These Cars Make It Most Obvious That You Bought A Base Model

Earlier this week we asked you what car makes it most obvious that someone cheaped out and bought the base model, and you all had some great answers. This is a collection of a few of my favorites, but I have to say, one in particular takes the cake this week. hoser68 really nailed it when they called the Toyota Corolla Cross L the Mennonite Special. That actually elicited a chuckle out of me, and I haven't experienced the joy of laughter in years. (Just kidding, those who know me know that I laugh at everything, but I still appreciated the chuckle, hoser68.)

I also offered a great answer in the BMW X2, which I've seen increasingly frequently in Los Angeles with permanent registration stickers on their plates, meaning BMW has resorted to fleet sales with its base X2s. Their unpainted black plastic wheel arches and Joker-esque smile, or Waluigi-esque mustache depending on how you see it, really broadcast their base-ness. But you're not here to read about me stroking my own ego by saying what a great answer I gave, even though it was pretty great, so go ahead and read the user submitted answers that I liked best, or head back and read through the ones that I didn't include.

CorollaCross L. It's as close to a Mennonite Special as I can think of today. Like the Grill is a matte grey black plastic instead of the shiny black plastic on the LE.

Submitted by: hoser68

Most pickup trucks make it SUPER obvious which ones are the fleet specials. Black bumpers, black door handles, steel wheels, and rubber floor mats. And almost always refrigerator white, so all the non-body color trim pieces really stand out.

Submitted by: Stillnotatony

Worked at a Saturn dealer in the 90s...it was this guy. The Saturn SL1, gray plastic bumpers, manual trans and window, it didnt even have power steering.

Submitted by: NotKrasnov

You have to look back at the 1980s and 1990s when you were looking at true penalty box base models. If a car was on a morning game show, it was a base model. It was the Ford Escort with no passenger side mirror and when Johnny was reading off the options, it had the AM radio and California emissions and not much else.

Or, and I still remember this when my Dad bought his new 1987 Nissan Stanza. The base XE had half cloth/vinyl seats, no tach, no stereo, no a/c, no trunk carpeting, no power anything. It was the purest example of a cheap base model that was begging the buyer to spend the extra money and get the GXE which had the tach, full velour seats, stereo, power options, etc. But both trim levels did get the elusive passenger side mirror. The Civic was the same way where the base Civics had one mirror, acres of vinyl, and a bunch of covered up blank panels where power options and features were supposed to be in the higher trim levels. The more blank covers on the dash, the cheaper the model you bought.

Submitted by: Xavier96

Any of the Subarus with the dual-screen setup instead of their larger touchscreen. I mean, look at this....

Submitted by: JonRob 951

Tesla does base models pretty badly, the Model Y and Cybertruck with tiny wheels and no light bars. It used to be unpainted bumpers and steel wheels were the biggest exterior giveaways, now it's light gray painted alloys (or caps), halogen headlights and lots and lots of tire sidewall. Kia and Hyundai also make it painfully obvious when you have a base model, which only makes their more radical styling stand out when wearing no jewelry or larger wheels.

Submitted by: Bengal55

For luxury, the Porsche Panamera, without question. The badging alone gives it away. No S, no 4, just simply Panamera. The rectangular exhaust tips are the dead giveaway and everyone knows. Nothing makes a six-figure luxury sedan look surprisingly ordinary quite like the base wheels and lack of exterior options. And for roughly $7K more, you can step up to the Panamera 4. Porsche has mastered the art of making an expensive car look like you forgot to finish configuring it.

Submitted by: Ted Lasso

Alfa Romeo Giulia- its missing some of the trim and spoilers, wider fenders etc, that the Quadrifoglio has, and it really looks mid with out the high level trim in real life.

Submitted by: The Rancor

2nd gen Ford Probe. The base one lacked front nostrils and lower

Body cladding. Looked soo basic and different from the GT.

Submitted by: Skinny75

Jeep Wrangler with the small steel rims, soft top, hand crank windows, and a manual transmission! Can be had with Air Conditioner delete. Back in my Jeep selling days I'd have customers actually place orders for that exact spec. Lowest trim level, and the driver is always proud of that fact. Honestly, I'd totally have one as a 2nd car.

Submitted by: Papa Chris