The need for Toys and the desire to FIRE

For many, this may be a case of "if you have to ask, then you can't afford it" variety. To me, it's gonna add 1/2 year to my OMY stint. I can't afford that. I'd rather drive Prius than sacrifice 1/2 year of my RE. YMMV.
 
My "toys" are limited to a couple dual sport motorcycles for now but I have no problem with buying lots of toys/wants if you have the means.

Personally I would wait to the point where compounding has taken over and therefore needs are covered for life.

Also buying something for status has no appeal to me. The people who would be impressed are not the people I like to hang out with.

But if you have $100,000,000 why drive a civic when you can drive a Ferrari.

But don't buy the Ferrari if you think it is a good financial move because it is not. I'm pretty sure a civic will give you more miles per dollar.
 
RetireAge50 said:
But if you have $100,000,000 why drive a civic when you can drive a Ferrari.
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With that money, I would be driving something close to a tank so crazy drivers could not hurt me.

PS. Something like the below.

5.JPG
 
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NW-Bound said:
With that money, I would be driving something close to a tank so crazy drivers could not hurt me.
Click to expand...

Hummer went out of business. I guess one can buy a used one, fitted with turret, and blow away tailgaters. :D
 
See one above that I would use to tour all continents while living inside it too. Let those Ferraris and Teslas tailgate me all they want. I would not care, and just ignore them as if they do not exist. They'd better watch my brake lights though. I hate to have to scrap them off the bottom of my RV.
 
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How about this one, whose interior is roomier than many studios in London or NYC?

mantga1.jpg
 
If you have the means and desire, buy it.

Wrestling with rationalizations is just going to waste your time. Most cars less than 10 years old at this point will be drivable for 300k miles [the engine] but most of the rest of the vehicle will wear to a disagreeable state unless babied to the extreme. The drive train is the easy part now days.
 
NW-Bound said:
If you are spending say $600/month on gas, paying $3.50/gal, and driving a car with 25mpg, that works out to 4,300 miles/month. That's a lot of driving!
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It may not be a lot of driving. I'm one of those millionaires driving a F150 Platinum. LOL It only gets 11 or 12 mpg

What does the original poster drive now and why does he want a Tesla? Use it for a daily driver in retirement? Fun car for nice weather? Been living far below your means and want your last splurge?
 
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Sam Walton drove a '79 Ford F150. MRG
 
I drive an f150, but hope op gets the tesla. We need to keep the demand and price of f150's down in case I have to buy a new one some day
 
jIMOh said:
Or is it I need to FIRE and I desire to have toys?

I am currently running through the math on being able to afford an electric car (a Tesla).

If a $90,000 car could last "forever" (the motor has an infinite life according to sales pitch, the battery is less known), I am considering this to be more of an expense moderator (I drop $500-$750/mo on gas easily).

Any thoughts from the peanut gallery?
Thx
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Since I live close to Milford, Ohio I can assure you that no car lasts "forever" around here unless you don't drive it the 5 "winter" months of the year. Governments dump copious amounts of salt or Calcium Chloride on the streets which is about the same as throwing acid on your car. Body, suspension, brakes and fuel lines rust to unsafe condition long before the engine wears out.

With that kind of monthly gas expense I would think that driving a Civic, Corolla, Cruze or Focus would cut your spending by 2/3.

As a lifelong gearhead I would categorize a Tesla as an "automotive appliance" (although interesting technology), not a "toy". IMHO, money would be better spent (saved) with a dedicated modest daily driver (see above) and a performance or classic car for the weekend. You could easily buy both for less than half the price of a Tesla. With a bit of careful shopping even an automotive icon such as a Ferrari 308 (think Magnum PI) can be had for 30-35K. What will a Tesla be worth when it is 35 years old?

edit for the OP
To see some proper automotive toys, go to the cruise-in held every Friday night at the east end of the Rt 28 by-pass behind the Wendy's.
 
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Why so many miles? Just asking.

If this is really an 'expense moderator', I'd love to see your calculations.

If it is a 'toy', then no one else's opinion matters. It is up to you to determine the relative value and whether you can afford the absolute $$$.

-ERD50
 
I think the Thomas Stanley point about the F150 is that some millionaire next door types have blue collar businesses like farmer, scrap metal dealer, auctioneer, rental property management and plumbing business owner where a pickup truck can come in handy. One of the reasons they can become MNDs is because farmers often don't have the same social expectations to wear designer suits and drive luxury cars, unlike a surgeon or a stock broker might, so it leaves more money to be reinvested in their businesses.

I think his car choice numbers are based on actual surveys of millionaires, which is what made his books interesting - the idea that there is often an inverse relationship to the trappings of wealth and net worth, precisely because money spent on trappings cannot be reinvested in a business or stocks and bonds.
 
I still consult part time to the energy industry. Ok, really the oil & gas sector.

I have been to West Texas, South Texas, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota, etc, etc so many times I don't need a map or a Garmin to get around. This is where the pick up trucks are, and the drivers are generally millionaires who are out checking equipment, meeting with contractors, meeting with me (ha!), or at the local spot for lunch. They dress in Levie's and cowboy hats (really). They keep their Ferrari's in the garage back in Dallas at their other home.;)

I have a 2002 Dodge Ram SLT crew cab, and I think I am finally worth a million. I also drive a Jetta diesel when not in the truck. Maybe I should sell the old Ram and get an F-150:confused:?:D
 
Everybody has toys they crave and $90K is no more intrinsically unreasonable than $9K or $900K depending both on your financial circumstances and on how central the toy is to your happiness. I used to fly various aircraft quite a lot and had friends who were somewhat impoverished by the planes they "had" to have. Though it may not have made sense to others it was the only thing that made them happy and who are we to second guess that.

That said, as a gearhead of long standing I would think that one of the great advantages of ER is having the time to tinker - and thus to build/repair whatever wheeled or winged fancy ones heart desires. While building up a Tesla in ones garage may be overambitious for most of us, dropping a new motor into a worn out sports car to get a cheap fast toy is definitely part of my retirement game plan.
 
aja8888 said:
I still consult part time to the energy industry. Ok, really the oil & gas sector.

I have been to West Texas, South Texas, Oklahoma, North and South Dakota, etc, etc so many times I don't need a map or a Garmin to get around. This is where the pick up trucks are, and the drivers are generally millionaires who are out checking equipment, meeting with contractors, meeting with me (ha!), or at the local spot for lunch. They dress in Levie's and cowboy hats (really). They keep their Ferrari's in the garage back in Dallas at their other home.;)

I have a 2002 Dodge Ram SLT crew cab, and I think I am finally worth a million. I also drive a Jetta diesel when not in the truck. Maybe I should sell the old Ram and get an F-150:confused:?:D
Click to expand...

""Leroy! can you take this pump into town and find some shaft seals for it? It's squeeling and making a mess up here. Aw, Ed, I'm in the Ferrari today, even the trunk rug is worth more than that thing. Have the service company bring one out. "" See, if he had the truck today...
 
If I was doing a OMY thing approaching ER I think I would retire and wait 5 years before making a splurge purchase. By then you have either bypassed the most devastating early year financial scenarios and can consider a splurge or you are already quaking in your boots and are glad you waited. On the other hand, maybe in if you bought the car under scenario 2 you would just be glad that you moved $90K out of the way of the tsunami and can console yourself with a nice ride to the Dollar Store.
 
My business partner drove an F150 during the 90s, but come time to upgrade, he switched to a minivan because the costs of the F150 had escalated so much by 2004.
 
I love teslas. There seem to be more and more of them on the road here in San Diego.
I saw one yesterday on my commute home and was admiring it. From the 1995 dodge pickup I was driving.

I'd rather retire in less than 2 weeks than spend the money on a tesla.
 
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