Peugeot, another of the auto makers that pitched its cars as being made according to principles opposite to planned obsolescence—as “planned without obsolescence”—used the slogan “more car than you’ll ever need” in one of its marketing campaigns. This prompts the question (most powerfully posed from the puzzled perspective of the value engineer) of why the consumer would ever want more car than she needs, especially given the likelihood of her having to pay for the excess. Another ad for the company claims that “it’s common for a Peugeot to get 150,000 or even 200,000 miles.”68 Volvo struck a more ironic tone in its campaign, with a 1967 ad beginning: “The paper car. The next logical step of planned obsolescence.” The ad contrasts that approach to car making with the one followed by Volvo, described as aiming to build cars that last longer “than a good suit,” with an “average life” of eleven years.
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Time for Things