5 Reasons Why Supercar Ownership Has Zero Appeal
1. Supercars are no fun
Think about how much fun you have when driving your car. I’m guessing you have fun most of the time because, like me, you probably don’t own a supercar or hypercar. I’m sure a lot of you who do drive, don’t even have anywhere near 200bhp, and you know what? That’s awesome.
The reason why this is awesome is because you get to spank your car’s engine, suspension and chassis pretty hard a lot of the time, and I’m sure that you know what your car’s limits are by now (some of you will have crossed this line too). Now imagine reaching that same threshold of a supercar’s limits. Do it on the road (where the majority of us do 99.9 per cent of our driving), and one of three things will happen - you’ll either crash, you might kill someone and you’ll likely get your license taken by the cops for a very long time. Give me a wheezy MX-5 over a LaFerrari for a fun street hoon any time. The Ferrari I’ll take for that remaining 0.01 per cent of my driving.
2. You'll always be scared to drive it
Supercars and hypercars are fragile, highly strung machines. Their turning circles suck, their doors scrape on kerb stones and their wide bodies make it near-impossible to just flow through traffic. Narrow streets lead to more squeaky-bum moments, visibility is appalling and parking is a mission.
For these reasons, you can’t just jump in and drive to your destination. You need to plan your route, be super alert at all times and keep a very close eye on the speedo. Does that really sound like fun to you?
3. I don't think it's cool to own a supercar
People who own supercars and hypercars are minted, I get that. But why is it that the majority of these owners have zero imagination? Lambos, Ferraris, McLarens, Porsches…these are all factory cars that anyone with money can buy. So why not use the money you were going to pay out on a Ferrari 458 and create something unique and truly incredible? If I had the money for a 458, I’d rather put an LFA engine in an E30 Touring than be another rich guy in a Ferrari.
4. Jealousy from others will cost you big bucks
I can’t even begin to imagine how much trouble it is to find a safe place to park a supercar. Leave it in a bad area for even a few minutes and a massive key scratch could land you with a bill for thousands. For that reason, I’d much rather own a car that looks pretty normal, but that has the potential to embarrass a Ferrari underneath a shabby, less ostentatious skin.
Parking in parking lots and supermarket car parks brings its own issues too, I’m sure. You only need to look at some dented car doors to understand how little people care about their vehicles. And if they don’t care about their own cars, do you think they’ll give a moment’s thought to how much a panel repair on your Lambo would cost? Hell no.
5. I don't believe in status symbols
If you knew me, you’d know that I wear clothes from Primark, cut my own hair and shop at Lidl. It’s not that I’m cheap, it’s just that I see no damn point in paying extra for something that I can get for half the price. And the same goes for cars. Sure, I could have fun in a Ferrari, but that fun wouldn’t ever come close to the fun I do already have in an MX-5 or 20-year-old E36 M3 (a car I don’t consider a status symbol, I just love the look and the engine).
People buy supercars and hypercars not to explore these cars’ limits, but to impress people that they’ve never met. And to me, that’s just sad…
Comments
I asked one of my friends what his dream daily driver was and he said an Enzo Ferrari. I told him that wasn’t a daily driver and he didn’t believe me.
Plenty of blind assumptions and hast generalizations…
Supercars are amazing to look at, have amazing engineering and sometimes completely mental numbers attached to them. But in my mind they are just made to be eyecandy for the rest of us who cannot afford to buy one. I mean if I was offered one I would jump at it so I could sell it and buy a 20+ year old JDM car
As much as I love supercars, I have to agree with what you’ve said. That being said, if I was RIDICULOUSLY rich to the point that insurance and repair costs for a supercar wouldn’t cause me to break the bank, then I’d totally buy something like a Zonda (once they’re allowed to be legally imported).
…if I have anything left after paying off college loans lol
I’d be happy not owning a supercar to be honest, there are a lot of excellent non-supercars out there that are still fantastically fast and enjoyable to drive.
But dammit, I want a DB9 so bad, it may not strictly be a supercar but it’s just so beautiful, you can take your engine-swapped E30, I’d rather have a Bond car. Believe it or not, Aston Martin has actually managed to make a car brilliant straight from the factory, I just don’t believe in the obsession with modding every single car when they are absolutely fine as stock.
Well, some actually get one for, you know, trackdays.
well you’ll always be scared to drive it is so true, my uncle have a super car and he scared when motorcycle or a car have bad breaking near his car
I think it’s all down to what types of car culture you’re passionate about.
Most people are willing to put up with the drawbacks if it means owning their dream car, whether that be a modern supercar or a 90’s kei car.
Anyway, I enjoyed seeing your opinion on this, great article Alex!
This argument is the same as non carguys think about cars. If it has 4 wheels, an engine and works then it’s perfect. Why? Because they don’t see cars the way a car guy does. The same applies for the poor guys like most of them here.
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