Hatchback cars?

p1RATE

p1RATE

p1RATE

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What is it with the UK and the obsession with hatch back cars? For some reason people hold them in quite high regard, however in reality they are typically cheaply built, not very rewarding to drive and have the aesthetic appeal of a block of cheese. I know there are a number of exceptions to this such as the civic type R and some of the quick fords. However a 107 or standard clio are pretty poor cars in comparison to what else you can get for the money, despite this there is still a huge demand for these cars.

Is this just an effect of insurance companies bullying drivers into having cheap and underpowered cars?

If you have recently bought one what was your motivation?
 
The way insurance works, the only car 99% of people will get as their first car will be a small hatchback. They will then get use to the costs associated with running a small hatchback and consider anything more mega expensive. Except this adds a massive premium onto anything that could be considered a 'first car'.

Go to America and see what 18 year olds drive over their.
 
It isn't an obsession, unless you count the VW 'scene' as one. As already said, most people can't afford to run a decent car as soon as they've learnt to drive so hatchbacks are the most common choice. Also, I don't know anyone who holds any small hatch in high regard, they treat them for what they are, cheap, economical mean sof transport. The only people I know that are any kind of fan of cars are those in car clubs, genuine enthusiasts and none of them like small hatchbacks.
 
rG-tom said:
I stick a massive black pump in my tank weekly and it's still straighter than driving a Boxster.
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The duckface says otherwise.

Slightly more on topic; The amount of young people (mostly female) who I know who passed, got a Corsa/Clio etc... and now are too scared to touch anything even a few cm bigger and will forever have a very small hatchback.

I assume we are all talking about small hatchbacks here, as a Mondeo or Insignia are both hatchbacks.
 
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Peerzy said:
Slightly more on topic; The amount of young people (mostly female) who I know who ... are too scared to touch anything even a few cm bigger and will forever have a very small ....
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Is that what your gf tells you?


FWIW, usually the smaller the car is the, lower the running costs, ie tyres, brake discs, petrol consumption, so it makes sense for poor young people to have small cars :) Insurance is definitely a big consideration though.
 
Cost of ownership perhaps? As far as your average motorist, who doesn't want to pay cheaper prices for fuel, insurance, tax and general running costs.
 
p1RATE said:
What is it with the UK and the obsession with hatch back cars? For some reason people hold them in quite high regard, however in reality they are typically cheaply built, not very rewarding to drive and have the aesthetic appeal of a block of cheese. I know there are a number of exceptions to this such as the civic type R and some of the quick fords. However a 107 or standard clio are pretty poor cars in comparison to what else you can get for the money, despite this there is still a huge demand for these cars.

Is this just an effect of insurance companies bullying drivers into having cheap and underpowered cars?

If you have recently bought one what was your motivation?
Click to expand...

Trolling ain't easy!

What else you can get for the money? A 107 or standard Clio has to be one of the cheapest new cars on the road, and will be cheap to run and maintain.

A hatchback offers practicality, you can seat 4 or 5 in most, the seats fold down allowing a large amount of load space and they are relatively small on the road.

Rewarding to drive, compared to a sports car perhaps not, but there are a lot of hot hatches on the market and some manufacturers such as Ford produce fine handling standard cars as well.

Cheaply built, needs expansion on this comment.
 
Lots of reasons why hatchbacks are popular. Here are some:
  • More practical than a saloon as nearly always the rear seats can be folded to give a very large load space even in a small hatchback. Saloons rarely come with that feature.
  • Usually make good use of space internally (e.g. Honda Jazz) with no sloping roof of a coupe to contend with
  • Usually better rear leg/head room compared to other vehicle types of same length
  • Small/medium hatchbacks usually (except sport models etc) have cheap running costs and money is still money regardless if you're old or young.
  • Come as slow or as fast as most people will want.
  • Low starting price
  • They can be fun to drive without giving up any of the above
 
p1RATE said:
What is it with the UK and the obsession with hatch back cars? For some reason people hold them in quite high regard, however in reality they are typically cheaply built, not very rewarding to drive and have the aesthetic appeal of a block of cheese.
Click to expand...

So you'd take a Focus saloon over the hatchback and expect to get a better looking, better built and nicer to drive car?
 
Peerzy said:
The duckface says otherwise.

Slightly more on topic; The amount of young people (mostly female) who I know who passed, got a Corsa/Clio etc... and now are too scared to touch anything even a few cm bigger and will forever have a very small hatchback.

I assume we are all talking about small hatchbacks here, as a Mondeo or Insignia are both hatchbacks.
Click to expand...

rG-tom said:
Is that what your gf tells you?
Click to expand...

i loled
 
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