’s buyer is a different demographic with different views and attitudes.
Me as an example. Twenty-five years ago I wanted my car to be fast and loud. I wanted it to pull 1G+ on the slide table and top out at 150+mph and it had to have a stereo system good enough to drown out the dual top, stainless steel, cat exhaust at 5000 RPM. Speed, some flash and sound and good handling was what I wanted.
Fast forward 25 years, my knees are bad, my hips hurt, my ears are ringing, I can no longer ride a firm sport suspension for more than it takes to get around town. I want to be able to get in and out of the car more comfortably, I want it to be quiet inside, gas mileage is very important, loud stereo much less so. Basically, I’m out of the sports car market. Who has moved behind me? And what are car manufacturers seeing as their current demographic?
Now, I won’t go down the path of trying to describe the vast majority of today’s car buyers younger than me, I’ll leave that for gentle readers to explore. But I’m not the same age I was when I woke up until 3am three nights a week and went back to work at 7am the next day, worked hard so I could pay the bills and buy car parts, then work all weekend in my car. or tailgating, or doing chores like trimming trees or digging foundations or tending a vegetable garden, helping the family move, or doing home improvements. This list goes on.
My generation used to go through the strip! Does anyone remember when gas was $0.89/gal and with a $20 bill you could fill up the tank and buy pizza and drinks while driving around town until midnight or until the cops pulled you out of the parking lot place of collection. We did that for years, but today, at least here, it never happens again. The sidewalks are rolling at 9:00 p.m. and the place is deserted of people. No more loud cars, no more loud stereos, no more screaming children in the city, no more traffic jams at 11pm.
Demographics and gas prices have changed. My guess is that companies that spend millions developing products to sell also spend millions figuring out what to build in order for that product to sell.
