High Performance Cars With No Negative Stigma?

TC

aka TomCat
Joined
Dec 11, 2005
Messages
11,432
I was reading a thread about a new Camaro package and The Spie made a point of talking about how bad the reputation of Chevrolet drivers have become and how that puts him off wanting to own one. Perfectly valid point, I'm not going to challenge it, but it got me thinking, are there any high(er) performance cars that don't have some sort of negative reputation or stigma about them?

Not too long ago I was thinking about what I would buy if I ever came into a ton of money. As much of a Corvette guy as I am, I would probably go for a Porsche 911 instead. Not a turbo or a GTwhatever, but just a RWD Carrera S. But driving something like that has a negative image as well. People will assume you're old, or a spoiled trust fund baby, or just a douchebag. But even if I were to get a Corvette, people would still have bad things to say, like it's a car for fat old retirees in Florida, or fat rich rednecks. It's hard for me to think of any desirable performance vehicle that doesn't have a negative image of some sort.

Now I know some people are going to chime in that their personal fanboy favorite couldn't possibly be seen in a negative way by anyone in their right mind, but seriously, stop and think about it. There will always be some group of people that will shit all over whatever it is that you like, or so it seems to me. I'm not really sure why anyone cares anymore, to be honest. Seems rather futile. Unless you buy something that makes so little impression that hardly anyone even knows it exists.
 
The closest thing ever produced would be this:

32214050712_large.jpg


In any case, if a so-called performance car (or motorcycle) doesn't polarize people into two (or more camps) it's probably nothing you want to own.
 
I think it depends on where you are. I think that Jags and Astons have a much different reputation in England that in other countries...like, the Corvette is seen much differently in the US as it is in the UK.
 
I think this may be one:

Aston_Martin_DB9_-_Birmingham_-_2005-10-14_(2).jpg
 
The DB9 is the only high-performance car that seems to be universally loved and carry no negative stigma. The Acura NSX might be benefiting from the general apathy surrounding everything coming out of Honda; I haven't heard anything really negative being said about it. Then again, it's not being talked about very much at all. Other than that, I can't think of anything.
 
Astons are damn nice, but I've begun hearing grumblings about them too. That they're becoming too common. That footballers and celebrities give them a bad name, etc.
 
The DB9 is the only high-performance car that seems to be universally loved and carry no negative stigma. The Acura NSX might be benefiting from the general apathy surrounding everything coming out of Honda; I haven't heard anything really negative being said about it. Then again, it's not being talked about very much at all. Other than that, I can't think of anything.


About the NSX:
"Too slow"
"Costs too much for the slowness"
 
Lesser known cars generally won't carry a stigma. Drive a Gumpert around and people won't have time to figure out what it is then form an opinion before you've driven off. Anything like that, people will form only aesthetic opinions, but nothing deep.

I think these opinions people have of cars are overstated. Sure, any car enthusiast will have an opinion about any car, that should be expected, but we are a relatively small group that doesn't matter. The next group is filled with people that are familiar with the cars. They might have formed general opinions about BMW and Merc drivers, but something along the lines of them being driven by either assholes or old people. Driving around and commuting, it's not a bad generalization. The biggest group, I'd say, are people that just don't give a damn. It's a car, who cares? That one looks nice, that one is ugly, that one is too loud. Anything else is irrelevant.

People talk about the stigma Miatas carry, but do you realize how many people really don't care? I'd say I have a good perspective through friends of the world of people that aren't into cars (I have very few friends who are truly into cars), and it seems quite common that they have no opinion of the car, they hardly know what it is.

Finally is the issue of money. A lot of people just respond negatively to people with lots of it. When someone is driving an expensive car around, especially sports cars as they make it known they are expensive, these people see it as showing off and even irresponsible. You'll never get away from that, sports car or not.

In the end, I really think people just don't give a fuck most of the time, and frankly I find it asinine to judge a car off the people who drive it, and to choose a car for you off the same crowd. If you are a true car enthusiast, you'll drive whatever you enjoy and everyone else can screw off.
 
How to make a high performance car with no negative stigma whatsoever:

No. 1: Take LSx

No. 2: Shove it in the back seat of a Pruis, create epic sleeper

Done. No negative stigma at all. At least, untill you back up to some protest group or something and ruin their unwashed clothes even further with a blast of hot tire dust.

Other than that, any classic performance car. I don't think you see classic cars out driving on the roads quite enough for them to build up and kind of negative stigma among the general public. You see something old enough out and about, and most people think it's awesome no matter what.
 
No negative stigma is a hard one. Any high performance car will have at least one of the following stigmas attached to it: overpriced, for snobs, mid-life crisis, small penis, flashy, boy-racer, absurd, or (for the sleepers out there) boring. For example, I was about to bring up either the VW GTI or the MR2 Turbo, but the former is either boy-racer or boring depending on if you notice the distinguishing features, and the latter is either boy-racer or flashy depending on how you interpret the styling.
 
The closest thing ever produced would be this:

32214050712_large.jpg


In any case, if a so-called performance car (or motorcycle) doesn't polarize people into two (or more camps) it's probably nothing you want to own.

It does have a negative stigma, I owned one!
 
It does have a negative stigma, I owned one!

I am so sorry to hear that.
 
The closest thing ever produced would be this:

32214050712_large.jpg


In any case, if a so-called performance car (or motorcycle) doesn't polarize people into two (or more camps) it's probably nothing you want to own.

Not down here they're not. Total fuckwit magnet.
Anything carrying a McLaren badge would get universal hat tipping.
 
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