Essentially yes. The calculation needs to be relative to wage and living costs, not simply the sticker price of the car. Car prices do not operate in a vacuum. A new car is more expensive now because many people have less disposable income than they did just 20 years ago. It's also far more expensive to actually run a car, with fuel, taxation, servicing, parking etc rising beyond wages too. Right now at the tail end of 2021 fuel prices have nearly doubled since 2001 in the UK. Average vehicle fuel economy improvements have not taken up the slack in that period (maybe 5 percent at best especially with E10 fuel now here!) and wages aren't even close to that kind of increase.
Cars are more expensive look how much they have increased in the last 5 years also look at all the expense manufacturers have to go to with dpf and adblue sytems that all costs lots to develop and fit
I think the main difference is that people had more disposable income back in the day so that the car payments didn't seem so onerous. Here in America, the purchasing power of a single middle-class income peaked in 1970. Inflation has far outstripped income growth since then. At least for the bottom 80% of earners. Disproportional increases in the cost of housing, utilities, food, sales taxes, healthcare have whittled take-home pay down to the bone.
I highly doubt the same is true for britain. Or maybe it is but... another factor is how easy and relatively cheap loans are today, which is a huge influence. On everything.
@@barry5138 Yup. The house that my parents bought in 1974 for $70k is now worth $1.7 million. Going by an inflation calculator, that house should be less than $400k today. Granted, we all know the official inflation rates are complete BS.
@@norwegianblue2017 honestly don't know how people can pay what they pay for houses. Big house, big car, big lifestyle and not brilliant jobs. Maybe inheritance
@@barry5138 It will eventually catch up with them. Most people in this country are drowning in personal debt. Part of it is that the bar has been raised so high on peoples' expectations. Look at your average car or kitchen today compared to the 1980s, the supposed "decade of greed". Middle class people having high-end European stainless steel appliances, marble countertops, wine refrigerators, etc. Leasing cars that are priced at a year's income. It's ridiculous! They push credit cards on college kids the minute they enroll. Those people shouldn't even be allowed on campus. Not trying to sound all holier than thou, I've been down that road myself. Took me years to put our financial house in order. Today I have a million dollar home, no non-mortgage debt, no car payments. Drive a ten year old car and plan on keeping it for another ten.
James - you know that Autocar have just digitised every single issue of the magazine they’ve ever published in an online archive? It’s absolutely awesome, doesn’t cost much money to get annual access either 👍
It was possible to calculate so many things from all those figures. I formulated models to work out what gear would be required for particular hills. Or how fast it would go up certain hills. Older cars tended to have simular torque curves making it easy to extrapolate the torque across different rpm ranges from just torque at rpm and max power at rpm. With this information it was possible to work out what cars would be useless on the roads I wanted to drive on.
Two things to consider are that all the models listed here got a lot physically bigger over this time meaning more raw materials, but also the golf, fiesta and 3 series were the entry level car for their respective manufacturers at the beginning but smaller, cheaper models slotted in beneath them later.
The leap in tech, build quality, efficiency and performance even for modest cars can easily show they are cheaper. Discount for inflation and taxes and you can see for example how cheap a mustang gt 5.0 is in the usa. It is ridiculous money (ar least until last year)
One thing to consider is that a 1980 Fiesta (for example) might have lasted 10-12 years under average use if you're lucky, whereas a 2021 Fiesta might last up to 50% longer than that.
The Toyota Corolla was badged as an Auris for two generations in the UK and Europe. It continued to be badged as Corolla in most of the rest of the world. An interesting thing to come out of this research is the relative similarity in the price of a Fiesta or Golf in 1980 and 2020. When you consider the increase in the size of the cars (so more material used), and all of the additional equipment now fitted as standard (alloys, ABS, airbags, powered windows, locks, and steering, screens/connectivity, and driver aids ), it shows you get a hell of a lot more bang for your buck today than ever before. When I passed my driving test in 1990 I thought electric windows and central locking activated by the key being inserted in the door lock was high tech 😂
As a number geek I would have done 2 extra things #1 I would have compared the inflation adjusted price to the original price as a %. You can say it only went up a few hundred pounds but that might be a 20% increase #2 I would have compared the price as a % of the median salary for the uk in that year (yes uk centric over here, guilty as charged). This would give an extra perspective on ‘expensive’ These are just extra things tho, very interesting video, love a good graph, me
Another trend seems to be that car makes used to have their own distinctive style and design, but wind the clock forward and they all tend towards the same sharp and angular design language that could have all been drawn by the same person on the same computer program... For interesting cars, I'm gonna say late 90s to early 00s was Peak Car. Comparing the decades was an inspired idea for a vid!
Eh, gonna disagree with you. Each era has its trends and the econoboxes of any given era do tend to blend among each other (note: econoboxes did not exist in every automotive era). But beyond that, cars have maintained distinctiveness just fine. What they haven't done is consistently made beautiful cars. The current design trends are just abhorrent in any context, but it's a fad and will pass.
@@andycalifornia426 Give them time to develop. I like where the Rivian is starting out, and the exterior of the Taycan and e-tron GT are good. Interior space are where most of the misfire are happening, like the garbage inside the Tesla 3/Y.
I remember the Fiesta of 1980. A base model was a tin can with 4 bits of rubber at each corner. Today a Fiesta is a quite pleasant place to be. You made a point about extra bits and that makes quite a difference to the value to the buyer. I used to drive a 1995 BMW 318i. I loved driving it until just a few years ago. But it was a hugely different car to today's car. So, I'd suggest that we get more car for the money. If the index price has remained constant then we are getting much more car for the money than back in 1980. One other point, rather than looking at inflated prices, comparing to 'average' wages would be interesting as that talks to affordability. For example, a Fiesta would've cost about half my yearly wage in 1980. However, today, looking at a similar job, a low spec Fiesta would cost perhaps 2/3 of the wages for that job. Making the Fiesta more expensive, in real terms, than it was back then. In those terms
Jay. That was tremendous. I can't believe what a pup you are being born in 1989. I was born in 75 and would spend hours reading my dad's classic car magazines. He had then all put in hardback binders and still has them. Quality video.👍👍
I actually think its quite the opposite, a lot of people are asking for it. Or else they wouldnt do it, since it costs them money. "Purist Car people" are a miniscule demographic to target your sales to. But maybe you knew that and were just joking. In that case, disregard the above.
Here in 1980 Au an everyday family car costs the equivalent of a years average wages, it is now 6 months and quality has improved no end. Cars have gotten cheaper but the cost of living and running them has increased. We have less disposable income making cars seem more expensive.
A great nerdy video. In these days of short attention-span media, there aren't many chaps I'd watch for 30 minutes while they talk about old magazines and car prices, yet you make this so interesting. Great to see the format of those old mags. Manufacturer's brochures were full of the same practical detail. It's good to be reminded to see past the "lifestyle" we now get sold.
Oh, man. You are reading my thoughts, James. I just ordered a few car magazines or autokatalogs from the early 90s and 00s to check them out. Searching for the German autokatalog from 1993, which marks the date when I fell in love with the cars. It was also the first one to be translated into Russian, which is happens to be my mother tongue. I was 4 years old when I first saw it. Still remember a bunch of pictures from it, thinking that Volvo 850 Estate in Red was the most beautiful car ever :))).
I first read Autocar as an 11 year old in 86 and have read it every week ever since. Seeing that 1999 issue brought back some good memories. Talking of memories, I read the techie info at the back that much that I used to be able to recall engine sizes and power outputs for most of the cars on sale in the late 80’s and early 90’s. I was such geek 😏🤓. Really enjoyed this episode. How about comparing the Autocar road test verdict with your experience of the same car today?
Same here ! But actually I had my first autocar mag when I was 3 !! I just looked at cars and found it a lot of fun and have every single issue since then( I'm currently 17).Although I Recently switched to evo because here in India, autocar stopped giving the details(like gear ratios, in gear acceleration etc) and found evo had better articles and reviews. I mostly watch videos now, but still read the mag, Reading is fun too !!
Great video James. I have wondered this a lot recently as it feels that cars are more expensive now, but when you do the analytics as you have done very well, it’s just inflation. At least cars have not gone as crazy as house prices! I’ve enjoyed this and your video about the 30 year classic car rule very much. Nice to have these in addition to the usual car reviews.
Great video as always James, very interesting analytics. Interesting to see that in the main new car prices have actually remained relatively stable. The biggest issue is (as others have said) that wages haven’t unfortunately been able to keep up with inflation and so the cost of living has increased significantly since 1980. I don’t think people have as much disposable income. Would be interesting to see how the ‘total cost of ownership’ compares over that same period and whether the %rate of depreciation relative to initial purchase price has also increased as steadily over the decades.
Where is the scantily clad lady from the Lotus today? Maybe you could find her and ask her to re-enact her golden moment James? (You might have to give her a helping hand and mind the cars bodywork with her zimmer!) 😀
What I personally love the most about old car magazines, is the cigarette ads, always in colour, always high budget and almost always the main photo was taken during the golden hour.
I love that you did this. I do this and it's really interesting. Aston Martin. 1985 V8 - 1995 Virage - 2005 DB9 - 2015 DB11 the Aston DB9 is almost exactly the same as the 1985 V8. The Virage was way more expensive and the DB11 is cheaper than the DB9 relatively. Range Rover. These have become cosistently more expensive, but the equivalent model to the original 1970 Range Rover wasn't the 2000 P38, it was the Discovery, as the Range Rover went more and more upmarket.
Do the gas/electric/ house rates/ community charge/water rates/ %of vat. I would wager the %of salary spent on living has increased in the last 40 years.
While I do agree with the excellently researched point in this video, I do believe the purchasing power have decreased over by time, and that by a lot. Let's not also forget the fact that before the 80's, most families lived on one salary.
@@JayEmmOnCars That's quite a big variable to leave out if you want to do a real world analysis though. As many subscribers have pointed out the relative decline of wages versus inflation has meant people have less disposable income to spend. Thought provoking piece though, thanks.
There is an other side on the infl coin, that I feel gets usually overlooked. Value, either in terms of performance, technology, safety, reliability etc. The 200€ (inflation adjusted) , or there about, that I pay for a new smartphone every 3-4 years get me a vastly more capable device each time. On that basis I would argue, with, possibly, the exception of the Ferrari, even though a case could be made about the improvement in performance being a logarithmic function of the development money, that cars have actually gotten cheaper overall. Edit: 1st line inflation rather than in infl
Interestingly I just got my copy of the 438th and last ever copy of "Fast Car". Used to get this magazine back in the day and sad to see its demise. Online only from now on.
The Range Rover would have been an interesting one to use for this. In 1980 it was still a fancy-ish farm truck, and the official 5 door was fairly new.
For anyone wondering about the average earnings vs the prices of the cars here are the average wages 1980 6000 1990 12300 2000 18800 2020 25000 Obviously lots of changes too. In 1980 a single wage was more likely to be a households entire income, but also, in 2020 a lot more 2 adult households would require 2 cars.
Analyst chipping in here - the last graph distorts the inflation (as it has such extreme ends of pricing on it). It's the percentage difference that you need to look at. Using the table at 28:54 you can see the following: Ford Fiesta - 27% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 20% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive Golf GTI - 7% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 36% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive BMW 320 - 2% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 25% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive etc etc
I‘m a little late for this video, but one question remains for me: Didn’t the V8 mid-engine Ferrari evolve from the entry-level car to the mid of the range car when the California launched in the mid 00s? Would be interesting to see how the graph would change once you replace the 458/F8 with the California/Roma
It definitely seems as though cars are relatively more expensive today. The reason most people seem to buy using PCP now. So interesting to see whether that is actually the case, taking inflation into account.
Yeah easy availability of credit. Unfortunately people just agree to buy the car on finance because interest rates are currently so low, and what's worse is they don't pay the balloon off at the end, they just roll it into another finance agreement - as soon as interest rates rise again a lot of people are going to find they can no longer afford to refinance their fancy car
I would spend HOURS reading through those tables of car information and stats at the back of car magazines when I was a kid 😂 would memorise the horsepower, 0 to 60 times, top speeds, MPG... of as many as I could. Just pure autism and I loved it
My dad bought a series of Mercedes between 1990 and 2001 ( 190E / C200’s ) - budget was always £25k . What changed was that what were options on the 190E were standard on the later cars and that the overall build quality went down in my opinion
Mean Piston speed is another you never see in magazines. I'm 37 but I buy old magainzes at Autojumbles I attend. I sit in my garage reading LJK Setwrite articles and Steve Cropley. Your like a modern day Steve Cropley mixed with Nick Frost and a John Candy sense of Shirts. Never change
BTW the reason some pages are in colour and some in B&W kinda randomly is because I believe they printed one giant sheet of paper one side in colour and one side in B&W and then depending on how they folded it decided if specific pages were colour or B&W. So it's all to do with origami and that's why some features are half+half.
Excellent video James, as a fact we can conclude a lot of things: - The tree cars that keep the same relative price: BMW Golf and Fiesta , also improved safety, comfort, etc . Compared with the old ones, so in certain way give us more for the same “ relative money”, so they are cheap compared with the past ones. - Merc and Porsche have had to compite from ‘90 , 2000 with a lot good Japanese and now corean etc good cars , so they cannot increase a lot the prices. - Ferrari keep the curve of the new rich people that are created in Asia Russia etc. so demand increased a lot and Ferrari kept this curve of increase. All of this is very logical to me, just my humble conclusion Again keep this very amusing and interesting video that drive us to think for another perspective . Well done 👍🏻
That was interesting! Would be interesting too to see affordability after also taking into account wage inflation as that may or may not show cars to be cheaper.
I used to have all the Motor Show reports from 1959 up to 1986. They listed all the cars that would be on sale from each manufacturer. They were a great source of info.👍🏻
Well I’m born in ’73 and I can correct You on one thing: It wasn’t that there was a small group of geeks reading the mags, but the car knowledge IN GENERAL was a lot higher back in the day. Guys were less into IT, more into moving PHYSICALLY. Basically. This transends into knowledge in general it seems, also today anything is ”true” if you think it’s ”true”. Our kids are being brought up like this, at home and in school. It’s the era of relativism…
Agree with many on here - easier, more imaginative and more accessible finance (definitely not available in 1980 for vehicles) has allowed prices to be quietly but stealthily increased beyond the mean in real terms - affordability being increasing judged on monthly payment rather than capital cost... exactly the same as property and mortgages!
I've done this kind of stuff before on a couple of cars from the last 20 or so years and found the same, the difference I would say without getting too political would probably be wages in my opinion
Can you please do a rant video on car prices going up yet quality going down. For example, the VW group cars have worse interior plastics than the previous gens. AMG's used to have nice metal exhaust tips, now they are just plastic surrounds. Also, many options are now in packs. You may want 1 item but have to pay 3x as much because you have to buy it in a pack and get 2 other things you weren't fussed about.. Thanks in advance
Magazines had all the data tables at the back as it was really the only way to get that data, other than ordering dozens of manufacturer's brochures and ploughing through the small print at the back (which was hit or miss). It's hard to imagine now we have most information available on-line.
James, try and get a tidy stock Saab 9000 aero or even cse to review. The 9000 really is surprising in how nice they drive and how well they are built.
Love the reviews of the magazines that did reviews. The tech specs details of gear ratios torque curves, graphs etc is what I grew up with in the 80s. In South Africa we have CAR magazine, the earliest one I had was from 1983 with a test of a 3.0l Alfa GTV6. Collected them and other magazines every month over 30 years. Had about 1000-1500 magazinrs. Used pour over the stats and do comparisions. Strangely enough did a price comparison at one stage using the magazine as you did.using a GTI, E class. 911. Donated my collection to various charities some years back. The kids gobbled them up like hot cakes. There's still mothing like holding a book in your hands
Great vid and being of my vintage late 50s I remember the prices especially the Porsche and Ferraris and completely agree with you. However this is UK prices only. Having grown up in aus government taxes have made a massive impact over the last 40 years down under. Very informative thanks
Interesting take on the relative costs (I'm 1968 vintage, by the way). However, my biggest take away from this vid ...the old magazine stats and ads! They were essential reading for me once upon a time and I've spent countless hours absorbing car mag info and poring over photo shoots over the years. I find it a bit sad that I don't rely on them or buy one any more - the missus bought me one as a stocking filler last xmas, and I still haven't read it all!
I'd strongly argue that cars are now half the price they were when you factor-in the vast increase in engineering and standard equipment over the decades. Those entry-level 1980 cars would be flimsy rust-buckets without any of the spec we now take for granted - fuel injection, ECUs, catalytic converters, air con, airbags , electric windows, power-assisted steering and brakes, infotainment systems, etc. Ford were notoriously stingy with their base models so that 1980 Fiesta probably didn't have a radio or heated rear windscreen.
You should put how this relates to average earnings. The Fiesta, Golf and BMW are similar prices when inflation is added. But how affordable are they in the real world? I remember I purchased a brand new Focus at £14000 for the 1.8 Ghia back in 2000. I was earning about £16k at the time. Just a basic admin job for a bank in my early 20s. If you compare a basic admin job in the same area of the country today it would be just over £20k where as a high spec Focus is now way above that.
Older Whatcar magazines are a fantastic resource for information (inlcuding prices) on then-new cars. The oldest one I have (issue no.1, Nov 1973) has a two page spread for each row/car giving the cost/availability of equipment, information about the engine such as bore/stroke and performance figures for days! Sadly they aren't anywhere near as in depth any more and some time around 2010 they really cut it back to the basics. I do find this topic immensely interesting and bought 6 old issues to correspond with the then current Golf generations. I even went as far as creating a spreadsheet but sadly that is lost to the sands of time. I was only around 12 at the time so it probably wasn't the highest quality work anyway!
For me this is right up there with your top cinematic creations for enjoyment! Very interesting. Thank you for sharing your research. Just goes to show what a fantastic price some modern cars are. With ever increasing safety and efficiency, not to mention reduction in running costs.
I'm very happy I saved a lot of autocar, and evo mags from the early 2000s. I unfortunately thinned them out when I moved 10 years ago, but still have around 30 or so.
Fascinating James. Looking at your printed figures what really stands out is the increase for a ford fiesta from 2010 to 2021. 70% increase! Could that be Ford trying to take advantage of people using PCP to get a car so they don't look at capital cost? Suggest it's worth a look in a future episode. % increase for others in this time period not as steep. So much for "we deliver value!"
Interesting video. I have been fortunate enough to drive a Ferarri 550 and an 812 and the modern car feels like a far more luxurious and premium product.
Ive liked this video a lot. Very honest little investigation. With conclusions derived from the observed data and not data picked to match the expected conclusions. As I said in a comment below, I did my own research with the mustang and it is WAY cheaper now (in the US) considering what you get and what you pay for
Looking at the results the golf has actually increased massively relative to its price. all of the cars have gotten more expensive but the golf is 30% more expensive than it was when it came out.
I believe Ferrari now include years of free servicing with new cars. Needs to be taken into account. Possibly adding 5% to the cost? Very interesting review, thanks James!
I was working for Ford in 2002 at this time you could buy a Ford Focus 1.8 Zetec 2002 OTR Price was £9,995.00 the same car in 2021 on the road price is £23,725.00, that's an increase of £13,730.00. At this time the MK1 RS Ford Focus came out OTR Price £19,995.00 or you could buy a Honda Type R EP3 OTR for £19,995.00, I would say that the every day car is much more to buy today than in 2002 as the average wage has not gone up by much since then. I blame cheap Finance and Government regulations on car manufacturing...
Interestingly, the UK average salary gained about 10% against inflation around 2000 and has kept that since, making cars 1.1x cheaper relatively from then. However the cost of other things relative to inflation has also gone up, which is where inflation is harder to measure since obviously paying much more of our salaries into houses means less left for cars, hence they are effectively more expensive. Based on the sheer complexity of a full analysis, the conclusion in the video seems a good one considering the available information as it seems to hold up once you start considering other factors as well. That just assumes that the overall cost of living hasn't gone up by much more than 10% which I'm sure someone can work out. Freddos have gone up to 2.5x (after a price cut) compared to 2000, while salaries only increased
Hi James that was excellent. I expect house prices are up 12-20x since 1980 so interesting comparison. Perhaps a power to weight comparison would be useful, so for example did a golf gti in 1980 feel as quick as a new one? I think the original XR3 had 106 hp which many small engined cars have now
Very informative video. I’m thinking of buying a 996 c2 tiptronic, only an auto because I’m lazy have you ever done a buyer’s guide for anything like that
You could have saved a bit of cash James. I have (almost) every copy of Autocar (& Motor) from about 1978. Would have lent them to you for a small consideration...Fascinating vid, somehow I knew Ferrari would come out 'on top'! Talking about the 456GT, I think the only option was the 'Daytona' seats, everything else pretty much came in with the (admittedly) steep sticker price. Still loving mine after 10 years with a 355 - bit of a different driving experience. Got the 993 for those back-road blasts though! Cheers from a (slightly damp) Otford, Kent, UK.
If you have the 1988 Autocar, would you be so kind as to look up the cost of the Porsche 924S? I'm curious what the price would be in the UK vs the US. Thank you.
Most costs double every 10 years, so cars are cheaper. 1975 TR7 £3333 at launch. By 1986, £6k, 1996 £12k, 2006 £24k, 2016 £48k. By then i'm sure TR7 wouldn't have sold for £48k. Interesting to see the TR7 had doubled in price by 1980. In 1980 i was taking home £26 a week as a 20 year old. By 1986 i bought 2nd hand 1976 TR7, £1500, so it's value only halved in 10 years.
I have considered for a long time now, 220BHP/tonne (200 if 4wd, but hmmm not for me) to be the sweet spot to have a car that is genuinely fast (0-60 in the 4-5ish second range regardless of driven wheels, in the dry at least). Although the gearing is very important, I am sure a Cayman GT4 would be just as good if it had a 100BHP less but with shorter gearing for road use (it wouldn't be half as good on track though as the obvious trade-off).
Great video, James. But based on your own numbers, your conclusion is incorrect. Cars *are* more expensive than before. Accounting for inflation every single car on your list costs substantially more than it did in 1980. Fiesta +20% Golf GTI +37% BMW 320 +26% Mercedes S +9% Porsche 911 +19% Ferrari V8 +131% Your absolute numbers make the changes seem small (especially with crazy Ferrari pricing on the chart). But looking at it in relative numbers even the increase of 20% on the Fiesta is substantial. Sure, you get a much, much, much better car with way better safety and more creature comforts than in 1980, but the question was whether cars have become more expensive, not whether they are better value for money. 🤷♂️
Average new car price in 1980 was 30% of average annual wage in the US, today it is 140% of average wage. Average house purchase price in 1980 was 3.2x average annual salary, today average house purchase price is 14.6x average annual salary.
![Noob To Max With DRAGON REWORK In Blox Fruits [FULL MOVIE]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/LnBMOinoOvA/mqdefault.jpg)
Cars arent more expensive, I think its more that wages havent' kept up with inflation whilst the cost of everything has.
This
Essentially yes. The calculation needs to be relative to wage and living costs, not simply the sticker price of the car. Car prices do not operate in a vacuum. A new car is more expensive now because many people have less disposable income than they did just 20 years ago. It's also far more expensive to actually run a car, with fuel, taxation, servicing, parking etc rising beyond wages too. Right now at the tail end of 2021 fuel prices have nearly doubled since 2001 in the UK. Average vehicle fuel economy improvements have not taken up the slack in that period (maybe 5 percent at best especially with E10 fuel now here!) and wages aren't even close to that kind of increase.
So the net effect is that cars are more expensive
Cars are more expensive look how much they have increased in the last 5 years also look at all the expense manufacturers have to go to with dpf and adblue sytems that all costs lots to develop and fit
But also taxation, vat as well was 15% back in the 80’s
I think the main difference is that people had more disposable income back in the day so that the car payments didn't seem so onerous. Here in America, the purchasing power of a single middle-class income peaked in 1970. Inflation has far outstripped income growth since then. At least for the bottom 80% of earners. Disproportional increases in the cost of housing, utilities, food, sales taxes, healthcare have whittled take-home pay down to the bone.
I highly doubt the same is true for britain. Or maybe it is but... another factor is how easy and relatively cheap loans are today, which is a huge influence. On everything.
There was a time when houses were 3x I come. Now it's more like 8 times Income
@@barry5138 Yup. The house that my parents bought in 1974 for $70k is now worth $1.7 million. Going by an inflation calculator, that house should be less than $400k today. Granted, we all know the official inflation rates are complete BS.
@@norwegianblue2017 honestly don't know how people can pay what they pay for houses. Big house, big car, big lifestyle and not brilliant jobs. Maybe inheritance
@@barry5138 It will eventually catch up with them. Most people in this country are drowning in personal debt. Part of it is that the bar has been raised so high on peoples' expectations. Look at your average car or kitchen today compared to the 1980s, the supposed "decade of greed". Middle class people having high-end European stainless steel appliances, marble countertops, wine refrigerators, etc. Leasing cars that are priced at a year's income. It's ridiculous! They push credit cards on college kids the minute they enroll. Those people shouldn't even be allowed on campus. Not trying to sound all holier than thou, I've been down that road myself. Took me years to put our financial house in order. Today I have a million dollar home, no non-mortgage debt, no car payments. Drive a ten year old car and plan on keeping it for another ten.
James - you know that Autocar have just digitised every single issue of the magazine they’ve ever published in an online archive? It’s absolutely awesome, doesn’t cost much money to get annual access either 👍
£75 not THAT cheap isn't it
@@Noneofyerbisnis if you cant afford £75 for the magazines, you're not likely to be able to afford any of the cars in the magazines.
Brilliant, my uncle has every one in his loft.
It was possible to calculate so many things from all those figures. I formulated models to work out what gear would be required for particular hills. Or how fast it would go up certain hills. Older cars tended to have simular torque curves making it easy to extrapolate the torque across different rpm ranges from just torque at rpm and max power at rpm. With this information it was possible to work out what cars would be useless on the roads I wanted to drive on.
@@andrewthompsonuk1 Me too, well from 1974.
Two things to consider are that all the models listed here got a lot physically bigger over this time meaning more raw materials, but also the golf, fiesta and 3 series were the entry level car for their respective manufacturers at the beginning but smaller, cheaper models slotted in beneath them later.
Taking into account the huge leap in tech and safety in todays cars, id say cars are way cheaper. We re all just poorer or stuck in a rot
I am not sure the leap in tech does really count though- since cars in the 70s also were much more advanced than in the 50s
The leap in tech, build quality, efficiency and performance even for modest cars can easily show they are cheaper. Discount for inflation and taxes and you can see for example how cheap a mustang gt 5.0 is in the usa. It is ridiculous money (ar least until last year)
Yeah, compare that to computers and have a laugh.
One thing to consider is that a 1980 Fiesta (for example) might have lasted 10-12 years under average use if you're lucky, whereas a 2021 Fiesta might last up to 50% longer than that.
Papers are reporting 25% spike in second hand car prices
The Toyota Corolla was badged as an Auris for two generations in the UK and Europe. It continued to be badged as Corolla in most of the rest of the world.
An interesting thing to come out of this research is the relative similarity in the price of a Fiesta or Golf in 1980 and 2020. When you consider the increase in the size of the cars (so more material used), and all of the additional equipment now fitted as standard (alloys, ABS, airbags, powered windows, locks, and steering, screens/connectivity, and driver aids ), it shows you get a hell of a lot more bang for your buck today than ever before. When I passed my driving test in 1990 I thought electric windows and central locking activated by the key being inserted in the door lock was high tech 😂
I love these kinds of dives into car history. It's really cool to take a nostalgic look at some of them.
As a number geek I would have done 2 extra things
#1 I would have compared the inflation adjusted price to the original price as a %. You can say it only went up a few hundred pounds but that might be a 20% increase
#2 I would have compared the price as a % of the median salary for the uk in that year (yes uk centric over here, guilty as charged). This would give an extra perspective on ‘expensive’
These are just extra things tho, very interesting video, love a good graph, me
Yes exactly this. Affordability is a factoring of median wages against real dollar price. Thank you for calmly pointing this out.
@@acchaladka my pleasure :)
Another trend seems to be that car makes used to have their own distinctive style and design, but wind the clock forward and they all tend towards the same sharp and angular design language that could have all been drawn by the same person on the same computer program...
For interesting cars, I'm gonna say late 90s to early 00s was Peak Car. Comparing the decades was an inspired idea for a vid!
90s Daihatsu Midget peak car design confirmed
Much of it is driven by safety regulations.
Eh, gonna disagree with you. Each era has its trends and the econoboxes of any given era do tend to blend among each other (note: econoboxes did not exist in every automotive era). But beyond that, cars have maintained distinctiveness just fine. What they haven't done is consistently made beautiful cars. The current design trends are just abhorrent in any context, but it's a fad and will pass.
@@vomErsten I don't know about it passing. I totally hate the new "futuristic" eV designs, and they're just starting out.
@@andycalifornia426 Give them time to develop. I like where the Rivian is starting out, and the exterior of the Taycan and e-tron GT are good. Interior space are where most of the misfire are happening, like the garbage inside the Tesla 3/Y.
I remember the Fiesta of 1980. A base model was a tin can with 4 bits of rubber at each corner.
Today a Fiesta is a quite pleasant place to be. You made a point about extra bits and that makes quite a difference to the value to the buyer.
I used to drive a 1995 BMW 318i. I loved driving it until just a few years ago. But it was a hugely different car to today's car.
So, I'd suggest that we get more car for the money. If the index price has remained constant then we are getting much more car for the money than back in 1980.
One other point, rather than looking at inflated prices, comparing to 'average' wages would be interesting as that talks to affordability. For example, a Fiesta would've cost about half my yearly wage in 1980. However, today, looking at a similar job, a low spec Fiesta would cost perhaps 2/3 of the wages for that job. Making the Fiesta more expensive, in real terms, than it was back then.
In those terms
12:45. Corolla was not consistantly for sale in the UK. It went around 2007 to the Auris. And then it went back to the Corolla by about 2017ish
You're right, I forget the Auris
@@JayEmmOnCars It’s that kind of car 🤣
Jay. That was tremendous. I can't believe what a pup you are being born in 1989. I was born in 75 and would spend hours reading my dad's classic car magazines. He had then all put in hardback binders and still has them.
Quality video.👍👍
Being a Rover owner it's nice to hear that Rover was good
Surprised by the results considering car companies keep putting tech on cars for tech sake, and which no body has asked for.
I actually think its quite the opposite, a lot of people are asking for it. Or else they wouldnt do it, since it costs them money. "Purist Car people" are a miniscule demographic to target your sales to.
But maybe you knew that and were just joking. In that case, disregard the above.
Here in 1980 Au an everyday family car costs the equivalent of a years average wages, it is now 6 months and quality has improved no end.
Cars have gotten cheaper but the cost of living and running them has increased.
We have less disposable income making cars seem more expensive.
Great video. Real full on car nerd stuff! Thanks for taking the time to go through the figures and make this video. Appreciated. Thanks
A great nerdy video. In these days of short attention-span media, there aren't many chaps I'd watch for 30 minutes while they talk about old magazines and car prices, yet you make this so interesting. Great to see the format of those old mags. Manufacturer's brochures were full of the same practical detail. It's good to be reminded to see past the "lifestyle" we now get sold.
Thanks Darryl
Oh, man. You are reading my thoughts, James. I just ordered a few car magazines or autokatalogs from the early 90s and 00s to check them out. Searching for the German autokatalog from 1993, which marks the date when I fell in love with the cars. It was also the first one to be translated into Russian, which is happens to be my mother tongue. I was 4 years old when I first saw it. Still remember a bunch of pictures from it, thinking that Volvo 850 Estate in Red was the most beautiful car ever :))).
I first read Autocar as an 11 year old in 86 and have read it every week ever since. Seeing that 1999 issue brought back some good memories. Talking of memories, I read the techie info at the back that much that I used to be able to recall engine sizes and power outputs for most of the cars on sale in the late 80’s and early 90’s. I was such geek 😏🤓. Really enjoyed this episode. How about comparing the Autocar road test verdict with your experience of the same car today?
Same here !
But actually I had my first autocar mag when I was 3 !! I just looked at cars and found it a lot of fun and have every single issue since then( I'm currently 17).Although I Recently switched to evo because here in India, autocar stopped giving the details(like gear ratios, in gear acceleration etc) and found evo had better articles and reviews.
I mostly watch videos now, but still read the mag, Reading is fun too !!
Great video James. I have wondered this a lot recently as it feels that cars are more expensive now, but when you do the analytics as you have done very well, it’s just inflation. At least cars have not gone as crazy as house prices!
I’ve enjoyed this and your video about the 30 year classic car rule very much. Nice to have these in addition to the usual car reviews.
Thanks Dan, glad you enjoyed it
Great video as always James, very interesting analytics. Interesting to see that in the main new car prices have actually remained relatively stable. The biggest issue is (as others have said) that wages haven’t unfortunately been able to keep up with inflation and so the cost of living has increased significantly since 1980. I don’t think people have as much disposable income.
Would be interesting to see how the ‘total cost of ownership’ compares over that same period and whether the %rate of depreciation relative to initial purchase price has also increased as steadily over the decades.
Where is the scantily clad lady from the Lotus today?
Maybe you could find her and ask her to re-enact her golden moment James?
(You might have to give her a helping hand and mind the cars bodywork with her zimmer!) 😀
Looks like this might just be driven by choosing CPI over RPI.
What I personally love the most about old car magazines, is the cigarette ads, always in colour, always high budget and almost always the main photo was taken during the golden hour.
I love that you did this. I do this and it's really interesting.
Aston Martin.
1985 V8 - 1995 Virage - 2005 DB9 - 2015 DB11 the Aston DB9 is almost exactly the same as the 1985 V8. The Virage was way more expensive and the DB11 is cheaper than the DB9 relatively.
Range Rover.
These have become cosistently more expensive, but the equivalent model to the original 1970 Range Rover wasn't the 2000 P38, it was the Discovery, as the Range Rover went more and more upmarket.
Do the gas/electric/ house rates/ community charge/water rates/ %of vat.
I would wager the %of salary spent on living has increased in the last 40 years.
The press cars for the 330d sure did make a statement - never seen one in that actual colour on the road, but the press images are unforgettable.
While I do agree with the excellently researched point in this video, I do believe the purchasing power have decreased over by time, and that by a lot. Let's not also forget the fact that before the 80's, most families lived on one salary.
Absolutely true, but if I want to give some kind of answer I need to ignore some variables
@@JayEmmOnCars That's quite a big variable to leave out if you want to do a real world analysis though. As many subscribers have pointed out the relative decline of wages versus inflation has meant people have less disposable income to spend. Thought provoking piece though, thanks.
@@karlrutter9962 the question though is are cars more expensive, rather than "are they less affordable" which is what that would be
There is an other side on the infl coin, that I feel gets usually overlooked. Value, either in terms of performance, technology, safety, reliability etc. The 200€ (inflation adjusted) , or there about, that I pay for a new smartphone every 3-4 years get me a vastly more capable device each time. On that basis I would argue, with, possibly, the exception of the Ferrari, even though a case could be made about the improvement in performance being a logarithmic function of the development money, that cars have actually gotten cheaper overall.
Edit: 1st line inflation rather than in infl
Interestingly I just got my copy of the 438th and last ever copy of "Fast Car". Used to get this magazine back in the day and sad to see its demise. Online only from now on.
The Range Rover would have been an interesting one to use for this. In 1980 it was still a fancy-ish farm truck, and the official 5 door was fairly new.
I was about to suggest the same
For anyone wondering about the average earnings vs the prices of the cars here are the average wages
1980 6000
1990 12300
2000 18800
2020 25000
Obviously lots of changes too. In 1980 a single wage was more likely to be a households entire income, but also, in 2020 a lot more 2 adult households would require 2 cars.
Very helpful info! Thanks for sourcing that
I like the car reviews but these desk videos are the real treat. So much info in this type of vid.
Is that a Golf?? Indeed James, that's the lens of time for you. I'd left school then so yes THAT's a Golf.
I loved Peugeots 405s&406s, my nearly new 405 1.6GR 93K was £10,995.
Analyst chipping in here - the last graph distorts the inflation (as it has such extreme ends of pricing on it). It's the percentage difference that you need to look at.
Using the table at 28:54 you can see the following:
Ford Fiesta - 27% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 20% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive
Golf GTI - 7% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 36% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive
BMW 320 - 2% more expensive than 11 years ago, and 25% more expensive than 1980 - way more expensive
etc etc
Much appreciated bit of expertise there
I‘m a little late for this video, but one question remains for me:
Didn’t the V8 mid-engine Ferrari evolve from the entry-level car to the mid of the range car when the California launched in the mid 00s? Would be interesting to see how the graph would change once you replace the 458/F8 with the California/Roma
It definitely seems as though cars are relatively more expensive today. The reason most people seem to buy using PCP now. So interesting to see whether that is actually the case, taking inflation into account.
Yeah easy availability of credit. Unfortunately people just agree to buy the car on finance because interest rates are currently so low, and what's worse is they don't pay the balloon off at the end, they just roll it into another finance agreement - as soon as interest rates rise again a lot of people are going to find they can no longer afford to refinance their fancy car
@@stephenw5628 doubt it
9:54…and Autocar still publish all of this info in every new road test they undertake!
Most of the other info he's after is now in the sister mag, what car
I would spend HOURS reading through those tables of car information and stats at the back of car magazines when I was a kid 😂 would memorise the horsepower, 0 to 60 times, top speeds, MPG... of as many as I could. Just pure autism and I loved it
My dad bought a series of Mercedes between 1990 and 2001 ( 190E / C200’s ) - budget was always £25k . What changed was that what were options on the 190E were standard on the later cars and that the overall build quality went down in my opinion
I did the same - got a whole room full of old Evo magazines. Been reading key articles, it's great!
Mean Piston speed is another you never see in magazines. I'm 37 but I buy old magainzes at Autojumbles I attend. I sit in my garage reading LJK Setwrite articles and Steve Cropley.
Your like a modern day Steve Cropley mixed with Nick Frost and a John Candy sense of Shirts. Never change
BTW the reason some pages are in colour and some in B&W kinda randomly is because I believe they printed one giant sheet of paper one side in colour and one side in B&W and then depending on how they folded it decided if specific pages were colour or B&W. So it's all to do with origami and that's why some features are half+half.
In 2002 I bought a brand-new Civic Type R EP3 from a main dealer for £16,000. The inflation calculator says that's £26,618 today
True enough but the ep3 was very basic compared to the fk8 with all the tech so that's the extra money no doubt.
@@stichupman Yup, agreed :)
Excellent video James, as a fact we can conclude a lot of things:
- The tree cars that keep the same relative price: BMW Golf and Fiesta , also improved safety, comfort, etc . Compared with the old ones, so in certain way give us more for the same “ relative money”, so they are cheap compared with the past ones.
- Merc and Porsche have had to compite from ‘90 , 2000 with a lot good Japanese and now corean etc good cars , so they cannot increase a lot the prices.
- Ferrari keep the curve of the new rich people that are created in Asia Russia etc. so demand increased a lot and Ferrari kept this curve of increase.
All of this is very logical to me, just my humble conclusion
Again keep this very amusing and interesting video that drive us to think for another perspective .
Well done 👍🏻
That was interesting! Would be interesting too to see affordability after also taking into account wage inflation as that may or may not show cars to be cheaper.
I used to have all the Motor Show reports from 1959 up to 1986. They listed all the cars that would be on sale from each manufacturer. They were a great source of info.👍🏻
Well I’m born in ’73 and I can correct You on one thing:
It wasn’t that there was a small group of geeks reading the mags, but the car knowledge IN GENERAL was a lot higher back in the day. Guys were less into IT, more into moving PHYSICALLY. Basically. This transends into knowledge in general it seems, also today anything is ”true” if you think it’s ”true”. Our kids are being brought up like this, at home and in school. It’s the era of relativism…
Agree with many on here - easier, more imaginative and more accessible finance (definitely not available in 1980 for vehicles) has allowed prices to be quietly but stealthily increased beyond the mean in real terms - affordability being increasing judged on monthly payment rather than capital cost... exactly the same as property and mortgages!
I could listen and watch you go through old school car magazines for hours James!!!
Don't encourage me!
@@JayEmmOnCars - rrrrrr miauw ❤️😜
Time to get my headphones and settle down with a beer whilst listening to this. Love a ‘podcast’ style vid!
I've done this kind of stuff before on a couple of cars from the last 20 or so years and found the same, the difference I would say without getting too political would probably be wages in my opinion
I touched the tan suede headrest on Mansells Ferrari F1 car. True story.
Can you please do a rant video on car prices going up yet quality going down.
For example, the VW group cars have worse interior plastics than the previous gens.
AMG's used to have nice metal exhaust tips, now they are just plastic surrounds.
Also, many options are now in packs.
You may want 1 item but have to pay 3x as much because you have to buy it in a pack and get 2 other things you weren't fussed about..
Thanks in advance
Magazines had all the data tables at the back as it was really the only way to get that data, other than ordering dozens of manufacturer's brochures and ploughing through the small print at the back (which was hit or miss). It's hard to imagine now we have most information available on-line.
James, try and get a tidy stock Saab 9000 aero or even cse to review. The 9000 really is surprising in how nice they drive and how well they are built.
Love the reviews of the magazines that did reviews. The tech specs details of gear ratios torque curves, graphs etc is what I grew up with in the 80s. In South Africa we have CAR magazine, the earliest one I had was from 1983 with a test of a 3.0l Alfa GTV6. Collected them and other magazines every month over 30 years. Had about 1000-1500 magazinrs. Used pour over the stats and do comparisions. Strangely enough did a price comparison at one stage using the magazine as you did.using a GTI, E class. 911. Donated my collection to various charities some years back. The kids gobbled them up like hot cakes.
There's still mothing like holding a book in your hands
It's not called inflation it's called money printing ....soo we will soon be all millionaires and knowone can afford a loaf of bread ......
You loosely defined inflation...
Interesting video, I appreciate topics car related not just reviews
Great vid and being of my vintage late 50s I remember the prices especially the Porsche and Ferraris and completely agree with you. However this is UK prices only. Having grown up in aus government taxes have made a massive impact over the last 40 years down under.
Very informative thanks
Interesting take on the relative costs (I'm 1968 vintage, by the way). However, my biggest take away from this vid ...the old magazine stats and ads! They were essential reading for me once upon a time and I've spent countless hours absorbing car mag info and poring over photo shoots over the years. I find it a bit sad that I don't rely on them or buy one any more - the missus bought me one as a stocking filler last xmas, and I still haven't read it all!
The nova with the Isuzu diesel was amazing didn't break did over 60mpg
I wish you'd slowed down a bit James... I wasn't able to pause on a clear Lotus/Bikini shot!!!
I love these types of nerdy videos!!
You're banging out some fantastic videos of late James! Think this now has to be my favourite You Tube channel 👍
I'd strongly argue that cars are now half the price they were when you factor-in the vast increase in engineering and standard equipment over the decades. Those entry-level 1980 cars would be flimsy rust-buckets without any of the spec we now take for granted - fuel injection, ECUs, catalytic converters, air con, airbags , electric windows, power-assisted steering and brakes, infotainment systems, etc. Ford were notoriously stingy with their base models so that 1980 Fiesta probably didn't have a radio or heated rear windscreen.
You should put how this relates to average earnings. The Fiesta, Golf and BMW are similar prices when inflation is added. But how affordable are they in the real world? I remember I purchased a brand new Focus at £14000 for the 1.8 Ghia back in 2000. I was earning about £16k at the time. Just a basic admin job for a bank in my early 20s. If you compare a basic admin job in the same area of the country today it would be just over £20k where as a high spec Focus is now way above that.
I feel these types of videos would be great as a podcast. You could do a weekly / monthly podcast?
Older Whatcar magazines are a fantastic resource for information (inlcuding prices) on then-new cars. The oldest one I have (issue no.1, Nov 1973) has a two page spread for each row/car giving the cost/availability of equipment, information about the engine such as bore/stroke and performance figures for days! Sadly they aren't anywhere near as in depth any more and some time around 2010 they really cut it back to the basics.
I do find this topic immensely interesting and bought 6 old issues to correspond with the then current Golf generations. I even went as far as creating a spreadsheet but sadly that is lost to the sands of time. I was only around 12 at the time so it probably wasn't the highest quality work anyway!
For me this is right up there with your top cinematic creations for enjoyment! Very interesting. Thank you for sharing your research. Just goes to show what a fantastic price some modern cars are. With ever increasing safety and efficiency, not to mention reduction in running costs.
Oh yesss... I remember the straight 6 m3 (343 hp) was 61k euro... the v8 was 69k... the straight 6 after was more, and the last one is basically 90k
I'm very happy I saved a lot of autocar, and evo mags from the early 2000s. I unfortunately thinned them out when I moved 10 years ago, but still have around 30 or so.
Great work James - that was absolutely fascinating!
Fascinating James. Looking at your printed figures what really stands out is the increase for a ford fiesta from 2010 to 2021. 70% increase! Could that be Ford trying to take advantage of people using PCP to get a car so they don't look at capital cost? Suggest it's worth a look in a future episode. % increase for others in this time period not as steep. So much for "we deliver value!"
Interesting video. I have been fortunate enough to drive a Ferarri 550 and an 812 and the modern car feels like a far more luxurious and premium product.
Ive liked this video a lot. Very honest little investigation. With conclusions derived from the observed data and not data picked to match the expected conclusions. As I said in a comment below, I did my own research with the mustang and it is WAY cheaper now (in the US) considering what you get and what you pay for
Such a great video idea, great content as always
Looking at the results the golf has actually increased massively relative to its price. all of the cars have gotten more expensive but the golf is 30% more expensive than it was when it came out.
Yeah, about 20% on average which is significant.
I believe Ferrari now include years of free servicing with new cars. Needs to be taken into account. Possibly adding 5% to the cost? Very interesting review, thanks James!
Brilliant! 👏🏼 I was hoping you’d cover this topic. I appreciate all the maths that went into making this! 🙌🏼 ⭐️
I was working for Ford in 2002 at this time you could buy a Ford Focus 1.8 Zetec 2002 OTR Price was £9,995.00 the same car in 2021 on the road price is £23,725.00, that's an increase of £13,730.00. At this time the MK1 RS Ford Focus came out OTR Price £19,995.00 or you could buy a Honda Type R EP3 OTR for £19,995.00, I would say that the every day car is much more to buy today than in 2002 as the average wage has not gone up by much since then. I blame cheap Finance and Government regulations on car manufacturing...
Interestingly, the UK average salary gained about 10% against inflation around 2000 and has kept that since, making cars 1.1x cheaper relatively from then.
However the cost of other things relative to inflation has also gone up, which is where inflation is harder to measure since obviously paying much more of our salaries into houses means less left for cars, hence they are effectively more expensive.
Based on the sheer complexity of a full analysis, the conclusion in the video seems a good one considering the available information as it seems to hold up once you start considering other factors as well. That just assumes that the overall cost of living hasn't gone up by much more than 10% which I'm sure someone can work out. Freddos have gone up to 2.5x (after a price cut) compared to 2000, while salaries only increased
Excellent video, James 👍
16:30 "Most fun: Caterham Seven" just copy-paste the text from every year since 1957 it's fine.
Hi James that was excellent. I expect house prices are up 12-20x since 1980 so interesting comparison.
Perhaps a power to weight comparison would be useful, so for example did a golf gti in 1980 feel as quick as a new one? I think the original XR3 had 106 hp which many small engined cars have now
Love this content! Traditional motor journalism!
Very informative video. I’m thinking of buying a 996 c2 tiptronic, only an auto because I’m lazy have you ever done a buyer’s guide for anything like that
It's a shame wages haven't kept up with inflation. Overall affordability is considerably less than it was.
You could have saved a bit of cash James. I have (almost) every copy of Autocar (& Motor) from about 1978. Would have lent them to you for a small consideration...Fascinating vid, somehow I knew Ferrari would come out 'on top'! Talking about the 456GT, I think the only option was the 'Daytona' seats, everything else pretty much came in with the (admittedly) steep sticker price. Still loving mine after 10 years with a 355 - bit of a different driving experience. Got the 993 for those back-road blasts though! Cheers from a (slightly damp) Otford, Kent, UK.
456 and a 993 - nice pair!
A little bit more expensive? On average 20% rise. That's significant!!
Great video, definitely a question that I’ve been puzzling for a while!
Cars are cheaper than ever it's just wages didn't go up when they print money so we all lose
If you have the 1988 Autocar, would you be so kind as to look up the cost of the Porsche 924S? I'm curious what the price would be in the UK vs the US. Thank you.
Most costs double every 10 years, so cars are cheaper. 1975 TR7 £3333 at launch. By 1986, £6k, 1996 £12k, 2006 £24k, 2016 £48k. By then i'm sure TR7 wouldn't have sold for £48k. Interesting to see the TR7 had doubled in price by 1980. In 1980 i was taking home £26 a week as a 20 year old. By 1986 i bought 2nd hand 1976 TR7, £1500, so it's value only halved in 10 years.
Well that really satisfied the car nerd in me. Thanks James 🍻
Thanks J, that's one big question answered! Can we have the 'perfect' road car power to weight ratio next please?!
What do you think? Somewhere in the 200-300bhp/tonne range...
@@gavinkitto4774 Yup! Any more on the roads too much?
I have considered for a long time now, 220BHP/tonne (200 if 4wd, but hmmm not for me) to be the sweet spot to have a car that is genuinely fast (0-60 in the 4-5ish second range regardless of driven wheels, in the dry at least). Although the gearing is very important, I am sure a Cayman GT4 would be just as good if it had a 100BHP less but with shorter gearing for road use (it wouldn't be half as good on track though as the obvious trade-off).
Great video, James. But based on your own numbers, your conclusion is incorrect. Cars *are* more expensive than before. Accounting for inflation every single car on your list costs substantially more than it did in 1980.
Fiesta +20%
Golf GTI +37%
BMW 320 +26%
Mercedes S +9%
Porsche 911 +19%
Ferrari V8 +131%
Your absolute numbers make the changes seem small (especially with crazy Ferrari pricing on the chart). But looking at it in relative numbers even the increase of 20% on the Fiesta is substantial. Sure, you get a much, much, much better car with way better safety and more creature comforts than in 1980, but the question was whether cars have become more expensive, not whether they are better value for money. 🤷♂️
Average new car price in 1980 was 30% of average annual wage in the US, today it is 140% of average wage. Average house purchase price in 1980 was 3.2x average annual salary, today average house purchase price is 14.6x average annual salary.