Audi 2006 Annual Report Download - page 74

Spaniards
and their cars
In the aftermath of
Spain’s economic mira-
cle, the size of a person’s
car has emerged as an
indication of a person’s
social advancement. The
higher they have climbed
the social scale, the
higher up they sit when
out on the roads. City
streets are teeming with
dark-coloured SUVs that
provide the perfect foil
to the suave elegance of
their immaculately
besuited drivers. As en-
thusiasts of minivans
and compact city cars,
women too have staked
a claim to their place in
the automotive jungle.
The world of
automotive dreams
While one person drives around in a mobile playroom, another
may relish open-top driving in the rain, while yet another believes
in the power of their car’s horn, or hears the call to “Go West”.
Every nation has its own habits and customs. Four motoring
journalists describe trends in their host countries.
SOCIETY: INTERNATIONAL CAR TRENDS
PHOTO: HANS NELEMAN/CORBIS
72 AUDI 2006 ANNUAL REPORT
Spain: a hint of machismo
Dominique Chidaine started his career with
the regional daily La Montagne, subsequent-
ly moving to Paris (Télé Star) and then to a
press agency based near Toulouse. He is now
a freelance journalist living in Barcelona.
Nothing is more important to the Spaniards than
the corrida – except, perhaps, for their cars. Blood-
red and bright yellow, the colours of this Spanish
passion, also predominate on the sometimes
chaotic roads. In the home country of Fernando
Alonso, young drivers in particular can be seen
proudly showing off their eye-catching cars. As
soon as they have earned their first cash, they take
out a loan to help them invest in securing their
place out on the roads: after all, roaring engines
and booming hi-fi systems are guaranteed to at-
tract attention. In a country that still has a strong
whiff of machismo, the car lends itself readily as
a symbol of masculinity. The more tuned, the bet-
ter. Local lads will hang around their bodega un-
til late into the night discussing the latest models
and debating hot topics such as the points-based
driving licence that was recently introduced.
Their relationship with their car is highly emo-
tional. So fond are Spaniards of their four-
wheeled baby that they would be hard pressed to
lend it even to their closest friend. An acquain-
tance from Barcelona recently admitted to me that
he can barely bring himself to hand over his car
keys to the security personnel at an underground
car park even if he only has a quick errand to do.
You have to head into the countryside to find
people with a more relaxed view of things, and the
older people are, the more relaxed their outlook
seems to become. In a society that is undergoing
radical change, pensioners and the rural popula-
tion epitomise the more conservative view that a
car is first and foremost an essential means of
transport. This group consequently tends to pre-
fer classic models, ideally in white to fend off the
searing heat of the Spanish sun a little more ef-
fectively. But whether urbanite or country-dweller,
strapping youth or senior citizen, van driver or
sports car enthusiast – they all share one pas-
sion. The indispensable accessory of every
Spanish car is unquestionably the horn. It cuts a
swathe through any traffic jam, turns heads and
is the perfect accompaniment to the local foot-
ball team’s latest victory. In this latter respect, too,
the Spaniards have remained faithful to their Latin
temperament: early nights are an alien concept.