June 10, 2010

What's the deal with luxury vehicles?

Just a quick thought of mine...

Why do people spend their hard earned money to buy luxury vehicles?  Just to put them in traffic on the same roads with people who might've spent $500 or less on their vehicle...?  And to make matters worse - there are some nuts on the road!  People act as if cars are assets - when indeed they're just a liability and an expense.  Purchasing a car between $30K - 100K makes no sense at all to me...especially if your income doesn't justify the purchase and you have to take out a 72-month note to drive it home.

I'm sure someone may try to justify the purchase of an expensive automobile by saying (in their most snooty voice....or ghetto voice) "well I've got the best insurance money can buy to protect my investment in the event of an auto accident".   And my response would be "yes - they can repair it after you've first paid the deductible and the value of your car will have dropped considerably"....and hopefully it runs the same afterwards.

Nevertheless, why would you want to pay the high maintenance costs associated with these vehicles?  Brakes are more expensive, tune ups, transmission, electrical, paint jobs, insurance...all are more expensive than purchasing a more common car - say a 3 year old -base model Chevy Impala, or a 3yr old F-150.  With these "common" vehicles the purchase is cheap, maintenance is cheap, and you don't have to worry about parking 2 miles from any other car because you're afraid it will get scratched or bumped.  When you're not spending your money maintaining a luxury vehicle - you have more discretionary income to use for things that matter...like your home, land, and other REAL investments.

Think of the few new or recent models of Lexus, Mercedes, BMWs, Audi, etc. (people seem to associate foreign vehicles with luxury for some reason) that you may see on any given highway and on any given day...then think of the all the other vehicles that could damage it.  The top 5 selling vehicles of all time are:
  1. Toyota Corolla
  2. Ford F-150 (F-series)
  3. Volkswagen Golf
  4. Volkswagen Beetle
  5. Ford Escort (discontinued)

Chances are - if you have a luxury vehicle - you will be getting hit, scraped, or bumped by one of these top 5 cars listed above.  Now why don't you just be smart and get a "common" vehicle?  Let's stop trying to "buy in" or lease a lifestyle and get things we can't afford.  The average millionaire next door drives a common vehicle...not a luxurious money pit.  So...What's in your driveway?

BE FREE

2 comments:

  1. I like the idea of not purchasing a brand new luxury vehicle, but purchasing one a few years old is a great idea. You can look good, get a great deal and the average person on the street can't tell a 2010 from a 2008.

    Ced Mitchell
    www.40acresandabenz.com

    ReplyDelete