U.S. Campus Life Car troubles By Masako Yamada	フレームで見る  英文をプリントする  脚注をプリントする
車について考える 筆者の住むボストンのアパートの近くにある自動車販売店。

When I visited Albany for my job interview, I had to ask my future co-workers to carpool me. They must have found this strange, since most people rent a car as soon as they arrive at the airport. They made it clear that I would need a car once I moved there.

Cars waste energy, cause pollution, and create traffic jams and accidents. I don't like how people treat these piles of wheels and gears like an extension of themselves, to show off their wealth or their daredevil driving skills.

I admit I'm no Senna. I barely passed my driver's exam as a teenager and I haven't driven since. What if I hit a bear in upstate New York and then fell off a bridge into the icy waters below? These are complaints that I've mentioned before, but lately, I've realized that I have other reasons for not wanting to get a car. Basically, I don't want to shop for one! There are two reasons:

1) Choosing a car: Cars are expensive, so one should carefully consider all options before making a purchase. I dread having to compare models and prices of different cars. Cars bore me. Four-wheel drive, ABS brakes, manual vs. automatic, V-6 engine . . . yawn. I'd rather listen to a bunch of parents brag about their perfect children.

There is a cluster of car dealerships just a 10-minute walk from my home: BMW, Porsche, Saab, Honda, Toyota . . . I don't want to sift through reams of manuals and consumer surveys, so I've decided to ask around to see what cars my friends have. They've done their homework, so I can just copy the answers.

I've been hearing the same name over and over again: Honda. I noticed not one, but two Hondas in the driveway of a friend, a sleek red number and an SUV. One labmate is happy with his used Civic and another labmate with two kids is thrilled with his Honda minivan. An older labmate has a Honda with about 100,000 miles (160,000 km) on it and he said he feels it'll last for a good 10 more years.

Coincidentally, from the time I considered buying a car, I've had a Honda Civic in mind. It appeals to my philosophy as a consumer: it's a modest, reliable machine that does its job well.

So, will I buy a Honda? One of my future co-workers in Albany is a fan of German cars. He says that in snowy, slippery upstate New York, one can really feel the difference in control. Apparently, the car feels much more stable. My first car will definitely not be a BMW, but his comments have forced me to think a bit harder about this whole topic.

2) Buying a car: Once I limit the number of candidates, I must go to the car dealership. That's where the car salesman steps in. The job title "car salesman" has a slightly suspicious air to it, since car sales is a slightly suspicious trade. Consumers can test-drive a car with the salesman, but the salesman continues to put on the pressure inside the car. It's commonly known that the sticker price is completely overblown, so consumers must bargain down the price. The question is how? And how much?

In the States, consumers usually never question the price on the label at a shop or market. I, myself, have never tried to haggle at a store. But cars are different. Consumers have to know how much a car is worth and how one can negotiate the lowest price. One can look up how much a car dealer pays for a car and guess how low the dealer is willing to go. Often, it is thousands of dollars lower than the sticker price! If the dealer doesn't agree, one must say something like "If you're not going to give me a better price, I'll just go to XYZ dealership across town."

The prospect of going to the dealership makes my head ache. My boyfriend has agreed to accompany me. He'll do the test-drive and help with the negotiations. I might be propagating a negative stereotype — that a woman should be accompanied by a man when buying a car — but I must rely on his support this time round. I've never driven a car by myself in my entire life. I wouldn't know how to turn it on, much less try to bargain while driving.

Thankfully, I still have a few more months to think about things. I do think I should start taking driving lessons again.

Shukan ST: April 19, 2002

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