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Original poster

What are your various car brand stereotypes?

133 replies

Grumpafrump · 20/02/2023 12:24

Just that really. Was having a conversation about people’s perceptions of various car brands recently and found it interesting. The original conversation stemmed from a disagreement over whether Volvo is a premium brand or not; they weren’t when I was a child—they seemed to be mainly driven by university professors—but now they are quite expensive and also
nice inside. Does that make them premium, or is it more about the perception of the brand (for example, everyone acknowledges that Mercedes, Audi, BMW, RR, etc are premium) that is the defining factor? Is Tesla premium or just cutting edge tech?

OP posts:
Benjispruce4 · 20/02/2023 17:37

We have mainly had VWs, Audi and now a Volvo. They have all been long lasting and reliable and feel more solid than say a Peugeot/ Renault.
BMW drivers (of male variety)seem to live up to their reputation as wide boys in my experience.

Benjispruce4 · 20/02/2023 17:39

Range Rovers are too footballer’s wife for my liking.

mackthepony · 20/02/2023 17:44

We have a knackered old Volvo. It's like a tank. Just missing a labrador really

I often think Mercedes drivers are idiots, not sure why

mackthepony · 20/02/2023 17:45

Never seen a farmer in a Subaru

Total boy racer car

SinnerBoy · 20/02/2023 17:56

mackthepony · Today 17:45

Never seen a farmer in a Subaru

I used to know two in rural Aberdeenshire, who drove Foresters. 20 odd years ago now, mind.

Multipleexclamationmarks · 20/02/2023 18:07

@Grumpafrump
Drug dealers type Subaru. Always blue, always bloody awful gold coloured alloys 😂 definitely not a farmers car.

What are your various car brand stereotypes?
VikingLady · 20/02/2023 18:08

We had a Land Rover until a couple of days ago. No significant issues with it until it got squished by a big fire engine. All DH's archaeologist friends seem to have one. It gets them in and out of muddy hillside fields easily. Our old car was so shit at it that DH kept tow ropes in the boot.

We'll be buying another at the weekend. But we only buy second hand, and only card with a decent service history.

No-one has mentioned Vauxhall yet? I have a Corsa, which is very much a little ladies' car. As you can see by the colour schemes they go for....

bloodywhitecat · 20/02/2023 18:14

@Grumpyoldpersonwithcats You missed the 2CV off your list, driven by teachers I think I might be older than you!

ErrolTheDragon · 20/02/2023 18:15

Judgement of land rover drivers (and other 4x4s) depends entirely on whether they really do need to drive in muddy fields, negotiate flooded lanes etc.

Surplus2requirements · 20/02/2023 18:18

ErrolTheDragon · 20/02/2023 18:15

Judgement of land rover drivers (and other 4x4s) depends entirely on whether they really do need to drive in muddy fields, negotiate flooded lanes etc.

...or pull you out of a snow drift

Soapyspuds · 20/02/2023 18:25

Does that make them premium, or is it more about the perception of the brand (for example, everyone acknowledges that Mercedes, Audi, BMW, RR, etc are premium) that is the defining factor? Is Tesla premium or just cutting edge tech

Oh the power of marketing and image.

I personally think that RR is a premium brand but at best an average product.

Whereas Lexus are an average brand but top tier product

Soapyspuds · 20/02/2023 18:27

Anything with a 3d numberplater is driven by somebody who has the same IQ as a goldfish.

Bluevelvetsofa · 20/02/2023 18:32

I was an assistant head teacher. Whilst at the school, I drove an Audi TT, followed by another Audi TT, then a Mini Cooper S convertible.

Vitriolinsanity · 20/02/2023 18:45

I have no issue with brand. Have what you like.

I have a major issue with drivers that have a car less than three years old, with enough gadgets and tech to pilot a 747, but cannot manoeuvre them into a space to let other drivers past or judge the size of a gap and get through it.

MrsAvocet · 20/02/2023 18:46

My DH is an engineer who has spent his career in various parts of the motor industry and he says that the perception of cars these days is almost entirely down to marketing and not engineering. Lots of marques are owned by the same few parent companies and the same cars are sold by different companies with minimal differences - sometimes literally just the badging - but people have different perceptions and are prepared to pay different amounts of money for them, primarily due to how they are promoted. That's why so many companies have more than one arm now. Toyota probably started it with Lexus , but now we've got Seat/Cupra, Citroen/DS etc, selling essentially the same product to different markets. Obviously as a particular vehicle becomes popular in some specific parts of society the reputations become more "real" but essentially most of it is down to marketing executives being very good at their jobs!
We have a number of very different cars in our family, and I don't think I behave or drive significantly differently depending on which vehicle I am in, but I do notice quite a bit of variation in how other drivers treat me - whether they let me in in a queue etc - depending on what I am driving, so people clearly are making judgements about me based on my car.

Whichwhatnow · 20/02/2023 18:51

Multipleexclamationmarks · 20/02/2023 14:55

Oh and Subaru - drug dealer

all the drug dealers around here are in BMWs, or Kias, randomly

MissConductUS · 20/02/2023 19:06

BeetleyCarapace · 20/02/2023 14:13

Stereotypes also vary by country. In the US, Subarus are seen as safe, solid tanks for young first-time-drivers to be safe should they have an accident.

In the UK, Subarus are niche Japanese 4x4s bought mainly by farmers.

I was wondering if Subarus were going to get a mention. In the US they are one of most highly rated brands for safety, reliability and value. You see them everywhere, particularly in the suburbs.

www.consumerreports.org/cars/cars-driving/which-car-brands-make-the-best-vehicles-a6159221985/

We just bought our fourth Subaru and it's a lovely car and very high tech. None of them has ever needed a major repair and the oldest has 160k miles on it. DD has that one at uni.

I wonder why they haven't caught on as well in the UK.

BeetleyCarapace · 20/02/2023 19:17

MissConductUS · 20/02/2023 19:06

I was wondering if Subarus were going to get a mention. In the US they are one of most highly rated brands for safety, reliability and value. You see them everywhere, particularly in the suburbs.

www.consumerreports.org/cars/cars-driving/which-car-brands-make-the-best-vehicles-a6159221985/

We just bought our fourth Subaru and it's a lovely car and very high tech. None of them has ever needed a major repair and the oldest has 160k miles on it. DD has that one at uni.

I wonder why they haven't caught on as well in the UK.

Show quote history

They’ve always been relatively expensive here. I think Subaru gets caught up by the import tariffs that are/were applied in the UK to products from Japan, so the sticker price looks a lot higher than other manufacturers. (Toyota, Honda, Nissan etc got around that by building factories in the UK/EU although some of those have shut again now due to Brexit.)

It is strange, because I think Subaru could occupy the same market position that Volvo has here. But for various reasons it hasn’t ever really caught on as a brand.

MissConductUS · 20/02/2023 19:40

BeetleyCarapace · 20/02/2023 19:17

They’ve always been relatively expensive here. I think Subaru gets caught up by the import tariffs that are/were applied in the UK to products from Japan, so the sticker price looks a lot higher than other manufacturers. (Toyota, Honda, Nissan etc got around that by building factories in the UK/EU although some of those have shut again now due to Brexit.)

It is strange, because I think Subaru could occupy the same market position that Volvo has here. But for various reasons it hasn’t ever really caught on as a brand.

Show quote history

That makes sense. All of our Subarus, except possibly the oldest one, were built in the US. They're priced below the European and most American brands. I had a second hand BMW ages ago and it started falling apart at 80k miles. My parents had GM cars when I was growing up and their reliability was awful. So I've stuck to Japanese brands since I had the BMW.

honestlyno · 20/02/2023 19:43

I would consider Volvo a premium brand, and their price point reflects it.

declutteringmymind · 20/02/2023 19:44

Porsche = wanker

TimingIsABitch · 20/02/2023 19:46

BMW drivers - selfish wankers
Toyota drivers - annoyingly slow
Most 4 x 4 exec models - people that shouldn’t be in charge of anything larger than a Fiat 500

HundredMilesAnHour · 20/02/2023 19:54

Whichwhatnow · 20/02/2023 18:51

all the drug dealers around here are in BMWs, or Kias, randomly

Show quote history

What kind of drug dealer drives a Kia???! 😂

Fullrecoveryispossible · 20/02/2023 19:56

Love this!
BMW: chav car
Volvo: great family, solidly middle class
Range Rover: unless you’re the prime minister, you are someone who is likely a social climber and in debt. Not a classy car
Beat up Land Rover: lovely. Old school guy
Fiat: bit precious, an exciting outing would be going to the local shopping centre
Ford Focus: plain Jane but kind

NinetyNineRedBalloonsGoBy · 20/02/2023 20:01

My Dad told me that Audi stands for:

Asshole
Usually
Driving
It

This has definitely been confirmed by my own experiences of Audi drivers tbh