Budget cars that fool people into thinking you have "wealth and taste"?

[Dick Longbridge]

Sarah Beeny's chap pottered around in a snotty old mk3 Granny when they were restoring their mansion, Rise Hall, a couple of years back. Not overly surprising when you read a quote from Beeny herself in 2004:

 

What car do you drive?

"We have two cars; one’s a 12-year-old bronze Saab 9000, which was my father’s and the other is a brown, dented Ford Granada which was my grandfather’s."

Sounds a bit of a shiter.

 

[Supernaut]

Apart from her cars, there are two other things I like about Sarah Beeny.

[taxi paul]

Jaguar x type. Oozes class and sophistication.

[sierraman]

The genuinely rich value things that are good quality and they know it when they see it, hence they drive 15 year old Legacys and old Volvos, wear a scruffy proper Barbour jacket (not one of those cheap quilted jobs that make chubby women look like immersion heaters, I'm talking about the wax type) drink at out of the way country pubs and read the Independant.

[Supernaut]

Jaguar x type. Oozes class and sophistication.

GTFO.

[sierraman]

Sarah Beeny's chap pottered around in a snotty old mk3 Granny when they were restoring their mansion, Rise Hall, a couple of years back. Not overly surprising when you read a quote from Beeny herself in 2004:

 

What car do you drive?

"We have two cars; one’s a 12-year-old bronze Saab 9000, which was my father’s and the other is a brown, dented Ford Granada which was my grandfather’s."

Sounds a bit of a shiter.

 

Nipples like Scammell wheel nuts and drives a Granada!? I'm looking at her in a different light now! One for the wank bank!

[Uncle Jimmy]

Wrong decade? No, wrong century. There was a time post war when one could drive about in an Armstrong Siddeley, Daimler, even Rolls that appeared posh when you were bankrupt.

Nowadays you can beggar yourself buying and maintaining a Porsche and still look like a chat.

[Uncle Jimmy]

*chav*

[Uncle Jimmy]

Besides, ostentatious wealth isn't too popular amongst 90% of the population nowadays; I'd suggest that a lot of those with money keep bloody quiet about it.

[chaseracer]

^ Aye.  It's those using other people's money who make the noise.

[SiC]

From my experience, those that are wealthy don't have to flaunt it and don't see any need to. Infact I've found the richest people I've spoken to and met are the most tight fisted.

 

To put it another way, you don't get wealthy by spending money...

[Alexg]

 

 

[Coprolalia]

Pops makes his living putting extensions on country manors and converting their barns.

 

Posh people motors for cheap:

V8/ Derv early disco - can tow the horse box, easy to wash down.

P38 RR - as above.

Forester turbo - as above.

 

Leggy 90s Mercs - comfort for going up to the city, can fit many gundogs

Jag XJ40/300 - more comfort, less space

 

S-type and x-type on not so good. Was reliably informed they felt too cheap.

 

A well to do car person I know has this:

RHD original AC Cobra. Never restored and fully running. It is in fact this car.

 

 

His daily? Previously a Granada estate, now a DW8 berlingo. The dogs need transport!

[forddeliveryboy]

If you're wealthy and from generations of it, the chances are it'll be a dented 406 estate for daily duties. 

[scruff]

With Land Rovers the real "old money" has to be a V8, with zero modifications, and not on gas either - 90/110 or Disco flavours. Slightly shabby but not overly so. Typically kept for towing a daughter's horsebox... then grand daughter's... and doing the tip run.

 

 

Alas you won't get one for a grand anymore.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Pops makes his living putting extensions on country manors and converting their barns.

Posh people motors for cheap:

V8/ Derv early disco - can tow the horse box, easy to wash down.

P38 RR - as above.

Forester turbo - as above.

Leggy 90s Mercs - comfort for going up to the city, can fit many gundogs

Jag XJ40/300 - more comfort, less space

S-type and x-type on not so good. Was reliably informed they felt too cheap.

A well to do car person I know has this:

RHD original AC Cobra. Never restored and fully running. It is in fact this car.

His daily? Previously a Granada estate, now a DW8 berlingo. The dogs need transport!

Indeed! A lady I worked for some years ago had a Subaru Forrester beater for the dogs and an Aston Martin in the barn.

[Uncle Jimmy]

Another of my clients owned a beater Jeep cherokee (old style squared off type), in his 'lock up' (think 2000 Sq ft industrial unit in central London were his XK150, Lagonda tourer and Lancia Aurelia...

[martc]

Also Audi A3, even if it's some wheezy 75 hp 1,6 litre with as much (little) toys as a Hindustan Ambassador.

 

People will just see that Audi grille and automatically think you're a career high-flyer at McKinsey, a cosmopolite who comes from old money and who spends his holidays on Lake Como. why are next doors buying a photocopier?

 

 

Edited for accuracy.

[Felly Magic]

Well a millionaire bloke I know drives a Lada Samara and Skoda Estelle as daily drivers, his Mrs on the other hand drives a Ford Kuga

[solid61]

Merc 129 sl's start at 2k ish for a high miler,still got a lot of style and definately got the old money look about them,never seem to be owned by the local chavs either,you cant go wrong!!!.

[fordperv]

Sierra 1.6 base with grey grille

[Partridge]

I'm suprised nobody has mentioned the Rover Sterling yet! One in good nick that's not running like a bag of bollocks, that is. They have bags of old money class but nobody will stab you because everyone knows they're worth 50p. So they're not ostentatious, just a bit tragic.

 

 

I'd happily rock up to clients and customers in this, which I have done during self employed periods in mine. Hard to believe it cost less than a grand to buy...

 

A woman at work said to me "you must need a few bob to run that."...I told her that her Ford Galaxy probably cost twice the amount of money that mine costs to keep going (in fuel that is).

[Partridge]

75s scream 'champagne taste, lemonade money' to me. Sorry.

Yes, that and UKIP.

[wuvvum]

People will just see that Audi grille and automatically think you're a cunt

 

FTFY.

 

 

My nomination would be the Renault Vel Satis.  Looks modern, large and quite posh, and most people have no clue wtf it is.

[mercrocker]

Dunno about impressing people but I get a lot of comments about "having a Merc" from people who then tell me they can "only afford a Honda"  

 

Yeah, an 09 plate Accord that cost fourteen times my 190E.  

 

WTF?

[Ghosty]

X300 XJ

Cheap Binis in rarer colours such as BRG

Honda Legend

Avensisisises are cheaper than they look

R75

Merc CL

W124 Coupé

Audi A8s - start at £1000 and you get a hell of a lot of car, V8s are not common either

'90s Merc S-Class

Volvo 960/S90

Volvo S80

2000-on Volvo V70s

Alfa 147

Hyundai XG30

Nissan QX

VW Phaeton

[Rusty_Rocket]

This really is a topic that divides people!

 

But I would agree with those who say the genuinely wealthy drive old snotters of little value.  I know a few 'very well off' individuals, one old boy has a Vauxhall Carlton which he bought new and refuses to replace as 'it still does everything I want it to' and another has the stereotypical 25 year old Land Rover 110- lots of dents, flat paint, cable ties etc etc.

 

Regarding taste.. well, that's a very individual matter but biggest turns-off's for me are 'aspirational' things like Audi (of course) and most other German marques currently.  I find modern big, shouty cars so vulgar; I don't care how good they are compared to other cars because that clearly isn't of much importance to their owners- it's all about the image they think they are portraying.  I stopped next to an enormous Mercedes GLE (or something) earlier, brand new, in white.  The little man driving it looked absolutely ridiculous   

All, IMO of course.

[Lord Sterling]

I'm suprised nobody has mentioned the Rover Sterling yet! One in good nick that's not running like a bag of bollocks, that is. They have bags of old money class but nobody will stab you because everyone knows they're worth 50p. So they're not ostentatious, just a bit tragic.

 

 

I'd happily rock up to clients and customers in this, which I have done during self employed periods in mine. Hard to believe it cost less than a grand to buy...

 

A woman at work said to me "you must need a few bob to run that."...I told her that her Ford Galaxy probably cost twice the amount of money that mine costs to keep going (in fuel that is).

I'll second that. I miss my KV6 Sterling, felt right at home here in the sticks and was great for popping into the city for business meetings.

 

Even the Mk1 still felt a 'executive' car.

[Ghosty]

There's an old bloke lives near me that dailies a very tidy dark aquamarine P-reg Scorpio estate, same sort of thing as it's in the nice bit of town uphill of us (how high up the hill you are sort of dictates wealth - bottom to top it goes council housing, red brick terraces, 60s detached, luxury bungalow, big open plan multi level house). Shares garage space with an '09 Focus that doesn't seem to move as often. It's an external garage to the house, but it's always left open. Presume the old guy can't close it so just uses it as a carport.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

A couple of years ago I did a few jobs for an obviously wealthy bloke , Manor House , lived half the time in Provence etc.

Anyway, I took him to the airport a few times , he drove a Mk2 Mondeo and his Mrs had an early Audi TT.

He asked me to drive him to Ascot, using his Roller, I agreed and turned up at his house on the day expecting an old Spirit or at best a Seraph, when I opened the barn door I was amazed to find a brand new Phantom,parked in front of a Carcoon thing which contained a SWB 250 California Spider.

I asked him about the Ferarri, he was quite dismissive, saying he'd bought it in 80's and never drove it, he didn't like the Phantom because it was too big, but it came with a company he'd bought!

Popped his clogs a few months later, the Mondeo is still sitting in front of a broken gate on the edge of his estate.