REPORT: More Europeans prefer to go shaved for the discreet look
Don't be surprised if you pull in to a drive-through overseas for a Royale with Cheese, only to find yourself guessing what the S-Class in front of you has underhood. Because, you know, it's the little things: according to a report in The New York Times, European car buyers tend to have the nameplates removed from their vehicles in far greater numbers than those of us on the western shores of the Atlantic.
Although many European automakers don't even offer the factory nameplate-delete option in North America (one exception being Porsche), in their home markets, many customers prefer not to advertise, for example, which engine is under the hood. And it's not for some sort of sleeper effect to burn flashier cars at traffic lights, either: European buyers of German cars in particular (which tend to offer a wide range of engines in each model class) prefer to keep the specifics to themselves, regardless of what they've got sitting in the engine compartment.
Audi, for example, reports that a quarter of its buyers go for the badge-delete option, predominantly among top-end models in European markets. (Intriguingly, however, while forging the path between our hotel and the convention center for the recent Frankfurt show, we noticed almost every Audi on the road was equipped with the S-Line package for the faux-super-sedan look.) Conversely, American buyers tend to add badges – how many stock Mercedes and BMWs have you seen sporting AMG and M badges that didn't belong there? Meanwhile, in the Persian Gulf, they dunk 'em in chrome or gold plating. It's a case study in automotive sociology if we've ever seen one.
[Source: The New York Times]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 7)
Rob47 8:03PM (10/11/2009)
No businessmen who can not afford the top model go for the lower one then delete the name badge. There number of E and S classes near me who do this, As a car nerd I can tell the slight visual differences between the ranges but the know nothing businessmen can't.
I once heard a guy at a petrol station claim his badgeless 5 series was an M5, Even with the complete lack of M badges and the vent on the side of the proper M5
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Quantumphysics 8:34PM (10/11/2009)
Its pretty pathetic to claim your car is an M5 when it isn't. Or to claim its an AMG just because you found used AMG rims LOL.
I've got an 550, most rich people here in NYC do. I have rarely seen an S63 AMG and only once have I seen an S600. But considering my car is the best car under $100,000 I'm not bothered at all.
Brex 8:41PM (10/11/2009)
A friend added an AMG "V12" badge to the back of his Camry Hybrid. Makes me laugh every time I see it.
airswingman 8:49PM (10/11/2009)
Becasue we cant afford those cars, however wev been told we can.
Liquid 8:55PM (10/11/2009)
Some people are just clueless, and the manufacturer "branding" gods don't make it any easier. How many grandmas call every Chrysler 300 a "300C" or even better, a "C300"?
mitchw 9:04PM (10/11/2009)
You youngsters out there may not recall that during the 70s and 80s Europeans took the signage off their cars because displays of great wealth could get them kidnapped or otherwise targeted. Any one remember the Red Brigades? Today, I notice the Honda Civics no longer display which model one is driving; the understatement is more appealing in my opinion.
nighttime 1:06AM (10/12/2009)
yeah, I see this a lot on 5's and 3's.
Tool 1:09AM (10/12/2009)
I'm sitting here using my Apple® MacBook Pro, sipping a Starbucks® Latte, wearing my Ralph Lauren® Polo® shirt, Armani® pants and Gucci® shoes, while watching my 60" Sony® Bravia® LCD TV and reading this New York Times® article.
How ludicrous that people would want all these stinking badges on their cars!
zamafir 11:12AM (10/12/2009)
car most in need of debadging? I saw a scubie with an H6.3.6 badge. Obvious what they're going for but why so close and why so many ".". Anywho, I love this trend, my previous cars were debadged after seeing so many in europe it just looks cleaner.
Will 5:31PM (10/12/2009)
Am I the only one who prefers the smallest engine when it comes to a luxury model?
The extra weight and fuel consumption of a big engine is just not worth it for the type of driving I do. If I want fun I get a car that's designed for it. Meaning stripping away the body fat, and force induction the hell out of a lightweight power plant.
I buy a luxury sedan for the soft suspensions, extra amenities, and the build quality. Most of the time a big engine is just a dead weight in the nose, where its potentials go wasted.
TonyInMI 8:03PM (10/11/2009)
I've taken that stuff off of a number of cars. Much cleaner.
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Smegley 8:14PM (10/11/2009)
I agree - I remove as many badges as possible because it is cleaner, and even a bit more mysterious somehow.
I know USA makes often used to have predrilled holes for those damned badges. I wont buy a car now that is predrilled. I'm not buying a billboard, and I dont want to wax around their BS.
Lucas 8:04PM (10/11/2009)
Why do you care?
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usingthelou 10:07PM (10/11/2009)
because its autoblog
P.V. 8:11PM (10/11/2009)
It's all interesting, but true (though I wasn't expecting the part about the plethora of Audi S-lines running around in Europe).
Also, what demographies or regions constitute the trend of adding a lot of faux performance-looking parts (e.g. fake hood scoops, giant yet barely-functional spoilers, etc.) to Japanese cars? Is it confined to Japan or North America? Are the "tuners" Asians or whites? I'm curious to know.
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Rich 9:57AM (10/12/2009)
In the UK, that treatment is usually restricted to a couple of models. It used to be Escorts and Fiestas, then Novas and Civics got the treatment. Then as the second hand prices fell, Astras and Vitaras. As for specific ornaments, the spoiler would be just a big lip on the rear hatch at roof level, and the front end would get a big airdam and foglights. But at least boy racers had the decency to start on the engine, brakes and suspension. Unlike here in the US.
Caz 8:39PM (10/11/2009)
i like my cars like my women.. shaved!
and no, i don't wear Ed Hardy tee shirts! ha
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Mike 8:19PM (10/11/2009)
It's nice to see that our European fiends are trying to tone down their snobbishness while here in the states we
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Jacob 10:48PM (10/11/2009)
Here in the states we don't finish our
Jakesnake1294 3:22AM (10/12/2009)
Ummmh...no.
I moved from the States to Switzerland 3 years ago, and I would say that the opposite is true. The Europeans may strip the badges off their cars, but they cover themselves in every badge that they can. Dolce &Gabbana, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, etc, are necessities to social acceptance here rather than a luxury.
I work with a mix of Germans, French, British, Italians, and Spanish at a multi-national company, and men and women alike love buying designer clothing and accessories and they really want everyone to know that they have it. One of the guys who works for me, an Italian, who I know had to give up his apartment and move in with someone else because he could not afford his rent, just showed me his brand new $600 D&G shoes. I watch these people at parties and they will actually turn over the collar on their shirt to show someone an Armani tag.
Europeans trying to hide their snobbishness? Total BS.
I have not noticed badge shaving on cars here. I have noticed that they do not add stupid non functional wings or spinner hubcaps. But then again, they don't have a Pep Boys or a Kragen's on every corner. I recently had to pay $70 at a BMW dealership to buy windshield wiper replacements for my BMW 3 series, a very common car, because I could not find them anywhere else.
I am not sure about other European countries, but here in Switzerland if you want to make changes to your car such as changing the size of your rims or installing an after market exhaust, you have to get a permit to do so. The permission process involves getting approval from the manufacturer of your car. Not exactly a simple process.
I call crap on this one.