Where Does Your Money Go?
Even people who know nothing about cars, know that there are cheap cars and there are expensive cars, and there are cars in between. It’s a pretty simple concept.
People automatically assume that a more expensive car is, by definition, a better one. You pay more, you get more. There’s a reason that a $10,775 Hyundai Accent has a 1.6L 110bhp engine, and a $320,000 Mercedes SL65 AMG Black has… 670 horsepower.
Still, when you boil cars down to their most basic, they all do the same thing (if they’re working): you get in them, turn them on, operate the controls and they transport you from starting point A to destination B. A $10,775 Accent Coupe then is exactly the same as the $320,000(estimated) SL65 AMG Black. Obviously, this makes no sense! There must be something, some reason for Gallardo’s to exist!
Of course there is. Otherwise, it’d be a pretty bleak world for us car guys to exist in. Here are some of my findings I attained after exhaustive research.
1) More Expensive Cars Have Faster Power WIndows!
Ok, I don’t have numbers to prove this, but it’s more of a general observation. These days, you can get power windows on anything available to consumers in the US market - even the cheapest cars available (Toyota Yaris, etc) have available power windows. So the luxury manufacturers focused on cornerning the market for speed and silent operation. Audi put the first shot across the bow with their hydro-pneumatic windows in the US-Market 5000’s. When the system was working right (a crucial qualifier, many 5000 owners found out) the windows were fast and totally, utterly, creepily silent. Can you imagine how easy drive-by’s were in a 5000? And face it, faster is better. Drive into a sketchy neighborhood and can’t hide your latent racism? Faster windows give you that false sense of security even FASTER. Are you that stereotypical jacked-up-on-red-bull-and-MDMA frat boy driving daddy’s beamer? Faster power windows go down quicker so you can catcall at the sorority ladies on your local campus! See, more really is better.
2) The More You Pay, The Further Back The Engine Goes.
Let’s see a pattern here.
Chevrolet Corvette:
Base Price:46,100
Engine: 6.2L pushrod 16v V8, 430 horsepower
Location: Front
Trans: 6-speed manual, rear wheel drive
Weight:3217
0-60: 4.5s
Lotus Elise SC:
Base Price: $54,500
Engine: 1.8L DOHC 16v Supercharged I4 (Toyota), 218 horsepower
Location: Mid, transverse
Trans: 6-speed manual, rear wheel drive
Weight: 2006
0-60: 4.5s
Porsche Boxster S:
Base Price: $55,700
Engine: 3.4L DOHC 24v H6, 295 horsepower
Location: Mid, Longitudinal
Trans: 6M, RWD
Weight: 2987
0-60: 4.9s
Porsche 911 Carrera S:
Base Price: $83,800
Engine: 3.8L DOHC 24v H6, 355 horsepower
Location: Rear, longitudinal (behind rear axle)
Trans: 6M, rear wheel drive
0-60: 4.48s* (Porsche’s Time)
So let’s see. we have one sports car that is 46,000 and does 0-60 in 4.5s. Then we have another one at 54,500. A slower one at 55,700. And then one that’s almost exactly twice the price of the first, and just as fast! What is the trend? Why, the more you pay, the further back your engine goes. You’d think Dune Buggies would be the most expensive cars on earth, then. Or go-karts?
Of course perhaps this example is just another American saying “hell yeah, the Corvette kicks ass!” Which is true, because it does. But I certainly see a correlation with money and engine rearwardness.
Actually, that’s all I’ve got. Who knows why people still buy BMW 328i’s when an Infiniti G35 is just as nice, only with another 70 horsepower? The truth is that people buy more expensive cars that do exactly the same thing because they believe it will earn the respect and admiration of their neighbors, friends, colleague’s, and family. Which is a bit sad. But that’s what seperates rich people with nice cars from real gearheads: we like 911’s because they kick ass, not because they say Porsche on the hood.
Oh, and 911’s have some fast windows. It’s crazy. Zzzzz, that sucker is up!
comments?