Is It Politically Incorrect...

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Originally Posted By: Nick R
Originally Posted By: Astro14
Depends on what message you might, inadvertantly, send to the boss by your vehicle choice...

When I was the CO (Commanding Officer), one of my junior sailors (an E-4) passed me on the way to work one day, driving a new Infiniti G35 Coupe...nice ride, much nicer than my 1990 Toyota Truck.

Message I got was loud and clear: careless with money, in over his head....he had a car that cost 2x his annual income...I had a car worth .02x my annual income...maybe .01x...but I had an investment portfolio...

So, I decided it was time to have all-hands training on financial planning...



IMO there is nothing wrong with driving a nice car. I mean I drive and pay for a Cruze- My annual income right now is about 16k (Working on that). The monthly payment is right at where I can pay it, put a good chunk into savings, pay off the balance on my credit card, and then have a little left over for fun and food.

Not familiar with the sailor, but I know a lot of guy in the military that have no family, get COLA/BAH have no rent, and so have plenty of money to spend on nice things like a nice car. As long as it's done responsibly, I see no problem with it. Again I don't know the full details of this story, so this is just very broad.

There's nothing wrong with having new cars/toys when you're young, but if you want to have a nice house in your early 30's, be debt free in your 40's and retire well in your 50's/60's, spending all your money in your 20's makes it a tough go...
 
I find Astro's posts are usually very well articulated and I have a hard time disagreeing with him on most things.

And your last point rings true. And begs the question as to what vehicle The Critic is looking at purchasing that he is asking this question?

My wife and I drive decent vehicles. Both are around 10 years old, both are top trim levels for their series. Both were purchased used with the intention to keep. And both were well within our ability afford and maintain. And that is key.

As Astro mentioned, spending more than you earn on a vehicle isn't generally considered a wise move.

Mind you, my situation is different from Nick's, as I'm sure is the case for many of us on this board including yourself. Most of us have bills and a mortgage and don't live with our parents. So while his car may have cost more than what he's earning in a year, he doesn't have anywhere near the expenses the rest of us have.

When I was his age, I was driving an Explorer which I could barely afford to drive, working part time at a truck stop trying to pay for it and school. Not a smart move in retrospect.
 
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
There's nothing wrong with having new cars/toys when you're young, but if you want to have a nice house in your early 30's, be debt free in your 40's and retire well in your 50's/60's, spending all your money in your 20's makes it a tough go...


Don't burst their bubble, they've been told in school that they will be making a 6 figure salary (or close to it) when they graduate. I've seen it when I was going to collage. I still hear of young people spending their OSAP loans because they think a huge career, with even bigger salary awaits them right out the door.
 
It may not be right, but your car can impact they way people view you. In many ways, your car reflects your judgement and priorities. I can tell you from experience that if you drive an excessive car for your level it can impact the way you are viewed, your promotional opportunities and even your future employment. There can also be a negative impact if your car is sub-par for your level/position.

It is even more of an issue when you are in a Client facing role. Cars on either end of the spectrum can result in a negative perception and impact your success.
 
Originally Posted By: Cardinal49
It may not be right, but your car can impact they way people view you. In many ways, your car reflects your judgement and priorities. I can tell you from experience that if you drive an excessive car for your level it can impact the way you are viewed, your promotional opportunities and even your future employment. There can also be a negative impact if your car is sub-par for your level/position.

It is even more of an issue when you are in a Client facing role. Cars on either end of the spectrum can result in a negative perception and impact your success.


Very true in most situations.
 
And a final note: You will never be freer than the day you realize that it does not matter what other people think of you.

I occasionally buy a new car. I keep it for around ten years if it's a good one. Most of my cars are bought used, especially at the auctions.

My wife just started a job making six figures and she drives a 2005 Silverado. She likes it. That's good enough for me.
 
Drive what you want.
Wear what you want.
Say what you want.

If youre in a job that does not allow you to do that, switch careers.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
A lot of my employees have nicer vehicles than me.

It just shows where their financial priorities lie.

BMW can make anyone look pretty, and pretend to have money, for $400 a month.

Why are you selling a new car? A 2011 Toyota should give at least 10 years of reliable use.


Niiiiice
wink.gif



No offense against you my friend, I was referring to all the people who lease 3 series and really cannot afford them.

I wish no offense to the Op, although from some of his recent posts I think his financial priorities are messed up, like well every 20 year old.

Cars are the worst place to put money, the absolute worst. If you constantly spend every penny you have on a car you will never have anything, other than a nice car.

The bottom line is your boss is making more money than you are, if you are buying a nicer car than they are your priorities are backwards and you cannot afford said car.
 
There are three owners of my company, and all of them drive newer pickup trucks or SUVs that are definitely more expensive than my Corvette, but the Corvette certainly has more of an "appearance" of being a more expensive car than theirs.
 
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
A lot of my employees have nicer vehicles than me.

It just shows where their financial priorities lie.

BMW can make anyone look pretty, and pretend to have money, for $400 a month.

Why are you selling a new car? A 2011 Toyota should give at least 10 years of reliable use.


Niiiiice
wink.gif



No offense against you my friend, I was referring to all the people who lease 3 series and really cannot afford them.

I wish no offense to the Op, although from some of his recent posts I think his financial priorities are messed up, like well every 20 year old.

Cars are the worst place to put money, the absolute worst. If you constantly spend every penny you have on a car you will never have anything, other than a nice car.

The bottom line is your boss is making more money than you are, if you are buying a nicer car than they are your priorities are backwards and you cannot afford said car.



No offence taken sir! My BMW is a 10 year old car with expensive to replace parts and no warranty of any kind, hardly something a young guy acting in the manner in which you've stated is likely to jump into. I didn't take it as being directed at me at all.

My comment and smiley were in regards to the mental picture your statement conjured up for me when thinking about somebody jumping from a new car, into a different brand of new car and worrying about "image".... And then you mention BMW, which the OP has discussed an interest in before.
 
Is is politically incorrect to drive a nicer car than your boss? No but it is probably financially incorrect. Then again I once had a boss that drove trucks with rust holes in the body...

I like to joke that you need to drive junk to work so your boss never thinks you are making too much money.
 
If you didn't pay for the Prius to begin with I would just set my priorities with establishing myself at my job and looking at starting your life. Save that money and get yourself a nice lil place. The day I was on my own was 100 times better than any new car I was paying for. And believe me, I like buying cars lol.
 
Originally Posted By: OVERK1LL
Didn't you already dump a pile of money into your newly acquired Prius? Seems rather insane to do all that to it just to flip it for something nicer and take the depreciation hit as well.


I would just be giving the car back to my dad. The car isn't mine, it belongs to my dad. I am just driving it.

Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Who cares what the boss thinks, a more pressing question is what car are you planning to buy?
20.gif



Not entirely sure...probably an used 3 or 5 series wagon.

Originally Posted By: KrisZ
Originally Posted By: IndyIan
There's nothing wrong with having new cars/toys when you're young, but if you want to have a nice house in your early 30's, be debt free in your 40's and retire well in your 50's/60's, spending all your money in your 20's makes it a tough go...


Don't burst their bubble, they've been told in school that they will be making a 6 figure salary (or close to it) when they graduate. I've seen it when I was going to collage. I still hear of young people spending their OSAP loans because they think a huge career, with even bigger salary awaits them right out the door.


I've heard of a few comp sci grads who started with ~80k salaries at Fortune 500 companies, but the rest of us who are not science majors started out much lower. Still, 100k is definitely possible within a few years with the right choices, at least around here.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I would just be giving the car back to my dad. The car isn't mine, it belongs to my dad. I am just driving it.


So your Dad bought a Prius, and you commandeered it ?

or

Your parents bought you a car, that they didn't need, and you are quite happy to hand it, the depreciation and the payments, and the fact that they didn't need it back to them ?


Certainly didn't sound like either of those two scenarios earlier in the "ownership"
 
Originally Posted By: Shannow
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I would just be giving the car back to my dad. The car isn't mine, it belongs to my dad. I am just driving it.


So your Dad bought a Prius, and you commandeered it ?

He bought the Prius, and "loaned" it to me. He's currently driving the van. I feel that he really deserves to be driving the new car at his age anyway so I should go get my own car and give the Prius back to him.
 
You dad will let you borrow ,or lend you anything as long as he thinks that you'd never put him in a nursing home .That's what he's banking on.
 
Originally Posted By: The Critic
Originally Posted By: Shannow
Originally Posted By: The Critic
I would just be giving the car back to my dad. The car isn't mine, it belongs to my dad. I am just driving it.


So your Dad bought a Prius, and you commandeered it ?

He bought the Prius, and "loaned" it to me. He's currently driving the van. I feel that he really deserves to be driving the new car at his age anyway so I should go get my own car and give the Prius back to him.

So drive the van for a while, its kind of odd and interesting compared the average recent grad beater. Drive it until you can pay cash for your 3 or 5 series and then see if you still want to pay cash for it. If not you've got a wad of money saved up to start saving for a house or whatever.
 
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