So an Escalade costs like $80k?

[ohai]

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

Actually, I’ve thought about this a bit and have developed an explanatory theory. People generally have some sort of materialistic aspiration that varies based on their wealth. Rich people might aspire to own something that costs a couple of million of dollars - i.e. something expensive, but within reasonable reach - so they buy big houses. Middle class people cannot expect to own a multi million dollar house. So, they focus on things that cost in the tens of thousands, like cars. Even poorer people cannot expect to own expensive cars, so they aspire to own expensive smart phones or TVs (which would explain why the people in the housing projects near where I used to live all seemed to have iPhones).

The important factor is that expensive houses, cars and electronics are the “best of” some category. People inflate their self worth by compartmentalizing categories of consumer goods and subconsciously ignoring purschases that are outside their target categories.

[Turd_Fergeson]

agree. i think it also has to do with a desire to feel well off among your peers. as long as you feel like you’re doing well compared to the people you associate with, you’re happy.

[itera]

@ohai

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

Actually, I’ve thought about this a bit and have developed an explanatory theory. People generally have some sort of materialistic aspiration that varies based on their wealth. Rich people might aspire to own something that costs a couple of million of dollars - i.e. something expensive, but within reasonable reach - so they buy big houses. Middle class people cannot expect to own a multi million dollar house. So, they focus on things that cost in the tens of thousands, like cars. Even poorer people cannot expect to own expensive cars, so they aspire to own expensive smart phones or TVs (which would explain why the people in the housing projects near where I used to live all seemed to have iPhones).

The important factor is that expensive houses, cars and electronics are the “best of” some category. People inflate their self worth by compartmentalizing categories of consumer goods and subconsciously ignoring purschases that are outside their target categories.

dang, that’s some deep stuff. For the materialistic, which I would have to say most people are… I agree

[higgmond]

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I know a few millionaires and have to disagree, as they tend to drive 7 Series, 6 Series, CLS Class, or any number of luxury SUV’s. Their second cars tend to be either Lexus or Acura. Every (and I do mean every) Camry owner I know is middle income.

I don’t know anyone “rich” enough to be rolling around in a Bentley, RR, Maserati, etc.

[ohai]

Maybe it’s a geographic thing. Here in Northern California, it’s pretty normal for well off people to have a $1.5 million to 2 million house, but drive a Toyota, Subaru or similar. This is for people who have a few million ; people with say, $100 million are probably different.

In other places, like maybe Southern California or Florida, everyone seems to have an expensive car.

[higgmond]

Could very well be geographic. I’m in suburban Philly and a $1.5MM - $2.0MM house will almost always have BMW, MB or Audi sedan in the 3 car garage along with some variety of SUV. If there are kids that drive, you’ll also see a 3 Series, A4, or some cutesy car like a convertible Mini or VW bug.

[jcole21]

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I’d disagree - at least not in my area. I don’t know what these people are worth, but people with 1MM+ homes in my area (midwest with very affordable housing) are definitely not driving Camrys. Maybe their kids might if they misbehave…

Ohai had some good insight there.

[Turd_Fergeson]

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I know a few millionaires and have to disagree, as they tend to drive 7 Series, 6 Series, CLS Class, or any number of luxury SUV’s. Their second cars tend to be either Lexus or Acura. Every (and I do mean every) Camry owner I know is middle income.

I don’t know anyone “rich” enough to be rolling around in a Bentley, RR, Maserati, etc.

Notwithstanding the couple millionaires you know, more millionaires own camrys than any other car.

[LBriscoe]

Just curious if there is any guide out there on what you should spend on a car? I’ve heard that you should spend 3X your gross or 25% of your monthly take on a house/mortgage, but never heard anything about a car.

[ohai]

Spend as little as possible on your car. Why do you need to allocate a big part of your budget for this if you don’t need to?

[bchad]

Can I study for a 7 Series or a 6 Series? I’ve heard it’s easier than the CFA.

[bchad]

@ohai

Spend as little as possible on your car. Why do you need to allocate a big part of your budget for this if you don’t need to?

Dave Chappelle has the answer to this: Guys like nice cars because they know that girls like guys with nice cars.

Chris Rock adds to it: “Women can not go backwards in lifestyle. Once she’s had a guy with a nice car, she ain’t never going back to someone without one.”

[higgmond]

@Turd_Fergeson

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I know a few millionaires and have to disagree, as they tend to drive 7 Series, 6 Series, CLS Class, or any number of luxury SUV’s. Their second cars tend to be either Lexus or Acura. Every (and I do mean every) Camry owner I know is middle income.

I don’t know anyone “rich” enough to be rolling around in a Bentley, RR, Maserati, etc.

Notwithstanding the couple millionaires you know, more millionaires own camrys than any other car.

Source?

[Inner_Evil_Voice]

Also, assuming you have enough purchasing power, sometimes decisions are also indirectly influenced by friends/family. If your boss is worth a solid 9-figure number and drives BMW 5 series, or your father in law is a neurosurgeon raking in over 2M/year and drives an Acura, maybe you’ll have second thoughts about buying a Bentley, even if your annual income of 500K+ obviously allows you to.

[system]

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I know a few millionaires and have to disagree, as they tend to drive 7 Series, 6 Series, CLS Class, or any number of luxury SUV’s. Their second cars tend to be either Lexus or Acura. Every (and I do mean every) Camry owner I know is middle income.

I don’t know anyone “rich” enough to be rolling around in a Bentley, RR, Maserati, etc.

Notwithstanding the couple millionaires you know, more millionaires own camrys than any other car.

Source?

The author of Millionaire Next Door did primary research on this. I believe the Ford F150 was the most popular. However, it was noted that most millionaires buy cars with a super low cost/mile.

[ohai]

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

@higgmond

@Turd_Fergeson

not that this has anything to do with the conversation but i generally agree w/ the following premise:

“poor” people (i.e. middle earner pretenders) have nice cars. millionaires have nice houses and a Camry.

I know a few millionaires and have to disagree, as they tend to drive 7 Series, 6 Series, CLS Class, or any number of luxury SUV’s. Their second cars tend to be either Lexus or Acura. Every (and I do mean every) Camry owner I know is middle income.

I don’t know anyone “rich” enough to be rolling around in a Bentley, RR, Maserati, etc.

Notwithstanding the couple millionaires you know, more millionaires own camrys than any other car.

Source?

Most likely, this is taken from popular personal finance book, “The Millionaire Next Door”, as the link below describes.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704816604576337691894669976.html

However, that example might not be so applicable to the question of “what car do millionaires buy”. The book basically describes that millionaires accumulate savings because of frugality. I think what we are talking about in this thread is what cars people buy once they are rich (not that the two are completely unrelated).

[Analti_Calte_Equity]

range rover was not mentioned once in this thread. who would buy an escalade over a range rover ??

[chibwack]

@Black_Swan

@ohai

I think it’s a bit hard to distinguish between “luxury” and “sports” cars. Most people who buy Corvettes don’t drive them on a track, nor do they ever push the car’s limits. So for practical purposes, the high performance is just for the sake of extravagance and status, i.e. you feel good that it exists, not that you will ever use it. Commercially, and from the typical consumer’s perspective, the extra performance is a “luxury” feature.

Now, to our Australian friend’s question - whether or not it’s worth buying any of these sports/luxury cars - that depends on the purpose, right? For most people, 600 HP is worthless - they will never use it. However, driving up in a Porsche 911 and moistening women is not worthless. The superior ergonomics, comfort, and interior materials are also not worthless. So, to a typical consumer, the Porsche probably results in more utility per dollar than a Dodge Viper or Corvette, neither of which provide the same status or creature comforts.

Disagree, I think those people are idiots. If you buy a cramped porsche and you have no interest in performance, I think those people are morons. If you want luxury and status, get luxury and status (ie bentley, aston, bmw, etc.). Porsches and the like are extremely poor commuters and too cramped for even cruising in style. You don’t need to “take it to the track” or even hit too high of speeds to enjoy whipping it down deserted a back road with the windows down and the engine singing. To me people that own them and baby them are just little man babies with shallow mentalities and shallow girls. I’ve had two sports cars and one liter bike in my day and I’ve had each in the 160+ mph, so not just making this up.

Has it ever occurred to you that people are buying these cars because THEY like them, and couldn’t really give a rats ass about what anybody else thinks? You don’t need to be doing 160mph to enjoy a porsche, and just because you own a porsche doesn’t mean you’re insecure and need it to show off. Funny that you drop the “I’ve done 160+ in two sports cars and a liter bike”. Who’s the one showing off here? I’d have been impressed if I was still an 18 year old shit. But I’m not, and I’m not.

Some people have grown up loving porsches, working their asses off to make some money, so when they get that money they reward themselves by buying their childhood dream. Who are you to judge them for that?

[chibwack]

Holy crap, there was a whole second page here. Sorry for bringing back old news.

[Black_Swan]

@chibwack

@Black_Swan

@ohai

I think it’s a bit hard to distinguish between “luxury” and “sports” cars. Most people who buy Corvettes don’t drive them on a track, nor do they ever push the car’s limits. So for practical purposes, the high performance is just for the sake of extravagance and status, i.e. you feel good that it exists, not that you will ever use it. Commercially, and from the typical consumer’s perspective, the extra performance is a “luxury” feature.

Now, to our Australian friend’s question - whether or not it’s worth buying any of these sports/luxury cars - that depends on the purpose, right? For most people, 600 HP is worthless - they will never use it. However, driving up in a Porsche 911 and moistening women is not worthless. The superior ergonomics, comfort, and interior materials are also not worthless. So, to a typical consumer, the Porsche probably results in more utility per dollar than a Dodge Viper or Corvette, neither of which provide the same status or creature comforts.

Disagree, I think those people are idiots. If you buy a cramped porsche and you have no interest in performance, I think those people are morons. If you want luxury and status, get luxury and status (ie bentley, aston, bmw, etc.). Porsches and the like are extremely poor commuters and too cramped for even cruising in style. You don’t need to “take it to the track” or even hit too high of speeds to enjoy whipping it down deserted a back road with the windows down and the engine singing. To me people that own them and baby them are just little man babies with shallow mentalities and shallow girls. I’ve had two sports cars and one liter bike in my day and I’ve had each in the 160+ mph, so not just making this up.

Has it ever occurred to you that people are buying these cars because THEY like them, and couldn’t really give a rats ass about what anybody else thinks? You don’t need to be doing 160mph to enjoy a porsche, and just because you own a porsche doesn’t mean you’re insecure and need it to show off. Funny that you drop the “I’ve done 160+ in two sports cars and a liter bike”. Who’s the one showing off here? I’d have been impressed if I was still an 18 year old shit. But I’m not, and I’m not.

Some people have grown up loving porsches, working their asses off to make some money, so when they get that money they reward themselves by buying their childhood dream. Who are you to judge them for that?

^Deeply offended overcompensating porsche owner.