Wouldn't Be Caught Dead Driving One

bpraxis

Any Buick, Pontiac except for the Solstice, Chevrolet except the Corvette and the HHR which has a fun look.

Scion Xb and Xa, too youthful and cheap for me.

Any minivan except the Mazda new 5.

Any Ford Car except the GT or Mustang. Actually the styling on the new Fusion, Milan, and Zepher are not to bad.

lemmer

I like the Solstice, but I wonder if it will be seen as an effeminate choice.

acura_el2000

toyota echo
any suzuki with 4 wheels
toyota pruis
any scion
honda element
pretty much any car geared toward the "youth market" Im 19 and I hate all of them, because none of them have performance. They all think that we want cars that can carry all our "extreme sports gear" like kayaks. Id just like a bare bones RWD manual coupe.

snakeweasel

honda element

Yep the Honda Element along with the Scion XB the Pontiac Aztec and the MB G series are the ugliest cars around.

snakeweasel

http://www.bmwchannel.com/bb/attachment.php?attachmentid=118&stc=1

andre1969

I kinda like 'em, except that there's just something about it that looks too cute and playful, like a kitten on a hot summer night crouched at the foot of your bed while you're lying there under a thin sheet in your birthday suit watching tv, and you just happen to turn the wrong way and the kitten gets excited and pounces, claws extended, and...YEOWWW back to reality now, seriously...yeah, I could see the Solstice getting stereotyped as a bit of a chick car. Still, it looks a bit more butch than the Miata, and has a cooler name.

Evidently, the Miata has enough of a stigma attached to it that for 2006, they want you to just call it the MX-5. And I don't know what's up with the new MX-5's front-end. It looks like the Mazda stylists got turned on by the 2001 Aurora, and the outgoing Sebring, got confused as to what to do, and came up with something that looked like it attempted to ape them both at once!

To be fair though, don't most little 2-seaters that tend to stress agility over brutality (i.e., Corvette, Viper, that BMW Z-8 or whatever it was called) tend to get typecast as chick cars? One possible reason might also be because most of them traditionally tended to be British or Italian, so you know that your typical musclecar/ponycar/generic domestic buyer would tend to hate them. I know we tend to be less ignorant and more tolerant these days (hopefully) but once upon a time the world wasn't quite so gentle.

john_324

As I once heard and always liked re British/Italian cars and masculinity:

"If there's a chance that you won't reach your destination, it's a guy car."

That covers the British sportscars for sure...

What hampers male acceptance of the Miata, I'm convinced, is that it's basically a beautiful toaster. If the Miata were unreliable, finicky and capricious in operation, it would have a huge following among guys.

andre1969

I just got my latest Motortrend, and they have a short blurb about the 2006 MX-5. The headline reads "Let's stop calling it a chick's car". Yet in the picture it looks like either a chick, or a very girly dude, is driving! :surprise:

But heck, it sounds like a decent little car overall, so if it appeals to ya, I say go for it and the heck with what anybody else says! But if you pull up next to me in my '76 LeMans or beater Silverado or whatever, and you make a redneck remark or old man remark, I'm gonna follow you home and when you're not looking, put a pink triangle or rainbow sticker on your car! :P

falconone

Would that rainbow be similar to the rainbow license frame you have???? :confuse:

andre1969

there wasn't room because I already had the leather club license frame on there. :shades:

calidave

I would never been seen in a Hummer (any model).

Everyone that gets out of one looks like an idiot.

(unless of course, the driver is actually IN uniform and is driving it because Uncle Sam is paying him/her to)

andre1969

when the H1 first became available for public purchase, some guy on my Mopar mailing list mentioned that a local dealership had one for sale, and they had it perched at an angle, with one wheel up on a 1979 or so Chrysler Newport. He suggested that we all get together some night and go Hummer tipping. :shades:

calidave

I drove the family's Caddies throughout high school (until my sister's back went out and she had to dump her manual trans. Celica and it got given to ME!!! YESSS!!). I hated to "cruise" in the Caddy, because of the rich kid image, but they surre were nice cars. (1975-1979) Not as nice as today's STS, but great for cruising.

snakeweasel

What about the International CXT?

snakeweasel

I don't know but has anyone ever bought a CXT for something other than its intended use (A heavy duty truck for construction, farming and the like)? I haven't taken a ride in one but I have sat in it, seats are very comfortable and the interior is nice but who needs 9.5 tons of towing capacity?

cheleigh

In driving an H1 or H2. Just tacky. I also don't want to drive overly modified cars. My ex drives a Neon that he's F&F modified with the blue lights, racing seat/seat belts, painted dash, racing stripes, etc. I was a little embarassed to be riding with him.

Also, I'm a little ashamed to say that one of the reasons I bought a new car (hence my participation on the forums) is because my car broke down, and I borrowed my Granny's 199x Buick Century. Car drove fine , had power everything, CD player, alarm, etc. I just felt about 80 years old and my cousins informed me I was driving a "scraper," which was popular with the local teen cliques. :surprise: I feel bad because I could have driven that car forever without a car payment...

nippononly

Hehe. There's a guy I see most mornings, just parking his car as he gets ready for the park'n'ride. It is an early 80s Cadillac, one of the monsters like what was it? - Fleetwood? - and the poor guy's windows don't work any more, so I see him tugging at them to pull them up after he parks. Which, on 30-degree mornings, must mean he doesn't have a working defroster either.

I wouldn't be seen in any Cadillac except maybe a brand new one. I also have to chime in with all the folks who wouldn't be seen in any Hummer. No way, talk about POSING.

xrunner2

Years ago, when personal finances were a problem and cars rusted out easily, we drove cars that looked disreputable in their last years of ownership. I had a VW Scirocco that was fun to drive but had extreme rust on front fenders. Actually - big holes. I recall times I had to take evasive action to not be seen (by managers) coming and going to parking lot of office that I worked at. Wife also had a Chevy with a lot of rust and she said that she was “mortified” whenever she was seen by co-workers or managers at parking lot of office she worked at. Today, most cars are much better at not rusting. After we got rid of the VW and Chevy, we both vowed we would never drive another car that showed rust.

Years ago, belonged to a car club and one of the guys had a beat-up GTO. Every panel (fenders, hood, trunk, bumpers) was dented, scratched or banged-up. Popeye's (borrowed) Pontiac Tempest in French Connection maybe was a cream-puff compared to this GTO. He had a propensity for getting into accidents and scrapes. Was a passenger in his car on occasion and did not think much about it at the time. One time on a car club event out in the country, he was driving too fast on a rural road, crested a hill and all of a sudden there was a Tee intersection. He could not stop in time and went straight at Tee into shallow ditch and into plowed field. Front end got smashed some more and both front fenders pushed into tires but did not cut them. The bumper/grille was bashed in and the ends were splayed out. We got out of car (had seat belts on) and we managed to kick and pull away fenders from both tires and he then drove the car out of the field and onto the road. When we got to the end of the car club event, we were disqualified for his dangerous driving.

Today, I would be embarrassed to either drive or be a passenger in a beat-up junker.

lemmer

It might be just a regional thing, but H2s have become rich housewife vehicles here. I see at least one every morning when I drop my daughter off at the elementary school.

I almost never see guys driving them, but the guy across the street does have one. He has extra big wheels and a aftermarket exhaust. It is a bit much for me, but I would drive it before a PT Cruiser.

lemmer

Maybe it isn't fair, but when I see a guy older than me driving a beat up Kia or something, I wonder where he went wrong in life.

Maybe he has a 401K that is about to explode from its huge size, but there are only so many sacrifices I would be willing to make.

carlisimo

"Years ago, when personal finances were a problem and cars rusted out easily, we drove cars that looked disreputable in their last years of ownership."

I'm lucky to have grown up after the days of rust. But my family's cars have all been early 90s compacts, from the era of bad paint. Even with care (if the previous owners did any), after being parked outside they're all spotty and the overcoats are peeling.

I wouldn't be ashamed of driving a well-kept cheap car, but I feel like these cars make me look like a lazy doesn't-wash-his-car kind of guy. (I'd feel the same driving a car with an interior full of junk. I'm a neat freak.)

Better than walking though.

lemko

Shoot, my high school and college girlfriend drove Cadillacs exclusively - either her Mom's mint-condition white 1969 Fleetwood Brougham, her Dad's equally nice 1972 Fleetwood Brougham, or the new 1982 Seville she got for her graduation present. She obviously wasn't afraid of the 'rich girl' image even to her peril at the hands of some of the tougher 'working class' girls. The last new car I remember her buying was a blue 1987 Cadillac Brougham d'Elegance. I broke-up with her in October that year, (non-auto related issue!).

xrunner2

(I'd feel the same driving a car with an interior full of junk. I'm a neat freak.)

Don't like this aspect either. I am especially wary of any contractor coming to house to give estimate for something or other. Vehicle - don't care what brand or how old it is - must be clean with no rust for me to seriously consider their quote/proposal. I also try to go out to driveway with them when they are leaving to get a look inside their vehicle. If it is a mess, I write them off.

john_324

The H2 and H3 would have to be the probably the only current vehicles that I would feel utterly ridiculous in.

Although the Escadale (and esp. the pickup version) is pretty inane too.

carlisimo

"I am especially wary of any contractor coming to house to give estimate for something or other."

Uh oh; I'm an estimator for a general contractor!

john_324

An interesting point re cleanliness of a vehicle. I'm always more impressed by a clean and maintained cheap car than a dirty expensive one.

I also hate when people with Euro cars will have the car washed, but can't be bothered to clean the brake dust off the wheels (BMWs esp. generate a lot and need to be kept after).

I've always kept my cars as clean as possible outside, and near immaculate on the inside. Several people have gotten lectures after trying to put their feet up on the dashboard, attempting to consume messy food and/or drink or walked through dirt or mud before entering. :mad:

snakeweasel

Maybe it isn't fair, but when I see a guy older than me driving a beat up Kia or something, I wonder where he went wrong in life.

It has been said that Sam Walton drove around in a beat up pickup truck. The owner of a company I worked for (the guy was stinking rich) drove around in an old Chevy Berreta.

nippononly

I should add the Escalade to my list.

andre1969

there are a lot of high-level goverment people that I support...GS-15's, SESs and such, people making easily over $100K per year. There's nothing particularly extravagant out in the parking lot, though. One high-level manager drives a '96 Accord with a stick shift. One alternates between a 2000 F-150 and a 2004 or 2005 F-350. Two of them have '00-04 generation Camries. One had been driving a Cutlass Ciera, but it just got old and ragged, so now he has an '06 Camry 4-cyl.

I do see an Acura NSX on occasion. I almost hit it one day when he backed out of his parking space without looking. And there's a lady who occasionally drives a real pricey BMW roadster. I want to say it's a Z-8?

Now of course, none of these people are what you'd probably call "stinking rich". I know some well-off people that don't even own cars. They live in downtown DC, where a car can sometimes be more of a curse than a blessing.

lemko

True, there are eccentric rich people who drive modest cars, either because they're frugal or they don't want to be noticed. If I were offered fame and riches, I'd just take the riches. I don't care if nobody knows who I am. I'm not that egotistical.

Trouble is, most of the time that older guy in the beat-up Kia isn't some wealthy eccentric or cheapskate. Often, he is in such a vehicle because something went seriously wrong in his life. Even if I were a cheapskate, I'd drive a nice older car or a modest new full-size car like an Impala or Crown Victoria.

fintail

I'm the same way...I have more respect for a well kept old car than a grubby new ones, or even most clean new ones. I'll take a mint condition 1968 Buick behemoth sedan over a 2003 Century, for sure. On that note, I'd easily take a 1958 Eldorado Brougham over a new DTS.

I see no embarrassment in a Caddy so long as it is maintained. There are few automotive sights sadder than an old lux car that has fallen on hard times. Caddys look especially sad when neglected.

Neglected nice late model cars are also annoying...it's not odd to see a vacuous trust-funder here driving an abused looking late model 3er. There's a guy in my building who just bought a Saab 9-3 maybe 6 weeks ago...he has yet to wash it or care for it in any way...the front wheels are almost black now.

lemko

I think government workers drive modest cars because they don't want to look like they're livin' large at the taxpayer's expense.

lemmer

That is kind of what I was thinking.

Did I just agree with Lemko?

lemko

For the nicest-looking older cars, come my way. My 1989 Cadillac Brougham still looks and runs like new despite its age and miles. I bought my car at the same time a friend bought a similar car. After 4 years, his car looked like it was in a demolition derby. Of course, he owned a tavern and couldn't help but sample the wares a bit too often!

There is a drop-dead gorgeous white 1968 Cadillac Sedan DeVille with only 37K miles on it for sale near my workplace. I would buy this car in a New York second if I had a place for it and he'd drop the fantasyland price.

andre1969

in DC I saw this hulking behemoth of a '69-70 Sedan DeVille. It wasn't really rusty, but it was banged up here and there with decades of battle scars, and the bumper was twisted so the "face" of the car had an evil sneer to it. It was filthy, and the faded grayish-brown color didn't help.

Still, it's amazing how something like that could look so junky, yet still have such a commanding presence at the same time. It looked like it would've been great for a "killer vehicle" themed movie along the lines of "Duel", "The Car", "Black Cadillac", "Christine", etc.

Now I think the later Cadillacs, like the 70's and 80's models, look sad when they get junky, but there was something about this particular one that commanded respect. It was also kinda neat to see how quickly most of the other cars cleared out of his way. :P

snakeweasel

Well its just that most of those I know who are wealthy are so because they drive modest cars, live in modest homes, wear modest cloths and put everything they can into their business.

calidave

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Cadillac-DeVille-CADILLAC-RARE-1968-ORIGINAL-CADI- LLAC-SEDAN-DEVILLE-4-DR-HARD-TOP_W0QQcmdZViewItemQQcategoryZ6146QQitemZ459766728- 5QQrdZ1QQsspagenameZWDVW

calidave

What does "wealthy" mean, anyway?

One year's wages in a savings account?

ten years?

$500,000 in savings/retirement?

Most people I know who work in government do not make enough money to spend $45k on a car. (ignoring the concept of leasing a vehicle that is more than you can "afford" - anyone can lease anything, as we all know. It doesn't mean they can "afford" to) If you work in government, you have most likely decided to be "careful" with your money, as you aren't making as much money as you could have had you taken a non-government job in the same field. Of course there are exceptions. I know a lot of government lawyers. They could be working for private law firms or companies and making much better money. But they like the work they do, so they do it for less $. None of them are driving expensive cars that I can think of. Then again, they are in D.C. and San Francisco, which are so expensive to live in, it's hard to have enough left over to drive a Kia)

andre1969

can sometimes be tricky. Here's a link to that 1968 Caddy. That thing sure is purty! I really like the color.

I guess a lot of people would find something like that unweildy to drive around. I looked up some specs, and it has a wheelbase of 129.5" and an overall length of 224.7". I had a '69 Bonneville that was on a 125" wb, and IIRC, was 225" long overall, actually a touch longer than that Caddy! :surprise: I guess the styling makes it look much bigger than it really is, though. Just looking at it I'd swear it looks much more massive than my old Bonneville did!

calidave

yes, thanks - I mistakenly linked to the picture page, not to the front page

calidave

You'd be making a lot of three-point turns in that baby

I drove mid-70s Caddies in the late 70s. I think they were essentially the same size. I don't remember it being a problem. Maybe parkig lots were bigger.

(actually, lots were striped differently back then. Spaces were much bigger than today.)

snakeweasel

I would say the ones I am thinking of are in the top 1% (maybe even 1/2%) of the popultation in net worth.

andre1969

when I was in college in the late 80's, they re-striped the parking lot, making the spaces about 5-6" narrower. Very stupid move, when you figure that in the late 80's, a lot of college kids were still driving hand-me-down land yachts from their parents. I remember this short Asian girl who could barely see over the hood of her emerald green '79 New Yorker. Once or twice, after I'd parked and was on my way to class, I'd see her trying to park that monster, I'd stop and help guide her in.

I drove relatively small cars in college, a 1980 Malibu and then a '69 Dart. Both of those cars were even a pain to park in those tiny spaces...it was easier to back them in than to pull in forward. The Dart was also a bit easier because it was a bit narrower, had shorter doors, and you could see the corners of the car better.

They also re-striped the lots here at work, at least some of them. I remember back in the early 90's I could parallel-park my grandma's '85 LeSabre at the curb out in front, with no trouble at all. But a few years ago I tried it in a '79 New Yorker (similar length...maybe 3" longer) and it actually hung over the spot, both front and rear!

bigdveedubgirl

In my childhood, I lived in Huntington Beach CA (THE OC) and in the eighties, my mom drove a 1972 AMC Gremlin. White with Blue interior. I HATED getting picked up in that car.....

Now I drive a nice truck and like most car people, I am cheap and refuse to have two car payments in my household (I am up for promotion with a demo)so I bought my grandma in laws 1990 Olds 98 Regency, and the paint is flaking and it has a tan steering wheel cover (those old school wrap around things) and a "Dont mess with texas" sticker in the back. I drive that to work at the Audi store.......hee hee

New car would not be caught dead in is A Hummer....too obnoxious...

snakeweasel

OK I know its not the same car but why do I see this car coming out of a cake with "Deathmobile" painted on the side?

ontop

Often, he is in such a vehicle because something went seriously wrong in his life.

Know what you're saying. Kia exudes cheap. I think everybody knows one person who's well off and drives a POS, but they're the exception not the rule.

When you see me driving a Kia I authorize anyone to go ahead and put me out of my misery when I drive by the grassy knoll.

scramblinman

Bah, I would have been happy to have been picked up from school in a Gremlin than the hand-me-down 1963 Rambler with faded pink paint and rust spots that my folks drove during some difficult times in the late 70s. My sister and I literally laid on the floor and insisted on being dropped off a few blocks from our school.

New vehicles I would not drive today

Hummer H2 or H3. Nothing more than overpriced Chevy Suburbans and Colorados with body kits.

Cadillac Escalade. Gussied up and overpriced Chevy Tahoe.

Whatever that Cadillac station wagon is. WTF are they doing making SUVs and station wagons???

Lincoln Navigator. Gussied up and overpriced Expedition.

Chevy Avalanche. Plastic clad nightmare.

Pontiac Aztec. Barf.

Jeep Liberty. Jeeps shows it's feminine side. Same with the new Grand Cherokee.

PT Cruiser, Chevy HHR, SSR, Dodge Magnum, etc. If I want retro, I'll buy an original. Exception might be made for new Mustang.

Chrysler 300. The new pimp-mobile.

Dodge Charger. Fugly and people will be asking you what you were thinking or smoking in about 2 years.

Subaru B9 Tribecca. See Dodge Charger, except reduce time frame to about 30 days.

Dodge Durango. How did this SUV go to seeming like a mini-van on steroids?

BMW X5, Mercedes ML series, Volvo XC90, Infiniti FX, Acura MDX, Lexus RX, etc. Worthless SUVs short on tough outdoorsy image and even shorter on offroad performance. Yuk. Why not be honest with yourself and just buy a nice AWD wagon?

Just about any "crossover" SUV such as the Ford Escape, Toyota Highlander, Rav4, Handa CRV, Nissan Murano, etc, etc, etc. Ridiculously restyled minivans and station wagons designed so that suburbanites can feel like they are driving something other than, well, mini-vans and station wagons. If I have a justifiable need for an SUV or pickup, I want real offroad and towing performance, not some unibody pile of crap.

fljoslin

There are about the same size as a Suburban.

bigdveedubgirl

oh my goodness what would you drive????? :P

As for the sweet gremlin, my dad used to entertain me and take the key out while it was running.Oh it didnt get any better, my dad totally ragged out a 1989 Ford Taurus, that by 1994 when I learned to drive, The rear small window had black electrical tape to cover it when it got broken into, the front bumber was gone (knocked off in a hit and run) power seat was broken so I had to have a pillow to sit on. My first car was an 88 Toyo Corrolla SR5 blue on blue that had a cracked head and I had to put a case of oil a week in it and it blew so much blue smoke that the clean air commission saw me on the highway and sent me a letter warning me about my polluting car :sick:

Oh the the Land ROver Outlander (i think that is what its is called) that is for people who want to say they have a land rover but it looks like a ford escape.

lemko

"What does "wealthy" mean, anyway?

One year's wages in a savings account?

ten years?

$500,000 in savings/retirement?"

None of that is wealthy. It may be rich, but as Chris Rock once said, rich comes and goes. You want to be wealthy!

Wealthy is that you have so large a fortune you can quit working right now and never need to go back. Your kids and their kids will never have to work at all. Even collossal prodigality on behalf of your heirs won't wipe out the fortune you built. Your money will outlive you, your friends, your family, and even your business. Your money will keep growing and growing and you'll never again need to worry about recessions, depressions, inflation, deflation, wars, and all those other trivial things that bother mere mortals.

Michael Jordan is rich. Even with all the money he made playing for the NBA and in endorsements for Nike, he'd have to work 216 years at the level to match Bill Gates who is wealthy!