Small European Cars Shine
全球汽车业一片黯淡中也有一个亮点：欧洲时尚小型车的销量今年一直在节节攀升，包括戴姆勒(Daimler AG)的Smart、菲亚特(Fiat SpA)的500以及宝马汽车(BMW AG)的Mini Cooper。
There's a bright spot amid the global automobile sector's gloom: Sales of small, chic European cars -- Daimler AG's Smart, Fiat SpA's 500, and BMW AG's Mini Cooper -- have grown this year.
这三款车型有着共同的成功特点：时尚的设计、高端的形像以及出色的能耗。这些车型的畅销表明，即便在不利的经济形势下，消费者仍然会受到吸引购买那些设计与众不同、足以体现购买者独特生活方式的汽车。
The three have common traits that likely are sparking their success: trendy design, a high-end image and fuel efficiency. The cars' popularity shows how, even in a tough economic climate, consumers still can be enticed to buy cars that are perceived as special enough to make a lifestyle statement about their owners.
花旗集团(Citigroup)驻伦敦汽车分析师劳森(John Lawson)表示，这些汽车有着巨大的情感魅力。但作为汽车产品，它们又以节能省油和设计新颍打动了消费者，因此才获得了出色的销量。
'These cars have enormous emotional appeal,' says John Lawson, a Citigroup automobile analyst in London. 'But as products, they also hit consumers' priorities on fuel economy and style on the head, so they are selling well.'
当然，某些车型的畅销并不能拯救汽车行业的低迷状态。由于全球经济衰退阴影迫近导致消费者推迟购买高价商品，汽车销量自8月份以来已经大幅下挫。信贷紧缩也使得很多消费者更难获得贷款买车。为了应对不利状况，许多汽车制造商都暂时关闭旗下工厂，保证汽车供应与需求一致。法国雷诺(Renault SA)、德国大众汽车(Volkswagen AG)、美国通用汽车(General Motors Corp.)和福特汽车(Ford Motor Co.)等公司都在游说政府提供救助，帮助他们渡过金融危机。
To be sure, sales of niche models won't save the ailing automobile sector. Car sales have plummeted since August as consumers spooked by a looming global recession delay spending on big-ticket items. The credit crunch also has made it harder for some people to secure loans to buy cars. To cope, many car makers are closing factories temporarily to keep vehicle supply in line with demand. Companies such as France's Renault SA, Germany's Volkswagen AG and General Motors Corp. and Ford Motor Co. in the U.S. are lobbying for government aid to help them weather the financial crisis.
但目前为止，欧洲三大知名小型车却在低迷环境下表现出色。一些分析师表示，这些车型的成功可作为汽车行业长期的借鉴经验。市场研究公司Global Insight的汽车分析师考奇曼(Colin Couchman)表示，如果你生产的汽车设计漂亮、能够保值并给使用者日常驾驶带来诸多愉悦，那么人们就会购买。他说，做到这点并不容易，但一些欧洲汽车制造商正在朝这个方向努力。
For now, though, Europe's three best-known small cars are riding out the downturn well. And some analysts say their success holds long-term lessons for the industry. 'If you make cars that are nice, keep their value over time and give people a good deal of pleasure on a daily basis, people will buy them,' says Colin Couchman, an auto analyst at market-research firm Global Insight. It isn't an easy recipe, he says, 'but some European car makers are getting it right.'
花旗集团预计，今年前10个月全球汽车销量较上年同期下降了3%。但据公司数据显示，戴姆勒Smart汽车全球销量同期增长了47%，至113,200 辆；Mini Cooper全球销量增长了11%，至202,300辆。虽然10月份两款车全球销量有所退步（Smart增长7%，Mini下滑3.4%），但仍然超过了美国市场全部车型销量普遍下滑大约30%的表现。
Citigroup estimates that global car sales for January through October fell 3% from a year earlier. But global sales of Daimler's subcompact Smart car rose 47% to 113,200 vehicles for the period, and sales of the Mini Cooper rose 11% to 202,300, according to the companies. Global sales slacked off a bit in October, rising 7% for the Smart and dropping 3.4% for the Mini, but still outpaced a U.S. market in which all car sales fell around 30%.
德国戴姆勒公司表示，今年有望销售140,000辆Smart汽车。由于体形非常小巧，Smart在许多城市都可以垂直于路肩停放；这款车于1998年在欧洲上市，一开始很难找到自己的市场。但近年来该车经过重新设计降低了售价，销量也明显上升。
Germany's Daimler says it is on track to sell 140,000 Smart cars this year. So diminutive it can be parked facing the curb in many cities, the Smart launched in Europe in 1998 and initially struggled to find its market. But in recent years the car has taken off after a redesign reduced the price.
自从德国宝马近期推出Clubman版Mini后，这一车型的销量大受提振；Clubman版Mini比标准版Mini更宽敞，拥有较大的后备箱。根据环境保护署(Environmental Protection Agency)的数据，标准Mini Cooper在城市每加仑汽油可跑28英里，在高速公路上每加仑可跑37英里。相比之下，美国汽车的平均每加仑里程数只有21英里。
Sales of the Mini are getting a boost since Germany's BMW recently introduced a Clubman version, which is roomier than the standard Mini Cooper and has a bigger trunk. The Environmental Protection Agency rates the standard Mini Cooper's mileage at 28 miles per gallon in the city and 37 mpg on the highway. That compares with an average of 21 mpg for all cars in the U.S.
菲亚特表示，新的500车型销量已经达到了153,000辆左右，这款车是上世纪六十年代标志性小车Cinquecento的经典再现。自从2007年7月推出后，这款费里尼(Frederico Fellini)电影《甜蜜生活》(La Dolce Vita)中亮相的经典小车的再版就受到了欧洲各地消费者的热捧。菲亚特的这款车没有在美国市场销售。
Fiat says it sold about 153,000 of its new 500 model, a vintage-looking remake of the iconic 1960s 'Cinquecento.' Since its July 2007 rollout, buyers across Europe have been won over by the grandchild of the car featured in Frederico Fellini's film 'La Dolce Vita.' The Italian auto maker's car isn't sold in the U.S.
尽管三款小型车体形迷你，但售价可不便宜。菲亚特500起价为13,500美元-14,000美元；Mini Cooper起价为18,000美元-20,000美元；而Smart售价在14,000-17,000美元左右。分析师们表示，典型的买家本可以承受更大、动力更强劲的汽车，但他们都选择了这些车型。
Despite their size, the three cars aren't cheap. The Fiat 500 sells for a base price of $13,500-$14,000; the Mini Cooper, for $18,000-$20,000; and the Smart, around $14,000-$17,000. The typical buyer could afford a bigger, more powerful vehicle, but opted for these models, analysts say.
Leila Abboud
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