Be happy you don't live in Potomac/Bethesda/Chevy Chase or the Joneses would be talking about it *ONLY* being a 5-series.

I agree that Mrs. X should wait until the car fund is enough for the 500 series. If Mr. X is being stingy on this decision that's his choice but this can be used as leverage by Mrs. X in the next big money decision discussion. Shouldn't going through childbirth and raising children earn you some extra triple bonus points sometimes?

Mrs. X didn't settle for second best when she married Mr. X. Why should she settle for second best when she gets a car?

Cars, = , ego symbols, and maybe even stupidity.:(

Have I ever driven Luxuary Cars?

Does E-Jag, Lincoln Continental, or Buick Riveria count?

Oh also VW's, Bug Eye Sprite, and a few others.

I feel good in anything that makes Me Feel Good and gets me to and fro.

Oh, and out of the damn garage and overly high inflated bills to stand over the fender!

A Divorce, know it well, but is fading! She always got the new cars!:(

If Mrs. X wants the 5-series, she needs to be willing to make some compromises, such as waiting a year until the X's have more cash on hand, or holding off on another purchase she'd really like to make.

Peaches-n-Cream's suggestion about buying a 2004 when dealers need to make room for the 2005's is a good one. My husband and I did that with our last car, and got a sweet deal with 0% financing. We can live with the fact that it had a lower blue book value from day one.

Alternatively, Mrs. X could make Mr. X drive around in the mom-mobile for a while... :p

lol. my bf said that.

Ain't THAT the truth.

I say KR, I mean Mrs. X coudl wait for 6 months. I am sure by then he will have softened and the funds will be closer to where they need to be w/out financing it.

Even though Mr. X knows Mrs. X wants it and woudl make her happy, theres a chance he coudl begin to resent the car and subcounciously Mrs X for makign him go against his wishes and having to finance it. Guys are all wierd like that.

Ya never know how that resentment thing will work out.
The construction company I worked for until a few months ago had this problem come up. The VP of Marketing was the owners wife. They were always bitching about needing to cut costs and that they didnt have enough $$ for Christmas bonuses, yet for christmas, the company bought her, in cash, a brand new Audi converttable. Employees were not pleased. We all enjoied watching her drive around in our christmas bonus.

It could be a polarizing issue. Tell Mrs. X to just let it go for now & keep driving the mommymobile. She'll win tons of points for just waiting a while.

Seriously? I hadn't really noticed an unusually high number of 7-series BMW's in that area. I go to Montgomery Mall every couple of weeks; isn't that in Bethesda?

I HAVE noticed that the folks in that area engage in Volvo worship. Couldn't swing a dead cat without hitting an XC (not that I swing dead cats; you know what I mean :) )

I guess its technically Bethesda, as in it is a Bethesda mailing address, but I'm thinking River Road Bethesda land of Prep Schools. I hear you on the volvo thing.

I agree with Lifesaver, nagging is never good, even if you win you lose. And men will secretly hate you a little for doing it.

You need to confront him and say directly: "I looked at both options and and I want the 5 series. We can afford the 5 series. I don't mind financing it. "

If he says no, you reply, well. Like I said, I want it, we can afford it. Get back to me when you think I can have it.

And then don't bring it up again. He'll get the point.

Part of the problem seems to be that its more important for Mrs X to be on par with the social expectations of the neighborhood.

This is very understandable if Mrs. X is not working and therefore the social side of everyday life is of a major importance.

Okay, a decision has been made in the X household. I know you've all been waiting with baited breath! lol :D

Mrs. X is gonna go ahead and get the car she wants. After having a little chat with the dealer and getting everything down on paper, turns out the price difference is substantially less than the X's thought it would be. So Mrs. X has decided to raid her savings account for most of the difference and the rest will be an early Christmas present.

Now, why didn't Mrs. X think of that sooner??? :)

Nice! Enjoy your BMW. :D

Dear Mrs. X,

I hope KillarneyRose gives you this message. Anyway, I, the GP, grew up in a snotty little town too, and while BMWs were not something my parents chose to invest in, several of my friends families had them. One such family, we will call them the Gs, had a BMW as well as several other luxury cars. The BMW is a 3-series and Mrs. G has been driving it for over 8 years now - she adores it and will soon be replacing it with another 5 series.

HTH,
GP

Those are not luxury cars. Those are grandpa cars. Good try, though.

If you really want to Trump them you might buy a hybrid vehicle.

With the BMW you send the message that you have enough money to stay up with the Joneses.

With a hybrid you send the message that you have all the money you need to get whatever you want, but have decidd to get a car that benefits the planet. Its a little slap in the face.