What cars do private school mums drive?

[lavendarhillslob]

Is it all 4x4s and Porches? Do any of you drive cars that are not range rover evoques. And if there are mums at your school who drive normal cars, like a Ford Mondeo - what do you think of them?

[WorktoLive]

The only person I know with DC in private school drives a small 10 YO Japanese 4X4, but I think her DS goes to said private school on the bus. HTH.

The person with the poshest car I know (massive brand new mercedes) is a builder or similar tradesman.

I'm sure he doesn't put his bricks and tools in the car but he does drive is wearing filthy builder clothes. I don't know whether he has any DCs and if so where they go to school.

[BobbinThreadbare]

Kids are brought in by coach. The private primary over the road is a different story. The roads are very narrow but the Range Rovers and other 4x4s squeeze down there anyway. Lots of Jags and BMWs. Audi Q series. The Minis are all 6th Formers' cars. In fact, most of the 6th Formers drive nicer cars than the teachers do....

[BrendaFlange]

My 'bloke' always did the school run.
But he doesn't drive and hasn't got a car.

I have a very practical car, but luckily as I live in a normal (inner-city) London area with a very mixed demography and an EXCELLENT state school (at primary and secondary) I don't need to drive DC to school so no-one knows what my car is.

(that is to the poster living in the U.S)

[BrendaFlange]

The people I know who have kids at private school have:
XC90
XC90
Land Rover
Porsche
Some sort of estate
VW Tiguan (?)
No car: don't drive.
Ancient Toyota Previa
Flash Mercedes
BMW

[ThumbWitchesAbroad]

My mum drove an old Nissan (actually a Datsun) estate, and when that died, got a Sierra estate, same as my Dad's. Of course, that was some years ago (!) before 4x4s were so common - but most of my friends' parents had "normal" cars too. A few had the big Mercs and so on, but not many.

[Sillybillybonker]

I have an average type family car - it is a Fiat.

However, there are some lovely cars rolling up in the morning at the school my DS goes to, including a white Bentley. I can't compete with premiership footballers or other multi millionaires so I don't really care about turning up in my average car. Most people seem to have nicer cars than me but some have worse cars too. The thing I have learnt since I sent my child to a private school is that I shouldn't bother aspiring to be wealthy or trying to make out that I am "financially successful". There are people there in a different financial league to me so there is no point in trying to impress anyone. I simply won't be able to impress on those terms - ever! But the important thing is that I don't think the filthy rich give a toss that I am a pauper in comparison. They still let my son play with theirs. I don't think anyone really cares. I haven't noticed that they do anyway.

[BrendaFlange]

Of course people care (pointless though the whole issue is) !

If they didn't there would be far fewer expensive cars on the road - people would just buy what they needed. e.g People have big expensive 4X4s in towns because they like them, want them and can afford them.

And if people didn't care this thread would exist or grow! Not with any comments other than 'I have no idea, don't look'.

And it's obvious that more people who can afford private school will be able to afford an expensive car (IF they want one) than the rest of the population.

[BabyGanoush]

I drive youngest DS to his prep school in my 9yr old hatchback.

It is a good car, can't see why I'd change it (yet). It's big enough to fit 2 kids and 1 dog.

It is not reverse snobbery, the care is just fine.

DH car is older and crapper (his has no airco and sometimes breaks down).

We are not really into cars as a family

[Sillybillybonker]

I don't notice the people who care. Maybe it is because I don't care what they think of me and all the other parents who don't have flash cars :)

[DancingDinosaur]

An 11 year old ford mondeo :-)

[DancingDinosaur]

And it's obvious that more people who can afford private school will be able to afford an expensive car (IF they want one) than the rest of the population.

Not necessarily. Its the state school down the road from dc's private school that have lots of flashy cars. Probably because they're not spending the cash on private school fees.

[rookiemere]

An 8 yr old Ford Focus.

I see quite a few flash cars on the school run and a number of not so flash ones.

Generally I don't give a shiny sweetie wrapper what people drive, but I must admit to judging people who drive huge,expensive people carriers for their 2 DCs and then are unable to park.

[BeaufortBelle]

There is no correlation in my experience of nice cars and stacks of money. There is a correlation between nice cars and company cars.

We are not remotely interested in cars. I buy a French MPV about every 10 years, when the old one starts getting a bit cranky. DH drives a small congestion charge beating car. DS has a 9 year old Ka.

The people who care are the people who matter least and ime even the people with the poshest cars didn't particularly care. There were quite a lot of families who started when the boys were 8 in brand new Mercedes/Audi/BMW estates who are still driving the same car 12 years later.

Now we've nearly paid all the fees and are coming out of the other end DH is making small noises about getting something German and sporty. It will be entirely wasted on a middle aged baldie but I expect DS will wangle a few drives in it

[ItchyArmpit]

There's a wide range. Aston Martins, yes, but not many. Lots of 4x4s, some big and shiny, some battered and mud-spattered.
Lots of the kids come in via public transport, walking or bike.

Private schools are attended by kids who:

1. have parents who can afford it easily
   
2. have parents who can afford it if they cut back on other things
   
3. have the attributes to get scholarships
   
4. have parents whose level of income allows them to access hardship bursaries
   
   and modes of transport to and from school reflect that.
   No one with any sense cares.

[cruikshank]

This has probably already been said, but as far as I can tell it is received mumsnet wisdom that all parents at private schools drive clapped-out volvos. They also never go on foreign holidays. They're just like the 94% of the population who don't chunk out thousands on education every year, you see.

[Christinayangstwistedsista]

Car park is full of Range Rover Overfinch, Bentleys, Ferrari, Porsche and a couple of Rollers.....a lot of footballers kids are here

[SquirrelledAway]

Beaufort

DH is making small noises about getting something German and sporty. It will be entirely wasted on a middle aged baldie

But think how cheap your insurance will be now that DH is a middled aged baldie (as long as you don't let DS drive it though).

[thehypocritesoaf]

Cruikshank :)

Who cares about cars, really?

[BertrandRussell]

Cruickshank- you forgot all the tradesman's vans. Lots of kids get dropped off at private schools in them!

[balletgirlmum]

I drive a Nissan Primera

[WorktoLive]

But think how cheap your insurance will be now that DH is a middled aged baldie (as long as you don't let DS drive it though).

Indeed. I think our car insurance becoming 'cheap' even though DPs car was, up to a few months ago, a high insurance group sporty estate, was the thing that made DP and I realise that we are no longer 'young'.

We are early 40s, but I think a combination of having no DCs and a lot of our friends being at least 10 years younger made us forget that we were hurtling towards middle age.

Even more so now we have swapped said sporty estate for something that is more suited to pulling our caravan .

[BrendaFlange]

DanciingDinosaur: the rest of the population means the rest of the population - not the privileged enclave around the small catchment of a primary school.

Though I do agree that of course there are parents who are wealthy and are confident that their children will end up well educated in the state sector.

In fact I am someone who if I didn't have a car, didn't go on our annual holiday abroad and didn't save for the future could, at a pinch, afford to privately educate one child. If due to some unforeseen issue, like insurmountable bullying or the local school being taken over by Whackford Squeers , I had to remove a DC this would be my contingency, and I consider myself very lucky to have that fallback.

But to pretend that roughly the average wealth, and level of disposable income for buying expensive cars is like for like across state and private sector is ...not realistic.

[Monkay]

I am no longer a Private school mum my son is now home tutored.

I used to drive one of 2 little convertibles, no I am not filthy rich one of my cars is my social life and my hobby and the other was slightly more practical.

There was a mix of ever car, age and make at my son's old school.

I never judged anyone on their cars. I am sure many people thought I was rather eccentric, I think that is a fair appraisal of my personality. I would imagine that is because I am always over dressed rather than what I drive.