Luxury has its perks
By Julie
Sturgeon • Bankrate.com
Need proof we Americans are obsessed
with cars? Just turn on the television to ogle MTV's "Pimp My Ride"
and Discovery Channel's "Monster Garage."
Today's drivers know it isn't enough
to merely have a ride; you have to stamp it with your own personality.
And for the well-to-do, cost doesn't
matter. Luxury, style and exclusivity do.
"It's not about price," says Brian Chee,
editor of Autobytel.com. "It's about capturing the general
automotive psyche's imagination."
For instance, in January 2005, Automobile Magazine
put a Porsche Carrera GT, Lamborghini Murciélago, Mercedes-Benz
SLR McLaren and Ford GT through their paces in a comparison test.
Ford held its own in performance, despite the fact that it costs
a fraction of what the competition does. But this hardly signals
the end of the line for the cars with the breathtaking price tags.
Chee's own opinion is proof. "The Ford is just amazing --
something people want to sit in and drive because it looks like
the past and feels like the future. The Porsche doesn't do that,
but it's my personal favorite," he says.
The big-dollar cars break down into two categories,
as Joe Weisenfelder, senior editor and producer at cars.com sees
it: driving and driven. The Bentleys, Maybachs and Rolls-Royces
of the world fall in the latter -- automobiles whose appeal lies
strongly with a brand image of pure snobbery. After all, these owners
rarely drive them. That's the chauffeur's job.
Sportier Maseratis, Ferraris and Spykers put performance and
speed on center stage. "It's a horsepower war," Weisenfelder
says.
These cars sacrifice some of their cousins' niceties,
the ultra-rich's trade-off for their ability to go from 0 to 60
miles per hour in an instant.
So it's easy to grasp why manufacturers love tinkering
around with these offerings. For them, it's all about bragging rights,
the proof of their prowess. For the buyer, the motivation goes beyond
being ostentatious, although these owners certainly reflect a fair
share of "look at me" as well.
"It's the automotive equivalent of a handcrafted chess set
vs. a plastic chess set from the discount store," Chee says.
"Not to cheapen mass-produced vehicles we all enjoy today,
but that's what they are: one of hundreds of thousands, made from
a mold.
"Wouldn't you rather put your hands around a hand-carved
pawn from a master craftsman in Germany? Americans want to see
automotive masterpieces," he says.
The good news is that some of the amenities will eventually
trickle down into ordinary cars. Already, the average Joe doesn't
consider global positioning systems, television screens and seat
massages out of his league. On the other hand, features such as
a 12-cylinder engine, hand-built boxwood inlays and the ability
to order purple leather in the backseat will never be within our
grasp.
Take a peek at what makes the 2005 models sing:
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