There is something else at play as far as-longer term planning that auto makers are doing. Ford, Porsche and others are convinced the era of the POV is coming to an end. Ride sharing and car subscription services are viewed (sadly, rightfully so I think) as the future of car “ownership”.
Younger folks don’t see cars like we do, it isn’t Viewed as one of our unspoken constitutional rights-freedom of movement, it’s just an appliance and a pain in ther *** to own. This combined with increasing urbanization makes car ownership a dying attitude. Ride hailing apps and if you’re into cars/have disposable income a car subscription service (no insurance requirements, new car every month to use etc, different pricing tiers) makes more sense.
Car people will be th ones hanging onto and modding used cars and that cottage industry will survive and go on.
In this reality, pickup trucks and cuvs and entry level sedans make the most sense bc people movers are good taxis and trucks appeal to more rural folks who will be the last to give up private car ownership.
The way we view horse ownership now is a good analogy to car ownership 20 years from now, a hobby that is a niche market.
The only sports cars that work in this world, will be high end expensive ones developed with platform sharing to control cost and mostly used in top tier car subscription services offered by Porsche etc. (they’re already offering these services btw).
We’re actually going backwards in our lives bc of this. Prior to the mass production of affordable automobiles (thank you Henry Ford), freedom of movement was restricted to wealthier folks who could own a horse drawn carriage an keep a driver too, or own horses. The majority of the population if they wanted to move about the country or landscape were dependent on a large company for rail travel or a stagecoach ride to fixed destination points. The car democratized transportation, improved access to employment opportunities and affordable housing and helped make our country what it is today.
Now the suburbs are viewed with disdain, urban shoebox living we’re told is better, houses are being made with less emphasis on garage space nd we once again cannot move about without the control from the govt or a corporation. We are selling out our freedom for a cool app on our phone and a supposed “lower carbon footprint”. Even though cow farts contribute more to global emissions than autos do. They’re coming for our steaks next btw.
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