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Its optional though. They offer free maintenance but you're not required to bring it to them. I tell him that and he tells me that he doesnt have the time to drop the car off and have them hold it for 2hrs just for an oil change.
I must say he's right. I drive a Civic and he drives a Pilot. I take full advantage of the free oil changes they offer as Honda now uses a 0w-20 oil that runs anywhere $60-$70 for an oil change at a quick lube spot. When I drop my car off at Honda it takes about 2hrs for a basic oil change.
I just go first thing in the morning. Gets me out of the house, otherwise I tend to lounge around on Saturdays. Takes about 30-45 minutes. I've used up all the free oil changes but I keep getting coupons for oil changes emailed to me for $50 or so. Same, 0w-20. It's not as expensive as it used to be but I'm pretty lazy. I'd rather drink the dealership's free coffee than do it myself and save a couple bucks.
I drive a luxury vehicle, but keep in mind it is 15 years old. Still looks good, but seriously, it doesn't even qualify anymore. Someone could buy a brand new Ford Focus and they would have sent far more than I did on my Lexus. Nowadays there is Craigslist, and other services, and people can get used cars pretty easily. Probably allot of those luxury cars you are describing are not even that new.
But a Camry is in the next-size up (more like a 5-series) and has a 0-60 time right at 6 seconds as well. I find my Fusion to be more roomy and comfortable than the 3 Series I test drove. It was tiny and I'm not a big guy.
When you equip a BMW with the same content as a loaded Camry, Fusion, or whatever, and get down to the real transaction price, it is close to a $10,000 difference in price. I did this a couple years ago when I bought my 2013 Fusion - and I know the BMW or Audi's are worth more money for various reasons, but not THAT much more. The Euro cars absolutely kill you on option pricing so when comparably equipped there just isn't THAT much more content in the BMW. The mainstream sedans have come a long way.
Now for my next car I'm looking at a BMW 550, Audi A6 or Jag XFR. I'm waiting for the next gen versions that'll come out next year. (For BMW and Jag, anyway.) Now these are considerably more than the Fusions & Camrys of the world but you are getting performance and options that you just can't get in a Ford or Toyota so you're talking apples-to-oranges in that case.
Well, the difference in size is not as much as it used to be, since 3 series has grown (and I consider this a bad thing). And yes, you start adding options to an entry 3 series and the price goes through the roof. You can bring the price of 328i almost close to an M3! That's why I compared the loaded toyota, to no/little options entry bmw.
There is one "option" though that you can't get on the camry, and you have standard on the most basic 3 - RWD.
Well, they find it worth the effort. Personally, I am not into cars, so I find that stupid. All cars are the same for me; there is no reason to strain myself financially for that kind of car. In fact, I don't even like to drive (it feels suffocating, lining up with other cars on the road).
A lot of these are actually leases. A lease allows someone to typically drive a more expensive car than they would be able to buy outright. Others are probably used. Also, there are a lot of 0% financing these days, that makes them affordable. Cars in general have also gotten more expensive. A decked out Suburban is $70k. That puts it at the same price point as a Mercedes GL.
But here's the big one. This is the reason you see luxury cars at target: Rich or Poor, EVERYONE NEEDS TOILET PAPER.
This is why I wound up replacing my Yukon XL with a smaller, luxury SUV.
I'm not sure why the OP thinks only middle class people shop at Target.
Sometimes people do not know the value of older luxury cars and they think that just because its a BMW, Audi or Mercedes that its worth a lot of money. These brands really depreciate in value and can be had at a good price just because they are the outgoing model. A newer Camry can be worth more than a comparable outgoing model luxury car.
correct. People who do not look at buying the car, usually are way off on how much its worth.
I spent $30,000 on a new full size truck in 2010, I researched for 4 months before I made the purchase. Drove it to work everyday, nobody even noticed, or gave it a second look.
I bought a used, 2010 Camaro a few months ago for $18,000, because after lots of research, was about $2,000 -$3,000 more then the same year / engine / mileage Malibu that I was looking at buying, and for 2k, hey why not .
and EVERYONE , says, wow, you must be rich! is that brand new ?! ( no, not brand new, but a 2010 looks the exact same as 2015 after a car wash) wow can't beleive you paid $35,000 for A SPORTS CAR!
now, if I would have spend $15,000 on a used malibu, nobody would have noticed.
correct. People who do not look at buying the car, usually are way off on how much its worth.
I spent $30,000 on a new full size truck in 2010, I researched for 4 months before I made the purchase. Drove it to work everyday, nobody even noticed, or gave it a second look.
I bought a used, 2010 Camaro a few months ago for $18,000, because after lots of research, was about $2,000 -$3,000 more then the same year / engine / mileage Malibu that I was looking at buying, and for 2k, hey why not .
and EVERYONE , says, wow, you must be rich! is that brand new ?! ( no, not brand new, but a 2010 looks the exact same as 2015 after a car wash) wow can't beleive you paid $35,000 for A SPORTS CAR!
now, if I would have spend $15,000 on a used malibu, nobody would have noticed.
Boy. The there are some nosy obnoxious people you hang out with.
What I seen frequently is some single mom with 3-4 kids in a Porsche Cayenne SUV. That thing costs around $60-75k but are driven a lot by middle or lower income folks that are probably paying $600-800/month to lease.
Your numbers are off quite a bit... I can tell you that a base model Boxster/Cayman leases for $600 a month, with $6k due upfront, and it's only a 27 month lease. The Panamera 4 (which would be similarly priced to the Cayenne) starts at $1k per month, and you owe $7k upfront at signing.
"Middle" income people making above $80k could get approved to lease a Porsche. Lower income people do not get approved, at all. So if you're seeing some soccer mom in a Cayenne, they either have a used one and can afford it, or they have a new one and can afford it. You're not going to find any lower income people in Porsches unless it was given to them, or they bought a cheap used one.
Well, the difference in size is not as much as it used to be, since 3 series has grown (and I consider this a bad thing). And yes, you start adding options to an entry 3 series and the price goes through the roof. You can bring the price of 328i almost close to an M3! That's why I compared the loaded toyota, to no/little options entry bmw.
There is one "option" though that you can't get on the camry, and you have standard on the most basic 3 - RWD.
Well the Camrys and Fusions keep growing, too....but I get your point. He'll these days the Civic is now larger than the original Accord was.
Understand the point about RWD, but 99% of drivers do not know how to properly "drive" RWD vs FWD. I've driven both FWD Audis and RWD Beamers and I personally just don't have a huge preference for RWD even though I understand that is preferred for sports cars. In some ways I even like FWD better.....especially when driving in bad weather.
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