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Shiny car = happy person

Having a clean car makes motorists feel better about themselves, a study has claimed.

Cleaning your car takes time and effort but it seems there are benefits beyond spending some time in the sun. An independent survey discovered 74 per cent of motorists feel much better about themselves when their car is shiny.

The survey commissioned by IMO Car Wash Group found motorists aged between 25 and 34 years old were the most likely to benefit from a clean car, with 85 per cent admitting it made them feel happier, compared with 82 per cent of those aged 18 to 24.

73 per cent of Scottish motorists reaped the benefits of a shiny motor ─ more than any other country in Great Britain. This goes some way in explaining why 60 per cent of Scots clean their car on a monthly basis, compared with 45 per cent in the South of England.

The study of 1,239 drivers across the UK looked at the effect on different types of employment. Students and ‘occasional workers’ felt the most satisfaction and were happier about their car. Retired motorists and people in ‘higher socio-economic groups’ saw the least result, at 61 per cent and 65 per cent, respectively.

“Our cars are very personal spaces. The make or model we choose to drive is generally accepted to imply our personality and vocation,” psychology expert Dr Sandra Wheatley commented. “The value of them is very often assumed to reflect our status in society. By having a clean car, are we telling the world how conscientious and/or reliable we are – a clean car reflecting a well-ordered mind?”

“Younger drivers, or those without financial security, may want to use every tool available to tell the world that they are worthwhile and worth getting to know.  It follows that those financially comfortable, including retired drivers, don’t feel the need to wash and polish their cars in order to feel proud,” she added.

Not everyone was quite so positive about spending the day polishing an inanimate object. A small per cent said they would rather “boil their head”.

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