# Can Driving a Too-Sporty Car Make You Look Like a Tool? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [September 17, 2009, 7:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482 "2009-09-17T19:37:35Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 6
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 4:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/101 "2009-09-19T04:14:56Z")
Someone upthread suggested forgoing the convertible. I totally disagree with this. I’m glad I went with a convertible and may have even gone with something that was not quite as sporty… like a Seibring or something, than the other way. I love nothing more than driving in the cool night air with the top down. I’m really looking forward to the fall and going through some back roads around lakes in national forests that should be absolutely stunning and I don’t think I would appreciate them quite as much if I was closed in. My wife and I are already talking about taking in a covered bridge tour, which we have had several years that we could have done, but suddenly it seems so much more fun. I can’t agree more with the posts saying that the fun you have with your wife and family is much more fun than being concerned with what anyone else thinks. Someone else said something to the effect of “enjoy your divorce.” I took a chance that I brought my car home without asking… and not apologizing. Her first reaction was surprise, but it didn’t take long for her to decide it makes me happy, and we have fun together going up to a farmer’s market on a sunny weekend, and looking forward to fall that maybe it wasn’t the worst thing to do to our marriage. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 4:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/102 "2009-09-19T04:20:08Z")
> [@Una\_Persson](#): > > When you’re in the grave, and not a minute sooner. Wise words… pay attention to them. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/103 "2009-09-19T05:19:15Z")
> [@ghardester](#): > > Pictures of car. > > [http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u90/ghardester/0516091604a-1.jpg](http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u90/ghardester/0516091604a-1.jpg) > > [http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u90/ghardester/IMG\_0848.jpg](http://i166.photobucket.com/albums/u90/ghardester/IMG_0848.jpg) Okay,\* you’re\* a tool. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/104 "2009-09-19T05:30:12Z")
> [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](#): > > Okay,\* you’re\* a tool. Why? Either you are joking and I’ll be the first to admit to a Woosh or you don’t know that for that era that is about the coolest version of that car you can find. Maybe it doesn’t fit your tastes, but it is a top of the line version of that car. I’d love to get a ride in it. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/105 "2009-09-19T05:42:05Z")
Unless I’m mistaken that is the last year of the Firebird. Not everyone is a fan, and even though I drive a Ford now I’ve always been a GM fan. I would expect it probably has the 5.7 which is more power than anyone really needs… along with more fun than most people should have. Sure the body is extreem… I don’t hear people complaining about the Viper. Again, just because it may not be your taste doesn’t make the driver a “tool.” There are some cars that are considered classics that I can’t stand but I still appreciate that their owners love them and I’d never consider insulting them because their tastes are differnet then mine. I really hope I can have a good laugh at how badly I’ve been wooshed here. ---
**Author:** ![Superhal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b4bc9f/32.png) [@Superhal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superhal)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/106 "2009-09-19T05:50:45Z")
> [@Starving\_Artist](#): > > I believe it was no less a light than Hugh Hefner who defined success as the achievement of one’s childhood dreams. Yeah, hugh is so totally not a tool. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/107 "2009-09-19T05:57:22Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Yeah, hugh is so totally not a tool. Yeah, I really pitty the life he was forced to live. ---
**Author:** ![Serenata67](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/serenata67/32/10646_2.png) [@Serenata67](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Serenata67)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 5:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/108 "2009-09-19T17:46:26Z")
> [@Cat\_Whisperer](#): > > He actually bought a 2009 Toyota Celica? My husband would love to get an updated Celica, but as far as I can tell, they don’t exist yet. > > As for the OP, Jim calls the next car he wants to get his “Midlife Crisismobile.” 😃 He is well-aware of what he might look like driving it around, but he doesn’t care. He wants a sports car, and if we can afford it, he’ll get one. Maybe it was an 07 or 08 or something… It’s pretty new… but i"m not sure exactly what year it was. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/109 "2009-09-19T18:15:30Z")
Shit. I’m gonna be 40 in a couple of months. I own two corvettes. Owned one since I was 26 and fixed,replaced or improved damnear every part of it. The other was purchased when I was 29 and is my wife’s. My hair is thinning, too. Don’t have any hair on my chest, at least there’s that. Sure Am glad I got them then, with the kids, there’s now way I could buy them now. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/110 "2009-09-19T19:04:55Z")
> [@Pork\_Rind](#): > > It’s actually closer to 350hp/350tq according to the magazines. BMW purposely underrated it because at the time of its release, it was making more power than the then current M3! It’s a fun car to drive with just enormous amounts of torque and grip, but it’s no sports car. I’m sorry, but 5 second 0-60 times, 13 second 1/4 mile times, 68.4mph slalom runs and .88g of lateral grip=sports car by any sane definition. ---
**Author:** ![Cat\_Whisperer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cat_whisperer/32/4839_2.png) [@Cat\_Whisperer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cat_Whisperer)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/111 "2009-09-19T19:12:20Z")
> [@Serenata67](#): > > Maybe it was an 07 or 08 or something… It’s pretty new… but i"m not sure exactly what year it was. Shoot - you got our hopes all up. 🙂 Fingers crossed that Toyota finally gets back into the affordable sports car market. ---
**Author:** ![NajaNivea](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/22d042/32.png) [@NajaNivea](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NajaNivea)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 7:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/112 "2009-09-19T19:20:31Z")
> [@Superhal](#): > > Buying a sportscar -\> Trying to get laid. > [@Superhal](#): > > If the car was purchased because a 50 year old is fulfilling a dream they had when they were 17, they’re a tool. 😕 Count me in on the puzzlement. You can’t buy a sportscar because you like fast, sporty cars? You can’t still enjoy fast, sporty cars at 50 just as you did when you were 9 or 16 or 35 but couldn’t afford it? And why does liking sports cars have to be directly connected to getting laid? Why can’t you just enjoy taking windy drives in the mountains on the weekends with your wife and dog? This sounds a lot to me like the pervasive belief that no one ever gets a tattoo except to impress _other_ people. Expensive cars are like anything else. Some people buy expensive cars (or tattoos or houses or jewelry or paintings or even dogs) because they think it enhances their image. Other people get the same things for personal fulfillment. It sounds fairly asinine to lay down the kind of blanket statement quoted above. I’ll tell you what, if you buy _anything_ because you’re hoping to impress other people, you’re at least some degree of tool. Bonus points for cars, tattoos, houses, and dogs. ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/113 "2009-09-19T19:25:12Z")
> [@NajaNivea](#): > > :I’ll tell you what, if you buy _anything_ because you’re hoping to impress other people, you’re at least some degree of tool. Bonus points for cars, tattoos, houses, and dogs. Don’t get a tattoo of a dog driving a sports car into your house. Or if you do, don’t start a thread without photos. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 8:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/114 "2009-09-19T20:09:34Z")
> [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](#): > > Don’t get a tattoo of a dog driving a sports car into your house. Or if you do, don’t start a thread without photos. Such a trend would out cool the three wolf t-shirt. Doubleshit. I’ve got a _Corvette_ tattoo too. Man I’m just the Snap-On of tools according to this thread! ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/115 "2009-09-19T20:23:38Z")
The most embarassing driving experience I ever had involved an older man in a convertible. I was eighteen at the time, and so was my friend Christine. She pointed out the man in his shiny red convertible, and said, “God, you have to feel bad for men trying to compensate for a small dick like that.” I made a non-commital noise. Then, once we got closer to him, she rolled down the window and yelled “ **Sorry about your penis**!” Of course I was horribly embrassed and reminded her that we were near Boston. Was she trying to get us shot at or something? j/k So, if the OP doesn’t mind the occasional 18-year-old girl offering condolences about the size of his penis, I say go for it. ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/116 "2009-09-19T20:38:52Z")
> [@elfkin477](#): > > The most embarassing driving experience I ever had involved an older man in a convertible. > > I was eighteen at the time, and so was my friend Christine. She pointed out the man in his shiny red convertible, and said, “God, you have to feel bad for men trying to compensate for a small dick like that.” I made a non-commital noise. Then, once we got closer to him, she rolled down the window and yelled “ **Sorry about your penis**!” > > Of course I was horribly embrassed and reminded her that we were near Boston. Was she trying to get us shot at or something? j/k > > So, if the OP doesn’t mind the occasional 18-year-old girl offering condolences about the size of his penis, I say go for it. So I would say… your friend = tool (nothing personal I know it wasn’t you). I’ve actually had several teen/20’s girls say “cool car.” and exactly zero with a negative comment, other then from my own daughter. If anything it is more embarassing because my first thought is “should I recognize her as one of my daughter’s friends?” Again, I have no illusion that someone may at any time laugh, think I’m compensating for something or whatever else they may think. I just don’t care, because I’m doing what I enjoy and loving doing it… but that is just the shallow selfish tool I am. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 9:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/117 "2009-09-19T21:14:26Z")
Well, when I get older and kick my kids out of the house, I fully intend to get an Ariel Atom. ---
**Author:** ![Unintentionally\_Blank](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/unintentionally_blank/32/5418_2.png) [@Unintentionally\_Blank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Unintentionally_Blank)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 9:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/118 "2009-09-19T21:15:26Z")
> [@FoieGrasIsEvil](#): > > Well, when I get older and kick my kids out of the house, I fully intend to get an Ariel Atom. What will replace your penis in foul weather? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Spud](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/spud/32/347_2.png) [@Spud](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spud)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/119 "2009-09-19T22:17:40Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > What will replace your penis in foul weather? 😃 Everyone knows that they shrink greatly in the cold. In my case I plan to go back to my old Blazer for the winter. ---
**Author:** ![FoieGrasIsEvil](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/foiegrasisevil/32/16638_2.png) [@FoieGrasIsEvil](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FoieGrasIsEvil)\ **Post date:** [September 19, 2009, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482/120 "2009-09-19T22:18:15Z")
> [@Unintentionally\_Blank](#): > > What will replace your penis in foul weather? 😃 It has it’s own helmet! Has anyone ever seen one of these cars? Jesus Christ, 0-100 in 6.8 seconds. It’s absolutely ridiculous speed, and I am going to own one. Looks like they are coming out with a 500hp version. Sweet Jesus, the 300hp car weighs only 1,000 lbs! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482.md?page=5) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/can-driving-a-too-sporty-car-make-you-look-like-a-tool/510482.md?page=7)