Prompted by the thread "Mini luxury cars"; what is luxury?
Where does the line lie between genuine luxury and merely something that makes you feel good? A bit special?
To open the debate with my motoring interpretation of the word:
Luxury is about more than slapping a bit of faux walnut on the dash, leather on the seats, a bit of deep pile in the foot wells, and subduing the hard working turbo diesel to a distant thrum.
Luxury is about style and panache. About having a genuinely sumptious interior, beautifully and painstakingly crafted from the highest quality materials.
It is about prestige, genuine exclusivity, and price in absolute (not relative to the market sector for the car) terms. About allure. Dare I say it, about excess, about extravagance, again in absolute terms and not relative to our own pockets.
There are many mass produced cars that will happily sit all day at illegal speeds, with better than reasonable ride comfort, without assaulting the ears, and with a decent sound system. Bums can probably be parked on analine leather, marvel can be had at contrast piping or stitching, and a feeling of one upmanship can be had over the poverty spec version with fabric seats and single slot CD.
All of this can make a most comfortable car to live with, even as the "mini" sector car that prompted this thread, but none of it makes a luxury car any more than Sainsbury's can ever sell a luxury hamper.
So, by my definition a mini luxury car is an oxymoron.
Mini cars, yes, very comfortable and well appointed mini cars, yes, mini cars that will please you and I, yes, but luxury mini cars, no.
My V70 is refined, comfortable, leather appointed, mile munching, and an altogether most agreeable place to spend time, but is it a luxury car? Well according to the Wikipidia definition it is in terms of price, but I would still say "No" on the basis of what else I have written. The same is true of the absurdly overpriced 56 plate Range Rover owned elsewhere in the family.
On the other hand, the Bentley owned by the same relative most certainly is a luxury car, with it's exquisite materials, beautiful construction, and "this is just u-n-b-e-l-i-e-v-a-b-l-e" factor as the gentleman's drawing room on wheels pulverizes wind, road surface, (as an aside, not to mention sports cars) in to submission without breaking a sweat or causing a raising of voice.
So, that's my interpretation.
Not right, not wrong, just my interpretation.
Where does yours lie?
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True luxury has to be available only at the very top end imo.
bentley type is a good example.
The comfort to drive anywhere without feeling it. The power to drive at what speed you wish/are allowed to. The style to make people give way to you.
The expense is the down side but you can get good affordable cars, but only a few people will own a true luxury car.
But until/unless you have experienced it (not mine I add !) true luxury is difficult to identify !
my opinion anyway
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I think that luxury is relative but your standards rise very quickly, so what you perceive as luxurious today rapidly becomes commonplace and your expectations rise. Next time round you probably want the same or better. It's called the consumer society and it's best to resist if you can. You can end up with very big holes in your pockets.
JH
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