• Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • About
  • Forum
  • Design Studio
  • Upholstery Jobs
  • Newsletter
  • Sponsors

The Hog Ring

Auto Upholstery Community

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Twitter

U.S. Convertible Sales Continue to Drop

August 17, 2012 By Nadeem Muaddi 1 Comment

Late last year Naseem wrote an article titled “Where Have all the Ragtops Gone?” – which called attention to America’s waning interest in convertible cars.

Given the recent uptick in car sales, we expected that the demand for topless cars would increase. However, Smart Money Magazine reports that’s not the case at all. In fact, the situation has only gotten worse.

[W]hile Americans might still fantasize about tooling around the neighborhood with the top down, they’re not opening their wallets to make that dream a reality.

Convertible sales, which typically make up a minuscule 2 percent of the car market, fell even further in 2011, to just over 1 percent. And the drop-off comes as sales should be accelerating; new-car sales turned around last year and are expected to hit 14.4 million units this year. The problem, say analysts, starts with the sticker price. A convertible Ford Mustang, for instance, costs about $5,000 more than the standard coupe. […]

Not surprisingly, the economic downturn has prompted drivers to home in on practicality and affordability — not exactly the biggest strengths of a model that’s often a second (or third or even fourth) car. [more]

With U.S. drivers buying fewer ragtops, American automakers have little incentive to keep producing them – which explains why you can now count the number of American-made convertibles on your fingers.

If something isn’t done soon to reverse this trend, we may well be the last generation of auto trimmers to work on new, American convertibles – a sad proposition.

Filed Under: Archive, Industry Trends & Reports Tagged With: Auto Trim, Auto Upholstery, Car Interior, Convertible Top

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. EDWARD MUNDAY says

    August 17, 2012 at 4:21 pm

    RETIRED… WELL IT USE TO BE ONCE THE KIDS WERE GONE FROM THE HOME TO COLLEGE /MARRIED OR WAR, THEN THE OLDER FOLKS WOULD BUY ONE WHY BECAUSE THERE FRIENDS WHO DIDNT HAVE KIDS HAD ONE AND IT SEEMED LIKE A FUN VEHICLE. BUT TODAY THERES ALL KINDS OF FUN VEHICLES AND LIKE YOUR ARTICLE SAYS SOME TIMES ITS A THIRD CAR WHICH IS MINE. BUT YOUVE GOT TO LOOK AT THIS THE WEATHER ISNT COOPERATING ALMOST EVERY NEWS ARTICAL ON HEALTH MENTIONS SKIN CANCER. AND THE OZONE IS IN THE WRONG PLACE. WHY BECAUSE SOME ONE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE GREAT TO SEE THE STARS BETTER I SUPPOSE. PLUS THERE ARNT MANY TRIMMERS LIKE MY DAD LEFT WHO WOULD RATHER WORK THAN EAT. IVE SEEN HIM TELL CUSTOMERS ILL PUT THE TOP ON FOR THE PRICE OF THE TOP AND A BENJIMEN 100 DOLLARS. OF COARSE MY DADS BEEN IN TRIMMER HEAVEN FOR 12 YEARS. BUT YOU JUST DONT HAVE TRIMMERS WHO WANT THE WORK THAT BAD ANYMORE AND THEN YOUVE GOT EVERYTHING ELSE THE USA ECONOMY HAS FALLEN BEHIND OTHER COUNTRYS AND WE ARE BORROWING THERE MONEY. ON TOP OF ALL THIS YOU HAVE FOLKS WHO KNOW WHAT THEY HAVE AND THEY WANT TO PROTECT IT . THEY DONT DRIVE THEM IN THE RAIN THERE KEPT GARAGED, PEOPLE ARE JUST WISER DOTAY THAN YESTERYEAR AND THEN YOU HAVE THE SAFTY ISSUES ASSOCIATED WITH CONVERTABLES, THEY ALL DIDNT COME WITH A ROOL BAR.JUST SO YOU KNOW HOW MUCH THINGS HAVE GONE UP IN PRICE. IN 1970 I PURCHASED A 1957 CHEVEROLET BELAIR NO POST WHICH WAS 13 YEARS OLD. THE CAR HAD STAINLESS STEEL PARTS AS WELL AS ALUMINUM TRIM. NOW THIS WAS AN EXCEPTIONAL CAR I PURCHASED IT FOR $700.00 AT A USED CAR LOT. TODAY THIS BLUE BEAUTY WOULD SELL FOR AROUND $40,000.00 IF LOOKING AS I PURCHASED MINE. BOY DO I WISH ID KEPT THAT CAR.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

THR Sponsors

NC Sewing Machines
Miami Corporation RIght Rail - Ad 2
Top Down Group
Apex Leather
  • Keyston Bros
  • Douglass Interior Products
  • GAHH Automotive
  • MasterTech Expo Ad 2
  • Albright's Supply
  • Premium Auto Fabrics
  • Hyde Leather
  • Moore & Giles Ad 1

THR Favorites

The Hog Ring - Meet Cameron Hayward of North Coast Custom Trim

Meet Cameron Hayward of North Coast Custom Trim

Cameron Hayward honed his skills in … [more] about Meet Cameron Hayward of North Coast Custom Trim

The Hog Ring - Learn Auto Upholstery With This New Book

Learn Auto Upholstery with this New Book

Whether you're a rookie or seasoned auto … [more] about Learn Auto Upholstery with this New Book

The Hog Ring - How to fix a skipped stitch

The Easiest Way to Fix a Skipped Stitch

You know what sucks? When your sewing machine … [more] about The Easiest Way to Fix a Skipped Stitch

Auto Upholstery - The Hog Ring - Design Studio

Design Studio: Full Generic Interiors

Last month we launched The Hog Ring Design … [more] about Design Studio: Full Generic Interiors

Auto Upholstery - The Hog Ring - Stitches Fine Automotive Interiors

Junk in the Trunk: Don’t Hide It, Disguise It!

Upholstering a vehicle’s trunk can be … [more] about Junk in the Trunk: Don’t Hide It, Disguise It!

The Hog Ring - This Car is Upholstered in Persian Rugs

This Car is Upholstered in Persian Rugs

How would an old school Mercedes-Benz look … [more] about This Car is Upholstered in Persian Rugs

Categories

Footer

Recent Articles

  • Premium Auto Fabrics is Giving Away Hog Ring T-Shirts!
  • Classic Upholstery Won Big at the Rick Ross Car Show
  • Moore & Giles Sponsors The Hog Ring!
  • Trimmer Vincent Robert Mikla Dies at 70
  • Nominate a Trimmer to SEMA’s Hall of Fame

Recent Comments

  • Thomas Wright on Bentley Looks to Mississippi for Veneers
  • Joe payton on Moore & Giles Sponsors The Hog Ring!
  • Tempat Cetak Official on 6 Ways to Transform Plastic into Chrome
  • Christie Howell on Transition from Furniture to Auto Upholstery
  • Andrew Narzynski on The Crooked Stitcher Accused of Fraud

Advertise With Us!

We're always looking for companies to collaborate with. Watch this short video about the benefits of sponsorship and then email us to say hi.
anal porno bangbros rus porno yaşlı porno konulu porno olgun porno porno izle sarışın porno bakire sex 69 porno

Copyright © 2023 · Magazine Pro On Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in