QUIKAG

Okay, we are obviously car enthusiasts if we frequent Car Talk on s2ki. I've been a car enthusiast since I was 5 years old and dreamed of the day I could buy a cool car. Well, that time came in college when I bought my first new car, a '97 Honda Prelude with money I had earned through mowing lawns. When, I got out of college, I put a fair bit of money down and got a new '01 Corvette. I still had quite a car payment though on the remainder, certainly for a starting salary right out of college. But, I had no problem at the time spending the majority of my salary in car payment/apartment rent, etc.

So, as it goes with most of us, as we get older, we eventually earn more money and subsequently as the general thought would go, you would then buy hotter and hotter rides. But, I think there is a disconnect somewhere for many of us. Either I'm not as passionate anymore about cars or I don't want to part with more money for a car that I may only enjoy marginally more than the C6 I currently have. I guess it's a maturity thing, but that issue doesn't seem to apply to some people who always seem to have the latest and greatest, debt or not be damned.

So, what is the secret to getting older, making more money, and STILL wanting to spend a bunch of money on the newest, hottest ride? I'm making more money now, but I don't want to spend it anymore. Some would call that smart and mature, others would call it boring and unbecoming of a car enthusiast. I'm torn between the two.

In short, I'd love a GT3, Vantage, Viper ACR, ZR1, etc. but I just don't want to spend the money. How do you guys that have gone for it and gotten the next dream ride justify it to yourself and/or your family/wife, etc.? Was it worth it? Where do you draw the line?

vader1

I still like cars, and am fascinated by new models and new technology, but as I get older and my income goes up I want cars less and less. I am seeing my dad do the same thing. It used to be Audi and Lexus, now he looks at Camrys and Highlanders.

I used to switch cars every couple years, now I keep them longer. I don't care what other people think of what I drive, just if I like it.

I am more practical with the vehicle and I don't even have kids.

But the lust is gone. I really LOVE the looks of the Cayman S and have the ability to buy one if I want. But my Honda is paid for, it is fun with the supercharger and insurance is super cheap so I don't even have any motivation to go look at a toy. It is now ten years old but I don't care.

I used to think of all the supercars I would buy if I were a powerball winner, but now I don't even think about it anymore and would maybe buy just one car if I did.

We had the roof of our dome collapse during the recent snowstorm so they are trying to shovel out the university's football stadium where all the seats were under two feet of snow. They were offering $10 an hour to people who wanted to come and help the effort and the place was flooded with people willing to freeze their asses off shoveling heavy snow because they needed the money that badly. It really made me sad, and kind of makes dreaming about a 458 Italia seem silly when people will do just about anything to make $50 at Christmas time.

I still love cars, enjoy reading about them and like to see an exotic go down the road now and again but will be just fine never owning one. And if a lucky powerball ticket drops on me this weekend, I will give the 458 Italia money to the Salvation Army. I am pretty spoiled and lucky and have been all my life, no need to make it worse.

If I am being selfish, travel is my weakness. I would take a month in Bora Bora over a free Ferrari.

QUIKAG

Well said, Vader. For better or worse, I think I crawled in the same boat as you in the past year or two.

vader1

Plenty of room on this boat. I think when things are booming and everyone is fat and happy its easier to be self indulgent, but when you see people kicked out of their homes and out of work every night on TV it puts things into a different light. It is still ok to want nice things, but I don't go overboard like I used to.

mxt_77

That's kinda my boat. While it sounds like you're in a significantly higher tax bracket than me, I'm still fighting the same temptations. I'd love to be in a 911, but I'd have to cash in a lot of my savings & investments and I'd probably still have to take on a monthly payment. I just can't justify doing that, especially after one of my friends put it to me this way:
"For every $20K you spend on a car today, you effectively add one year to your retirement age."
Obviously that number is different for different people and different lifestyles, but for me, that's what it all comes down to. When I was straight out of college, I never thought about how long I was going to have to work before retirement. Now that I've been working 10+ years, I'm constantly thinking about it. And anything that I can do to shorten the amount of time before retirement is a good thing. And apparently that includes driving a 15-year-old Accord, when I really want something more fun & classy.

asiliat

been to bora bora - I'd be bored to death in a month

I'll take a car any day over vacation. 4 weeks vs. 3 yrs? I'll drive in a nicer vehicle any day (1 hr drive each way - not brutal, but not short)

Elistan

Two aspects, if you still want the hot car but refrain;

1) As we get older and have new experiences, we gain new interests. Which cost money, something that a car payment would limit. Get the AM Vantage, or put that money towards golf, travel, skiing, etc? I've noticed at motorcycle track days that the majority of young guys there do nothing but motorcycles. They have a job to afford a bike, they schedule their time off around bike events, they eat and sleep so they can ride.

2). Fear. As we get older, we get more fearful. If something happens at 22yo, we have a chance to recover. If at 60yo, we're in serious trouble.

st4rk

S2020

I'm squeezing onto the boat.
when I was slaving away during residency, I dreamed of the day when I can get a Porsche or Ferrari.
after making decent money for the past few years, I don't desire it as much. I'm more interested in making the money grow.

also, my employees will want a raise if I spend extravagantly. Right now, my wife and I live the same kind of lifestyle as our employees: same size dwelling, same type of restaurants, clothing, shopping, etc.

dombey

So strange, the other day I was thinking about this exact same topic while reading this forum.

Like you, when I graduated college I bought an clipse, then a tacoma, then an s2k, then an IS-F. As a percent of my gross monthly income, I went from like 50% spent on the car to something like 6%...and somehow I still ask myself periodically if expensive cars are worth it.

I think it is a combination of things; when you're young you don't have the liabilities like mortgages, insurance, grad school loans, retirement savings, saving for your kid's education, property taxes, etc. So a larger percentage of your monthly take can safely go into a car. (unless you're one of the few that sock away a big chunk of their earnings from the time they graduate college)
You also have a maturity thing going on; you realize that you have other priorities and that a certain amount of fiscal responsibility is required to address them. You begin to realize that your income isn't that variable once you've settled into a career, and that putting more money into a car means less money going somewhere else....

I've always wanted a 911TT, and i was dead set on buying one someday, but lately I've been thinking the IS-F is an awesome car for a few years...then I'll re-evaluate. I won't probably trade it in for an accord, but realistically I probably couldn't even justify a 911, much less a Turbo. I could see doing a Cayman S....but it just seems wasteful nowadays to go that big, even if you can swing the payment.