European Stars and Stripes (Newspaper) - February 13, 1990, Darmstadt, Hesse                                Daily Selling safety automotive ads find new focus by Paul c. Judge new York times a after years of insisting that safely features do not sell cars automakers have noticed that Many prospective buyers hink differently suddenly Many car advertisements talk of Little else. The new attention to safety features is credited partly to the baby Boomers now Middle age adults with families of their own they Are the largest generation of Consumers in history and their safety concerns Are being sharpened by parenthood the car companies Are also trying to put the Best lace on new Federal regulations requiring them to add safety features whether or not buyers want them Chrysler corp. Once a staunch opponent of air bags now hails itself in Many advertisements As the Only american Auto company that offers divers Side air bags As Standard equipment in All of its 1990 cars sold in the United states Ford motor co. However has raised the Ante by promising to make air bags Standard for both front seat passengers by the mid 1990s in All Ford cars sold in the United states Volvo credits ils longtime practice of emphasizing safety in its advertising for raising its sales in the United states last year even though other european automakers suffered substantial declines Bow of West Germany the first manufacturer to claim anti lock braking sys Ems As Standard equipment on All models now focuses on the steering acceleration and braking capabilities of its cars saying such features can help prevent accidents Toyota and Nissan Are telling Consumers in ads that the Sheet Metal in their car bodies gives better structural Isle Only and crash worthiness general motors Cadillac division promotes the size and Power of its luxury sedans As safely features ii tested the Market Appeal of safety with a series of ads thai stressed features like anti lock brakes and reinforced Side door beams and sales increased twice As much in the 10 markets where the ads ran As in areas where the pitch was Standard luxury Appeal several of these features have been Buill into Cadillac for several  said William j o Neill a Cadillac spokesman but we elected not to talk about them because we thought it was t Worth it Many such ads Are created with baby Boomers in mind they represent half of All car buyers and Many of them have  said Chest Ophir w Cedergren. An analyst for j d Power & associates they Are still interested in performance styling and value but now they also want safely which has become a much More important Issue now that they have children beyond the baby Boomers safety is increasingly a Selling Point. Particularly among More affluent car buyers analysts and Auto executives said 1 there is an awareness of safety among the car buying re  said Maryann n Keller of Furman Selz Mager Dietz & Birney people Are willing to pay for safety features such As Anli lock braking systems " marketing executives for the map automakers have watched safely Rise on the list of attributes Hal prospective buyers consider important in 1981, according to Ford Market analysts customers ranked safety near the Bottom of a dozen Selling Points thai include performance styling and fuel Economy last year customers listed safety among their of seven considerations Ford analysis noted that safely was the Only attribute to Rise on the list it s almost a cultural change said Robert Rosenfelt. Manager of occupant Protection and Impact dynamics at Ford people Are becoming More technically sophisticated and they Are gelling bombarded with the safety message " the new emphasis on safety also stems from a desire by some automakers to make the most of new Federal Laws requiring some kind of passive restraint whether it be the less expensive automatic seat Belt or the More expensive air bag in the Driver s seals of All new cars sold in the United slates starting in 1990. The big three have said that by choosing the higher Cost air bags for Many models they have had to raise prices for 1990 cars More than their japanese competitors which equipped nearly All their models with the less costly automatic Seal Belt. The big three raised their prices an average of $805. Compared with $205 Tor japanese cars after being forced to make huge investments in passive restraints the Auto manufacturers want to Point out How much safer their air bags or automatic seat belts  Cedergren said consumer awareness of Aulo safety features has also been raised by the discounts now offered by Many insurance companies for Drivers of cars equipped with air bags automatic seat belts and Anli lock brakes the discounts Range As High As go percent off the personal Iri Tir payments and medical portions of the premiums for cars that have air bags which translates Inlo an annual savings of $10 to $35 for moot Drivers according to the Center for automotive safely. In the 1980s, Domestic automakers dragged their feet on major safely advances notably air bags contending that customers did not want such equipment and would not pay extra for an expensive feature that most of them would never use general motors offered air bags As an option in its Lull size bricks Oldsmobile and Cadillac beginning in 1974, but abandoned them in 1976 after fewer than 1 percent of buyers opted for air bags analysts argued Hal the air bags flopped because they were poorly promoted with customers and dealers Lee a. Iacocca now Chrysler s chairman and then president of Ford said in 1972 that safety does t consumer interest has been the driving Force behind the car makers about face. Sell but the growing demand for safer cars coupled with technical advances that made air bags cheaper and More reliable caused Iacocca to change his mind indeed when Chrysler announced its commitment to air bags in 1988. The company ran ads with a picture of its Well known chairman proclaiming who says you can t teach an old dog new tricks Volvo has Buill ils marketing strategy around the message Hal Volvo Drivers often can walk away from a major crash Volvo have a track record for being tanks Cedergren said. The swedish automaker has increased its safety related advertising it now accounts for More than half of its advertising budget recently the company has been hailing findings of the insurance Institute for Highway safety that Drivers in Volvo s most expensive models have exceptionally Low death rates for years Volvo was advertised As the Sale car and they have been very  a Ford executive said. You see a lot of companies now Are marketing selective safely features rather than taking Volvo s approach of pushing the Overall safely of the car " Subaru ads now play off the Volvo commercials thai Oiler graphic visual evidence of How passengers Are pro Leclert by a steel Cage when the front end crumples in a crash Subaru wryly suggests tha the braking system in its cars helps Drivers avoid Ever having to find out How the car performs in a collision but other japanese car companies Are. For the most past absent from this Arena. One reason the japanese Aren t advertising safety More is because they Don t have much to  said Brian o Neill president of the insurance Institute for Highway safely a number of smaller japanese models have the worst safety records in a list compiled annually by the Institute based on insurance claims. O Neill said Toyota s lexus and Nissan s infiniti. Both luxury cars Are the Only japanese models equipped with air bags tuesday february 13, 1990 the stars and stripes Page 13