Toys4RJill

Right, so if it is brought up, someone can challenge the reasoning as why they say they could have bought something but did not, the person loses all credibility to me IMO.... Anyways it was an interesting discussion, I do not think we will agree. it was nice chatting about it..

SW17LS

Then why even participate in such a discussion?

To be clear, you're saying that everybody buys only the most expensive items they can afford? If somebody decides to have chicken for dinner at a restaurant, its because they couldn't afford the prime rib?

You cant afford any car other than a Toyota Corolla?

Toys4RJill

I don't think I said that.. I think you have implied that I did. I simply have said one loses their credibility when they say they could afforded this but bought that. You can infer whatever you want from that....but there is no need to tell me you could of afforded an S-class but chose an LS...you have an LS...Good for you! Its a good choice! A very nice car! But the moment you tell how you paid for it, or whatever reasons you did is the moment I would draw more impressions of you or your status etc.

At the time of buying my last new car, a Corolla, I could not of purchased any other more expensive car for cash at the time. (I could afford anything that was of a comparable price point or less obviously) What I could afford today is of no relevance.

SW17LS

I think we need to bring you back to the topic of this thread. This is essentially the question that the OP asked the group:

The premise of the question included the fact that all of these cars are in the same price class in general, yet why do people get concerned about people's perceptions of one driving an S Class. You're hung up on this idea that nobody should admit to being able to afford anything but what they chose to buy...yet that concept is at the very heart of what this thread is about, and in fact its implied in the very premise of the thread.

Then why did you feel it necessary to tell me that you paid for your cars in cash? Something that you have posted about many times on here when the subject comes around to methods of vehicle finance...

Johnhav430

My wife's cousin finally moved out of her parents' house at age 32. She has a Corolla S and I have kidded her, what does the S mean, is it faster or what??! But she will say it's my own car, it's paid off, and I need it to get to work. Well we're going to get to see her new place which I think is in downtown Toronto, next week. Hats off to her, last time she took me out (I was up there on business) she paid cash. I said how come you don't charge it for the points? She just said not for this small amount (it was like $55).

I have always understood that up in Canada there was never any mortgage interest deduction, and I felt it kept how much you're willing to spend in check on a home. haha funny we are in the same boat for 2018 going forward (for most, double the standard deduction means few will be itemizing, yet exemptions eliminated, nice one).

Well back to the original topic, I do not believe that a person who can comfortably drive a LS500, can do the same with a S550. Look at the service lounge of a Lexus dealer, and take notice of the demographics. Way different than Mercedes Benz.

edit p.s I believe I know what you're saying. When I bought my house I was single, and it was really the greatest amount I could feel comfortable with. That was 15 years ago and the house is almost paid off. I really wanted to be 1.5 miles down the road, which is another county. That county at least at the time had the best public schools, and generally known to be wealthier. Also, the religion is totally different. And it's just a county line 1.5 miles away. (I know anyone local is probably figuring out where I live lol) Yeah <insert great NBA star here> went to HS in the town I wanted to be at. haha The incredible thing was total property tax was lower, yet the homes were 33% more--identical house. So I had to settle where I did. If I were to say well I could have afforded a house 1.5 miles down the road, I just wanted to save money and spend it elsewhere, it's pretty much a lie.

SW17LS

55 points is 55 points.

So somebody who can comfortably drive a $100,000 LS500 can't comfortably drive a $117,000 S550? That doesn't make sense.

Its entirely possible to spec an LS500 to cost more than an S Class.

Remember that Lexus sells mostly 35-55k ES and RX vehicles. So the demographics of a Lexus dealer and a MB dealer are not indicative of the demographics of an LS vs S Class owner. BTW, I have never noticed any difference in the demographics of a Lexus or an MB dealer. In any event nobody who isn't retired has time to sit in one of those lounges and wait for service anyways, they're out in their loaner.

But thats not what I and others are saying.

Lets put it this way, lets say there was a house 1.5 miles down the road that cost a little more, but was better and you liked it better, but it was in a neighborhood that you felt was a little too flashy and that made you a little uncomfortable having your friends and family come over, so you chose the slightly cheaper house in a neighborhood you felt fit you better. You could have bought the house down the road no problem. Would you have been lying if you had discussed that with somebody when they asked you why you didnt decide to buy that other house?

Htony

Only bad experience I had was with Audi(maybe my local dealer issues) specially their service. Other cars I have driven, Honda, Acura, BMW. Lexus, Porsche,
Mercedes all were good to me. Whatever I drive I take care of them in original condition with everything. I don't think Lexus is a top tier luxury car. Just they
belong to luxury class. Their technology is too conservative. If BMW builds their cars with same philosophy as Lexus. BMW will become reliable car too. Prosche
has good reliability just costs more for up keep. NO matter what car one drives replacing every 4 years, there won't be any concern. Steel rusts, fatigued, micro-
scopic hair line cracks here and there.... I won't drive too old cars any way. I'll keep any car maybe maximum 7 years mostly less. At present we only have two
MB, two BMW.('14 and newer)

sears1234

I think most of the people in Lexus forum can afford a German car, the difference is will you buy what you love or what you think it's valuable or suitable for you.
I can buy a high-end German car about 15 years ago, but I'm afraid of repair expense, so I choose Lexus.
I'm more financial stabilized right now, so I choose what I dreamed of since young age.
Some people said leasing is more cheap than purchasing, I totally disagree.
Leasing a car means you get nothing after 2-3 years, leasing means you can drive new car every 2-3 years, it lost more money than purchasing.
purchasing only means you want to keep the car longer.

Johnhav430

It's the total cost of overall ownership. $17k is a lot of money, my boss says he has to pay $23k/yr. for his daugther's college, after aid. He makes a boatload yet he seems to convey that $23k/yr. is not that easy considering his son just graduated and now the 2nd one is in college.

So maybe your situation is different, which is why you feel it's not possible for a person to drive a 100k car, Japanese, and not be comfortable with a 117k car, German. As a matter of fact, why don't you try a German car instead of getting so many Japanese ones? Don't you want to experience something different?

Toys4RJill

Matter of pride as I have achieved an asset (depreciating of course) with out falling into any sort of debt or had to pay any interest, I can now do whatever I want with four years of cash flow since.....You are free to criticize, call out, applaud or say nothing if you would like >>> similar to how I criticized the idea of the saying I could have bought this but ended up buying that.....I was very one-side in much earlier discussions with you about leasing vs buying and I think I made it clear at first that leasing was a poor idea, then by listening to you and doing a little research on my own I discovered, yeah there could be some advantage to a leasing for some people....You clearly said you do not see my POV on the saying "I could of bought this but chose that"...and that's fair....nothing more to really say as I think I will move on. It was interesting and a pleasure going back and forth for most of the first half of Sunday I will say.

Htony

Some one with chip on the shoulder? If anyone does something like driving an S550 that is his choice and right. No business with others.

jrmckinley

I think you are coming from an angle where you think people are randomly bragging by saying "I could've bought an S class but instead I bought this 2008 Chevy Geo for $1,500." That would come across strange to just about anyone, but that's not what's happening here. For clarification:
- No one here is saying they "could have bought an S class but chose not to" without some form of prompting (questioning)- I specifically started this thread to ask why people who could afford to buy the S class may choose not to. No one is bragging. And I'll take their word for it that they could. So them answering the question is 100% relevant. We aren't at a cocktail party overhearing some obnoxious person bragging about what they could and couldn't afford without anyone asking them about it.
- If at any point someone has ever asked you how you ended up with the cars you own, if you said something like "I looked at an Altima, a Malibu, and ultimately chose the Corolla for X reasons". If so, then you are contradicting yourself all throughout this thread because you're pointing out your alternatives (that you could afford) and then telling why you bought the Corolla (or 4Runner or whatever). There's nothing wrong with saying it - as car lovers we all likely tell friends and family how we came to a decision, what else we shopped around for, etc. I just don't understand why you see such a problem with it when it comes to a luxury car. We all have options when buying anything and everything. I'm seeking the rationale behind why someone would be turned off by a particular car. Again, someone shopping for a new LS500 can (most likely) afford an S class - just as you could afford many other options when buying any vehicle you own.

In essence, I think you're bothered by something that isn't applicable to this thread here. Your argument seems to be that "I could afford it but didn't buy it" isn't relevant because the person ended up with the other car. But I specifically asked the question as to why the S class in some cases deters people from buying it who could easily afford it. How can them answering the question not be relevant??!

Johnhav430

I liked the post of the guy here that got the new E63s AMG wagon. It was beautiful and one can only imagine how sweet that car is. He did not debate whether he could afford it or not nor did he mention any of the particulars. He simply got a new car and posted it here. I kind of think that's how it goes and what some are saying. Until you pull the trigger, you can't really know what was or what might have been.

jrmckinley

I don't understand your response. Can you elaborate? Clearly I'm not criticizing anyone driving an S class.

SW17LS

Its all relative. Its not that $17k isn't a lot of money, but as a consumer in this class I can tell you, if I'm spending $100,000 another $17,000 is not prohibitive if thats something that I really want. $23k a year for college is nothing lol. I'm paying over $23k a year for PRESCHOOL. I'm getting ready to spend more than $17,000 over the next 3 months on 2 vacations. Its all relative.

I'm not saying its not possible. Sure its possible, but I would say that for most people who are buying a vehicle in this class, they can buy any vehicle in this class.

Why don't I try a German car, I've discussed it at length, including in this thread. I always try to, but the Lexus just always drags me back in. The only one that really appeals to me is the S Class, and why I haven't jumped at that I've discussed in here.