Wednesday, October 14, 2009
UK's Basil Fawlty drivers talk to Toyotas and scream at Skodas
UK motorists are talking to their Toyotas and speaking to their Seats according to new research by one of the UK's largest used car websites which revealed that 75 per cent of motorists admit chatting to their cars.
The findings from a motors.co.uk poll of 1,200 drivers, found that 44 per cent (529) 'sometimes' natter to their Nissans with a further 31 per cent (373) of motor mouths claiming to 'always' converse with their car.
And following in the footsteps of Basil Fawlty and Knightrider, a surprising 21 per cent of men admit to talking to their cars at least 'sometimes'. Only a silent minority, 25 per cent (298) of motorists claim never to gossip with their Golfs.
But why are so many drivers babbling to their BMW's? The rise in the popularity of in-car sat navs could explain why more motorists have become comfortable communicating with their cars.
However not all car talk is idle chatter, some luxury models like the Jaguar XF now have a voice activated command system giving drivers a reason to mutter to their motor and the Mercedes E-class has a voice warning to tell drivers about upcoming road signs. Even the humble Austin Maestro MG from the 1980's had a vocal warning when running low on petrol.
According to another survey from motors.co.uk, a quarter of drivers (26 per cent) admit to having a pet name for their motor such as Pablo the Prius, Connie the Corsa and Sexo the Saxo. This was despite only (21 per cent) of people giving their partner a similar term of endearment.
Katie Armitage, Marketing Manager for motors.co.uk said:
"The findings of this survey are certainly an eye opener - there are a lot of motorists out there happily chatting away to their cars and with in-car technology becoming more advanced all the time, their cars could soon be able to talk back to them!
"With many people spending several hours a day travelling to work, it's not surprising that more people seem to be talking to their cars. Manufacturers spend millions on advertising trying to give their cars a personality whether it's fun and cheeky Minis to safe, dependable Volvos, which could explain why people feel able to relate to their cars."
DATED: 14.10.09
FEED: AW
