Okay, imagine that Mrs. X has been driving a boring old mommy mobile for the past 7 years. So she and Mr. X decide that it's finally time to retire said mom mobile and get Mrs. X something she's not embarassed to drive around in.
So then, Mr. and Mrs. X go to their friendly neighborhood BMW dealer to look around because Mrs. X really, really wants a BMW. She wants a 530i. Mr. X, however, is choosing to be a tightwad about the whole thing and says that she can get the 330i but he won't spend an itty bitty bit more so she can get what she REALLY wants.
Mrs. X is concerned that, if she gets the 330i, the people in her snotty little town will be thinking, "Oooh, the X's must not be doing very well; poor Mrs. X's new car is from the 3 series
" Is Mrs. X being ridiculous? Is there merit in her thinking? Mrs. X is in her mid-thirties, so granted she shouldn't care what other people think, especially about something as unimportant as a car. But, at the same time, do people over 30 drive 3 series???
Maybe Mrs. X should just remember that 20 years ago she was driving a 1978 Toyota Corolla and shut up and be happy.