Futureshite: What defines a premium vehicle?

[oman5]

Mercedes did it with the early W124's and 190's. Saab did it pre GM. Merc saw the error of their ways and accountants nearly killed the company. Saab started building Cavaliers whilst spitting in the GM bods tea. Merc was a strong enough brand to survive, Saab went all Swedish and thought giving the 9-5 a pair of specs would sort everything.

I would add pre-ford volvo to that list too, when I was a kid the volvo 240 was the choice of many professionals such as doctors, solicitors and many other people found in the golf club set of wealthy suburbanites. It was an expensive car when new but you knew it would still be running well 20 years down the line.

Not premium in the way it drove, but in the way it was built- and that was what you were paying for. To my mind Volvo wrote the book on engineering integrity.

see also Preston Tucker.

[forddeliveryboy]

Big Citroëns of old (Traction, DS, SM, CX) offered prestige which even many intelligent as well as just rich people struggled to appreciate, if they didn't drive fast or long. This is the defining limit of motor car engineering, in my opinion. You really mustn't make it too good, or too far beyond the best-yet. No matter how good the paint, if the front wing dares deflect under a wealthy backside then the car is of no use. This is what Mercedes understood, even when they were at their best (and using Citroën-licenced suspension).

[vulgalour]

Premium implies it's the best.  However, it could be argued that Premium is really just middle-upper class motoring rather than a true aristocratic experience.  I think Premium is a brand label, a marketing slogan, to get people in shiny suits to buy a car that portrays the image of success, as others have already mentioned.

 

To your general public, a premium car is a silver Audi, something with perceived high build quality and optimum resale value when you come to trade in for your next silver Audi.  German cars are very good at being premium, it seems to be their forté, and it seems to be something that was built on the back of the conspicuous consumption of the eighties and nineties.

 

So while for your car enthusiast a premium vehicle would be something truly special - a Bristol, a Delahaye, a Hooper bodied Rolls Royce - to your average car buyer it's just a vehicle that impresses the other office drones.

 

The very word 'Premium' when connected to cars just conjures up monotone images of synthetic fabrics pressed to within an inch of their life, grey suits, silver cars, orange faces, pointy shoes, obscene amounts of debt.

[Mr Livered]

That last paragraph sums it up perfectly. It also encapsulates the reason why I don't have a proper job, don't live in the suburbs, and why I shall always drive SHITE. Cheers

[Junkman]

All nice and good, if there wasn't ZIL making everything else look fuggin proletarian.

With the exception of a Zimmer Golden Spirit, that is.

Shite is right, it's all fuggin Lombard Street to a fuggin China orange.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vwmKEIkRrEs

[Rocket88]

All "premium" means is that the Germans employ PR/advertising bods who are better at bullshit than the rest of the known universe. Perceived quality is all, as far as the general great unwashed are concerned.

[Cavcraft]

Mate, the Williams Lyon award is sponsored by Jaguar. The people here consider Ladas and Protons premium cars, wise up.

 

Give the lad a break, he's making a decent attempt at doing something he's obviously pretty good at.

 

 

as regards what makes something 'premium' then (besides the badge and the history behind it) I reckon it's got to have that feel good factor. You can make all the posh cars in the world but if it doesn't feel swish on the inside then it won't work, so personally the interior has to be as good if not better than the outside. Therefore squishy but supportive leather, nice driving position, switches within easy reach and a smart, well illuminate dashboard would be high on my list.

[purplebargeken]

Ok, enough looking, here I go:

 

One defintion of premium; of superior quality or value. This will be a bit of a ramble, sorry. 

 

This is a very fluid concept and has changed significantly over the automotive decades. This would indicate that a premium vehicle is something to aspire to, to aim for in order to display one's status, breeding or achievement in a very visual and tangible way. I think the difficulty in clarifying what is or will be a premium vehicle has already been touched upon in many of the previous posts. The build quality, design and features offered in a wide variety of cars nowadays is pretty much balanced. Unless you actively look for a low-spec car and spend many hours doing so, you will be hard pressed to find such a vehicle. So the equipment levels are pretty much even across the board. Fit and finish, in the past one would have noticed a significant difference between brands and spec. However, I see orange peel on brand new vehicles irrespective of cost. So, as far as I can tell, there isn't much difference again, although colour options/special finishes do vary as price rises I suppose. Interior trim, leather is available on a wide variety of cars although with some exceptions (the new Dacia range I thing, not 100% certain). Engine size/.type? Hmm, now here's something. Older 'premium' vehicles would have had larger, more complex engines, aided by supercharger or turbo additions. Think Rolls, Bentley et al. Current applications? Possibly Rangies? Aston Martin, Jag? Obviously this comes at a cost, complexity, service costs, fuel costs and so on, also road tax banding applies.Emissions? So, in the case of value, what does that mean. Value for money, applied value, increased value? This would be more clearly defined by one's expectations and aspirations, past experiences, social status (real or perceived). 

 

So. Premium brands. Most of the so called  premium brands from the early/mid 20th C have gone with the exception of Rolls, Jag, Aston Martin and a couple of others such as BMW, Merc........ Audi? These brands through marketing, hype, owners perceptions, wannabe owners perceptions have built a reputation. Reputation is highly valuable in it's own right as long as it is good. Reputation is fluid, take MB for example. 

 

Cost. To be premium, something has to cost more, to be special or again has to be perceived as much. To be of better quality. Right?  Great bit of marketing methinks. Parts are parts, they might have a different name on but they are essentially the same thing. Think Citroen suspension spheres and Rolls Royce for example. Mass produce v hand made. Hand made, hmm. Ok Rolls is an example, but hand made could also apply to the bloke in the Trabant factory who was adjusting panel gaps with a large hammer and brute force. The quiet reassuring noise of the door on your Triumph 1300 FWD closing or the lighter tinnier clunk of something else, does one indicate quality over the other? Really? So what about Sprint engine reputations? Triumphs were branded as a quality, premium car in the day.  Premium indicates something that isn't going to fall apart after a few years use, so Jag would win over say, Hyundai i10? Maybe not. I see a lot of S types on ebay with knackered gearboxes, don't see that of the Hyundai. I love the look of a standard, good condition Mini. Maybe I am just odd. 

 

I believe you can spend whatever you want on whatever you want. If you want to have the latest car then go for it. Just don't expect me to be impressed, as I won't. If I were a multi-millionaire I would not be buying a Ferrari, Merc or anything else. Utter waste. I would rather have a selection of specific cars to my own taste. These would include a Mini (proper one), Triumph Toledo, a slightly bigger Hyundai and maybe a Landie, mud plugger spec. I have no need or wish/desire to flaunt status or wealth. I simply don't care about that. Maybe I did when I was a young lad, not now though. 

 

Design/looks: hmm, now maybe getting somewhere. Premium means exclusive, aesthetically nicer? However, this is again purely personal. The eye of the beholder and all that. Stubby original Mini v gull wing Merc. Pretty easy eh? Allegro v Jag?  Pretty easy again right? Nah, personal choice, perspective all messes that up. My personal belief is that 99% of RR cars look crap. I like the Silver Cloud. That's it. Jag? Love 'em. Allegro? I like them, used to have a couple. I like the look of some of the gypsy-gypsy Polish neighbours Audi A8's. Would I have one? Maybe, maybe not, undecided. Something doesn't quite tip the balance for me personally, not sure why.The new BMW/Mercs look like each other and have little appeal. Design classic - do they need to be premium cars? Nah, think 2CV, Mini, add your own faves here. 

 

Right, gotta go for my osteopath treatment, I'll come back to this later. Phew!

 

Back sorted! Much better.

 

Ok, does premium mean better residual values. Possibly. Some obviously better than others. Jags for example, £40,000 plus some of them. Now? A good one for a grand plus, reasonable ones a lot less. Mini's, cheap new, now stupid values, same with certain Escorts. A kind of reverse value thing there eh? Morgans on the other hand seem to be fairly balanced.

 

So, is there a 'premium' shite car of the future? Already seeing it with the gypsy gypsy neighbours and their selection of cheap yet tidy premium Audi A8 cars. Same with Jags. So logic decrees that these are or will be a shite premium car of the very near future perhaps as all cars get to a certain age, not so desired by the upper echelons, not new enough, better spec on the new one, they get passed on into more mundane ownership, can't afford the bits or proper servicing? This will ensure a decent into our territory. Bring it on!

 

So, what does having/wanting a premium car actually mean? It means whatever a specific individual wants it to mean, depending on socio-economic categories, available cash, aspirations, expectations, motivation, drive to improve, need to impress, how small your penis is, it's how cheap you can get a car with all the bells and whistles just for the sheer fun of doing so.

 

The definition of a premium car is a rather tenuous concept and is infinitely variable, depending on the perceptions of each and every person eligible for car ownership and then some.

 

Bit of a waffle, bit fluffy but I enjoyed it. Good luck with your thing.

 

Ken 

[trigger]

My Acclaim is premium as it has velour seats and a radio cassette, my Cortina is premium as it has a vinyl roof and a rev counter and my Civic is premium as it also has a vinyl roof, heated rear window and tinted glass.

 

I IZ A POSH SHITTER.

[retrogeezer]

I've got an Escort 'Ghia' and a Mondeo 'Ghia' so I is too!

 

Re: the old days where a vinyl roof and metallic paint put you a cut above the neighbour. I remember feeling exactly that when my friend from across the road's dad came home in his new beige Marina De-Luxe with vinyl seats and my dad had just bought a new British Racing Green SUPER De-Luxe with velour seats and head rests! 

 

Check it aahht:

 

[Junkman]

Therefore squishy but supportive leather.

Leather is for the chauffeur.

Premium is West of England Cloth.