If you have nice clothes, do you need a nice car?

[J'aimelescravates]

I'd love to have a '59 300SL

 

[JayJay]

^^^ Great car! I like cars, especially older and vintage models.

 

[stickonatree]

is this similar to asking, if i'm really really ridiculously good looking, do i need a brain?

 

[Dolle Dolf]

I like to wear this

with something nice Nice cars have never been more attainable. This is a 10 year old Jag that I payed a little over $7k for. Full service history and all that, 178k miles on the clock, still looks and runs great, and always makes a good impression. secretly lusting after a maserati quattroporte, but agree with others that it just does not make sense splashing for a depreciating assett prior to having the essentials covered. Then again, the maserati coupe has been depreciating like the proverbial brick and these are coming in firmer and firmer view..... don't think that certain types of cars combine well with certain clothes. Would feel a bit funny wearing a cutoff T and a baseball cap in the Jag, then again, if I owned a corvette that would be the outfit of choice. I would wear an old T shirt and denim in a Ferrari 308-430, but not in a 456, 550 or scaglietti. Let alone wear a suit with a pickup truck.

 

[Brian278]

^^^That's a great car, but at 178K it's kind of a ticking maintenance time bomb. But I'm sure you knew that.

 

[Coho]

Ha ha. Ha ha.

 

[Gus]

With nice clothes you just need a clean and neat car. Something with simple style, not boring and it doesn't need to be flashy. My wife, who dresses very well, has always been a fan of VW GTIs. They are cool and sporty but anything but pretentious. YSL used to drive a VW bug convertible. Nice cars yes, fancy or expensive, No.

 

[Gus]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

My former car was a '60s Mercedes sedan, a bit of a boat in modern traffic:

These sorts of cars are relatively inexpensive to buy, but maintenance--and sometimes gas use--is anything but economical.

I had a 72 280 SEL with a 4.5 liter engine. A fun car in mint condition with only 12K miles in '94. But I felt like it cost me $500 each time I drove it. There was always some"little" thing going wrong that cost a lot to fix. It must have been one of the last years that had no seat belts in the rear and loads of real wood.

 

[airportlobby]

I don't find it incongrous to dress with care and drive a beater. I try, often without success, to choose clothing that make me less physically repellant. I am not hoping that my clothes will convey, to receptive masses, the obvious message that I am powerful, successful, rich and the proud sire of a delicately honed aethetic sensibility. I find, sadly, that my vehicle does little to minimize or enhance my physical repugnance unless I am attempting to impress upon the staff of the Whataburger drive-in that I am a man cognizant of the Finer Things.

However, instead of a license plate, I hang a framed copy of my (rather expensive) law school diploma from my bumper. But this is purely in the interest of discouraging scallywags.

(Despite my attempts to resist the fetishizing of imbecilic cars, I would not turn my nose at late 60s Mopar.)

 

[yfyf]

I don't mind spending on clothes but I really dislike cars in general. When I used to drive, I drove a crummy Kia that had trouble overtaking on the freeway. Now I just take whatever public transport is available to me or a cab. Or better yet, walk.

I also find nothing incongruous about being dressed well and driving a lackluster car. If it's a fuel-efficient type, I'm much more likely to be impressed as well. If it's a Hummer I will probably think about hitting you instead.

 

[LabelKing]

Originally Posted by pocketsquareguy

I had a 72 280 SEL with a 4.5 liter engine. A fun car in mint condition with only 12K miles in '94. But I felt like it cost me $500 each time I drove it. There was always some"little" thing going wrong that cost a lot to fix. It must have been one of the last years that had no seat belts in the rear and loads of real wood.
Mine was a 1969 280SEL. It was from the W108 line, which was the last line that was hand-assembled by a specific team at the factory instead of the regular mass production on a conveyor belt. I particularly loved the oversized bakelite steering wheel, and the way the star emblem in the front was like a chrome gun-sight. I'd especially like to get the 300SEL 6.3, and the later '70s 450SEL 6.9. The 6.9 is best when the rear is only discreetly marked "6.9." Here is Brock Yates on the 6.9, which he drove on Road Atlanta: http://www.m-100.cc/6point9/brochure...tes/index.html

 

[Homme]

Originally Posted by pocketsquareguy

I had a 72 280 SEL with a 4.5 liter engine. A fun car in mint condition with only 12K miles in '94. But I felt like it cost me $500 each time I drove it. There was always some"little" thing going wrong that cost a lot to fix. It must have been one of the last years that had no seat belts in the rear and loads of real wood.

My cousin has one of these, dark green with a cream leather interior. Beautiful car. It's perfect for going for a drive on a summer night, with the windows down and the sun roof open. Don't think i could use it as a daily driver.

 

[lakewolf]

Originally Posted by j

I'll drive it for you.

It depends on your lifestyle how much your car needs to represent you. Personally I'd think better of a well dressed guy stepping out of a well-loved Bavaria with 175k miles on it than one stepping out of a brand new M5. The latter, I might think, was only representing money, while the former, signified taste and understatement.

Sorry, I've been brushing up on my Vaclavian.

Anyway, this is one of the reasons I want to replace my car (a '94 325is). Though I bought it on its merits (RWD, enough power, plenty of comfort, appealing (to me at the time) styling), I loathe its implications and associations. It looks dbagish and arriviste to most people, and with some years on it now, I look like a dated dbag instead of a dbag-au-courant (who would be in a leased '07).

Keep the 94 ( is a E36 right ? )

Those are great cars.

When I had the accident in wich my E36 cabrio got wrecked, I got me a BMW 320i E30 a 1988 model I got for $1500 while I was waiting that the insurance company cleared things and payed me back to get the new car.

It was the simplest model, the only option was the roof opening. It belonged to an older lady and was immaculate.

This was a great car, the feel of it ( pure mechanical and not computer controlled like the newer ones ), the classic look. I really liked it a lot. When I got the new car (a 320 Ci E46 cabrio ) I sold it for $1000 to an student that was indeed happy as a dog with two tails with it.

Then later on I regretted to have sold it. I feel good that is in good hands, but it is really hard to find an old model like this in that clean state.

 

[LabelKing]

I think you should get something like this:

 

[lakewolf]

Originally Posted by LabelKing

I think you should get something like this:

That is a nice one, that is the E21 model from the 70's

The one I was talking about is that design, but the next generation though

a little less angular, but great cars indeed

I am a BMW lover !