By Prime Star 
In just a few short decades, the relationship between man and machine has changed dramatically. What was once a strictly functional approach to transportation has become an extension of personal and professional identity and image. Over the years, automotive ownership has gone from a status symbol for the rich to the ultimate form of self-expression and micro-/macro social communication tool. Cars are no longer machines; they’re people extensions.
As such, this represents a significant evolution in automotive identity over time. As soon as the automobile became a practical option for the masses, owning one was purely based on economic footing. Yet in modern times, those who own vehicles began to create an investment based on their lifestyle choices and personality needs. How one chooses to personalize and maintain a vehicle is the equivalent of how one chooses to dress, decorate their home, etc.
It’s not that automotive identity wasn’t always there – it’s clear that people grew attached to their vehicles over time – but now it’s in the social consciousness as an expected vehicle-for-person investment opportunity.
How Did This Transformation Occur?
There are a few psychological reasons rooted in socio-economic implication and world affairs that have transitioned automotive identity from function to extended self-expression. For example, relative wealth plays a major role.
For the owners who have access to a variety of vehicles and purchase based on accessibility, and not necessity, they began to look at their options differently – not only how a vehicle looked and felt to operate but how it could operate in the world as an extension of expression value. The more people had cars, the less they worried about what others thought or driving plain-looking cars driven by others. The more personalized cars became, the more people started to see them as mirrors.
In addition, as access became diversified where social equity exposed a broader range of automobile options (color, models, accessories), people received motivation to invest in personalizing what they had. It’s also important to note that social media platforms positioned people with access to shared communities of interest in automotive identity. For example, YouTube channels dedicated to vehicle transformations, Instagram feeds filled with car photos, and limited selling transactions offer a new way to operate with identity behind the wheel.
What’s even more transformational about automotive identity in modernity is that there’s such a range through which one can alter a vehicle. There are subtle touches that even the driver may be the only one to acknowledge and then there are bold statements that everyone sees when passing by. Essentially, personalization exists along a spectrum conducive to personality communication styles.
Highly Personalized Options
It’s easy to see why some of the most popular avenues of car personalization have become private plate choices. Owners swap out government-mandated registrations for private number plates that matter to them – names spelled out, interests expressed through abbreviated means, or meaningful dates that tell their personal story without overwhelming others who see their vehicle.
Other personalization factors exist that focus entirely on the owner’s experience. Subtle interior enhancements such as custom seat covers or steering wheel makeovers emphasize how someone can create satisfaction from their automobile without worrying about external opinions. It’s all for them – private car space where they can express their personality and preferences in ways that enhance their daily driving experience.
Why is Automotive Identity Effective?
There are psychological motivators for why people view cars in such an empowered transformational way. Automotive ownership represents freedom unlike anything else; one’s state of home represents freedom over who can enter; anyone who owns a car knows their car is a place they can dictate 100% of the time without anyone else intruding. Therefore it makes sense that every day each person would want to look at their car 100% of the time as something that represents comfort and value.
It’s important for identity formation not just behind closed doors (home) but also in the public arena (on wheels). One’s car is all but publically private – totally operable for only them inside. Simultaneously, it’s a major public communication source for everyone else allowing others to know what someone stands for without ever saying a word.
They’d necessarily have to drive by; exist in their parking spots – and that’s effective; it’s less direct than obvious clothing choices or embellished talk when casual associations or mundane private conversations take place. The best part about cars helping facilitate personal identity is how it’s done naturally and effectively from day one; they create constant connections every single day since one operates their vehicle daily instead of sporting something occasionally worn or displayed.
How do Cars Help Us Communicate?
There are few items as basic as someone’s car through which they can assess what a person values. A basic Sedan champions no-fuss appeal while a big pickup truck with loud music boasts machismo. Someone who drives a Tesla versus a Honda Accord champions environmental awareness versus luxury niceties thanks to machine monopolization for big budget customers.
Yet no one looks at someone else’s clothes with such scrutiny as they dissect their automotive choice. At least with an automobile there’s some distance; read all you want on a bumper sticker but don’t assume you’ve penetrated another person’s bubble unless they’ve personally invited you in.
Even through customization there are figurative messages galore – driving around a highly restored vintage piece offers different values than someone who’s looking for an RV for family road trips and different values than someone who has transformed their ride into an SUV on steroids by way of added features.
In sum, automotive identity represents an evolutionary perspective that transcended simple function since practical sensibilities transitioned into securing the basics before taking pride in deeper meaning investment opportunities – meaning vehicles are now so much more than what could only previously be seen as a giant hunk of metal turning wheels.