Just sitting around at home due to covid 19

 

I’ve gotten the same type of judgment from coworkers and even family. Family thinks I got a lot of money because I have nice cars and coworkers wonder how I afford the cars I have. But I’ve learned people don’t know how to manage their money and can’t afford nice cars or they don’t want to buy used so they buy a new Normal car for 40k. Then when someone comes with a used luxury car worth 25k they think it’s something special lol. It’s all about proper decision making and you can get what ever you want. That’s the way I look at it.

 

It's just a Lexus...

I did turn a few heads when I bought my Gen 2 Viper GTS at the age of 23.
I got a lot of "daddy's car" comments ofcourse, and at age 23 I looked maximum 18.
But those people will never understand nor appriciate hard work. That's how that type is.

Same thing with watches.
I used to wear Rolex for everything recently and has owned a couple of them.
What people fail to understand is that they appriciate. My last one I made 50% on, and I even bought it brand new! Had it for 3 years wore it everywhere, even in steel plants.
While all others sit on their asses being negative and jealous, others makes investments.
Did I make the worlds best investment? Hell no. But a damn good one to say the least.
Every single Rolex I ever owned was sold for minimum 15% over what I bought it for. (My AP's I sold before they jumped in price, stupid me....)

 

So the rule in my family was always that you had to buy your own car - there was usually a spare family car you could drive but if you wanted one of your own you had to buy it.

My '16 GS AWD F Sport is only the third car I've ever owned...

My first car was 14 years old with 145k miles on it when I had to get rid of her, she was basically a CPO - I had her from the end of my senior year in high school all the way through grad school.

My second car is just over 20 years old and has 172k on her (I still have her...I feel bad getting rid of her so I'm not sure what I'm doing yet). She's a 2000 Infiniti CPO that was 3 years old and 22k on her when I purchased her. At the time I did look at a 2000 ES but the residual values on a Lexus made that car just a bit more than I wanted to spend since I was just out of grad school, student loans were kicking in and I just like being careful with money in general... The Infinitis at the time were a great deal - Infiniti didn't have quite the name/brand recognition as Lexus, but they were ranking as some of the best most reliable cars out there (amazing how that reliability has changed!). The fact I had my first major major repair was at 20 years and just over 171k miles I think attests to how good those cars were.

After many years of working for others, when my job was replaced by an outside consulting firm I started my own specialized technology consulting firm (it's tiny and the plan is never to become very large). My income isn't amazing but it pays the bills and I have a great accountant who knows how to legally work the tax code in my favor as much as possible. When it came time that I needed something to replace the Infiniti and I was looking around I had always loved the look of the 4GS before the '16 refresh. I love the design of Benz and BMW lately but everyone I know who's had them complains about issues and how much they're in the shop, etc... so I don't think I would have even considered one - especially as a CPO. There were a few other things that I liked stylistically but nothing with both a nice design that was fun to drive, and had good reliability with a good CPO program.... The '16+ became an option once I saw them in person and drove them.

I am a little conscious of the car - I don't want my clients thinking they're paying me too much. For me it's never been about owning an expensive car. It's about something I'll enjoy, something I can get my money's worth out of, and it's about not having to deal with spending time and energy for dealing with problems. When a client (or anyone for that matter) makes a comment about the car I generally bring up how amazing it is that it's 4 years old and with depreciation it was 43% off original sticker and therefore roughly the cost of a nice Camry, Accord, or Maxima . I also generally say something about how I keep my cars for forever so I can afford to get something a little nicer that I know will last and hopefully be trouble free. This generally diverts them down the - "you're smart with your purchases" path and away from the "that's an expensive car you must be making too much" path. Frankly, a manager or supervisor should NEVER make a comment like "we're paying you too much, etc..." to an employee - that's just horrible management skills. It should be more like "congratulations on the beautiful car".

I also have a good friend who always thinks I need to have a bigger more powerful car than him. He likes to elude to the fact I must be trying to make up for a bit of lacking in a certain body appendage. He loved making fun of the fact my first car had a shifter on the column (aka old lady car) and the joke about my Infiniti, since it had a shifter on the console, was that it was a typical dentist's wife's car and a gussied up Maxima. I usually play along - the focus on the GS has been the horsepower and the "Lexus" name being "better" than his Acura. I like the fact that through the two car purchases I've neutralized the shifter on the column old lady issue and he can't say it's a gussied up anything since the GS didn't really have a Toyota counterpart in the US. Yes it's bigger than his but I'm taller and have wider shoulders than him so I don't care - it fits me better. In terms of the power and making up for something, I just tell him he has wayyyyy to much interest in my particular body appendage which must indicate some sort of interest and I'd be happy to drop trou if necessary which generally makes that issue go away for a little while too

 

No one has a car like Peasodos....

 

THIS^

I grew up poor, and everyone I know from back then never 'got out'. Someone always has something to say. I too use the no kids, though ours are grown and out the house (amounts to same thing, lol). Wife's kids granny actually said, 'why dont you get a normal car'? Like WTF is that supposed to mean. Here and there I will explain to people how my car cost less than there car (a used 15 luxury for 24k) but it gets tiring. I have a good job at a fortune 500 doing IT sorta work, but still blows my mind. *steps off soapbox

 

There's such a tremendous range of income and car expenditures: you cannot really conclude anything by the car someone drives.

I bought my first GS used when I was 26 for $30k. That was a lot, but I drove it for thirteen years, and the capital cost per mile was substantially lower than just about every one of my peers who went through several cars in that time.

I make triple what I did then, but I only spent $25k on my 2013. My neighbors have new BMWs and Audis all the time. I'm still winning TCO per mile.

I should buy a boat... </meme>

 

Just wanted to add, my wife wasn't comfortable purchasing the GS initially given the price for a sedan and why I didn't get a SUV instead like the Toyota Rav4 or a 2021 Lexus ES350. I had to convenience her a number of times.

My other friend second that though on the price and luxury for the GS.

I really hope the Lexus GS really impresses over time, it's the most expensive vehicle that I ever purchased also. My cap on spending for a vehicle was around $35K initially.

I didn't have any good luck with Lexus CPO also. I got burned 2x on CPO but really wanted this car.

 

I think part of this comes from the general masses knowing next to nothing about cars. In addition to that, the GS, on the surface, looks like a big Lexus sedan, so it plays into that "big and expensive luxury sedan" stereotype well. I think people look at it and without knowing what it is, just automatically start seeing/thinking "$$$$." I don't blame them, it definitely has presence in person. It's also not small and is fairly wide, so you know it's not a "small Lexus" or something on the lower end of the spectrum.

I haven't gotten any snide comments but years back when I was driving our then-new 2015 GS, one of my friends got in it (who in high school was driving his parents then-new 5-series) and asked me if the GS was in-line with/comparable to the 7-series.

A couple months ago, I picked up my friend and his friend who was visiting from out-of-state. My friend's friend immediately started gushing about how nice the GS was. I think he said something along the lines of "this is nicer than my house." And then about a month ago, I was driving with a different friend of mine and we started talking about cars and he goes, "this one was probably like what, $100,000?" I was like, "you're nuts, no way... "

The GS is a really nice car. I'd take it as a compliment though I recognize how uncomfortable it can be depending on where/who it's coming from.

 

That’s the thing no one looks at, total cost. I’m on my 4th GS at 27, each one, I’ve always felt like I got my money’s worth. Between my first two, I drove nearly 230k miles. Neither cost me anything notable in running costs, and I got back a majority of the purchase price on both when I got rid of them, one sold one totaled.

Agreed that cars are a horrible gauge of income. Most classmates of mine that went on to work in Big Law don’t even have cars, and the ones that do have have cars have pretty mundane ones. Oddly enough the ones who immediately went out and leased a new BMW, Audi, Merc, or Lexus are the ones who have the “lower paying” jobs, arguably myself included ha

 

I think as most people look at the features or new tech in a vehicle as opposed how it drives and ride. My friend was shocked with no Apple Carplay or Android Auto and no Qi phone charging. Sorry to deviate from the original topic.

 

Interesting thread. I think the judging applies to almost everything; we see a young woman with an older man - judged(he must be her sugar daddy). We see a younger man with a house and nice car - judged(he cant possibly afford all this, he must be doing something on the side). Heck, we see a older man with a nice car - judged(mid-life crisis purchase). People have become so immune to the implicit bias, sometimes it happens without thought.

Growing up, my 2 brothers and I shared a broken down 84 Celica and had occasions where public transportation was my only option. Like all of you, I've worked hard because I want things. Things like nice cars, nice house, making sure family is taken care of. I'm still not rich but am content, every-time I go into the garage I smile and that is worth something to me.

In my 30s now and have dabbled in business ventures, currently own an LLC but my profession is a software engineer so I do get the occasional "must be nice". However, my colleagues own German, Tesla and one is waiting for his Cybertruck, so they get it from me as well and we know its in good friendly banter.

People see the picket fence and the nice driveway but don't see the struggles it took to get there. "Work hard until your idols become your rivals"

 

I've never met anyone in real life who knows about/uses CarPlay or Android Auto. I think the giant 12.3 inch screen is what impresses people, especially with the map in full-screen mode.

 

Yeah, many people outside see a nice car or home. They never think how much hard work to succeed in life. I personally had struggled thru odd jobs, long nights thru college (luck for the opportunity to go to college), sleepless nights working or studying long hours even weekends and more. I wasn't born gifted with $$$, I had to work to earn it also. While other people I knew were partying or having a good time, I either had to work or study.

This car is a symbol of enjoying something good for once, we only live so long and life is short.

Yeah, there's nothing FREE in life as I see it so I've saved for this car also.

Enjoy your life everyday with a smile

 

I still drive my car that I bought cash when I just graduated college but it's pretty beat up now as a 24 year old car. Granted it was a 1996 Acura Integra GSR but it gets the job done going from point A to B but I make in the top single digit percent in this state and I know people judge by the looks of it but personally I don't care because the only thing that really matters is what my family thinks. Hence the GS again I know millionaires who still drive their college cars and are very smart about their money and what they spend it on but that could just be a nostalgic feel for that car and a remembrance of who they are and how far they came.