ImaReallyCheapGuy

What's with all the hating?

I have 2 pretty nice cars.

I have a 1972 Ferrari Dino that's a former show car, absolutely lovely and screams like a Banshee.

I just last week bought a very nice 997. What a great car. It pulls strong and handles great...oh and what a lovely sound under hard acceleration.

But what surprises me is the difference in people's reactions.

When I have the Dino out, people give the thumbs up, and wave and ask "What is it?". They smile and seem to think it's cool somebody has a nice car.

But in the 997 it seems a lot of people want to cut me (or usually my wife) off in traffic, they dive in RIGHT in front of the car and seem to go out of their way to prevent us from merging.

I searched this board and it seems there is a feeling people are rude to Porsche drivers but to this degree, I'm surprised.

BTW, I used to have a Boxster S and nobody seemed to act this way to it.

Edgy01

This is a relatively new thing for you to experience with Porsches. This was not the case years ago. As a Porsche driver since 1974 I would suggest that the reputation of the car has been changing to conform to the old joke,--comparing a cactus to a Porsche. When it was purely a perfomance car more acknowleded that aspect of the car (and the driver). Today, it's seen more as a sign of conspicuous wealth, and there are a lot of people out there who are jealous of that. This is a big reason why it isn't selling well in certain countries where that sort of display is not well regarded. In some parts of the USA it is fine, but in lesser areas it's seen as flaunting your wealth. This is perceptively countered (they think) by ordering these cars in less conspicuous colors, e.g., silver and black, to downplay them, but it doesn't change the fact that it is a Porsche. The driving behavior of many Porsche drivers is what many people are reacting too, as well. From some of the descriptions of some Rennlisters' excursions on the public highway, it appears that that reputation is deserved. To counter this reputation we should, as a group, practice conservative driving when in the public eye. When on the track you can let go!

rcl

+1

Haku

Well put Dan.

With privilege goes responsibility.

points

I not a rude driver but that said .....well eff em. These haters have no idea what I went thru to purchase this car. If they had busted their ***** like I did they could afford a car like mine. Do not be intimidated by folks envy. The haters are mostly folks who resent the fact they did not have the nads or energy to acquire a vehicle like this. At the tender young age of 56 Im absolutely done tryin to appease the dipshytes inhabiting this planet. Drive on I say in all your well deserved glory. After all you earned it.

CBejbl

I drive in a friendly manner. Most of the time I'm getting passed by traffic. I don't weave in and out of traffic, showing the world how fast the car is.

However, I've noticed that there are plenty of people who get aggressive around our cars. Kids want to drag race at stop signs and others want to play rallye car on the surface streets. I just let them go by.

Edgy, I'm starting to think of John Kerry ("I served in Viet Nam") every time I read your posts. It seems you are always pointing out that you've been driving Porsches since 1974, and equally eager to point out how newer members to the fold are somehow different.

Not a hater, mind you, just a Porsche fan who loves them as much as you did in 1974.

bigs

With all due respect, I'm not sure I agree with this part of your statement. Or perhaps I'm misunderstanding your thoughts...

If, by "conservative driving," you mean to simply blend into traffic at all times and never drive in a spirited fashion, then I'd suggest there's not much point in owning a street-legal Porsche. Simply drive a Buick on the street and have a dedicated Porsche track car.

On the one hand, I don't condone street racing at all. (Although, I think you can tell the difference between a kid in a hot rod rapping his engine at you as a stoplight challenge vs. a fellow enthusiast joyfully playing tag back and forth with you on a great winding road - where no one is trying to "win," and you give each other a "thumbs up" when your paths diverge.)

And I don't condone driving in a discourteous, irresponsible or dangerous manner.

But, if I'm driving up the canyon on a glorious day, with modest traffic...

I'm not just gonna stay safely tucked in behind an Aztek all the way. I'm gonna open 'er up a little and enjoy the sensations that made me buy a Porsche.

And if some of the plain vanilla folks sturdily conveying themselves from Point A to Point B are offended by that... tough.

Targa Tim

+100.

We are living our lives to the fullness and we know we deserve it. As long as I know I'm not causing any harms to other people, I only have myself and my family to please, and that's all that is important to me.

BTW I also agree with Dan that there are bad apples among Porsche drivers, but there is nothing we can do about it.

Leader

I think driving any performance car brings out the worst in some other drivers around you.
I've never seen it as a reaction to me, more like a juvenile need to show off how fast their car is…whether it's a Subaru, a Honda, or an M3.
This is not a phenomenon specific only to Porsches.

triode

+1

rountreed

On the Autobahn left lane with left blinker on tends to work well for me problem is most Americans have no concept of how to drive and park their fat a$7 cars in the left lane while talking on a cell phone or putting their makeup on. You have some nice cars drive them and just watch out for the A Holes.

wetstuff

I probably live just far enough from civilization - and other cars like it - to not draw much attention. The 997 get's more attention than the Boxster..but not in a visibly negative way. My wife makes 4-5hr runs w/o ever having expressed concern.

There's also been a rule in effect for a few years; don't look. We're close enough to Baltimore and D.C. where a simple look with perhaps the wrong facial expression may get you a 9mm wave.

str8line

I can't help but think that this statement is partially aimed toward me for my post about my high-speed on an empty highway that I drive every day. I put no-one at risk but myself, yet the morality police of this forum came out guns-a-blazing.

I agree with bigs and points, what sense is there in owning a porsche if you're not going to drive it hard on occasion?

As for image, I haven't noticed any of the negative backlash that the OP mentions, but I really don't care what people think about my Porsche as long as I know that I'm driving safely and in a courteous manner.

Leader

While owning and driving a brand new Porsche may indeed make you feel like you're the center of the universe, in reality, you're not.
It's a good thing to remember next time this thread comes up…and it will.

dD/dt

It's important to remember that most people spend most of their time thinking just about themselves, not any of us. So what you see when you're behind the wheel of a p-car is just a flash of what other people think about the world, with an emphasis on how they feel about these cars:

STi/Evo driver: I want to race anything that looks like it was more expensive than this, to show that I am smart and someone else was stupid for paying twice as much to go slower. Real bragging rights for smoking Porsches or anything Italian.

Some men and women in family sedans: People in expensive German cars don't deserve much consideration. They get paid too much for whatever they do anyway, now it's their turn to wait for me.

People talking on cell phones: Oh my God, that little car just came out of nowhere!

Young guy driving a Golf GTI: That's going to be me someday; I'll be nice.

Woman driving a Cayenne to play tennis: Why do these cars keep flashing their headlights?

Anyway, it's really not about you or even the car, it's just about the issues and prejudices people drive around with. I iamgine you'd feel these things even more acutely driving a new red 430.