If one is concerned about how they look or what people will think of them in a particular car, I think there may be more important character issues to deal with. In other words, I don't give a rats ****.

 

What I find is most people have no idea about models and various trim lines and depreciation and the sort...a friend of my ex gf said that her boyfriend drove a big luxo benz, it must be expensive! The car was an early 2000s S430...he bought it many years later than it's original in service date and by the time the car had depreciated to that of a mid 20K car....still a wonderful sedan but not the uber luxo sled that most folkd would think it still is .... not that $100K car but it's like a time/brain lock for most peoplke they always recall the original figures.

Seems to me that people simply brand associate when it comes to cars...they see Porsche, BMW, Mercedes and automaticly think they are expensive because that's what society and their parents and everyone else has tought them over many years of adaptive conditioning this is what they still remmember like Pavlov's dog and the salivating at the sound of the bell, they are not enthusiasts, they don't keep up with the cars or the various trim lines or the details of the models or relative present costing...us guys as enthusiasts look well into the marque and really break it down far differently than 99% of the population...just my observation

 

I agree with most of what's been said here, and so I'll try not to be redundant.

When I was test driving cars, it came down to a black Turbo S and a yellow GT3. Both were amazing to drive, and you can read a million threads about the differences between Turbos and GT3s. I opted for the Turbo because I intended it to be my daily driver, and it had all the creature comforts I wanted. But I also leaned toward the black car because I felt the yellow would be too "look at me" and the black would be more stealthy. I wasn't buying the car to be flashy, I was buying it for my own pleasure. And let me tell you, this is the only car I've ever owned where the honeymoon wasn't over in three months. I've had this car for four years, and it puts a smile on my face every time I slingshot around another car, or accelerate through a corner. The torque and grip is ridiculous and intoxicating. My commute has gone from a daily drag to something I look forward to.

And by the way, it turns out the black car gets a TON of attention, which is not something I expected or wanted, but it is what it is. And most people are complimentary and respectful, so it's all good. To be honest, I kind of dig it now that I'm used to it. Remember when you were a kid and you asked truck drivers to honk, or motorcycles to wheelie? It's fun being on the receiving end of that stuff.

 

Sunir, i agree with your post 100% ! Guys around here drive 10-15k mercedes with " god" complexs......the car was hot......in 1999 lol

 

+1 after 5 years I'm still never selling this car

...and I'm glad I didn't find the yellow one I wanted.

 

some people drive normal cars and have a therapist they see once a week

i drive a p-car daily and have therapy everyday on my commute

i wonder which costs more?

 

It's definitely a love/hate thing with this car, I've never been flipped off and complimented more in my life. I'm lucky I don't have a commute other than plane rides so most of the time it sits in the garage.

 

Generally the people who know me are supportive because they know of my gearhead addiction. The reaction of people who don't know me run the usual breadth of human emotion. Reaction ranges from fathers asking if their sons can take a look at the car or sit in it ....to the deep frowns that say "you must be a jerk".

I figure it's just something you deal with if you going to go out on a limb and drive something like this.

 

this

 

"And let me tell you, this is the only car I've ever owned where the honeymoon wasn't over in three months. I've had this car for four years, and it puts a smile on my face every time I slingshot around another car, or accelerate through a corner. The torque and grip is ridiculous and intoxicating. My commute has gone from a daily drag to something I look forward to."

I love the old Benz, but I have GOT to test drive a Porsche in the very near future!

 

I like all the German marques but I think each has it's flagship...the one vehicle model that has withstood the test of time...has the lineage and history, encapsulates everything the brand stands for...as some would say the clear diplomat of the brand...to me it's the 911 for Porsche, and among those the turbo even though it is a relativie newcomer to the venerable cars that wrote the history books on the racetrack...for Mercedes it's the SL, there's just so much beauty, grace, power, and meaning in the SL...it truely is a flagship and bearer for Mercedes...with BMW for me it's the CSL which translates into the big engine high horsepower sedans and coupes such as the M5 and M6...as well as the near perfrct BMW M3...a la E30 (although personally I love the E36)! And with Audi the Quattro sedans which kept the company affloat through the hard times...pushed the brand forward through rallying when the company faced bankrupcy...and eventually eveolved into benchmark setting AWD sedans, now with the R8 Audi is re-inventing itself faster than andy other, and is on the forefront of technology through racing - just unbelievable what they have been able to do over the last decade!!!

So there you have it...my take on the timeless flagships that I remmember and that signified each marque to me...I know I am not the only one with a few of these cars on posters as a child growing up !

 

The soul searching here is interesting. Go over to the 996 NA forum and you'll find a current 3 page thread on getting laid due to owning a Porsche!

 

I am solely looking to get a porsche for the way it drives. It's been a childhood dream car of mine and I am buying one to use every day as my daily driver, rain, shine, or snow. I'm one of those guys that believes a car is meant to be driven. Yes it's a supercar, but it is the quintessential everyday supercar. I figure the 996tt is AWD, and the ride height is almost the same as my BMW 335xi, which did fine in last year's freak snow storm on the east coast, so why not? Some of my friends are all about the fact that it's a porsche, but to a true enthusiast, it's about the way you feel when you drive it, not what it is. Hell, if a toyota corolla could put a smile on my face every time I drive it, I'd drive one of those every day, I don't care lol.

 

+1.

Just yesterday, I went to Ft Lee, VA and some dude busts in the room 4 hrs after I showed up - "GUYS! There is a GT-R in the parking lot!"

 

i like when a kids arm shoots out to point and i can see him say "sooooopra"