do you think that if someone drives an old car....that they are not well off?

[bubblepop]

c'mon now. be really honest.

I bought a brand new fiesta when i first started working.
Biggest waste of money.
We have two old cars on the drive of our mansion now and people can think what they jolly well like!

Before we moved abroad, the other reason we drove older cars is that we were paying school fees, and used to laugh at the Ferrari owning Dad who winced every time a small woman reversed her large car in his direction in the very small car park outside the schools' front door. I would have winced had his nice Jag got dinged as it was lovely.

It fascinates me how the few very rich people I know drive old knackered cars - I think they feel they don't need to prove anything.

I find it very telling if I catch people in car parks getting out of shiny new cars and giving friend's old car a disdainful look..just proves you can't assume anything about other people..

we have an old car

and a jeep

and a BMW

I will drive whatever dh's gives me that is spare

one of his friends is v materialistic and will describe people by their car as in "oh you know X, has the £60K Audi" etc, instead of "X, tall lad, married to Y"

nobboid

i saw a programmge ages ago about moving up the property ladder - the richest guy with the biggest house reckoned you should 'have a house you cant afford, and a car you can afford to throw away' seemed to work for him!

Driving an old car might be because someone is poor, but it also might be because they are not interested in cars, so give it low priority, or their lifestyle might mean that they don't use the car much so no point in replacing it.

What someone can afford is so much about priorities. I have a newish (06 plate) car sat outside. But it was paid for in cash and bought as a nearly new (with 8K on the clock), it is fairly dinky, and I do have a 20odd mile commute inc motorway to get to work. However I cannot afford Sky, and people who drive much older/cheaper cars than me often can. Different priorities....

AND WHY DOES IT MATTER WHETHER PEOPLE ARE POOR OR NOT, OR WHETHER PEOPLE THINK YOU ARE POOR OR NOT?

Sorry - feel better now!

Nope. Some of the wealthist people I've known have driven old cars.

Of course in my case it is true. I have an old car and I am not well off. However I don't think it;s the first thing I'd but when I won the lottery. Probably not even the 10th thing I'd buy. DH would. But he's a bit flash

I don't actually notice cars. It is one of the Great Areas of Incompatibility between DP and me.

Or no, correction, I do actually notice the kind of rather knackered beaten up old cars with ancient stickers objecting to things on them, and think 'that is the car I was meant to drive'. As I go past in the shiny Prius wossname that Mr Inferior deems appropriate transportation .

With a National Trust sticker on the back

No they are probably better of than those struggling to pay for their shiny new ones!

i drive a h reg metro, Dh drives a y reg clio.
I'll have that when he gets a new car in a few months.
It's just a banger for me to get around in if i need too.
We're not 'poor' nor 'well off', live comfortably.

The car dealer rang me today to tell me he's found the car I asked him to find for me so I can upgrade.

I told him I've changed my mind and will now be running my 12 year old Rover for at least another year!

All thanks to this thread

My dh has a 12 year old Cavalier that an ex collegue of mine used to snigger at. We could afford a new car outright but have betetr things to spend money on and more importantly dh really loves the car for some odd reason. Seeing as he's the one that drives it as long as he's happy thats fine.

Why do people snigger at cars, FGS? Why do they think that driving a particular piece of metal and plastic makes them better than someone driving a different kind?

Well I drive a Nissan Micra which currently has duct tape sticking a broken piece of plastic moulding toghther on the boot handle (and has had for the last 4 months )

DH did clean iot for me for mothers day (first time in 6 months - again )

I have to say it IS the worst car in the car park of the very expensive nursery we use.

My last car was also 12 years old before it got written off.

I would love a nice car in theory, but when I look at what a new one would cost I just cannt bring myself to spend the money on it.

The secretaries at work have always driven flasher cars than me.

I personally think cars are the biggest waste of money. I have a fairly old car (9) but have had it from new and it has been very reliable (touch wood). Am dreading the day we have to change it but hopefully we will get many more years out of it. ..

I am actually hoping that once the dc's are older and walk to school and are not needing to be ferried around to various activities that I can get rid of whatever car I have and just hire one as and when for holidays, etc

I don't think that at all. It's just that people spend their money on other things. Our cars are not particularly new (X reg and an 03) and they do the job so there's no real need for anything different. Dh is not that in to cars so he's happy with his. Mine is a Grand Voyager and has everything we need in it so there is no need to change it until it conks out!!

Friends of mine have an even older car than our X reg and then another one in the early 2000's and they are probably in top 1% of earners.

Agree with others about some people in swanky cars not being particularly well off or in a lot of debt. I know one such person (who has talked to me about their debt) who drives a very nice merc.

We have both, the older car is 18 years old and goes like a dream and it means I don't have to get up in the mornings and take DH to work, and who cares how old the car is as long as its in good working order, safe and gets you from A to B.

I couldn't giove a shit what other people drive tbh, so long as it is roadworthy

However, I prefer to drive a newer car as generally they are more reliable and the safety features are better in newer cars (airbags, crumple zones etc).

No. Some people just don't feel the need to replace their car very often. It's only necessary when the servicing bills start getting silly.

I have an 11 yr old car, I am not well off either.

I am a new driver so its prob just as well, its older, yet it was all I could afford so I take very good care with it indeed.

Since ebcoming a driver, it has made me notice the cars, and the plates. Mine is a P reg, and fairly rare. Altho, I do also think it depends where you live.

We moved down from London to Devon, and on a trip back from London it was quite comforting as we closer to the south west the cars were getting older!!! It was interesting, and made us realsie out choice to leave the big smoke was a wise one, as we were fed up with the keeping up with the Jonses mentality.

I think we were in our k reg Mondeo, now that IS a car pmsl!!!

It's interesting that the overwhelming response is that MNers don't think that someone's poor if they drive an old car.

I agree, until my present car I ran the same one from new till it died aged 9. I'll do the same with thisone.

DH's car is 9 yrs old but is loverly Mercedes S class. Would much rather have that than a brand new Micra or whatever.

I get rid of a car only when it starts to cost too much money to keep it on the road. I feel chuffed to bits if one of cars last more than 4 years.