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Poor people can't afford a new $13K car. EVs also make less sense if you live in an apartment.

thelastgallon 21d ago
Agreed, and thats why we have the boots theory. The Poor Man’s Shoe Theory, widely known as the Sam Vimes “Boots” Theory of Socio-Economic Unfairness, is a concept that explains how those who are poor often end up spending more in the long run because they can’t afford to make quality purchases up front. This idea was popularized by Terry Pratchett, the acclaimed British writer, in his 1993 Discworld novel Men at Arms, through a passage in which the character Captain Sam Vimes observes the realities of poverty and consumption. “Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles.” “But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.” https://footwearmagazine.com/poor-man-shoe-theory-poverty-costs-more/ https://footwearmagazine.com/poor-man-shoe-theory-poverty-co...
- hn993302 21d ago
  I don't even think the cheap used cars are a more expensive way to live on average. If you get unlucky or scammed, sure.
  - thelastgallon 21d ago
    Nobody is selling you a used Lexus or Toyota or Honda for cheap. It is usually a nondescript brand and model, like a geo metro or a model with known reliability issues.
    - hn993302 20d ago
      And nobody is selling a new Toyota for a non-expensive price. The cheapest new cars are brands without reputations.
    - prmoustache 20d ago
      Everything known can be sorted out. Buying a Lexus would be a very stupid idea. You don't buy a luxury/premium model for cheap. Way too much gimmicky stuff/gadgets that can break and parts price are way too high. When you buy sub $2000 car, you look for models that were already in the relatively affordable range and have been best sellers of their category: good knowledge from mechanics, good and affordable spare parts availability.
      - quickthrowman 20d ago
        A Lexus is just a Toyota with nicer materials on the inside. They use Toyota parts that cost Toyota prices, they aren’t out to gouge you on parts like European manufacturers. Sometimes Lexus vehicles are cheaper than a similar Toyota, a Lexus GX460 costs less than a similar vintage Toyota 4Runner or Toyota Landcruiser.
      - hn993302 20d ago
        Lexus and Acura are the only luxury brands that are actually reliable, though they're not exactly luxury.

Agreed, and thats why we have the boots theory. The Poor Man’s Shoe Theory, widely known as the Sam Vimes “Boots” Theory of Socio-Economic Unfairness, is a concept that explains how those who are poor often end up spending more in the long run because they can’t afford to make quality purchases up front. This idea was popularized by Terry Pratchett, the acclaimed British writer, in his 1993 Discworld novel Men at Arms, through a passage in which the character Captain Sam Vimes observes the realities of poverty and consumption. “Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles.” “But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that’d still be keeping his feet dry in ten years’ time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet.” https://footwearmagazine.com/poor-man-shoe-theory-poverty-costs-more/ https://footwearmagazine.com/poor-man-shoe-theory-poverty-co...

hn993302 21d ago
I don't even think the cheap used cars are a more expensive way to live on average. If you get unlucky or scammed, sure.
- thelastgallon 21d ago
  Nobody is selling you a used Lexus or Toyota or Honda for cheap. It is usually a nondescript brand and model, like a geo metro or a model with known reliability issues.
  - hn993302 20d ago
    And nobody is selling a new Toyota for a non-expensive price. The cheapest new cars are brands without reputations.
  - prmoustache 20d ago
    Everything known can be sorted out. Buying a Lexus would be a very stupid idea. You don't buy a luxury/premium model for cheap. Way too much gimmicky stuff/gadgets that can break and parts price are way too high. When you buy sub $2000 car, you look for models that were already in the relatively affordable range and have been best sellers of their category: good knowledge from mechanics, good and affordable spare parts availability.
    - quickthrowman 20d ago
      A Lexus is just a Toyota with nicer materials on the inside. They use Toyota parts that cost Toyota prices, they aren’t out to gouge you on parts like European manufacturers. Sometimes Lexus vehicles are cheaper than a similar Toyota, a Lexus GX460 costs less than a similar vintage Toyota 4Runner or Toyota Landcruiser.
    - hn993302 20d ago
      Lexus and Acura are the only luxury brands that are actually reliable, though they're not exactly luxury.