All cars are the same but......
By wysecom
@wysecom (346)
South Africa
January 2, 2012 5:04am CST
Why do I need a car? To move from A to B comfortably and on time.
Some cars have airconditioning, automatic steering, stereo, video onboard, fridge, sensors, etc. Good comfort.
Some cars are for prestige, business, normal commuting, etc. I used to believe that all cars the same but recently I discovered that..... Someone said 'the car you drive has a voice, it tells people who you are without you saying anything'.
But some cars are so expensive yet they use the same petrol, parking lot, road, etc with the cheap ones. If it is the same manufacturer, then the make or model should not matter. A Mercedes is a Mercedes whether it is C-class or S-Class: 2000 model or 2012 model.
Do you think all cars are the same in whatever sense? Take for instance BMW; they produce the X6 and the 1-series. If I have the 1-series, at least I am using a BMW product but the guy with the X6 still oppresses and looks down on me as if.....
All cars are the same but.....
2 people like this
4 responses
@urbandekay (18278)
•
5 Jan 12
Well, my regular transport is a Land Rover Defender, the best 4 by 4 by far. It is superbly agile, I have on occasion towed out lesser off-roaders stuck in mud. It is also beautiful cultural icon and supremely reliable, no other vehicle could tolerate the abuse it is subject to, driven fast off-road every day. In summer the roof and doors remove, even the windscreen folds down.
Internally the cab is basic, lacking many of the luxuries of modern cars; slide windows instead of electric, etc.
It escapes the status trap of cars, Land-rover owners generally wave to each other and many will stop and render assistance to one broken down.
all the best urban
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
5 Jan 12
"Best of British", eh Urban?
Would that be the Defender 90, 110 or 130?
Petrol? Diesel? Turbo Diesel or 3.5L V8?
Latest model?
140kW motor?
And the colour makes all the difference (silver stays cooler under that scortching English sun of yours
& red "goes faster" according to the laws of physics!)
I'm being silly here, but hopefully arriving at a worthwhile point in the end.
Interesting to see that some drivers still wave to each other when passing - more likely in rural areas than cities, do you find?
& red "goes faster" according to the laws of physics!)
I'm being silly here, but hopefully arriving at a worthwhile point in the end.
Interesting to see that some drivers still wave to each other when passing - more likely in rural areas than cities, do you find?@urbandekay (18278)
•
5 Jan 12
About 17 years old, the 300tdi diesel, the last proper land rover engine, no electronics to go wrong.
It is a truck cab 90 basically blue but with a green roof, grey tailgate and cream series 2 two part doors! Will get round to spraying it one day, perhaps metallic purple. Black rock sliders and winch rear cross member but perhaps you are right and I should paint at least the roof white to shield me from our burning sun.
Runs on veg oil or biodiesel
Can't remember ever being in a city in it, nearest is London and that would involve paying a charge to enter but have people wave in towns.
all the best urban
@urbandekay (18278)
•
5 Jan 12
What do you drive there? I hear the Aussies are big on utes? I like the old style Toyota utes or pick-ups as we call them?
all the best urban
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
5 Jan 12
Welcome to MyLot.
What I believe you are "driving at" is why should you be looked down upon for the type of car you drive? That's fair enough, but people do that with everything - not just cars. Some feel that people in society should have high standards - at least as high as their own & tend to feel much more at ease driving amongst or parking next to cars of similar value to their own. Some feel threatened by an old bomb pulling up next to their expensive recent purchase & the obvious insurance risk both the driver & the vehicle apparently present.
You compare the BMW 1-series & X6 which are quite different vehicles with probably quite different drivers with different tastes; likewise the Mercedes. They may not use the same fuel & probably not the same grade of fuel from the same service station. The driver of the more expensive vehicle often prefers sticking to better roads, in my experience. They also tend to seek out "better" bays in parking lots, with good shade coverage & in such an area that would present a lower insurance risk.
It's just human nature - people like to associate with those of apparently similar standards to their own & will use every means available to make such a judgement. Whether it's right or wrong, it's practiced by many, so you may want to concentrate on ways to not be intimidated by such people. It can be an expensive exercise to try "keeping up with the Joneses" just for the sake of feeling accepted by people. I find most motorists here are largely contented with what they have, though I have been abused when broken down in my younger years by passing motorists yelling out the window "get that junk off the road"!
I drive a company car, so it's easy for me to feel "classless"!
What I believe you are "driving at" is why should you be looked down upon for the type of car you drive? That's fair enough, but people do that with everything - not just cars. Some feel that people in society should have high standards - at least as high as their own & tend to feel much more at ease driving amongst or parking next to cars of similar value to their own. Some feel threatened by an old bomb pulling up next to their expensive recent purchase & the obvious insurance risk both the driver & the vehicle apparently present.
You compare the BMW 1-series & X6 which are quite different vehicles with probably quite different drivers with different tastes; likewise the Mercedes. They may not use the same fuel & probably not the same grade of fuel from the same service station. The driver of the more expensive vehicle often prefers sticking to better roads, in my experience. They also tend to seek out "better" bays in parking lots, with good shade coverage & in such an area that would present a lower insurance risk.
It's just human nature - people like to associate with those of apparently similar standards to their own & will use every means available to make such a judgement. Whether it's right or wrong, it's practiced by many, so you may want to concentrate on ways to not be intimidated by such people. It can be an expensive exercise to try "keeping up with the Joneses" just for the sake of feeling accepted by people. I find most motorists here are largely contented with what they have, though I have been abused when broken down in my younger years by passing motorists yelling out the window "get that junk off the road"!
I drive a company car, so it's easy for me to feel "classless"! @wysecom (346)
• South Africa
9 Jan 12
Ah! the 'old bomb' and the new missile have almost the same risk factor on the people and environment. While the one is emitting radiation from rust, the other is emitting radiation from excessive technology.
I know the car you drive has a voice; a way of telling people who you are but many are cover-ups. I have seen many people with fuel guzzlers begging for money to top the tank. Majority have been re-possessed by the financiers and no one wants to pick them up even at auctions.
I still believe that a car is a car irrespective of who made it with whatever name and price tag attached to it. In your part of the world, contentment may be an issue but in mine, class struggle is rife.
@wysecom (346)
• South Africa
11 Jan 12
Vegan, a car is a car. They carry people from A to B, carry loads, etc. Most cars have almost the same internal luxury. Purpose built or not, the basics are the same.
Why should others be looked down on as if they aren't driving a car? For instance, you drive a Toyota, the next man drives a Toyota; it doesn't matter whether yours is a 4x4 offroad and the other is urban mode, both of you are in the same Toyota family.
Radiation: increased technology only changes the type of radiation from one form to the other. Have you forgotten that all those gadgets are using excess radioactive materials? perhaps the word radiation brought a different meaning but the emissions from all cars, when mixed with other things, brings the same environmental and health hazards.
@veganbliss (3895)
• Adelaide, Australia
9 Jan 12
Radiation from rust? Radiation from "excessive technology? Radiation levels decrease as the level of technology increases.
I feel sorry for your class struggle, but disagree that all cars are similar. As per Urban's argument, cars are purpose built, with some being designed to handle different conditions, performance, fuel economy, emissions standards in different countries, price, fuel type, etc, etc.
@lilaclady (28207)
• Australia
2 Jan 12
I have had three cars in my life and they have all been about the cheapest on the market, I bought them all brand new, as you said, I bought my cars to get me from point A to point B in comfort..I wouldn't buy an expensive car even if I could afford one, many people told me on each occasion of buying my cars that they would not last but I can honestly say my cars lasted probably longer than theirs...
@kingparker (9673)
• United States
5 Feb 12
I don't know if the definition of "cars are all the same" apply to everyone here. Some people would see it differently since different price come with different kind of superiority, that is how I see it. If you have a much expensive car, it might come with higher functionality, and possibly some more features along with the price you paid for. For me, I am not much of a car person, and I don't keep track of market trend of modern cars, so I might be a car illiterate at this point. For me, I might see a car is a transportation for me to go to work, and from point A to Point B to do my errand.
@wysecom (346)
• South Africa
6 Feb 12
We are almost thinking alike. The main reason someone invented a car was for mobility but modern day users have created machines with difficult tastes.
Why should one car owner be looked down by the other? A car is a car. We all buy fuel at the same rate with taxes, we use the same road, obtain licences at the same office, etc. To worsen the scenarion, if you have, say, two cars and you entered the road on a certain day with the smaller car, people who do not know you will still 'give you a look'.
