Less Gas, More Wraps

Vehicle wraps have indisputably become one of the hottest sign-industry trends. They can be produced quickly, generally aren’t subject to the same regulations as stationary graphics and rack up voluminous viewings that garner very economical cost-per-impression ratios that advertisers love.

However, a few harsh realities may ultimately temper enthusiasm for wrapped graphics. With $4-per-gallon for gas seemingly a permanent baseline, coupled with shaky economic times and the diminishing well of advertising budgets, challenges may loom on this market’s horizon.

Yet, wrap providers shouldn’t despair. Wraps’ aforementioned positive attributes create an effective calling card, and emerging technologies may reinvigorate interest. One such new face on the roadway, the three-wheeled vehicles yield 45 miles per gallon, a top speed of approximately 70 mph and a $10,000 price point (for gas-powered models; electric-powered three-wheelers, which run for 30 miles on a single electric charge, carry an approximately $35,000 tab), these vehicles may offer an appealing, attention-grabbing avenue for advertisers who seek progressive demographics – and help buoy the bottom lines of service providers. Though the vehicles aren't yet approved for public roadways in every state, the constraints of expensive fuel has triggered momentum to approve these pioneering gas-savers in places where they're not yet permitted.

Myers Motors (Tallmadge, OH) president, Dana Myers, set up operations with a Chinese manufacturing facility and began offering the vehicles two years ago, which it sells directly from its Tallmadge office. To help introduce them to the U.S. market, Myers ordered wraps to promote his brand. Though company officials don’t recall who fabricated the wraps, Myers was pleased with the visual impact they provided.

Ironically, Myers’ home state was one that forbade the vehicles. Three-wheelers couldn’t be designated as cars because they couldn’t meet automobile safety requirements, and motorcycle designation also eluded them because Ohio law defines motorcycles as having a saddle. State Rep. David Daniels (R-Greenfield) proposed a bill that broadened motorcycles’ definition as having a saddle or seat, and it quickly passed through the legislature and received Gov. Ted Strickland’s (D) signature. Maryland has also greenlighted the vehicles with similar legislation.

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Another three-wheeler purveyor, Tri-Fun (Lighthouse Point, FL), introduced prototypes of its Chinese-produced models, which include a truck with a 500-lb. payload, at the New York Auto show earlier this year. According to Tighe Estes, TriFun’s president, its vehicles will be available through its network of 18 dealerships in August. The company hasn’t yet brokered any vehicle wraps, but Estes said such decoration would probably happen soon.