whoa

[thinkfloyd14]

I'm 19 and I got my 78 last year, cost me 11 grand. (for perspective)

http://www.caymanclub.net/showthread.php?t=10864

My dad has a cayman s, its the first new car he ever bought himself.

whoa

[snbush67]

Good for you. When I was 19 I had a 30,000$ M1026 and my dad did'nt buy it for me.

[thinkfloyd14]

the post isnt about me, the post is about the 15 year old kid who doesnt even have a license getting a 65K dollar car for an easter present

[Seahawk]

Originally posted by thinkfloyd14
...the post is about the 15 year old kid who doesnt even have a license getting a 65K dollar car for an easter present

I went to a prep school that had a significant number of very weathly kids on the roster (I was not one of them).

On any given day I could park my '68 VW Bus between Muffy's 450SL and Skip's new 911S. Owning that level of car at 16 was normal to them, no big deal.

No judgement one way or another...

[Aurel]

I got my first 911 at 29. Cost me 11 grands too. Never could have afforded it at 19 (But I lived in France, that is a different story...).

Aurel

[Jims5543]

You are on this forum, you just beat Sapple 89 who is 17 who has a 2.7. The youngn and I are 19.


Be forewarned though, I think the world see's us as spoiled brats.

At least they call it as they see it. Running out and buying a 15 year old a $65K + car for Easter remarkable.

I cannot comprehend what goes through a parents mind that qualifies purchasing a 65K sports car for a kids first car.

I personally would never do such a thing for my sons and I am a huge fan of them saving up and buying their own car, its their first step toward being independant and letting them suck off the teat for the first car will just set a precendent for their entire life.

The Millionair Next Door discusses families like this kids where there are constand handouts from the parents starting at a young age. Children of people who are big earners and under accumulators of wealth tend to follow the example of the parents and end up being a financial drain on them for their entire life.

I guess I should call my dad and thank him for forcing me to earn everything I have today.

[livi]

I have never owned a brand new car and my parents bought their first new car two months ago (age 67).

Please, them of you that have had the opportunity to go into the car dealer´s and point out what color, engine model and options you prefer on your brand new car - fill me in as to how that feels!

The newest car I ever owned was six years old.

[Dantilla]

Originally posted by Jim Cesiro
Children of people who are big earners and under accumulators of wealth tend to follow the example of the parents and end up being a financial drain on them for their entire life.

I guess I should call my dad and thank him for forcing me to earn everything I have today.

Ditto.

My father was very successful, after a very poor upbringing. When we hade some estate issues after his death, the attorneys were pretty impressed with me. "Shirt sleaves to shirt sleaves in three generations" is what they normally see. A hard working guy does well, the son squanders it away, and the grandson is back to working hard.

My dad was more concerned with raising me to be able to stand on my own two feet. When I turned 16, he told me I could have any car I wanted:

"Decide what you want, and figure out a way to pay for it"

Sounds a bit cruell on the surface, but a bit deeper, it is true, and motovating. This is a land of opportunity. I can do far more by "Figuring out how to pay for it" than by accepting handouts.

I owe so much to my dad for what he did not give me.

[Nathans_Dad]

I'm sorry, but that is ridiculous. Can someone please explain how a 15 year old needs a $65k sports car? What the hell are his parents thinking? Answer: They aren't.

I'm sure I will have plenty of money in the bank when it is time for my son to start driving and I will tell you right now he will get a 5-6 year old used car, whatever is the equivalent of a Honda Civic then will probably be the car.

[Moneyguy1]

All of the posts on whether to invest in real estate and what the market is doing, and very little on what a lousy investment a new car is.....

The expensive car manufacturers laugh all the way to the bank.

[HardDrive]

What a terrible thing to do to a 15 year old boy.

[Seahawk]

Originally posted by HardDrive
What a terrible thing to do to a 15 year old boy.

Why? Honestly, why is it beyond the pale? I think it is stupid, but terrible?

[widgeon13]

Hope the kid makes it to his next birthday!

[dd74]

Well, it's one thing buying the kid the car. It's another thing as to whether the kid can handle that level of car.

[Nathans_Dad]

Originally posted by Seahawk
Why? Honestly, why is it beyond the pale? I think it is stupid, but terrible?

Yeah, I would agree with terrible. Here's why:

First, it doesn't teach the kid squat about how to work for anything in life. As a 15 year old kid, he gets a boner for a Cayman and PRESTO! Mommy and daddy buy it for him. What's next when he gets sick of that one? Are mommy and daddy going to be there for him his whole life (in this case the answer is probably yes...sadly).

Second, what 15 year old kid do you know that is mature enough to respect and handle a sportscar? I don't know one. They are just asking for this kid to get into trouble with the car.

Will the parents recognize that they had a hand in their son's death if (God forbid) the kid takes it off a cliff taking a corner too fast to impress his 16 year old girlfriend?

Terrible.

[450knotOffice]

+1.

My parents could've bought me a new car when I was his age, but they wouldn't have even remotely considered it, for the reasons stated above.

I ended up with a dented station wagon with glasspacks and fake wood side paneling at 16. When I was 17, I bought my step-mom's old Capri (loved it). A year or two later I bought a three year old VW Scirrocco. I didn't buy my first new car until I was 22 years old, and then it was only a $7,000 Nissan mini pick-up.

I know that kid's happy but he has not been taught anything about how the real world works.

[Gogar]

Maybe to compensate, his parents will make him pay for the body repairs and the DUI lawyer after he crashes it racing a fart-can car. I just hope he doesn't kill his passenger or anyone else.

[Purrybonker]

Originally posted by Nathans_Dad
Yeah, I would agree with terrible. Here's why:

First, it doesn't teach the kid squat about how to work for anything in life.

What a buncha envious sour grapes...

I disagree. The responses here are unidimensional takes on a snapshot of a situation. Hardship and working for things accomplishes what again? That a 16 year old kid has an Enzo is absolutely no reflection on the personality of the kid nor the child-rearing skills of the parents.

Ain't you been listening to Maslow? Ain't we supposed to graduate beyond needs if we are to achieve self-actualization and fullfillment?

Tell me, who generally accomplishes more in business, or life in general - the "spoiled" indulged children of the wealthy or the offspring of the single moms from Watts? Getting everything on a silver platter has been working for the privileged classes since the dawn of civilization.

I have a "kid" that I just took into my group as sort of an intern. I wouldn't have hired him without experience 'cept his Dad (ahem) happens to be best buddies with a guy that's about the #8 or so richest guy in the world and happens to own (again, ahem) 70% of the multi-billion $ company I work for. 23 year-old shows up from a foreign land and buys a 7-figure residence and a nifty new blue bentley arnage to cruise to work in.

Not the brightest lad - he will not go far except for Dad's string pulling, but he has all of the work ethic in the world. And a gentleman too.

You guys sound like my grandfather... 30 miles to school, uphill both ways. Blah, blah, blah.

Its a whole new world. 'Cept the shmucks are still doing the heavy lifting and thinking it an honorable enterprise.

[HardDrive]

Originally posted by Purrybonker

Tell me, who generally accomplishes more in business, or life in general - the "spoiled" indulged children of the wealthy or the offspring of the single moms from Watts? Getting everything on a silver platter has been working for the privileged classes since the dawn of civilization.

Your missing the point. The greatest material pleasures in life are those that you desire for a long time. You work towards a goal, and its sweet when you can finally get what you are after. It seems his parents are robbing him of this to a certain extent.

The other issue is his peers. Kids with fancy cars like that will have their groupies, but they will also earn the resentment of a number of their classmates.

Dunno. My wife and I do quite well, and I certainly won't have my kid driving a rust bucket when she turns 16. But she won't be driving a new Porsche either.

[Purrybonker]

Originally posted by HardDrive
Your missing the point. The greatest material pleasures in life are those that you desire for a long time. You work towards a goal, and its sweet when you can finally get what you are after. It seems his parents are robbing him of this to a certain extent.

The other issue is his peers. Kids with fancy cars like that will have their groupies, but they will also earn the resentment of a number of their classmates.

Dunno. My wife and I do quite well, and I certainly won't have my kid driving a rust bucket when she turns 16. But she won't be driving a new Porsche either.

Actually I think that's exactly the point Maslow had in mind. If you load up a 16 year old with new Porsches (or whatever) isn't it possible that you (from this one perspective) just shift the "desire bar" above things like new Porsches? So instead of having wet dreams about caymans you free his mind to desire more "lofty" things in life. Like writing novels or inventing something or captaining some business enterprise...

I'm pretty sure this is just one of those scale issues, but it can be pretty complex and confusing for parents. I'm with you - I wouldn't buy my kid a new Porsche, but I'm sure my kids have gotten lots of stuff that parents in "lesser economic conditions" would consider obscene indulgences.