Are car loans driving us towards the next financial crash?

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vtsnowedin
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Post by vtsnowedin »

raspberry-blower wrote:


What is the betting that they will then be bailed out?
So we can start the whole stupid process all over again :twisted:
I'll bet against that as none of the large governments have any assets left to bail out anybody of any size. Also the PCP/ leasing fraction of the auto market is still a small share of the total and the cars that get defaulted on are sold back in for their actual book value so are not a total loss to the lender.
We should be teaching our young people how these plans work against them and for the dealer so they each don't have to learn the lesson the hard way.
As to the ill built rabbit hutches as you call them the buyers of those are probably middle aged and should know better by now but apparently all it takes to convince a customer they are getting a "High Quality" house is granite counter tops and a restaurant quality range plus a large master bath and a walk in closet for Her Majesty.
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Catweazle
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Post by Catweazle »

I bought a large van to move myself to Wales, and now I'm here I won't swap it for anything. Not only is it incredibly useful for a smallholder, but the experience of driving it around here is so much better than driving a car - I can see over all the hedges and enjoy the scenery, whilst car drivers exist in a claustrophobic tunnel.
vtsnowedin
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Post by vtsnowedin »

Catweazle wrote:I bought a large van to move myself to Wales, and now I'm here I won't swap it for anything. Not only is it incredibly useful for a smallholder, but the experience of driving it around here is so much better than driving a car - I can see over all the hedges and enjoy the scenery, whilst car drivers exist in a claustrophobic tunnel.
It sounds like you have realized the utility of a utility vehicle. In the cashing in not the recognition meaning of the word. :wink:
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Potemkin Villager
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Post by Potemkin Villager »

Catweazle wrote:I bought a large van to move myself to Wales, and now I'm here I won't swap it for anything. Not only is it incredibly useful for a smallholder, but the experience of driving it around here is so much better than driving a car - I can see over all the hedges and enjoy the scenery, whilst car drivers exist in a claustrophobic tunnel.
Apparently Transit Van drivers are not that bad after all! :D

http://www.ladbible.com/news/uk-cars-bm ... s-20180110
Overconfidence, not just expert overconfidence but general overconfidence,
is one of the most common illusions we experience. Stan Robinson
woodburner
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Post by woodburner »

Those “surveys� are merely opinion polls and as we know from election opinion polls bear little resemblence to rality or fact. The title “ladbible� should tell you something.
To become an extremist, hang around with people you agree with. Cass Sunstein
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RenewableCandy
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Post by RenewableCandy »

Fils passed his driving test last year. Everyone says what an excellent driver he is. I am very proud, doubly so as I can't drive.

Last week he bought himself a black Beamer.

My excuse for all this is that driving is a useful skill that easily goes rusty. And he might be the 21st century Greg Preston.
Soyez réaliste. Demandez l'impossible.
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adam2
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Post by adam2 »

RenewableCandy wrote:Fils passed his driving test last year. Everyone says what an excellent driver he is. I am very proud, doubly so as I can't drive.

Last week he bought himself a black Beamer.

My excuse for all this is that driving is a useful skill that easily goes rusty. And he might be the 21st century Greg Preston.
But will people "trust his petrol notes" ?
"Installers and owners of emergency diesels must assume that they will have to run for a week or more"
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RenewableCandy
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Post by RenewableCandy »

He's actually trustworthy. Even though he likes to wear shades while driving! So yes, they should :)
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kenneal - lagger
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Post by kenneal - lagger »

RenewableCandy wrote:...And he might be the 21st century Greg Preston.
Which of the 2.5 million entries for Greg Preston which a Google search turns up is he Candy?

So he bought a Bloody Money Waster did he?
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raspberry-blower
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Post by raspberry-blower »

Independent: British consumers losing interest in buying cars on finance
And the problems being stored up could affect the retailers far more than the consumers. KPMG recently published a survey of automotive executives that showed 61 per cent believe issues could arise if significant numbers of vehicles are handed back with a lower-than-anticipated value.
Where the major problem lies - a collapse in the resale value of cars will be disastrous for the finance companies. Which means they'll get a bail-out
:evil:
A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools - Douglas Adams.
raspberry-blower
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Post by raspberry-blower »

vtsnowedin wrote:
raspberry-blower wrote:


What is the betting that they will then be bailed out?
So we can start the whole stupid process all over again :twisted:
I'll bet against that as none of the large governments have any assets left to bail out anybody of any size. Also the PCP/ leasing fraction of the auto market is still a small share of the total and the cars that get defaulted on are sold back in for their actual book value so are not a total loss to the lender.
Didn't James Howard Kunstler recently scribe there are two ways in which a central bank can go bust. One is that they run out of money - the other is that they continually print money that then rapidly devalues and becomes worthless. (he may well have been paraphrasing someone else although I am not sure whom) Given the current policy run by the Central Banks to gradually ease of QE "asset purchases" then your suggestion that they will "run out of money" looks the more plausible scenario. Then there will be a major panic - fire up the printing press and currency devaluations will kick in - again.
vtsnowedin wrote:We should be teaching our young people how these plans work against them and for the dealer so they each don't have to learn the lesson the hard way.
Well from the article I just posted, nearly three quarters of those who were taking out PCP didn't shop around first. Doesn't appear to being taught does it? :roll:
A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools - Douglas Adams.
vtsnowedin
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Post by vtsnowedin »

raspberry-blower wrote: Didn't James Howard Kunstler recently scribe there are two ways in which a central bank can go bust. One is that they run out of money - the other is that they continually print money that then rapidly devalues and becomes worthless. (he may well have been paraphrasing someone else although I am not sure whom) Given the current policy run by the Central Banks to gradually ease of QE "asset purchases" then your suggestion that they will "run out of money" looks the more plausible scenario. Then there will be a major panic - fire up the printing press and currency devaluations will kick in - again.
The end of QE will be a return to NORMAL and if done properly and gradually should not lead to any panic.
vtsnowedin wrote:We should be teaching our young people how these plans work against them and for the dealer so they each don't have to learn the lesson the hard way.
Well from the article I just posted, nearly three quarters of those who were taking out PCP didn't shop around first. Doesn't appear to being taught does it? :roll:
Or at least not listened to.
"Experience is a hard school but some will learn from no other".
raspberry-blower
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Post by raspberry-blower »

Looks like the public at large have lost their appetite for loading themselves up with debt to drive a new car for a few years.

Wolf Richter: Carmageddon in the UK: Auto sales drop 12% in two years

Wolf Richter wrote: There are plenty of reasons for the steep decline in the UK auto market. This includes consumer aversion to diesels in Europe generally, and tepid consumer and business demand more broadly in the UK – likely a mix consisting of the uncertainty surrounding Brexit, economic cycles with their ups and downs, and broader disaffection among consumers and businesses for spending money on cars.

But the UK is not unique in the world – and blaming the uncertainty around Brexit exclusively will not do. Auto sales in the largest market in the world, China, ran into a buzz saw in 2018. The second largest market, the US, peaked in 2016, and sales have been tapering off. In Germany, registrations dropped toward the end of 2018, driven by declining commercial sales, and year-total registrations edged down 0.2%. So clearly, there is a broader theme: Global demand for new vehicles just isn’t what it used to be – and this is another piece of the puzzle.
A common mistake that people make when trying to design something completely foolproof is to underestimate the ingenuity of complete fools - Douglas Adams.
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emordnilap
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Post by emordnilap »

Clearly, they’ll have to start making cars that don’t last as long.
I experience pleasure and pains, and pursue goals in service of them, so I cannot reasonably deny the right of other sentient agents to do the same - Steven Pinker
vtsnowedin
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Post by vtsnowedin »

I question if there is actually a drop in global demand. And if there is, is it from a lack of desire to become more mobile or is it a temporary decline in personal ability to pay or in the confidence needed to sign onto a five year loan?
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