2009 Toyota Camry... Because the 2008 isn't new enough.

I was watching American Idol last night and right there in the middle of the episode was a commercial for the 2009 Toyota Camry. 2009??? Are you seriously trying to tell me that the 2009 vehicles are already on sale in April?? Okay, so G looks over at me and says "Sweetie, it's always been that way." Has it really? I mean, I can remember the following year's car coming out in the late fall and car dealers having commercials that said "This is the year end sales event! We've got to make room for all of those brand new whatever-year-cars."

Even if they have always come out with the next year's model in the spring of the year before, I think it's completely ridiculous. If the car is made and being sold in 2008, it should BE a 2008 model. I guess someone in marketing one day just decided that they could sell more cars if they advertised it that way... After all, we are the dumb consumers who buy into that shit. I am sure that there are tons of people who think it's cool to own the "new" 2009 model. Much cooler than owning the 2008 really. I mean, the 2009 is like the car of the future! In a country where "keeping up with the Jones's" is so important, having the 2009' hit the lots in freakin' April is probably a good idea. Before you know it, they will be trying to sell us cars that are dated 5+ years in the future. They will try to make us feel that somehow their designers have so much foresight into the technology and the style of the future that they can design the 2015 Camry or whatever and sell it in 2010.

The truth is, there hasn't really been that much advancement in technology when it comes to the cars we drive. VW's were already getting 25+ mpg back in the 70's, so why am I still driving a car that gets about the same?? Sure, there are the new hybrids and electric cars, but they are so much more exensive that it's cheaper for me to buy the poor gas mileage car and just pay for the gas prices. I have a feeling that the technology to make our cars more efficient is out there, but someone has paid to shelve it. Big Business could really care less about the middle class and poor drivers of America who can't afford to fill up their car for $60 every week. All they care about is skyrocketing gas prices and filling their own pocketbooks. I don't know about you, but even if the 2009 version of my car is cooler and newer... I can't fucking afford it.