What made you choose your car?

[Jona]

I'm currently writing a dissertation on what kind of car people are inclined to buy and would like to know a little about what cars people buy, but mainly why they buy the car they have.

Is it due to the price, that it is desired, its practical, or that theyve always bought from that brand etc?

If you could say a little about what car you drive, how old you are and what reasons you had for buying it, that would help me a lot. Im also interested to know if you've made any modifications to it, spoilers, engine tweaks etc and again why you have done so.

Hope you can help me
Thanks in advance!

[Mark]

I have a 1.4Petrol 5-Door Fiesta 2004 model.

I was looking to buy a car in the £10,000 price bracket for my own personal use. I'd considered others such as Corsa's and Clio's up to that point too.

At the time Ford had a particularly good fianance offer which meant I would be paying about £50 less per month than the equivalent Corsa.

Then I saw a red Fieta driving near the university and thought "ooh that's nice", so that's what I bought :)

I'm 29 years old (26 when I bought it). I'm very proud to say I have made no modifications whatsoever :D

----

Two for the price of one...
My girlfriend, Karen also bought a new car last year. Up to that point she'd been driving a 1.2 Clio and she loved it but it got to 5 years old and too much was going wrong with it, so she decided to change.

She was actually about half an hour away from buying a brand new style Clio, but we went around the Peugeot garage and there was an '05 206 for a very good price, so she bought that instead. However she currently hates it and wants to sell it.. trouble is she hates everything else too (except Mazda RX-8 and MX-5's but she can't afford those :p )

She put some alloy wheels because it didn't come with them, but apart from that it's standard.


---

Karens Dad has a Lexus IS200d. It's a company car and he's director of a firm of architects so he gets what he wants, within reason. He got that one because it was the best available for driving long distances, which he does a lot of. Personally I think it's horrid, and he agrees.

[Drew]

Ok, well I got my car for free, because my Gran can no longer safely drive, so I got her car. It's a '94 1.4l 5 door Ford Fiesta SI (sports injected, apparently). I'm 20 years old and the only modification to my car is a CD player :)

[Kneeslider]

I bought my car with cash on Ebay. It's an early model Porsche Boxster

I had wanted one for years, and thought that it would be forever out of my price range, I then had a good trawl around the internet, to find out what typically goes wrong with them, how much it costs to fix, and then added into the equation stuff like how many MPG it does, and how much tyres are, and how much servicing is.

I seem to do about 95% of my mileage on my own in the car, so no problems with it being a two seater, my wife has a Golf, for when we need extra seats. It has two boots, so no lack of storage space for going shopping.

I have always had VWs so I guess getting the Boxster was a natural progression. I do about 12k miles a year and have absolutely no problem with buying what is seen by many as an 'older' car. I know that, as long as things are looked after properly, a solidly built German car will last almost indefinitely. My other car is 33 years old, and my motorbike is now 16 years old!!

The Boxster has no aftermarket mods. as in my experience of such items, they are not made very well, look tacky and detract from the resale value of the car.

[millencolin]

I'm a uni student so therefore i needed a cheap and reliable car...

Enter... the 1996 Mitsubishi Magna

I've put some nicer wheels on it (not bloody boy-racer chrome ugly monstrosities of wheels, but some nice simple alloy wheels) and upgraded the stereo. I love my music too much for my car to have a stock standard stereo with two rattling, terrible, downright crap 4inch speakers. Got a decent head unit, Pioneer twins in the front, clarions in the back, cost less than $400 and sounds awesome.

But all in all, its a family car that has served me well

[Camelopard]

I've never bought a brand new car as I think they devalue too quickly. I also have trouble making decisions, so some of our recent cars have been ones that have presented themselves. My mother stopped driving so when my now wife arrived in Australia we paid my mother a nominal sum for her Colt, no changes were made. Then my dad stopped driving, so we took his Pulsar and sold the Colt. Again the Pulsar is as we received it. Her latest car is a very low millage 1999 2 litre Golf Rallye previously owned by my sister. Again standard, I like to keep things in the family!

My cars have been things that I wanted and didn't think I would ever own. 2 Escort Cosworths, not sold in Australia, they were brought in as Low Volume Imports by a company in Perth. One I got for a bargain as a I made an offer I didn't think would be taken, small turbo YBP.
The other Cosworth (large turbo YBT) I thought I could make some money on, although it hasn't turned out that way! It's currently for sale after having had quite a bit of work done to it.
I also have a mkIII Capri which was also not sold here, this was a personal import that I bought and rebuilt.
I seem to like cars that are different, I've got my eyes on a Ford Sierra Ute at the moment although my ever patient wife says no! Or at least not untill I get rid of the black Cosworth.


Other cars I've owned include a 1967 ( Ithink) 307ci Monaro, various mkI Escort Twin Cams (wish I still had them1) and a couple of mkII Escort RS2000s.

Cars on my wish list are an RS200(!), RS2600 mkI replica and an RS1600 group 4 replica!!!!

Having had an interest in rallying I've always been drawn to rally sorts of cars. I seriously considered a WRX however the insurance premiums are a joke, A Celica Group A would be nice as would an EVO, but I guess I've always been a Ford man and I like the fact that there are so few Escort Cosworths about.

Any of this help your dissertation? probably not!

[Brown, Jon Brow]

Good looks and nice personality ;)

[MrJan]

I have a 1.6 '96 Honda Civic.

What made me go for the Civic over everything else was not the reputation of Japanese cars or the high revving engine or even the space but mainly because my brother was going to Canada for a year, wants a car when he comes back and asked me if I wanted a free car for a year :D

Incidentally he lied, £700 insurance a total of £300 in repairs, an MOT and tax. Free cars are expensive.

[tannat]

I'm currently writing a dissertation on what kind of car people are inclined to buy and would like to know a little about what cars people buy, but mainly why they buy the car they have.

Is it due to the price, that it is desired, its practical, or that theyve always bought from that brand etc?

If you could say a little about what car you drive, how old you are and what reasons you had for buying it, that would help me a lot. Im also interested to know if you've made any modifications to it, spoilers, engine tweaks etc and again why you have done so.

Hope you can help me
Thanks in advance!

Car Ford Focus SE 4 door automatic 2007
Why this car? Low price AND fab financing

I'm 38, and if the money comes about it will become the ne plus ultra replica of a tarmac spec focus :D

[GridGirl]

I've had a Ford Fiesta ST for the past 15 months. First really started to like them when I went on a tour of M Sport (Ford WRC team) up in the Lake District. I purchased it and my last car, a Peugeot 206 purely on the basis that I think/thought they were pretty at the time. :D Right now there still isn't a car that I find prettier, so if I was going to go out and buy a small reasonably priced car tomorrow I'd go out and get another ST.

The only modifications I have are parking sensors. ST's dont actually come with parking sensors as an option. The Ford build me configurator jobbie is wrong when it lets you select them, but my dealer let me get them anyway. :) Wouldn't consider anyother modifications, but I would of liked the full leather heated seats if they didn't cost an extra £1k.

[KILOHMUNNS]

I have a 2002 Citroen Synergie (7 seater)

I bought it because it was a good price £4k as the guy needed it off the forecourt and book price was £6k. I need to buy a larger car as I have 4 kids with all the bits that come with them! Mainly bought it as it was newer and less miles on the clock than all the others I looked at in this price range and it came with a MOT and service.

I'm 34 and haven't made a any modifications. Not sure you can make any to a people carrier, but there is alot of space for a huge speakers in the back! :p :

[CCFanatic]

Price- Only $500 used. 5 speed gearbox. Bucket seats. It was built for rally, so I have a roll cage in it as well.

[Garry Walker]

Porsche Cayenne. From 2006. I bought it because 1) I like it the way it looks and have always had a soft sport for Porsche`s 2) I live in the countryside most of the time and roads can always get full of snow or get muddy, so SUV is better for that than your average car. It is also safer than many cars.

I have made no modifications to it.

[CCFanatic]

Porsche Cayenne. From 2006. I bought it because 1) I like it the way it looks and have always had a soft sport for Porsche`s 2) I live in the countryside most of the time and roads can always get full of snow or get muddy, so SUV is better for that than your average car. It is also safer than many cars.

I have made no modifications to it.


Great car there. The speed of a sports car, and the size of a monster without the loss of much in the fuel consumption area.

[MrJan]

1) I like it the way it looks and have always had a soft sport for Porsche`s

Really?


2) I live in the countryside most of the time and roads can always get full of snow or get muddy, so SUV is better for that than your average car. It is also safer than many cars. .

Come on. There's far better stuff out there for dealing with a bit of mud. As for safe, not for pedestrians or other drivers but who cares about them right :rolleyes: Of course will be different if you roll it and the roof struggles to hold up the 2 tonne or whatever the rest of the car weighs

[Brown, Jon Brow]

If you live in the countryside you don't buy a Cayenne. They have low profile road tyres so aren't that much better than a normal 4x4 road car such as an X-type or A4 quattro. Plus all the sheep will laugh at you. :p

[Magnus]

I have my BMW 330CI-06. Bought cause it´s very nice looking and the handling is superb. It was a pity BMW came with their new 335 Ci this year, otherwise I would be perfectly happy.
I do not fancy the M-series that much, even if I had the the money. The 330 is perfect in between an ordinary car and a more "racy" one. It has the speed when you want it, and the ten loudspeakers make up for the boring times when you have to act like the responsible father that I am... :)
I will probably trade it within the next few days for a use Audi Allroad though -04 or something like that. The 330 is very unpractical when it comes to visting swedish rally and likes... It is also not so very good when it comes to loading rubbish. It´s almost blasphemy...

[Rollo]

I have a 51 reg Ford Ka... 1.3L Turbo Charged, VVT, Front Wishbones and six speed gearbox.

I saw the Ford Ka on debut at the 1996 Paris Motor Show and thought "She will be mine. Oh, yes - she will be mine". I bought the Ka for two reasons:
1. It's so damn cuuuuuuute
2. The Kent engine can be modified like you would not believe.

Originally I'd intended to throw in the 1.7L from the Puma, but Ford came out with their Focus, so I bought the turbo-charger from that and had it fitted (even though that meant turning the engine through 180&#176 ;) . The variable valve timed heads came from Yamaha and the front wishbones came from a chap in Southampton who had developed them for the Fiesta/Puma.

I really like the fact that my car look so innocent and that at the lights, the only thing Rexes and Evos see are a pair of red lights.

[Drew]

Porsche Cayenne. From 2006. I bought it because 1) I like it the way it looks and have always had a soft sport for Porsche`s 2) I live in the countryside most of the time and roads can always get full of snow or get muddy, so SUV is better for that than your average car. It is also safer than many cars.

I have made no modifications to it.

Unless you are a farmer there is pretty much no need to have a 4x4 for everyday use in the UK, any non 4x4 car is fine. Then, if you were a farmer, you wouldn't buy a Porsche Cayenne :p :

[Rollo]

Porsche Cayenne. From 2006. I bought it because 1) I like it the way it looks and have always had a soft sport for Porsche`s 2) I live in the countryside most of the time and roads can always get full of snow or get muddy, so SUV is better for that than your average car. It is also safer than many cars.

I have made no modifications to it.

Porsche consistently refuse to submit their cars to undergo the NCAP and as such, no decent safety data has ever been obtained. If it's similar to its stable mates the Audi Q7 and the VW Touareg, it should score well for occupant safety but horrible for pedestrians... the country is the best place for such a vehicle.

[Alexamateo]

My wife's car is a Chrysler Town & Country chosen because we have 2 kids. Mine is a GMC Sierra pickup chosen because I need the cargo space and the ability to pull trailers for work related activities.

[edv]

What made me choose my car?

Power Speed Class Sex

[Donney]

Well first it was the money, no more that 18000 €; then it was practicality, family car for big people I was looking for a estate which is sort of a family tradition; when all that was considered the best option was a Ford Focus 1.8 TD and that's what I own.

No modifications at least intentional ones....

[Jona]

I've never bought a brand new car as I think they devalue too quickly. I also have trouble making decisions, so some of our recent cars have been ones that have presented themselves. My mother stopped driving so when my now wife arrived in Australia we paid my mother a nominal sum for her Colt, no changes were made. Then my dad stopped driving, so we took his Pulsar and sold the Colt. Again the Pulsar is as we received it. Her latest car is a very low millage 1999 2 litre Golf Rallye previously owned by my sister. Again standard, I like to keep things in the family!

My cars have been things that I wanted and didn't think I would ever own. 2 Escort Cosworths, not sold in Australia, they were brought in as Low Volume Imports by a company in Perth. One I got for a bargain as a I made an offer I didn't think would be taken, small turbo YBP.
The other Cosworth (large turbo YBT) I thought I could make some money on, although it hasn't turned out that way! It's currently for sale after having had quite a bit of work done to it.
I also have a mkIII Capri which was also not sold here, this was a personal import that I bought and rebuilt.
I seem to like cars that are different, I've got my eyes on a Ford Sierra Ute at the moment although my ever patient wife says no! Or at least not untill I get rid of the black Cosworth.


Other cars I've owned include a 1967 ( Ithink) 307ci Monaro, various mkI Escort Twin Cams (wish I still had them1) and a couple of mkII Escort RS2000s.

Cars on my wish list are an RS200(!), RS2600 mkI replica and an RS1600 group 4 replica!!!!

Having had an interest in rallying I've always been drawn to rally sorts of cars. I seriously considered a WRX however the insurance premiums are a joke, A Celica Group A would be nice as would an EVO, but I guess I've always been a Ford man and I like the fact that there are so few Escort Cosworths about.

Any of this help your dissertation? probably not!


It is thank you! Its interesting that you would like to own a road version of a rally car.

So do people believe the old saying of 'Win on a Sunday, sell on a Monday' and that cars we see racing make us want to buy them more?

Or is practicality, and the brand more important?

Thanks for all your comments so far, some very interesting points :)

[MrJan]

The win on sunday sell on monday used to be true but I don't think Xsaras are flying off the shelfs because of Loeb. To be honest Subaru and Mitsubishi have enough of a reputation from the late '90s that they don't need to win any more. Most forms of motorsport now have cars that are so highly altered for aerodynamic purposes that it doesn't hold as much water as it used to. For example the BTCC cars now have all sorts of wings and body work changes which before Alfa in '94 (I think) wasn't that prominant. The same goes for the WRC, both the Focus and the Xsara have all these mods whereas years ago the car you bought for the road looked like the car that raced.

[Mark]

Involvement in motorsports gets the brand name known and if they do well can increase the prestige of the brand. But certainly my choice of car is not dependant on motorsport sucess. Rather on lots of other factors outside of motorsport.

[AndyRAC]

The win on sunday sell on monday used to be true but I don't think Xsaras are flying off the shelfs because of Loeb. To be honest Subaru and Mitsubishi have enough of a reputation from the late '90s that they don't need to win any more. Most forms of motorsport now have cars that are so highly altered for aerodynamic purposes that it doesn't hold as much water as it used to. For example the BTCC cars now have all sorts of wings and body work changes which before Alfa in '94 (I think) wasn't that prominant. The same goes for the WRC, both the Focus and the Xsara have all these mods whereas years ago the car you bought for the road looked like the car that raced.

That's because the Xsaras and C4's are pants. Is the biggest engine 1.6?
Citroen can't be accused of cashing in on their success.

[Jona]

the win on sunday sell on monday attitude has worked well with SEAT i think as that markets itself as fun and a young brand

this didnt work well for someone like MG which rebadged some Rovers so I guess the car will always be the most important thing.



The thing i'm most interested in however is the reason for buying a particular car. It doesnt have to be a brand new one. For example if you have £1,000 to buy a car you still have a wide choice to pick from.
Does friends influence your choice, like if they have one or recommend a car to you.
Is practicality or safety an important issue?
Value for money?
or the importance of the badge on the back?


I'm also interested to know if you think your car says something about you?

[jso1985]

I drive a 91 Isuzu Trooper, 2.6L engine, 5 speed gearbox. pretty much "owning" it now as my dad doesn't drive much anymore.
He bought 12 years ago as it was at that time the cheapest SUV available here(until Hyundai and Kia arrived), we didn't really need an SUV back then but my dad always wanted one.

[Garry Walker]

Really?
No, I bought it because I hate them and hate the way they look. I also married a man, despite being 100% hetero. Yes, thats exactly it.



Come on. There's far better stuff out there for dealing with a bit of mud. Absolutely. But I liked this car and could afford it. What is your problem with it ?(it is really a rhetoric question, your opinion wont make go and sell the car, and buy a Dacia Logan instead)


As for safe, not for pedestrians or other drivers but who cares about them right :rolleyes: What an idiotic comment. Am I not allowed to think of my own safety first and the safety of my close family? I have not had accidents, I am a very safe driver who doesnt do stupid stuff, but I see daily drivers who panic easily and lack skills. It is against those people, I am protecting myself. If you want to attack somebody, attack the chavs who go streetracing, then put it in wall the first time they experience rain or mud.



Of course will be different if you roll it and the roof struggles to hold up the 2 tonne or whatever the rest of the car weighs Well, I guess that is my problem and my risk then. I am willing to take that huge weight on my shoulders.


Unless you are a farmer there is pretty much no need to have a 4x4 for everyday use in the UK, any non 4x4 car is fine. Then, if you were a farmer, you wouldn't buy a Porsche Cayenne :p :

I am not farmer and who says I live in UK :p :.

[MrJan]

I don't mean to attack you, to each his own right? You're welcome to have a soft roader if you want but I just don't like them. Most of the people that drive them near me (most not all) ARE the people that lack driving skills. They don't know how wide the thing is, aren't aware that there are these things on the road called 'other people' and never realise that when they open their door in a car park it'll probably dent someone elses car.

Just stating my view, for all I know you may hate 22 year olds who drive Honda Civics that have dents in them (someone elses fault :D ) and duct tape on the window but to be honest I don't care :)

[airshifter]

I don't mean to attack you, to each his own right? You're welcome to have a soft roader if you want but I just don't like them. Most of the people that drive them near me (most not all) ARE the people that lack driving skills. They don't know how wide the thing is, aren't aware that there are these things on the road called 'other people' and never realise that when they open their door in a car park it'll probably dent someone elses car.

Just stating my view, for all I know you may hate 22 year olds who drive Honda Civics that have dents in them (someone elses fault :D ) and duct tape on the window but to be honest I don't care :)

Your stereotype of him based his vehicle is no more shallow than if he or others assumed you drive like an idiot trying to imitate the fools on "The Fast and the Furious" just because you drive a Honda.

As for the pedestrian safety, it's only an issue for people that can't drive, regardless of what they are behind the wheel of.



Our latest is the wifes choice, a rather boring IMHO SUV. Isuzu Ascender (Envoy/Trailblazer platform). As such I started driving the small car, as I got tired of dumping ungodly amounts of money into the fuel tank on the 4 wheel drive truck.

Next up is a toy for me. :D

[MrJan]

Your stereotype of him based his vehicle is no more shallow than if he or others assumed you drive like an idiot trying to imitate the fools on "The Fast and the Furious" just because you drive a Honda.

If you read what I wrote you'll see I didn't assume a stereotype at all. I said I didn't like the car and was careful to point out that the MOST people (I even went to the effort of clarifying that but it still seemed to fly over your head) in my area can't drive the things, which is true. I personally don't like the look of the things nor see the point but THAT IS JUST ME :) From what I gather the Cayenne is very good so anyone is entitled to have one just you won't be seeing me in one.

[airshifter]

If you read what I wrote you'll see I didn't assume a stereotype at all. I said I didn't like the car and was careful to point out that the MOST people (I even went to the effort of clarifying that but it still seemed to fly over your head) in my area can't drive the things, which is true. I personally don't like the look of the things nor see the point but THAT IS JUST ME :) From what I gather the Cayenne is very good so anyone is entitled to have one just you won't be seeing me in one.


You should get a bicycle, as it seems you're good at backpeddling.

When you make assumptions that MOST drivers of a given vehicle can't drive them, park them, and disregard pedestrian safety, then like it or not you've just created a sterotype based on vehicle choice. ;)



Garry,

Great news. I've just confirmed that you are entitled to have your Cayenne. :laugh:

[Rollo]

When you make assumptions that MOST drivers of a given vehicle can't drive them, park them, and disregard pedestrian safety, then like it or not you've just created a sterotype based on vehicle choice. ;)


Can I make the make assumptions that MOST drivers of MOST vehicles can't drive them, park them, and disregard pedestrian safety, can't merge, don't indicate whilst changing lanes, are too easily distracted by MP3 Players or mobile phones or cigarettes or their children, have dorky haircuts, cut in whenever they see a 3 inch space in traffic, drive at 10 miles below the speed limit in the fast lane, are idiots for whizzing past me at 10 miles faster than I'm going, are a far too competitive, drunk, under the influence of drugs, stupid, ignorant and or lazy to be in control of a motor car?

All this leads me to believe that I am the best driver on the road... as does everyone else. Can we end this brickering brattle and rerail this topic?

[Camelopard]

the win on sunday sell on monday attitude has worked well with SEAT i think as that markets itself as fun and a young brand

this didnt work well for someone like MG which rebadged some Rovers so I guess the car will always be the most important thing.



The thing i'm most interested in however is the reason for buying a particular car. It doesnt have to be a brand new one. For example if you have £1,000 to buy a car you still have a wide choice to pick from.
Does friends influence your choice, like if they have one or recommend a car to you.
Is practicality or safety an important issue?
Value for money?
or the importance of the badge on the back?


I'm also interested to know if you think your car says something about you?

IMO in Australia, 'win on sunday sell on monday' has gone since the V8 supercars now bear very little resemblance to the road cars. IMO I don't think Holden winning on sunday would make someone who always had Fords go out and buy a Holden.

Subaru used to advertise heavily on their rallying links, even sponsoring rallies and the ARC for a while. They now have definately changed their focus. Now they seem to be aiming more on how much safer the 4 wheel drive system is and their ads have people going off on weekends to remote spots to ride their mountain bikes, bush walk etc.

If I had only a small amount of money to spend on a car I would be looking at practicality and low running costs.


I realise that the road going Escort Cosworth bares very little resemblance to a rally car, I just like to be different!
What does that say about me? I do admit that I like to be different, if I lived in the UK for example (where Fords are very comon), maybe I'd have somthing from Japan, a Nissan GTR perhaps.

I have had notes left under my windscreen saying that the rear spoiler on the Escort looks like s**t. I guess they don't realise that this is how they came out of the factory.
Would the same person leave a note on Porsche with a whale tail? Probably not. I've also had so many people try to race me it's painfull. I'm just not interested, I beleive a license if a privledge not a right. I got stopped at a random breath test a couple of weeks ago, the Policeman said he was suprised to see an old person like me driving the car!!!

One thing I have noticed in Australia which has had a large recent migration from South East Asia is that most of the young Asians I work with have things like Nissan GTRs, 180SXs, WRXs, Hondas are very popular too. Do they gravitate towards these Japanese makes of cars because of their own Asian background? One bloke whose family is originally from Hong Kong that I work with really likes my Fords although he has told me he would never own one. He has a GTR Nissan and a GTO Mitsubishi.

The sale of 4x4s in Australia is booming, it's becoming the largest sector selling new cars. A lot of people who buy them never go off road and have bought them for their perceived extra safety and the ability to carry large families. Will this continue as fuel gets more expensive? I've just filled up the Golf it took 50 litres with a total price of over $70. I would hate to be filling up an SUV type vehicle every couple of days and doing lots of kilometres in it.

[airshifter]

Can I make the make assumptions that MOST drivers of MOST vehicles can't drive them, park them, and disregard pedestrian safety, can't merge, don't indicate whilst changing lanes, are too easily distracted by MP3 Players or mobile phones or cigarettes or their children, have dorky haircuts, cut in whenever they see a 3 inch space in traffic, drive at 10 miles below the speed limit in the fast lane, are idiots for whizzing past me at 10 miles faster than I'm going, are a far too competitive, drunk, under the influence of drugs, stupid, ignorant and or lazy to be in control of a motor car?

All this leads me to believe that I am the best driver on the road... as does everyone else. Can we end this brickering brattle and rerail this topic?

Strange. When yourself and several others had comments about the Porsche, it wasn't derailing the topic. Nor was the marketing and racing aspect. ;)



Camelopard,

Here in the US I think a lot of the reason for the Japanese cars being popular is the cheap availability of aftermarket stuff. It's sort of the muscle car of their generation, fairly cheap to buy and modify. And with gas prices having gone up just about everywhere, the younger people that still have limited incomes can afford to fill the tanks easier too.

The SUV/4x4 trend has been going on for years over here. Half of them never go off the road at all, and haul nothing but a couple people and groceries.

[Camelopard]

Camelopard,

Here in the US I think a lot of the reason for the Japanese cars being popular is the cheap availability of aftermarket stuff. It's sort of the muscle car of their generation, fairly cheap to buy and modify. And with gas prices having gone up just about everywhere, the younger people that still have limited incomes can afford to fill the tanks easier too.

The SUV/4x4 trend has been going on for years over here. Half of them never go off the road at all, and haul nothing but a couple people and groceries.

Yes I agree, there are lots of second hand high performance cars coming from Japan and the gofaster bits to go with them. If I was 30 years younger I'd probably be going that way as well.

[Marshall]

I love italian cars so it had to be italian, and I wanted something different, but reasonable value.

So I bought an Alfa 166. Zender body kit, lowered, steep driveways and speed humps are worrying for both car and driver.

What appealed to me about the 166 was:

Performance and Handling
Looks
Individuality.

[Curryhead]

I have a Vectra 1.8, I like Vauxhalls, not had a bad one (fingers crossed) its near top of the range and is ideal for my motorway driving (daily :( ) fuel is good, its comfy and I can get the kids in happily, on the down side, it has a cream interior which I constanly have to clean to get rid of muddy boot prints :)

[AndyRAC]

I'm ready to buy a new car, but not sure what to but. Must admit I am influenced by Motorsport, so at the moment I can't decide; have a budget of under £15,000. Do like the Fiat Grande Punto Sporting 1.4 Turbo, Vauxhall Corsa SRi....

[Hazell B]

My vehicle was bought because it had to be, right there and then!

Tuesday afternoon - Land Rover 90 failed it's MOT.
Wednesday evening - Local auction had a selection of Land Rovers and I needed to tow loads for my business on thursday, sunday and monday.
Thursday morning - The Discovery I'd bought managed the load fine, so I kept it.
Saturday - parked up at a large Land Rover show and forgot what colour and age the vehicle was :mark:
Saturday evening - eventually found the damned thing after trying to open dozens of wrong 'uns :rolleyes:
Sunday morning - had business name sign written all over the doors so I would lose it again :p :

So, bought through an urgent need, but kept as it's better than expected. Much as I prefere the Land Rover 90, I'll probably get another old Discovery as they are cheaper, easier to work on, tow very well and manage off road almost as well as the 90. My partner has also gotten a Discovery now, just to prove the point :)

[anthonyvop]

I large, Nasty Jeep Grand Cherokee with a HEMI V8 and a W sticker in the rear window.

I just love driving around in it and tailgating liberals driving Hybrids!

[RallyfanNZ]

Unless you are a farmer there is pretty much no need to have a 4x4 for everyday use in the UK, any non 4x4 car is fine. Then, if you were a farmer, you wouldn't buy a Porsche Cayenne :p :

I don't think most of their drivers actually know how they look to Joe public.
I have never seen one with a boat in tow. Nor one fully loaded. Nor one on dirt. So it pretty much says everything about them. Sure they are the only large SUV that actually won't roll over on steering correction. But at that price you would half expect that.

In 5 years of driving I have only twice "yes twice" seen a SUV utilising the back row of seats.
You and your kids are much safer in a Renault MPV then a older Land "Rolla" SUV.

I bought a Honda Civic after owning many reliable Toyota's because their interior was more modern for the year of car. It was comfy, cheap, economical and I can fix every part on the car myself (Try doing that on a Cayenne, including the bank loan for replacement parts).

I think the country and "moral" standing of country decides what vehicle you drive.

In NZ we claim to be a outdoors lot. But 90% of 4x4's are seldomely used for their perceived benefits. Americanism is starting to take off in regards. People driven my material possession and stature. Its just lame if you ask me.

[RallyfanNZ]

P.S. I would rather have a vehicle that I could use to avoid a crash. Then a vehicle that handled a crash better.

It doesn't matter what vehicle you drive, at 100kmph into a solid concrete barricade the deceleration forces would break multiple bones and cause internal bleeding.

I still think that regardless of our opinions on 4x4's there is absolutely nothing we can do in regards to what they drive. We hate them, they like them. We just have to build a bridge and get over it.