Choosing your car - style vs substance

When choosing a new car, most of us probably like to think that we pick it for practical reasons – the price, running costs, its size, number of seats, boot space etc. But is that really the case? Or is it more likely, as in other areas of life, that we make decisions based on emotions and then find logical reasons to back them up? Obviously, a car has to do what we need it to do but how it looks is a fundamental factor in the car we choose.

Very helpfully, though not for this reason, Nissan has proved that we do take style over substance. For a number of years now, it has sold the Juke and the Note, two fairly similar sized cars. Logic says that the better car, the one that offers the most value for money, should be the bigger seller.

So which is the better car? Well, comparing equivalent models in terms of engine and trim, the Note is over 10% more economical. Although it’s very slightly smaller, where it matters – rear leg room and boot space, thanks to its upright design – it’s much bigger. It’s also over £2000 cheaper. The Note is surely the better car. But it doesn’t look as good as the Juke.

So which is the bigger seller? In the last 3 years Nissan has sold, in the UK, around 109,000 Jukes and just 47,000 Notes. I’ve personally supplied two Jukes this year but have never had even a single enquiry for a Note. Clearly style matters.

Of course, you can have your car cake and eat it. There are many stylish, practical and economical cars on the market. Good looking cars often hold their value well as used buyers are influenced by aesthetics as much as anyone and this means they can make great options for leasing as depreciation is the major factor in determining the leasing rates of a vehicle.

If you’d like to know more about how leasing works and how it could work for you, please get in touch. If you think others would be interested in this post, please share it.

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Matt Spivey

Vehicle Leasing Neva Consultants

Left the corporate world in 2013 after ten years at Vodafone and now specialising in car and van leasing with Neva Consultants.Serial networker and member of BNI Wakefield Wealthbuilders, 4Networking and The TradesHub Academy South Yorkshire.