Thirty six thousand, four hundred dollars

"Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing." (granfury) 01/27/2019 at 22:55 • Filed to: None

2

26

That’s the base price on a BMW X2, a vehicle I didn’t even know existed until today. And that is my nephew’s first car, a kid that doesn’t even have his license yet. He probably didn’t get the base model, either. When they said that he got a BMW as his f irst car, I thought my folks were about to tell me that it was something like an E46 325i, but no, they got him a fucking brand- new X2.

My first car was a hand-me-down 1977 VW Dasher wagon; mom bought it new and drove it for years before buying a used Vanagon, and then dad drove it for several more years because they used his Mustang II as the trade-in on the Vanagon. That car, and the used Rabbit GTI I bought a few years later, didn’t suffer any accidents that were my fault; drunk idiot backed into me in a parking lot, but I don’t think I can be blamed for that . Since there weren’t any cars to pass down to my sister when she got her license she had her choice of car, as long as the value was close to that of my Dasher, and bought an early Accord hatchback with 90,000 miles on the clock. Her next car was a used ‘86 Jetta, refrigerator white. Hell, my first new car was my current DD, the base- model 2012 Mazda5 that I love and cherish and will never part with.

My niece and nephew have absolutely no concept of money. He gets a new X2, and she has seen Hamilton in at least 10 different cities. I know it’s a good show, but really? I’d almost be willing to bet that my old slot-car set, which I saved for my nephew , went straight from t he trunk to the garbage can as soon as they got home. The three of us had such a fun time playing with it at my folks house that Thanksgiving, but I don’t think my sister could tolerate having something used in her house, regardless of what the kids may want. Yeah, you won’t be catching her shopping at Goodwill...

And the fate of t he X2? Nephew didn’t have t he right-of-way, made an illegal left turn, ON T HE WAY HOME FROM THE DEALER, and wrecked it, with my sister sitting right next to him in the passenger seat. KIDS DO STUPID THINGS. THIS IS WHY YOU BUY THEM A BEAT ER AS THEIR FIRST CAR.

I can’t even...

Nibby > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:27

0

it’s ok, he’ll just get a new X2! or maybe an X3 or X5

Steve in Manhattan > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:31

5

I’m with Tom and Ray Magliozzi on this one ... you get them the biggest, ugliest Volvo you can find. Maybe a beater 240, a 7 series, or perhaps an 850, so that when they crash it (as they will do) they survive. Sure, update it for today so they have SIPS - get ‘em a V70 or whatever the 10 year old wagon of the moment is ... they’ll also be embarrassed to pull up in front of their friends. 

Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:33

9

Stupid parents gonna stupid parent.  Wait until they see their next insurance premium.

Jordan and the Slowrunner, Boomer Intensifies > Nibby 01/27/2019 at 23:33

3

The X7 will protect him the most.

Tristan > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:35

6

Disgusting.

My daughters will receive a non-running vehicle a year or two before their license . Something like a Volvo 240 or box Crown Vic- safe, but simple and cheap. We’ll invest sweat equity so it will be better-appreciated , and they’ll learn more about how a car works so they won’t be taken advantage of by shady mechanics in the future. And as soon as they can reach the pedals, they’ll be driving my Jeep around the woods to get experience behind the wheel. You can’t buy a teenager a brand new car and set them loose in city traffic.

wafflesnfalafel > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:42

1

Absolutely no point in keeping up with the J oneses - there will always be somebody with something better. The lesson is to watch out for sh!tty drivers and l et them waste their parent’s money until (if ever) they figure out how to grow up.  I guarantee you will run into folks 30, 40, 50, 60 years old that are irresponsible boobs - best you can do is mitigate their negative effect on you, (or even better take advantage of their incompetence for your own gain .)

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Chan - Mid-engine with cabin fever 01/27/2019 at 23:42

2

And I forgot to add that that they complained that the WiFi signal at the dealer was weak and thus they’d register the car when they got home. Hah!

If there’s any sort of instant karma thing happening here it is that their insurance rates are going to be exorbitant for years, but somehow I don’t think this will really faze them all that much.

Sometimes I wish I was rich enough to be this stupid with my money, but even when I had a six-figure income I was still a tightwad, buying nice, but used, cars and living in exactly the same apartment next to the airport that I had been in for years (rent control is a helluva drug). I do wish I had bought a house, however; the $189K place I considered in 2001 is now worth over $800K...

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > wafflesnfalafel 01/27/2019 at 23:46

2

As sad as this is to admit, I’m not very sorry that I’m not all that close with my sister and her family. They’re just not the kind of people I want to associate with.

DipodomysDeserti > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:50

0

That’s one fancy Mini Cooper!

Chariotoflove > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:54

5

This reminds me that I’m glad my sister and I see eye to eye on how to raise our kids.  It makes things so much easier when the cousins get together.

BeaterGT > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:57

0

And nothing of value was lost... Let’s hope at least there was some knowledge gained.

fintail > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/27/2019 at 23:58

2

The kid will probably be a real beaut as an adult, too - can’t wait to see the entitlement issues.  Shitty parenting strikes again.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Chariotoflove 01/28/2019 at 00:09

4

Sometimes I wonder if my sister and I actually grew up in the same household with the same parents. She says she doesn’t remember our father, who died when she was just four. She doesn’t remember the lean times, the struggles to keep a roof over our heads and food on the table. I wish I didn’t have to live through those things, but overcoming adversity builds character.

Bylan - Hoarder of LS400's > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/28/2019 at 00:10

1

I was going to say, everyone basically ruins their first car, it's a learning experience. He didn't even learn to drive yet and already wrecked it. He'll  wreck the replacement too

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Bylan - Hoarder of LS400's 01/28/2019 at 00:12

0

Yeah, you’re probably right. Here’s hoping that his parents learned something from this and buy him something cheap and used (not like he’s going to get a job and buy his own car), but I’m not going to hold my breath.

Matsayz > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/28/2019 at 00:23

1

I’m sure Mom and Pop leased it, the payment is probably pretty cheap. I grew up with kids that had brand new Euro cars before they even took the test for a license, 95% wound up in the ditch or around a poll after drinking.  I on the other hand totally enjoyed Moms minivan!... when she let me borrow it. 

boxrocket > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/28/2019 at 00:28

1

That’s several thousand more than my wife and I spent on our 2016 Mazda CX-5 AWD Grand Touring that we bought new . That’s about the same ballpark as a 2019 Mazda CX-5 AWD Signature. We’re both adults working 50+ hours a week and can just barely justify spending that kind of money on one car. There’s very little rationality that justifies that sort of expenditure on a young driver, especially on their first vehicle. Heck, a CPO X1 (or one from CarMax) could be half that, and just as safe, reliable, and still have the same perceived brand cachet.

boxrocket > Steve in Manhattan 01/28/2019 at 00:31

0

I drive a 12-year-old XC90 and I feel safer in it than I do in some brand new vehicles with all their sensors and cameras and such . Watching crash test videos helps, too.

Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. > Matsayz 01/28/2019 at 00:48

0

Yeah, I’m sure it’s leased; t hey haven’t purchased a car in decades. Every time I see them they have different cars. Oh, and the $70K pickup to take the horses out to their  ranch up the coast. Where they’re taking the hor ses from I have no idea, nor do I really care TBH.

I still think back to the pride I had in my first car, even though I had no say in what car I had. I still washed and waxed it as if I was at Pebble Beach, and tweaked with the stereo; mom replaced the original Blaupunkt AM/FM radio with a massive Sanyo, and the old Blaupunkt became my first home stereo when I built a Heathkit power supply to run it in the house. I even remember the day mom bought that car, at Parkinson VW, later North County VW, home of Harvey the big white Rabbit (a giant rabbit statue on the parking lot). 40+ years on I still have a book of matches from that place that features Harvey.

Steve in Manhattan > boxrocket 01/28/2019 at 01:09

0

That much SUV is probably too much for a 16-year-old, but putting them in one of the smaller ones (from that era) is a good idea. Volvos for sure, and perhaps an older Toyota Highlander. Love those - when a taxi pulls up and it’s a Highlander , I love riding in it. But yeah - giving a kid a car with a BMW badge on it and probably too much horsepower is a bad idea.

Svend > Chariotoflove 01/28/2019 at 04:33

0

I’m glad my sister and I see eye to eye on how to raise our kids.

You had kids with your sister!? That’s very redneck of you.

Wow, the more you get to know someone, you really learn.

Lol. 

SilentButNotReallyDeadly...killed by G/O Media > Full of the sound of the Gran Fury, signifying nothing. 01/28/2019 at 05:30

1

It’s the American dream! Writ large. Like you, I’m not sorry for your loss.

boxrocket > Steve in Manhattan 01/28/2019 at 06:13

0

Oh yeah, the XC90 is far too much for a first-time and/or young driver. Anything else in the lineup would be fine. Toyota’a a good choice, but I’d suggest a RAV4 or Matrix since the Highlander is about the size of the XC90. Re ally just about any of the decent small crossovers/hatchbacks from Toyota, Ford/Mercury/Lincoln , Mazda, Honda, and Kia/Hyundai are more than enough for a young and/or inexperienced driver.

Chariotoflove > Svend 01/28/2019 at 10:24

1

Oops, that just slipped out.

Or I guess you could say it didn’t slip out fast enough when the time came.

Bryan doesn't drive a 1M > Tristan 01/28/2019 at 12:14

2

That’s actually the first time I’ve hear this idea. I like it!

Svend > Chariotoflove 01/28/2019 at 13:25

1

Lol.

On how many times has a guy said that to a woman!?