American cars, we've always dreamed of them. But what are they really like?
In this article by Auto for Dummies, the Tech Princess column that tells the stories of the car world in a simple and intuitive way, we will talk about 5 typical features of American cars that are missing in European cars. Very often, in fact, when we think of United States of America we imagine a country very similar to our Europe in terms of traditions, values and habits. Although this is true for many things, with the due and obvious differences, there are several fields in which discrepancies between Europe and America become more strident. One of them is precisely the car world, with particular reference to car design. Don't worry, we always talk about cars with four wheels, an engine and a steering wheel, but apart from these similarities, let's say that the rest of the features of American cars, so different from “homegrown” cars, could leave you stunned. So let's analyze 5 characteristics typically Yankee absent in our vehicles. Ready? C'mon let's go!
- What is the American car market like?
- Feature n ° 1: very powerful climate and cup holders as far as the eye can see
- Feature n ° 2: pick-up and minivan, two categories of vehicles unknown to us
- Feature n ° 3: the "keypad" to open Ford's car
- Feature n ° 4: the anti-kidnapping lanyard, mandatory in all American cars
- Feature n ° 5: huge displacements and powers: there's no replacement for displacement
- American cars: strange cars, but with a charisma of their own
What is the American car market like?
Before starting to talk about the characteristics of American cars, let's start by making some clarifications on the US car market. America is a very different place from what we Europeans are used to. It is, in fact, a country huge, formed by 50 states and with an area that raises it to third largest state in the world behind Russia and Canada.
Precisely for this reason, the United States thanks (or because of) its immensity has one incredible disparity of territories. They range from metropolis with insane population densities, such as New York, to large uninhabited prairies and deserts, passing through the expanses of the MidWest, characterized by huge cities but with very few inhabitants in relation to size.
If you are wondering if we have suddenly transformed into Ulysses or Voyager or what does this have to do with American cars, just know that knowing the geographic aspect of the United States is very important to understand more about the automotive market of the country. And this is not only true for the States, but for all nations in general.
In fact, in America it is normal to travel hundreds if not thousands of miles by car for work or leisure. This means that it can often happen to travel for a long time in nowhere, without encountering absolutely anything or anyone for most of the journey. During these trips it can happen, moreover, of go from the bitter cold of Illinois or Alaska to the sweltering heat of Nevada, with states like Kansas or Minnesota where the heat is almost Saharan in summer, but snow and cold are the order of the day in winter.
All these features create a market with truly unique requests. THE'reliability of a car in America it is not just a side effect, but a real necessity on frequent trips from state to state on roads literally in the middle of nowhere, such as the legendary Route 66.
For this reason, the American cars they are, and must, be designed to withstand the scorching heat as much as the harsh winters. It is not a case that SUVs were born in America. In fact, we are talking about vehicles capable of facing different weather conditions and which are, at the same time, comfortable and spacious.
Another factor not to be forgotten is that relating to Petroleum. The USA is indeed one of the very few Western countries to produce black gold in large quantities. This makes the really cheap gasoline in America, with a cost currently equivalent to € 0,58 per liter. This resulted in the spread of car come on big and powerful engines, suitable for covering the enormous American distances.
And since the United States is also the third most populous country in the world, the sales numbers of the machines are huge. In America sIn fact, 12 million cars are sold every year, most of which are produced locally by American and non-American manufacturers, with unique models designed and manufactured only for the North American market. Among them we have the two notes Case yankee, Ford e General Motors, with their famous American car brands Chevrolet, Cadillac and GMC, the FCA group with the Chrysler and RAM brands, and some Japanese manufacturers, including the Toyota and the Nissan, which they produce in the States vehicles dedicated exclusively to the stars and stripes market.
Major players in the US automotive market are pick-ups, known in America as pickup trucks, always preferred choice of many American citizens. In recent years, the pick-ups have "self-mobilized", offering car performance and technologies, so much so that their success has multiplied.
If it is a constant the news that the best-selling car is a pickup truck, Ford F-150, the real news is that in April for the first time more pickup trucks than “normal” cars were sold. Testament of a market fuck like the American one.
After this brief overview of the car market in the United States, let's immediately discover together the 5 features and accessories that make an American car worthy of the name.
American cars n ° 1: very powerful climate and cup holders as far as the eye can see
Let's start with the first inevitable features on any American car: air conditioning and cup holders. An indissoluble combination.
Air conditioning systems
As we have already said, the heat in America can reach levels never seen in our latitudes. In 90% of the States of America, in fact, in summer the average temperature exceeds 30 degrees. At the same time, the winters are very cold and thetemperature range it is so impressive that it necessarily requires an important air conditioning system.
This translates into the need, for any American car, to have very powerful air conditioning systems, regardless of the brand and year of production. To understand the extent of these systems, just think that on the most powerful and large-displacement vehicles the air conditioning compressor has a power of up to 6 / 7 CV, similar to the mild hybrid systems fitted to hybrid cars today. Isn't that crazy?
Those of you who have gotten into an American car at least once will already know that there is a real one difference in terms of power and “cooling” power in air conditioning systems made in the US compared to European ones. This is critical to allow occupants to effortlessly get past the deserts of Nevada, for example.
It is no coincidence, therefore, that air conditioning was invented in America in 1902, and that the first car with air conditioning is also Blazer. Let's talk about the 1953 Chrysler Imperial, which offered its customers the AirTemp system.
Cup holder
Americans aren't just crazy about the cool: they also love drinks and coffees "on the go", ie take-away. And I'll tell you more. Throughout North America it is customary to leave the house with a cup of coffee or buy it in a cafe (such as Starbucks, for example), and then consume it on the way home-to-work. Not for nothing, for several decades, all American cars offer at least two cup holders, or better, cup holder integrated inside the machine. For the same reason, American bottle racks often have large dimensions that can safely contain coffee, iced drinks or what is needed for a rush meal.
This is how the cupholder became a must-have per le auto made in US and for all foreign cars sold on North American soil. The presence or absence of cup holders in the car is even a yardstick for some.
There are cars that have as many cup holders as the expected occupants, i.e. 5 to 7. There are even cars that go further, such as the Subaru ascent, a medium to large SUV sold only in North America and which has the beauty of 19 cupholder. Yes, you got it right: nineteen!
Some curiosities about cup holders
There was a period between the 80s and 90s when the phenomenon of carrying take-away cups and glasses in the car was getting bigger and bigger. The American houses were the only ones able to immediately intercept the desire of their customers, while the European and Japanese ones understood it with a slight delay. To be fair, the European and Japanese cars of those years often offered neither the large, stable American cupholders nor any other accommodation for the cups.
Some of these manufacturers added the cup holders in the car at a later time, after the design had already taken place. Thus were born the "after-thought cupholders ", literally" the cup holders they thought of after ", strange, abstruse and unstable constructions that satisfied very few consumers. To remedy the problem, now all cars also sold on American soil are equipped upstream with large cup holders.
Ah, the market demands ...
American cars n ° 2: pick-ups and minivans, two categories of vehicles unknown to us
The second peculiar feature of American cars concerns the car models that drive the streets of cities in North America. In fact, both in the United States and Canada they are by no means widespread utilitarians or small compacts such as Ford Fiesta or Volkswagen Golf. Both of these vehicles are sold on American soil, but are chosen only by very few customers and not by real Yankees.
Compared to Europe, the very large territories of the USA and Canada eliminate the problem of the spaces we have here with us. The cities are almost all modern, with the oldest (with some exceptions) dating back to 1890, and have been created without the need to save on space, without historical centers or other “narrowings” typical of European cities.
If we add to this also the incredible availability of space that exists outside the big American cities, we soon understand that the small compact hatchbacks, even if present on the American market, they are not necessary at all.
Americans can easily opt for big cars, sometimes even gigantic ones, never feeling like a Gulliver in the country of Lilliput. For this reason, when it comes to choosing the family car, citizens commonly bet on two main categories of cars: minivans and pick-up trucks.
American pickups
Some pickup we have already talked about earlier. It is about large vehicles with four-wheel drive, caisson to carry many things and mechanical arrangement for off-road vehicles, or rather as a work vehicle. However, as anticipated, with the passage of time the pick-ups, by simple means of work, have become a true costume phenomenon. Many Americans use them for leisure, for the family, for everyday life. Furthermore, i modern pickups they have become gods real SUVs with the body, with car interiors, powerful engines and many technological and technical features of first class cars.
Minivan
On the other hand, we only had a small taste of the minivans in Europe. We can in fact assimilate them to ours large minivans, that is vehicles with a lot of space for things or people. We are talking about cars like FIAT Ulysse, Lancia Phedra or Renault Espace, which despite being very similar to minivans are still different from the latter.
I minivan americani they take the definition of "space" to the next level. They are means enormous, capable of offering up to 4 single seats with the so-called “Captain's chair”, the captain's chair, plus a rear sofa. We are therefore talking about 7-seater cars like our large minivans, but with 7 real and very comfortable seats.
The minivan offers plenty of space for things and people, many cupholders, and more. The vehicles of this type also offer neat finishes, TVs for rear passengers, really powerful engines and features that seem almost crazy to us Europeans.
Two of these crazy features are contained in the latest series of Honda Odyssey, one of the best-selling and most popular minivans. This huge vehicle, measuring over 5,1 meters, delivers on the inside a real fridge and even a vacuum cleaner, mounted directly on the trunk walls. Can you even imagine it?
Curiosity: minivan in Europe
In Europe the only Minivan that we have been able to know in its purest form is the Chrysler Voyager, sold from 1998 until 2011, and became, in that year, Lancia Voyager following the acquisition of FCA.
American cars # 3: the "keypad" to open Ford's car
The third feature that makes today's American cars different from our cars is actually a solution used by just one brand, Ford, and only on US soil. I'm talking about the genius Ford SecuriCode. What is that? It is a hidden numeric keypad on the driver's door. Thanks to this system, just enter a code e the car will open without using the key. A real genius.
The SecuriCode system is born in the 1980 and first debuted on the Ford Thunderbird of the time. Today it is the prerogative of all American models of Ford and the luxury brand Lincoln.
Born as a physical keypad, the system for some years has been “Hidden” behind the black molding of the B pillar, that of the door. The "keys" are touch sensitive and they light up only when touched, so as to be almost invisible when the car is off.
The usefulness of SecuriCode: practical examples
You are wondering what SecuriCode can be useful for? Well, let's say that this unknown system can be very useful on several occasions. For convenience, I give you two examples:
- Example n ° 1: you are going running or playing sports. On these occasions, the desire is always to have as few things as possible on him. In fact, you definitely run better without your car keys in your pocket, while when you swim you may even have nowhere to put your keys safely. In these cases SecuriCode can be a real boon. Just leave all your belongings in the car and lock the car with the code. In this way you can go for sports with a light head and pockets. Useful, right?
- Example n ° 2: you are running out of the house and just when you close the door you realize that you have forgotten your house keys inside. No problem, you have a copy in the glove compartment of the car, but alas, you immediately realize that you have left your car keys right next to the house keys. What would be a disaster in Europe, in America and with a Ford with SecuriCode is a walk ... to the car. In fact, you just need to enter the code, take the house keys and start the day on the right foot, without having to call a locksmith and waste your precious time.
To those who are not used to it, it may seem a superfluous or even useless system, but I assure you that American Ford customers love it.
Some curiosities about the numeric keypad and the keyless system
Other manufacturers have also tried to implement and offer their customers a system similar to SecuriCode, among them Cadillac and Chevrolet, but all, at some point, have abandoned the project. Ford, on the other hand, believes in it so much that it is convinced that it is one of the safest ways to allow keyless access to their cars. And in fact we talk about thethe only true keyless system which allows you to enter the car with just one finger.
Think that when Ford launched the Focus in America, initially designed only for the European market, it did not supply it with SecuriCode. In fact, European Fords never had this system. However, i American Ford customers immediately clamored to the manufacturer to include it, because for them it is now an indispensable feature.
The new Mustang Mach-E and the neo- "European" Explorer, although they are very modern cars with keyless entry, they are equipped with this system, which we Europeans will finally be able to try. I can't wait, what about you?
American cars # 4: the anti-kidnapping strap, mandatory in all American cars
The fourth exclusive feature of American cars is the anti-kidnapping lanyard, a rather curious feature which, among other things, is the only one on the list made mandatory by American law.
Without leading to clichés, the United States of America is one of the countries in the world where crime is more widespread and kidnapping is a real social plague. Although there has been a decrease in this phenomenon in recent years, the United States government has taken strong measures for several years limit the damage resulting from any abductions. This is how, since 2000, it is mandatory for all cars to have a lanyard or a system to open the trunk in case of kidnapping.
In general, the anti-kidnapping lanyard is a lanyard made of a special plastic that lights up in the dark and is placed in the trunk. In the event that someone is locked inside, just pull the lace, clearly visible in the dark, to open the trunk and free yourself.
However, it is now the custom of many car manufacturers to insert a backlit button which allows you to open the tailgate from the inside.
Anti-kidnapping lace: fun fact
The compulsory nature of the anti-kidnapping strap applies to all cars, regardless of the size of the trunk. This means that even the front trunk of a Porsche 911 is obliged to contain this button, even if there wouldn't even be a dog inside!
American cars # 5: huge displacements and powers: there's no replacement for displacement
The last peculiar feature of American cars can only be a question that everyone sooner or later asks: why do American cars always have big and powerful engines?
In reality there is no "true" answer. In fact, there are many factors. The aforementioned dimensions of the country have always marked the need to have fast cars, or in any case capable of maintaining a high speed for some time without breaking. Continuous availability of gasoline then it never led the American market to collide with high fuel prices, which favored the continuation of the "tradition" of big engines.
Also, since American cars are large and heavy, the use of large and powerful engines has always been inevitable. Finally, the tax issue. In America and Canada there are no taxes on car ownership and insurance does not take into account the displacement as in Italy or in Europe in general. This is why all the best-selling American cars they have huge and very reliable engines (usually), and the powers are really considerable.
The power issue is almost a contradiction, given that the United States is one of the countries with the most stringent speed limits and the highest sanctions. But anyhow, this is the habit.
No diesel, which in fact costs more in America than good old gasoline.
No small engines: only in recent years has downsizing also timidly appeared on American cars.
More torque: in Europe cars tend to be small, so the torque needed to move them is relatively small. With large SUVs or American sedans, on the other hand, a compact and turbocharged engine would have a hard time carrying over 2 tons of cars. And a larger displacement means more torque, i.e. more force in giving motion to the car and its occupants. So much so that even in Europe on larger cars such as BMW X7 or Audi Q8 we see engines at least 3.0 displacement.
No consumption problems: gasoline in America costs the equivalent of 58 cents per liter. This means that keep a 5.0 V8 which travels 8 km with a liter in America it costs as much as maintaining a 1.0 subcompact in Europe.
Cars therefore tend to be powerful in America. Larger US vehicles have at least engines with 6 cylinders, with a clear preference for the V8, the symbolic engine of the American auto industry. This applies to sedans, pick-ups, sports cars, but also to minivans and small cars.
I minivan that we talked about earlier have for the most part engines starting from 3 liters of displacement and with powers of at least 250 HP, with peaks of over 300 for some versions. Even the cars that we also market in Europe are more powerful in America. For example, the very German Volkswagen Golf has been sold for years on the American market only even with a beautiful 2.5 5-cylinder in-line aspirated with about 200 HP, an engine that we have never seen before. Sin…
Americans have always had a saying: “There’s no replacement for displacement”, or "The displacement cannot be replaced". Big engines are also reliable engines, capable of traveling many miles without stopping, powerful and capable of carrying around 2000/2500 kg of cars effortlessly. And then let's say it: how nice a minivan with a 3.5 V6 of almost 300 HP, or a pick-up with a V8 of almost 400!
READ ALSO: Ford Explorer Plug-In: fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee ... sitting on a sofa
American cars: strange cars, but with a charisma of their own
We got to the end of this journey in the American auto industry. But we have done nothing but touch the tip of the iceberg with these 5 peculiar characteristics.
American cars are very special, we can also say strange. They often don't pay too much attention to appearances and details, but deliver exactly what the audience wants. Between tons of space, powerful engines, cup holders and keyless ways to get into cars, the charisma of these cars is undoubted.
Someday we will also do a journey among the most iconic and "American" cars ever produced.
Like the legendary Chevrolet Corvette!
but today Auto for Dummies ends here. See you next time!
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