I've been reading through the comments y'all are gracing my Audi A5 review with. Roughly half of you seem to feel that the latest from Mr. d'Silva's studio is so good looking, that's its fancy price, drowsy mechanicals and counterintuitive controls pale when compared to its sensuous shape. The other half offer up the quite logical chestnut, "Bah. 335i ." I of course, reserve the right to sit on the old fence. Yes, the 335i trumps the (as tested) A5 in every meaningful way — and costs less — but holy dog food, Batman! In coupe form, the 335i is the ugliest car in production. Just… ick. But then look at me. I drive a station wagon version of the world's second ugliest car (a bright blue flying vag WRX) because it is such a practical car. And (again) look at me. I'm young (ish), single (ish), childless (probably) and relatively affluent (compared to Turkey). I should be driving a Boxster or a Miata or an Elise. But, you can't run to Target for paper towels and mops in those cars now can you. Can you?
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I can’t say the 335i coupe is that ugly. It’s not my cup of tea, but it’s not objectionable. Best Bangle for the buck, I think. But that’s not emotion talking, it’s logic. I’m always logical about cars…I want good performance, a good deal, comfort etc. I don’t care what the color or maker is, if it fits my needs that’s it. My wife insisted her new Mini come in a certain color. Nothing could persuade her otherwise. That’s emotion for you.
Buying cars is always emotional. Logically we’d all be driving Tata Nanos or taking public transportation.
I actually like the Bangle-era BMWs and I think the current 3-series is among the best looking cars of their type. Of course, I also have no problem with iDrive, so what do I know…
Yes, and my Jeep is proof. It is fairly inefficient and I could have bought a much cheaper car to suit most of my needs, nay all of my needs, but several times a year, I really like to take it where no automobile has any business being. It’s pure emotion, but my mountain and desert ventures really help me to stay wings-level for the rest of the time.
I wonder the same thing… I could have gotten that Mustang GT, MX5, or even a regular cab 4×4 F150.
But, I got the more rational vehicle and paid cash: Mazda 3 wagon. And it seems to be a great decision, while it does tug at the emotional side from time to time. It looks pretty darn good for it’s size, handles well for it’s class, and doesn’t anger me at the pump or when I pay insurance on it.
So, it makes me happy from a rational POV.
The other half offer up the quite logical chestnut, “Bah. 335i .
Yes, but the 335i is not a rational decision either. Why does going from 0-60 in a whisker over 5sec matter? Does the leather interior matter? Great handling?
Objectively, rarely. Except if you go to the track, the difference in daily driving is imperceptible, and most of us spend our time in 15mph traffic anyway.
I’m glad you asked this question, as, in my opinion, it’s this conflict that makes cars so interesting. They are appliances, but appliances that give us a lot of fun, and that have a high social resonance.
Combine all this, and our brains often hesitate between those contradictory aspects. In your case, you’ve taken the best of both worlds and combined them together.
And here’s another point of reflexion: we often think we behave logically/rationally, while it’s not the case. the 335i is a case in point, and so are people buying SUVs for “safety” reasons, while all studies show that minivans are safer. We apply our subjective thinking to what we believe is a rational decision.
I used to do quite a lot of shopping in my first gen Miata. As long as you can keep the top down, you can cram quite a bit in the passenger seat. I remember getting a giant set of blinds for an apartment I was moving into, and I just throw it in the passenger seat, and let about half of it stick out the top. Also, I was 19 and (slightly) crazier than I am now.
Maybe I’m not though, my current car is a 350ZR.
Emotion is the automotive driving force but logic is (sometimes) used to moderate the emotion. Thankfully as I get older I’m getting a little bit better at the logic thing.
I went to a Honda dealer looking to test drive an Accord coupe (4-cylinder, manual, and with as few options as possible). In the back of my mind I was thinking of a figure just under $20k.
Then I saw an S2000…. test drove it on a lark… and the rest is history. :)
As a car nut, logic is only useful to provide good sounding reasons why I should do what my emotions dictate.
That is, if I can get the voices in my head to sound rational to you, who’s to say I’m crazy?
If I love how a car looks, then I don’t mind if it’s “good” instead of “great.” If a car is “great” but I just don’t feel anything special towards it… sorry, I know I’m doing myself a disservice, but that’s okay.
I say yes. If I could afford any luxury car, I would buy a Lexus, just because their designs stir up a bunch of positive emotions in me.
AKM in my opinion is right on the mark. Most cars are commuting and errand cars. Others are long trip cars. How much time do most cars spend on the windy challenging roads depicted in BMW TV ads? In terms of need a Honda or equivalent is really what’s needed. The rest is just emotion. That’s what I am struggling with for my next car purchase. The more I spend on a car the less I have for other things. But image and handling do matter to me. The question is how much am I willing to pay, especially when the asset depreciates like a block of ice on a hot day.
And in the end isn’t every decision we make emotional to one degree or another?
Can’t I just lust for both? No? Well then screw it, I’ll take an E9 CSL.
emotion Volkswagon
logic Toyota
its easy to see what most people think
Put me in the BMW-style lovers’ camp (ghetto?). I think the 3 series coupe is smashingly good looking, and have been a fan of all but the 7 series (and those overweight tall wagons).
But yes, emotion simply manipulates logic into getting what it wants. It wins a lot.
And a Miata will carry just about anything you want…I’ve fit a (reasonable) Costco trip + passenger into it, and many tall objects, CRT monitors, and several other things that may not have worked in my “more practical” car.
The emotion of car buying isn’t always about the external styling or performance. Sometimes the emotion is about what you’ll do with the car. Think about all those people who bought SUVs thinking they were going to take their families on adventures in the mountains, or to go mountain bike riding, or hiking.
Sherman Lin- there’s definitely emotion in buying a Toyota. Toyota’s rep is for reliability, in other words “My car won’t break down and therefore I won’t be attacked by zombies/aliens/lowlifes/serial killer in the middle of the night. or “My car won’t break down letting me get to work everyday so my boss thinks I’m a great worker and gives me a promotion”
davey49: You’re right. But the emotion in buying a Toyota is based on fear. The emotion in buying a Porsche or BMW is more likely based on confidence and a sense of fun.
There’s emotion to a WRX also. Practically everyone who drives one thinks they’re a rally driver!
(much to the detriment of other motorists and to the delight of car eating trees)
No reflection on Jonny just personal observation.
How about this for “logic”. One of the reasons I picked my car was because a radio HU I had would fit in my Saturn and not in others.
We’re not rational people. More like rationalizing people. If we like something emotionally, we’re going to try to justify it logically, even if the logic’s wrong!
Emotion often trumps logic for us car enthusiasts. For my only new car, in ’93, I should have bought the Integra. But at ~15k, the Saturn SL2 looked cooler, and cornered a bit better than the low end Integer RS, also ~15k. Yet, somewhere in my head I knew that all the NVH in the Saturn was going to cause trouble down the road-and it certainly did–and when I first realized how bad the turning circle on the Saturn was, on a test drive, I didn’t buy the car that day, as I otherwise would have, but I did buy it. That should have stopped me. It annoyed me the whole time I had the car.
This is why you have two cars, one practical and one fun, one a beater and one not. Whether the practical car is the beater or the nicer car is entirely up to you.
At least, that’s how I’m trying to rationalize the Miata I want – I’ll just keep the T-Bird for bad weather days!
LOL, I am currently negotiating a purchase of a 350Z Touring Coupe. While waiting for the IS350 to arrive from Nihon.
Neither car is practical, 300+ hp when fuel is $4/gallon but hey if there was no emotion or passion for autos the world would be a boring place.
The rational car purchase is always the bottom of the line, least expensive with the best fuel economy. The rest of our purchase is emotional. So take at look at your car, if it doesn’t have roll up windows with a standard am-fm radio, stick shift, cloth seats and gets 25-35mpg depending on the size of car needed, you used some emotion in your purchase decision. It the only logical explanation and the car companies all know this, that is why you see so many commercials for their product on tv and in print.
Johnny – my wife and I run to target all the time for crap in our Z4 – the trunk is 9 cu. ft (about the size of an E36 3-series coupe, or double that of a Miata) and any long stuff we can just cram inside – I bring three very long swords to Kendo in it all the time.
Sure, its not a hauler but c’mon – you’re only going to be young and beautiful once in your life – live it up.
Or at least split the difference – get an Impreza 2.5TS Wagon or an old truck, and a used Miata (~$2,000) – same amount of cash spent, much more fun had.