US Demand For Small Cars Growing
America has traditionally been the home of the big car, but that is starting to change as the costs of owning a car increase. Fuel prices, the cost of car servicing and repairs, tyres needing replacing, it all adds up.
Several years ago, my American cousins came to visit. As I was driving them somewhere they commented on some of the cars they could see on the roads. While they were familiar with the brands, the smaller models were just completely unfamiliar to them (the smallest Audi that they’d seen in America was an A4!). If I asked them now, I imagine their response would be very different as the number of small and fuel-efficient cars on US roads appears to be increasing.
In February, a surge in people buying small and fuel-efficient cars actually boosted American car sales as drivers are thinking outside the box to avoid massive fuel bills. As well as buying smaller cars, drivers are also replacing old and inefficient cars. Fuel economy now seems to be one of the most important considerations when buying a new car.
So what are fuel prices like in America? The average price is $3.738 per gallon. Yes, that still equates to less than £1 per litre (an american liquid gallon is about 3.79 litres). Lucky Americans.