get made fun of?
 

Does any one get crap from people at work or somewhere else because you drive an old Mercedes that cost a substantial amout to fix when it breaks? My co-workers call my 86' 420sel a piece of sh** because it is 21 years old and has a few leather and dash cracks in and it needs attention every few months while their new cars only require gas and a car payment. I say my car is refined and basically a bad mo fo but they put it in the same class as a kia. It really gets to me. I can't wait untlil my bosses lexus breaks and costs him an arm and a leg to fix. He says it basically indestructable because it is a toyota and toyotas never break. One of my best bud tells me all the time to get rid of my merc, but I believe he just had his 93 honda motor rebuilt brcause it crapped out on him. Hmmmmm. I wonder why i stick with my benz?

.

Hello E150GT :)

I would guess that your repair bills for you old Mercedes
are much lower than their monthly payments to the bank for their cars.

And you own your car.
They do not, the bank does.
Actually they will probably never own a car,
people now trade their cars in on a new one before they get the old one paid off.
And the bank makes them keep expensive full coverage insurance.

I think the people around you are afraid of you because you have decided to do something different.
and it makes them feel uncomfortable, and fearful.

They are doing what the advertisers have told them to do.
You have done what you wanted to do. :)

It feels a hell of a lot better to live by your own morals, then somebody else's !

Have Fun
RichC
:stupid:

.

Ah, don't let them get to you. You drive your car because you like it, not because you want to impress others.

I drive my 1989 because I love the ride. Sure, it does have a few issues but nothing I can't deal with or handle over time.

My cars are one of my hobbies. I realize that a car in America needs to be reliable since it is needed to get to work and take care of errands. (At least where I live) That is why I try my best to inspect the car weekly and make sure nothing is out of the ordinary.

If you want to use an older car as a daily driver, you just have to accept the additional responsibility with maintaining (18) year old mechanical and electrical systems.

If people make fun of you, just try your best to shrug it off. At least you are not bound to a payment, or own a low quality car such as a Kia. The Lexus cars are nice now, I no longer feel like they are just a hopped up Toyota. However, as with all these new cars, the bills for repair will be high. I guess that is why the car has become a 4 year then dump it item.

I like driving the old Benzes - it may not make me look like I'm Richy Rich and impress the neighbors, but I'm already too old to bother with impressing others and worrying about what they think.

And, yes, my employees think I'm insane for buying a 1984 red Grandma's car as a daily driver - on the other hand, they haven't seen the SL AMG yet. That one ought to shut them up.

cdplayer
 

Not wanting to be morbid here, but the truth is between your boss and you, if a headon was to happen, guess who would be able to walk away?...You!!

I get ribbed from a different direction as Executive Management receive a liberal car allowance and I choose not to drive a car with a payment attached this bothers some of my peers. While the other five choice parking spaces in front are shared with a Volvo, Excursion, Denali, Tahoe and some sort of Ford 500, with the exception of the Ford sedan all have seen their share of the dealership. The Volvo suffered some sort of +$1K battery repair/replacement I yet to fully understand. If one of mine has an ailment it can be swiftly changed out with another 126 while repairs are being done.

Yeah, I used to get teased by a few about my previous 300E. Most admired the car, and how well it had stood up over time but there were those that ridiculed it. Then I would point out that the car only cost me $11K, had had no major repairs in over 8 years, original motor and tranny past 300K Km and that I owned it outright. I then asked them if they owned their car and if it had given them 8 years of perfect service. Didn't get too many 'yes' responses to the latter. ;)

No one messes with me about the car(s) or criticizes my choices...especially since my old W124 looks better than my associates much newer vehicles!

Who cares what they think? YOU like your car and that's what matters.

Okay, group hug!

I don't think I have ever seen cars of any years look any better than yours--I honestly don't see how you have the time to keep them in that shape (was it harder when your daughter was younger?;))

Here's how:

1. Garage. Lack of one ruined the paint and interior on my once-show VW in less than a year from the Texas sun!

2. Wife and I work at the same place, so only one car is really out of the garage at any time. During the week, this is usually the W124, but the others see some weekday duties...today I took the W208 to work.

3. Only one car gets out in the rain...EVER! That way I only have to wash one dirty vehicle. Sometimes this is not possible, but usually I can pull this off. W124 is easiest to wash, so I try not to take the other vehicles out in bad weather.

4. Vehicles that are kept clean are easier to keep clean later. I can wash and dry any of the vehicles in 20-30 minutes.

5. Daughter was trained early on what she can and can't do in a car. I relaxed the rules a bit after I got a bit crustier. Hard to be maintain strict cleanliness rules when your daughter and teammates pile in after a particularly grueling (and muddy) soccer match! The trick there is to get floor mats that can handle the crud, and don't let the dirt linger in the vehicle for very long...much harder to remove later...especially on a black vehicle!

You shouldn't care what anyone else thinks, you drive what you drive because you like it and people out there are afraid of someone that is different. The way I look at those Japanese tin cans is if you sell a 100, one of them has to be reliable, its all about the numbers! Most of my customers are owners of German cars and I see more of their wives cars (which for the most part are Japanese cars). At the end of the day as long as your happy with your car thats all that matters.

E150- They are just jealous because they don't own an exotic car. My co- workers respect me because I color outside the lines....and oddly enough my status got elevated when i purchased my Benz despite it's age....

There can be some bittersweet that comes with old iron. Two years ago we were bought out by a Publicly Traded bigger fish. Our delegation went to their HQ for a tour and then a social hour in the evening. One of the new principles drives up in a 90's W140. I started up a conversation with him and learned of his love for his MB (he is not a DIY person) but he didn't know so many things could be done himself. Some real bonding that night. Later in the year HQ BOD visited us with a department by department Q & A financial, risk all those uncomfortable questions. When it came to me he asked me a question about synchronizing his windows in his 140. LOL bittersweet revenge to my peers.

I think it's funny because the guys at work wil talk mess all day about my car, but they don't touch one om my co-workers who has a 1997 neon with ridiculous chrome rims, fake hood scoop, and a rebuilt motor that cost 2000 dollars. it looks ridiculous.