Does your car show your status?!

[Dibbydoos]

I was a BMW X3 for 7 years - a prowling beast of a thing, fast like heckers! I loved that car! But it's now retired and I didn't want another big SUV, so I bought from the same stable, a Mini Countryman and everyone is giving me stick! I keep getting with your money you could afford better etc etc.

It's jarring.

I blinking love this Mini. It drives like my BMW even the general controls - cruise, nav, wipers are the same.

Why are people so fixated on spending more money than you need?

Am I being unreasonable to not waste money on a flash car?

Honeylulu if you only need a car for local short trips, do you need a car?

IME people who display their desperation to be seen as part of a certain social class are usually just aspirational and not really from the class they want to be aligned with. We have a classic car which doesn't requite tax or mot and one of the other cars is a limited edition type thing that enthusiasts would be impressed with but nobody else including me but it's very well looked after by my extreme petrol head DH.

Maybe where you live. And I couldn't give a stuff about "the environment". You can freeze in your Air Pump chilled home and get soaked as you cycle to work, all while conveniently ignoring the greenwashing related to electric vehicles and the double standards of people who have children lecturing others on "climate change".

I'll continue to sit in my 2l, turbo charged, all fossil fueled SUV. At least I'll be warm and dry.

Yes but big expensive house doesn't equate with old country estates of which there are plenty in these parts. I find, on a quick riffle through the ones I know that the cars are either:
Old Landrover Defender, especially if the estate runs shoots or has enough land for an estate manager. Or-
Something decent and generic but often bought in bulk.ie - one family I know has several VWs of various sizes used according to need (estate car if the dogs are going) and to what's available. Nanny and kids are expected to take the smaller cars.Or-
Anything that happens to come their way. Usually something cheapish and anonymous, usually mid-range, seldom anything considered high-end.

The richest person I've ever known- I mean seriously rich - had a 14 year old Golf. When it was stolen he didn't bother to replace it. Just cycles or takes Ubers and hires for longer journeys.
So no, I don't think cars are an indicator of status although there is an element of reverse snobbery sometimes. Old country money (at least in these parts) doesn't like to be seen to try too hard.

My son in law's family meet up has a lot of "what are you driving these days?" In a very snobby way. My DD had, had enough after nearly two hours if bullshit oneupmanship, so started singing ' I drive a combined harvester'. They go for practical estates, Volvo /VW, but second hand, they go on hikes with their dogs. They but to suit their needs.

My aunt is worth serious money, millions.
She no longer drives due to ill health, but when she did she had an old Ford Fiesta with wind up windows (and plenty of dents)
She saw cars as being something to get her from A to B and had no interest in ‘status’ vehicles at all.

Onefinemess, must be pretty remote if you've never sat in a traffic jam

Good point and I could probably just about manage (it's the second car) but it's really the time I save. I work long hours and need the car to get to after school club pick up etc. I could walk but if have to find an extra hour I don't have. I suppose I could do some work over the weekend to make up the lost hours but I dunt really want to.

Then at weekends I often end up having to drop two different kids at two different activities at different ends of town and pick up again two hours later. And it was a godsend when eldest was learning to drive as the practice was so valuable and no way we'd have been able to get him insured on his dad's bigger car.

So do I really "need" a car? Possibly not. But we all have to go without stuff that we enjoy.

There’s a reverse snobbery about much of this, as though it’s a competition to claim who has the most money and the least status car.

People are allowed to spend their money on what they choose. For some, that might be a lease or PCP car, for others, it might be what I would regard as expensive holidays, or costly golf equipment, or cycling, or any of the other things that people spend their disposable income on.

Someone might choose a 4x4 for reasons we don’t know. My neighbour has one because it’s high up and better for her bad back to get in and out of. I choose cars for comfort and convenience. They have some of the bells and whistles, because they make driving easier and more comfortable.

It deffo doesn’t give a true reflection on who you are no , I have a big sporty brand new 4x4 but only because I like cars and that’s more important to me than a big fancy house. I have a lovely home but wouldn’t be seen as what others would assume I lived in based on my car. If I didn’t have my car we could have a big house but I don’t want that

This is the real reason so many drivers hate cyclists, isn't it?

Because we're not playing this game

I don't feel very charitable towards 'trophy' 4x4s purchased as city runabouts. Not good for the environment or pedestrian safety. If your need for conspicuous consumption overrides these considerations, well...

'Not playing the game'

I think is an excellent quote from a pp and summarises how I feel about driving my old banger.

I love my old banger! Really easy to drive .Was pissed off as an idiot called out "Nice Car love" I just laughed my friend is the same!

I’ve been driving for 19 years, and I’m still on my third car! A Micra, Jazz (have to admit this didn’t feel cool in my mid-20s 🤣) and a small Mazda now. In total, have paid £12,000 for these cars - the Micra was written off after a bump and I got £1000 for it to put towards the Jazz.
If I’d had even just a budget car (£250?) on finance over that period it would have cost £57000! Never mind how much a stays car would cost.

We’re both high earners, both drive bangers, and both don’t give a hoot!

The number of motors on the U.K's roads have been allowed to double - to 41 million - in 30 years.

60% of all U.K journeys between 1-2km are taken by car.

Almost 20% of journeys under 1km are also driven.

This obsession with cars is a bit much

People who judge you on the car you drive or the house in which you live are generally twats IMO.

Thats me then, I judge townies in 4w drives

My car is 20, it drives well and is reliable.
now I wfh I don’t use it much, I’ll keep it till it fails in a major way..

There’s a reverse snobbery about much of this, as though it’s a competition to claim who has the most money and the least status car.

Not so much that. People pay through the nose for a high end car on finance (and associated higher repair costs) when they struggle to make ends meet. Those people then cry about how tough life is with the cost of living etc.

I see people on my street in council houses benefitting from low rents, whilst they have a relatively new BMW/Audi/Merc on their drive. I understand that people get to spend their money as they please, but you can't deny that the UK car park doesn't reflect its economy.

Then you get the high end status cars driven by those without the skills to handle said cars.

Only recently a young guy (mid 20s tops) in an expensive Audi S3 Sportback (as long as a 3 series saloon) managed to knock our driveway wall down: in the middle. His excuse? "Well, it's a big car and it's a tight turn." No one in at least a decade has done that level of damage.

When I pointed out our car was the same size he childishly said "no, it isn't."

He was right. Ours is marginally longer.

I would say I dread to think of the cost to repair his high end car, but frankly I don't. That's what he signed up to when he got it.

Me too.

Same way I judge drunk driving, plastic grass and smoking around children.

It won't be acceptable behaviour in a few years time

Not so much that. People pay through the nose for a high end car on finance (and associated higher repair costs) when they struggle to make ends meet. Those people then cry about how tough life is with the cost of living etc

I winced last time I was in the garage getting my car MOT and I had to wait until the garage bloke had given the bad news to the owner of the 5 ish YO Range Rover that was being pushed into the garage when I arrived that morning.

They'd already run up £1k worth of work assessing the problem, and they were in for another £3k that 'might' fix it, and if not they were looking at another £4k on top. And because the car was on finance, they kind of had no choice but to have it done.

My car might not be anywhere near as impressive, but at least I know that it's unlikely to ever cost that much to fix, as well as costing much less to service, petrol, tyres etc.

I think the need to get a flash car is some sort of insecurity, the same as the need to buy clothes with prominent designer logos etc. buying an expensive car on finance which you can barely afford is madness in my opinion.

I'm a petrol head, i LOVE cars.
I'm classed as a high earner, but would never finance a car, i'm not a fan of modern German cars anyway so never got the status thing.

I have a 9 year old cheap diesel Skoda for daily stuff, like work and stables, i do around 15k miles in that little car a year.
Then i have my full track prepped little sports car that i take to events and do track days in.

Neither of my cars can be accused of having 'status' and i wouldn't want it any other way!! (Except when i win the lotto i want a fleet of Jags and Lambo's!)

I am judged by my car! Even my DH judges me.
I can't be arsed getting a new one but I will do eventually.
I am not broke, I have loads of savings so I could by several cars if I wanted, my mortgage is paid off so I could have a loan if I wanted to. I just don't want to.
My car is old and battered and I don't care.
Dh is forever swopping his car. I couldn't even tell you what he is driving at the moment.