What income to afford a Plaid?

[SO16]

I can almost guarantee but cannot prove most of the buyers are making much less than the numbers spoken here. There are so many factors.
For example if you buy a car and a house around the same time it would be difficult but for example if you don't have a high house payment you can splurge on the car.

The “Tesla stretch” is a thing.

 

[mrclean90]

Even if you have $115,000.01 in cash sitting in your bank to pay for the Plaid outright draining your saving to one penny for a luxury car is a horrifically bad idea and I would not consider that "affording a plaid".

I agree here. Having the cash to just buy the car outright is not a problem. That's where the income/expenses component comes in to determine how quickly the "lost" cash can be made up.

 

[gx9901]

I feel like an income of $500k/year should be plenty to afford a $100k car as a luxury purchase. Of course there are a lot of other factors, but someone making that kind of money should typically be good enough at managing their wealth to be in good position to buy it without much problem.

 

[sparkywatts]

I feel like an income of $500k/year should be plenty to afford a $100k car as a luxury purchase. Of course there are a lot of other factors, but someone making that kind of money should typically be good enough at managing their wealth to be in good position to buy it without much problem.

Wealth isn't what you earn in a year. Wealth is what you're able to bank/invest year over year after all of your spending.

There is a good chunk of households with very high income that are barely making ends meet right now without owning a Plaid. Current annual income by itself just isn't enough information to answer the affordability question.

 

[gx9901]

Wealth isn't what you earn in a year. Wealth is what you're able to bank/invest year over year after all of your spending.

There is a good chunk of households with very high income that are barely making ends meet right now without owning a Plaid. Current annual income by itself just isn't enough information to answer the affordability question.

Yes, I understand that. Perhaps I’m out of touch with what most people do with their income, but I thought people with income in that neighborhood should have a good enough handle on wealth management to afford something like a Plaid. Obviously if you have nothing left every month from $500k and you don’t have a comfortable bank account, you can’t afford a Plaid.

 

[sparkywatts]

Sadly, not the case that high income means good money management.

There's groups of people at all income levels that spend excessively to "keep up with the Joneses" or project a higher lifestyle than they can actually afford. There are those that make $1M per year but want to live the lifestyle of someone making $10m per year. A good example of this is private jet ownership. Someone making only $1M per year should NOT own a private jet. That would be closer to the $10m per year income. That doesn't stop many not making that from buying a private jet as a status symbol.

 

[Watts_Up]

Side question, but considering that the price difference between the MX Plaid (6-seat) and the MX LR 6-seat is $8.5k,
why the difference between the MS LR and MS Plaid is $15k? (My point been that I believe the MS Plaid don't sell that well)

 

[Unobtanium]

Anyone who purchases a plaid and drives it in any other mode than Plaid makes zero sense. Chill mode is rubbish with the throttle mapping feeling like you’re driving an underpowered ICE. And sport mode is essentially equivalent to LR power.

My GT offers different modes. It sounds about like that, with Sport vs. Normal changing the AWD (it keeps the front axles locked in Sport), and throttle mapping. Oddly 0-60 in Sport vs. Normal is identical, and then eco, with a much slower 0-60 (mid 7's), and then GT (low 3s). It also of course changes suspension settings and steering and all that too, but my point here is that I do use all the modes for v arious things, and the MY mode to create my own dynamics if I choose. It's got utility.

 

[Deaf Paul]

I'm a public school teacher in what is often considered to be the worst "teacher salary to cost of living ratio" state in the US and I'm planning on a Plaid (used) in 2 years once my wife's M3 ends and I give her my '23 MYP I bought outright a few months ago (first brand new car purchase ever). I do work 3 other part time jobs on top of teaching full time, and work either 6 or 7 days a week though.

When there's a will, there's a way...

-Paul

 

[father_of_6]

I do work 3 other part time jobs on top of teaching full time, and work either 6 or 7 days a week though.

 

[MitchMitch]

I'm a public school teacher in what is often considered to be the worst "teacher salary to cost of living ratio" state in the US and I'm planning on a Plaid (used) in 2 years once my wife's M3 ends and I give her my '23 MYP I bought outright a few months ago (first brand new car purchase ever). I do work 3 other part time jobs on top of teaching full time, and work either 6 or 7 days a week though.

When there's a will, there's a way...

-Paul

Another public school teacher here. Just retired after 38 years, but still sub because of course, subs are difficult to find.
I hear you on the 6-7 days a week, and other part time jobs!

I absolutely can't afford my '23 Model X. I put $$ aside for 10 years and paid for it outright.
I had a pre-launch reservation on Model S in 2012, but nobody would lend me anything at the time.
I had to wait what seemed like F O R E V E R, but got a better car, and the bankers lost out on collecting any interest.

When someone tells me "you must be rich", I counter with " No, I'm just good at being poor!"

 

[jboy210]

I worry when someone asks this. The best thing to do, especially if younger is invest your money. Well invested money is an appreciating asset. Cars are almost always a depreciating asset.