Some cars defy rationality with their market prices, yet we consistently seem amazed there are people willing to pony up for them. Perhaps you can’t put a price on dreams. Is there a dream car out there that would make you pay more than you should?
Recently, I was working with a gentleman who absolutely had to have a brand new, factory ordered Porsche 911 GT3. Naturally, the demand for and supply of these vehicles do not favor the buyer and just finding a dealer with an allocation for an order is a major challenge.
Despite my best efforts I could not convince him to get a pre-owned model for a reasonable price or something currently in stock for MSRP. He wants what he wants—and good for him, why not!—and if that means paying a bit more to get it, then fine.
Knowing that I have a slight obsession with fast wagons, a reader sent me a listing to a BMW dealer who is a bit notorious for what some would consider bonkers pricing on collectible BMWs. This particular car was a 1995 M5 wagon in a lovely shade of blue with an asking price of almost $120,000.
What shocked me more than the price was the little label that read “sale pending.” But then I thought about it, and if I had a ton of money to blow, I might actually drop that kind of coin on an ultra-rare E34 M5 Touring. I get the appeal. We all know that nostalgia is a helluva drug, and our favorite European and Japanese cars from the ’90s are beginning to go for some insane prices.
However, “overpaying” for a car doesn’t have to mean getting some rare collectible—there are apparently a number of buyers willing to pay for markups on new Dodge Demons and Honda Civic Type Rs.
So let’s be honest with each other: is there a car that you irrationally love so much that any notion of a “good deal” would be put aside for the opportunity to have it in your garage?