I wrote a big long post and it got deleted so this one will be just the meat and potatoes of my question:

Had my best friend over for a couple of bottles of wine a few nights ago. He is on his second Lexus IS 250 AWD. He has owned/leased multiple cars before that but none were in the luxury realm.

I asked what he loved so much about Lexus and he wasn't able to give me anything tangible (he is NOT a car guy). He paused and answered me in a moment of pure honesty (probably from the truth serum). He said "Mike, the reason I think I keep coming back to Lexus is because it reminds me of when my father was at the height of his success in 1992 and he leased a 1993 Green GS300." My friend went on and on and he took a trip down memory lane and basically Lexus represented to him being the best you can be.

To be honest, my friend comes from a family of means and he always wants "the best". My family came from far more humble beginnings.

I examined it myself and I realized that I had pined for a Cadillac since I had seen them in my family. My uncle always had used ones. I got one...and I was sorry. I was passionate about the brand, however. The storied history of Cadillac. My Father in law has owned a couple. I also had an affinity (and still do) for Lincolns. It's very possible that I may end up in one someday soon.

When my friend asked why I purchase Lexus vehicles, I was well-prepared. I said, "Joe, the salesman sold me. Then the service sold me. The quality sold me, etc. and I am a convert to Lexus since 2004."

I purchased Lexus models based on intellectual motives (I think). There is no passion in the history of Lexus for me. For the next generation of buyers, I bet they'll be tons.

I'm overanalyzing for sure but I realized something. My friend and I both made financial and emotional investments into our cars. His being emotional, mine being scientific. I TRUST Lexus. I LUST 80's and 90's Cadillacs. I know - no good! I won't make that mistake twice!

How many others out there found themselves eyeing a Cadillac, a Jaguar, or even a Chevy because it reminded them of a good time in their lives or took them back to a period of good fortune? How many bought their car because it reminded them of Dad? How many went out there and kept their options open and feel like the past had no input on the present? I've had a few interesting conversations about brand loyalty this week. This subject must have come up 5 times or so.


Michael

 

Sorry for the redundant title. It's getting late.


Michael.

 

Mines somewhat prewired. my family has owned plenty of nissans ( 8 maximas, 6 pathfinders, 2 sentras, etc) I've owned a few myself and i like the mix of a sporty ride with decent amenities. (sans the current line)

I've never really been about full on luxury hence why i drive a 6spd genesis coupe now with cloth seats

 

That's interesting. I definitely think people purchase cars from brands they've had success with or that are associated with good times. Having said that, I have no brand loyalty whatsoever and try out new brands as I see fit.

 

Since young I was taught by my dad that mercedes benz was king and no japanese car could match the safety and engineering of MB. Yeah my dad was a pretty full on MB fan. He owned 3 consecutive generations of E class and whenever it came time to change cars, it was a reflex automatic decision to get an E class.

Until the time MB ran into a horrendous spell of reliability and workmanship problems in the 1990's and early 2000's. Our E class spent about the total of 2 month in the shop while the mechanic tried fruitlessly to fix an airconditioning problem. After that, we who had been diehard MB fans were completely disillusioned.

My dad now drives a Hyundai, go figure :-P

As for me, I had always wanted an E39 BMW 5 series when it came time for me to get a first car. I must have test driven about 10 pre-owned 5 series in a fruitless search for my first car.

My philosophy was to let the first owner take the hit in depreciation. ;-)

Problem was even then, all the BMWs were horribly overpriced for the power( 520,523,528)

Then I walked into the Lexus showroom, sat in the 2nd Gen GS300 and the rest is history. I got a used GS300, discovered Clublexus and caught the near incurable disease of "mod-itis" :-D

Short story : I used to worship at the altar of German engineering but now have seen the light.

So yes, it is possible overcome the effects of your childhood programming.

 

Not for me. My family has owned a variety of cars. My dad has owned 3 cars: Corolla, Camry, and 2 Accords. My mother has owned an Accord. I recently purchased my first car with my own money (an Accord). Reliability is a huge with me in general b/c we basically destroy the car before even trying to purchase another one lol.

 

Not at all. I come from a Ford Family

*Several of our other Blue Ovals not pictured


Only reason my mom, dad, and myself all drive a Lexus (I still have an Exploder too) is because the son of the automall GM rear ended my mustang in HS. The GM didn't want it on insurance and offered to fix my car free of charge meanwhile gave my mom a brand new 07 RX off the lot to drive. She liked it so much that she got an 08 a few months later. I took her car in for service one day and while I walked the lot, I saw the IS body style and said that was the car for me, ended up with a brand new 08. Fast forward two years later and I ironically work at the automall now, and recently I got my dad into a 12 IS because he needed a car after giving his Blue Oval to my littlest sister who just got her license. So were a Lexus and Blue Oval family

 

I am pre-wired a few different ways..

Lexus- When they were new, around 1998 or so, I saw a Lexus SC and completely fell for it, just a great looking car and I thought the best luxury car for the money. Have driven a few, and still looking for the right one for me. I bought my IS300 as first at luxury car, and later found out about the inline six Supra heritage.

90's Japanese sportscars- Including NSX, Supra, RX-7, 300ZX, this passion started when I really became into cars, around 1996 and started reading about them and playing need for speed and gran turismo video games. Also love exotics, but began to see that these cars were on par with them and with a few mods can surpass them.

Corvette- Grew us loving them, sleek style with pop up headlights, with the zenith to me being the C5, same as the Japanese cars at the time, exotic killing numbers but practical to use everyday.

Porsche- Started to watch sports car racing and Porsche is the best, yes can be very expensive, but people went out and raced them, modded them etc.., really " Porsche- there is no substitute"..

 

Hoovey, I think my family had similar wiring to yours (just not nearly as many cars at one time). My Father was always a blue oval guy when I was growing up - Tempos, Tauruses, a 1979 Mercury Zephyr were all cars he had at one point before a brief stint with a Dodge Aries and the car that made my parents explore what the Japanese had to offer - a pre-owned 198x Buick century. I, myself, drove a 1998 green Ford Explorer Sport with 191k miles on the clock before I gave it to the kid next door in 2010. Now I use a 2000 Chevy Blazer for work (smoother than the Explorer, faster than the Explorer, Better gas mileage than the Explorer, better stereo and better seats. That being said, I want my Explorer back lol!).

My parents were die-hard toyota drivers for a while too (1995 - 2009). Now my Dad has a 2010 Honda Civic (it's so funny watching a 6'2'', 300 lb. guy climb out from behind the wheel of that car but he loves his gas mileage). My Mom is still in her pre-owned 2007 Hyundai Tucson. I'm personally not a fan of either of their choices nowadays. My Dad is excited that Chevrolet is bringing the Impala back but he's only a tad disappointed that it will be a fwd model.

Thank you all for your input. I also like looking back at cars in the 50's or the 70's to examine what cars I would have picked had I been born about 20 to 40 years earlier. That's a whole other thread though and should be a lot of fun.


Michael

 

i've been through a good amount of cars, but I the car i miss most is my GS400

 

My family doesn't have any brand loyalty really(Although my dad, my uncles on both sides, and my late grandpa before he passed all own Ford trucks). Since I was born in 1990, my immediate family has owned Ford, Dodge, Chrysler, Plymouth, Pontiac, Chevrolet, GMC, Toyota, Saturn, Lexus and Mitsubishi. I myself am predispositioned towards Ford and GM though, and it has everything to do with my dad. I grew up working with him building and installing cabinets and travelling to jobs in the various Ford trucks we've owned. It's a combination of the reliability we've experienced and the sentimentality. I also lean GM for muscle cars due to his 1967 Pontiac Firebird, which was followed by my first car, a 1989 Pontiac Firebird.

So even though my parents aren't brand loyal, I feel that I am because of them(despite driving a Lexus right now).

 

My family has no real brand loyalty. We had to buy whatever was affordable at the time. Now when it comes to me personally, I have a little more money then my parents did back in the day, so I can sort of buy cars I like. Many of them come from certain key brands, but over all I'll just buy whatever I happen to like at the time I'm ready to buy another car. My entire family has owned Lexus, BMW, Honda, Acura, Toyota, Hyundai, Datsun, Nissan, Ford, and other various American cars. You can't be loyal to one brand because every year someone makes something that is really nice.

 

My family doesn't really have much brand loyalty. My grandpa sold cars in the 80's up until a few years ago so there were periods of time where my family members would all have Nissans, Lincolns, and Buicks. It would depend on what he sold.

I didn't really have a brand preference to be honest. As long as it looked good I didn't care what I drove. However, my younger sister and step-dad seem to really like Lexus ever since I got my 93 SC300 a few years ago. We went from having a bunch of random cars to having all black Lexus' with the exception of my mom's Escalade and my old Saturn.

 

My family is all brand loyalty, trucks Toyota, cars/suvs Lexus&Benz, suvs Range Rover&Benz, and exotics Lambos, keep in mind I'm including both my mom and dadw side extended family we are all very close knit...

 

My parents have a different perspective when it came to cars. My dad is into MB and the prestige look; he was hoping I'd get the E63 when I chose the IS F back in 2008. My mom is a die hard BMW fan. She loves the sport look and feel, and even owned a '79 320i that survived a good 30 years, not without problems and maintenance issues at least a few times a year. I love my Lexus because it had everything I needed: luxury, sport feel, and no issues. My family is entirely a Toyota brand company, and we're fine with that. Not a lot of glitz even with the F, but there are no issues with any of our rides. But to be honest, I've been itching to get my parents a Range Rover just because it oozes luxury on the inside. It's hard to maintain- even service advisors from the local dealership say so- but you know you're riding in the lap of luxury when you're in one.