Do you care about brand association?

"djmt1" (djmt1)
10/15/2014 at 17:00 • Filed to: Discussion

I don't but a lot of people here do for some reason. Why?

Edit: I've been too vague. I talking about not buying a car because you don't like the image the brand is associated with. For example Type R being associated with Boy Racers.

DISCUSSION (12)

HammerheadFistpunch > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:07

Brand association? you mean brand Loyalty? I think everyone cares about it, at least at a subconcious level, though I try to avoid bias based on brand consciously.

djmt1 > HammerheadFistpunch
10/15/2014 at 17:08

Saying I won't buy car x because of image Y.

Roadster Man > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:09

Since you put a "Type R" badge in the pic, I'll assume you mean why people care about performance badges, like BMW's M, Merc's AMG. It means refinement, it means more power and performance, it basically means that you car is a bit special. I can see why someone would be after that. More for the power and performance, which is undeniable in these cars.

If you're talking brand association in general, you gotta be more specific. People love certain brands for all sorts of reasons, rational and irrational, and who cares because they still like cars. Nobody around here is going to be fighting (seriously) about stuff like VW vs. Honda.

djmt1 > Roadster Man
10/15/2014 at 17:13

I was talking in a more negative fashion. Like not buying a car of a certain brand due to negative association. For example Type R with Boy racers, etc.

Roadster Man > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:24

I'll never buy a Subaru again because mine was a (fast) leaky bastard AND it got stolen. People have all sorts of reasons for not buying a car. I wouldn't get an Evo because I don't want to get challenged by dorks at stoplights. People just don't want that negative association. I'll give you this: it's funny that lots of people avoid Hondas because of their image, when we are more than ready to drive a Miata that is perceived by lots of people as "feminine" (I daily drive a Miata). If someone is that insecure about something like that, more Miatas for the rest of us. But you need to deal with the reality of things, and that reality is that your car affects how people think of you. Some people would just rather buy a different car and not deal with it.

BUT, I just drove my buddy's CRX Si, and it is SWEET. I want one now.

Hahayoustupidludditeshutupandgohandcrankyourmodeltalready > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:26

No, not much.

djmt1 > Roadster Man
10/15/2014 at 17:29

I still don't get where the whole MX5 is a girl's car thing came from. Maybe it is an American thing but then again the whole concept of top down motoring is an American thing.

RazoE > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:31

Nope. I drive an IS 300 which popularized the "Altezza lights" trend. I don't care what people think of the lights, I love mine.

These are the original "Chrome and red circles in a chrome housing"

Kinja'd!!!

Still Toyota!

Textured Soy Protein > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:40

I bought a black BMW with blacked out trim because I like the way it drives and don't care that much about looking like a dbag. I drew the line when the finance manager tried really hard to get me to buy window tint though. That would've been too much dbag for me.

Roadster Man > djmt1
10/15/2014 at 17:40

I think it's a holdover stereotype from the 90's, where a lot of women drove the Miata in America after it first came out. The whole idea of "top down on the open road" is definitely an American thing, but the Porsches and Triumphs were doing it all along as well.

Gizmo - The Only Good Gremlin, but don't feed me after Midnight > Roadster Man
10/15/2014 at 22:43

I thought of the post like Roadster Man's first paragraph. I'm all pissed off about Cadillac watering down the prestige of owning a "V" by coming out with this hokey "V Sport" crap. Or them not being smart enough to trademark it and me seeing a Toyota Prius V and puking in my mouth a little. Nobody else sports a TypeR tag or AMG, but Caddy did it to themselves and let everyone else steal it ad nausium.

Roadster Man > Gizmo - The Only Good Gremlin, but don't feed me after Midnight
10/17/2014 at 10:47

I never thought about that! It's probably impossible for them to trademark the letter "V," unlike "Type-R" or a combination of letters like "AMG." Then again, nobody stole "M" from BMW...

I don't really like the watering-down of these performance brands wither. Everyone is doing it, Audi's S-line of cars is a good example. I dunno how they screwed things up so badly. An S-line car is below a BMW M or Merc AMG in terms for performance/price, but an RS-line car is usually more powerful and costly than a "comparable" M or AMG car. Maybe it's all part of the plan?