Lately on the car enthusiast inter webs I’ve seen quite a few posts and videos lamenting the decreasing passion for cars. One person was asking if it’s alright to be car guy/gal and not own any “fun” cars. The Savagegeese Youtube channel put out an explainer on why people are losing interest.
The crux of it seems to be the fun cars we all love and want have massively increased in price. We are being priced out. Take a look at the Porsche 911 - the sports car icon: before the pandemic, a 2019 model year 911 started at $93,950 for the poverty spec Carrera trim. Fast forward to the present, and that same spec Carrera is now $135,500. That used to be high trim GT3 money, but now one of those is $238,150 starting. Utter insanity.
And because the current 911 range has inflated so highly, the used Porsches have equally jumped in value. A used 911 isn’t the bargain it used to be. Bottom line is, if you are looking for a 911 of any vintage and trim, 2026 is not a good time to be doing so. And this pricing phenomenon is shared by many other enthusiast car nameplates. A new Ford Mustang GT with a few options is into the $50,000s. Before the pandemic, it was only in the high $30,000s.
But we are not entitled to a 911 that we can afford. Nor a Mustang, or a BMW M3 Competition.
There are affordable enthusiast cars. The Mazda MX-5 Miata and the Toyota GR86 (and its Subaru BR-Z twin) are right in the mid 30,000s in pricing, and have everything that car enthusiasts care about: naturally aspirated engine, manual gearbox, rear-wheel drive, and limited slip differential. The Miata even rides on a completely bespoke and unique chassis. It’s as pure a sports car as it can get for any price. Instead of pouting about the heavy Porsche tax, go buy an MX-5 or a GR86.
Ah, but they won’t. The cars we drive are an extension of how we want to present to the world. The Mazda and the Toyota don’t carry enough cachet, not enough status. Owning a Porsche 911 means something more, something you can peacock outward to the world. That’s why you can’t go to a Cars and Coffee without seeing at least a dozen of them. So they nitpick the MX-5: it’s too small, and not powerful enough. Can’t buy.
People saying they are losing enthusiasm in cars is but a smokescreen for the real problem: the cars we want to show off to others with have become out of reach financially. You didn’t lose interest in automobiles, you’re just mad the cool cars that maximizes social media clout have gotten too expensive. Oh, another million dollar hypercar that I cannot afford?
Because if it’s truly about driving, then economical options still exist in today’s wacky new car market. The aforementioned Miata and BR-Z. Want a bit more power? Nissan sells a Z with 400 twin-turbo horsepower with a manual for less than $50,000. Turbocharged and all-wheel drive? Subaru sells a WRX for $32,495 base.
This is similar to people saying new cars in general have gotten too expensive. Average new car prices in America is above $50,000. However, the Toyota Corolla is a perfectly fine sedan for $25,000 that will run for the next decade on just oil changes. But nobody wants a Corolla. Everyone “need” the latest SUV thing with all the gadgets. Of course the latter will cost a proverbial pretty penny. Cars aren’t too expensive, the cars you want to buy, are.
Monetarily sensible options exist in the market, and yet people abjectly refuse to entertain them. instead, they create a straw-man of automaker greed and bludgeon it to death. Every news article of Porsche’s struggle is met with jeers from the Reddit peanut gallery about how it’s because they are charging too much for the 911. Even though actual 911 sales have never been better. Jealousy wrapped up in hatred is what it is.
Motorbikes are still cheap, right?