What is Luxury Transport? (Article by Director James Lamb)
Recently, I have been looking to replace my 15-year-old Golf. The only problem is that the car I want doesn’t exist and it made me wonder about how cars have developed over the years.
First of all, what do I want? Well, a 21st Century Fiat Panda actually. The original is a masterpiece of functional timeless design. Imagine a cheap, easily maintained electric car with a boxy (roomy but very stylish) form and comfortable interior. Maybe I can take the seats out if I need to. It would be nice if key functions were tactile, easily located switches so I didn’t have to scroll through a menu on a piece of glass if I need to put the lights on. It doesn’t need to be palatial as it is a form of transport. Not an old car with an electric motor, something with those utilitarian, democratic/affordable, honest design values.
The problem with electric cars is that they, like all other cars, are big and getting bigger. There is an industry wide obsession with the SUV form and luxury. The government’s 2020 National Travel Survey¹ shows that 71% of journeys are less than 5 miles. How luxurious does that journey have to be? A driver is using a tool to get around almost all of the time. The obsession with integrating everyone’s devices and being always available is not only unnecessary it is a massive distraction. A distraction when operating a machine that tends towards 2 tonnes and takes up more of the road than ever. SUVs have gone from a meagre 10% of sales 10 years ago to nearly half of all new car sales (45%) today².
Now, I have not noticed people substantially growing in size or a proliferation of rough tracks replacing roads over that period. This perceived notion of ‘might is right’ and luxury on the move is indicative of an increased attitude of everyone being out for themselves. Not least the car manufacturers.
We have never been more aware of or affected by the dwindling resources on the planet. Why can manufacturers not look to light weighting and economy as a selling point? That is intelligent design, making elegant, desirable products with minimum resources. This used to be a laudable engineering and marketing goal. Have designers become lazy? Post-war a lack of materials forced designers to be inventive resulting in utilitarian but desirable products. Surely we are at that point now. The weight of the average ‘car’ has risen steadily over the years to around 1.5 tonnes. SUVs, particularly electric versions can be well over 2 tonnes. As a cyclist I wonder why there are more close passes, it can’t just be that everyone is more permanently angry and wants to vent their frustration on someone less protected than them. So, I looked. Cars are getting wider too. A mark one Golf was 1600mm wide, the newest Golf is 2030mm wide, an increase of over 25%, that is typical for a Fiesta, a BMW 3 series, everything³. Some of that width is due to improved safety measures but most are wider seats and more interior space. Cars are literally crowding everyone else off of the road. That luxury costs more, weighs more, takes up more space, uses more fuel (whether petrol or electricity), requires more resources and is not inclusive. For marginal comfort gains on journeys of typically less than 5 miles.
Luxury for me is being able to cycle to work. I get fresh air, I’m set up for the day, and it’s free exercise. I’m unavailable, I cannot see devices only trees, nature and other people, focused on the job at hand. It’s not always possible to cycle so we need a car; but for now, I’m keeping the Golf.
