Owning A Sports Car Was a Disappointment
Owning a sports car is a dream for many kids, like me, who grew up as car fanatics. Now that I was an adult with the ability to get one, I realized that it’s not as glorious as I had envisioned it to be.
As a kid, I had car posters plastered over my walls, Hot Wheels toys scattered all over the house, and every art project of mine had something to do with a car. Needless to say, I was obsessed with cars.
The first sports car I owned also happened to be my very first car: a 2003 Infiniti G35 Coupe.
It wasn’t just any car, but a sports car. That meant it was totally awesome, right?
Well, duh. Of course it was. But then again, there’s a reason why I no longer own it.
It’s been almost one full year since I have sold it off to a new owner, and I wanted to reflect on my experience.
The day I sold my Infiniti is a day I will always remember. It was a chilly day in November 2021, and I was with my friend in the parking lot where I agreed to meet the buyer. I still remember my friend asking me if I was sad to sell my first car, and I could totally see why.
I should have been depressed. I should have spent time gazing at it longingly during the last few moments I had with my car, before I handed over the keys to the new owner. I should have taken it on one final drive with tears welling up in my eyes.
But I wasn’t.
I was happy to see it go.
The simple truth is that owning a sports car had more disadvantages than advantages. And I’ve decided to sum up my own experience to explain how my childhood dream didn’t live up to the adult reality.
Now, before I get started, I want to stress that owning a sports car didn’t work for me, and my experience isn’t really universal. Some people love and enjoy these cars, and wouldn’t own anything else. A great example would be my car friends, who all own and daily drive sports cars. But from my perspective, owning a sports car was a disappointment — and here’s why.
Let’s dial back the clock to the day I purchased my first car. Up until this point, I had been saving up lots of money, because it had been my dream to own a sports car. My car friends had cool cars and they let me drive them from time to time. But I wanted my own.
I did tons of research, and the car I wanted more than anything was an Infiniti G35 Coupe. It was in my budget, I loved how it looked, and in my mind (at the time) it was the perfect car. I was also 18 years old, meaning I HAD TO HAVE IT RIGHT NOW. So I bought one as soon as I could, without much knowledge.
As I started driving around more and more, I discovered that there were some downsides to owning a sports car — and this is where I started to doubt my childhood dream.
I will start with the thing that annoyed me most: the attention. As far as I can tell, most sports car buyers fall precisely into two groups: those who buy the car to get attention, and those who buy the car for the driving experience. Admittedly, there’s some crossover — but you can usually distinguish the “Let’s go on a nice drive at night” people from the “Let’s dress up fancy and cruise up and down busy streets” crowd.
As for me, I prefer the driving experience. As a car enthusiast, few things in life sound more appealing than an uninterrupted drive in a car. It’s just you, the car, and the wide open road. But when you’re driving a sports car, “uninterrupted” isn’t really possible.
At stoplights, other drivers will look at you, judging you. At gas stations, people will look over in your direction, when all you want to do is fuel up in peace. And no matter where you drive it, some people will drive a little faster than you, eager to prove that they can keep up.
For some time, it felt good to be noticed. But after a while, it simply got old.
Then there’s the issue of actually driving it.
Driving a sports car isn’t very enjoyable unless you’re on an empty, winding back road in the countryside. In cities, you have to put up with potholes, road debris, curbs, and other drivers, who aren’t really checking their mirrors at all. City streets are cringeworthy, and filled with bumps you never even knew were there. Suburban streets are not nearly as bad, but it’s still far from perfect. It’s not until you get out, away from crowds, bad roads, and inattentive drivers, that you can really enjoy what a sports car has to offer.
The other major problem with owning a sports car is the cost. Even though it was an 18 year old car at the time, it wasn’t exactly cheap to buy. I paid $6,500 in cash for my Infiniti, which was almost my entire net worth at the time. And like any used car, there were some things I had to fix. I don’t have an exact number, but suffice to say, it wasn’t cheap. And all this was for a reliable sports car. Infiniti is a Japanese brand, and Japanese cars tend be more reliable than European and American cars.
As if that wasn’t costly enough, I also spent a fortune modifying it.
The wheels and tires that came on the car were fine. Good tread, decent brand, nothing wrong with them. But simply fine would not stand for my “sports car,” so I replaced the wheels with better looking ones and mounted brand new tires on them. Aside from wheels, I upgraded many other things as well. Was it expensive? Yes, but at the time I thought it was worth it.
Aside from the car itself, there’s also fuel costs. Most cars use 87 octane, which is “regular.” My Infiniti was a spoiled brat, and required 93 octane “premium.” A difference of 30–50 cents extra for premium over regular didn’t seem so bad at first, but after a few thousand miles, it got pricey. When I wanted to drive fast, that premium fuel was amazing for performance. But anywhere else, I was going bankrupt just driving around.
I know what you’re thinking. Someone who complains about owning a sports car might seem like the king of first world problems.
“Just suck it up and have FUN!” you’re probably thinking.
And I get that, because when I first bought this car, “fun” was the biggest appeal. And as much as I’ve complained, I did in fact have lots of fun. I spent lots of time with my Infiniti and made unforgettable memories: I took it to countless car meets, I let my friends drive it, I took hundreds of photos, and I racked up thousands of miles in it.
After all these adventures, I have to admit, it was a very enjoyable experience.
I still remember seeing the occasional sports car on the road when I was a kid, and hoping that it would be me driving it someday.
But back then, I had never heard of operating costs. I didn’t think about fuel economy, or how impractical it was. I didn’t consider potholes, other drivers, and being stuck in traffic. All I knew was: that car is cool, and I bet it’s awesome to drive.
And I was right. On the right road, on the right day, there’s nowhere in the world I’d rather be.
But the simple truth is that I rarely have the chance to drive my car on the right road and on the right day.
And so, when I handed over my keys to the new owner, my emotion wasn’t sadness, or sorrow. It wasn’t despair or heartache.
It was relief.
My experience with my Infiniti was full of ups and downs, but in the end, it just didn’t worked out.
You know how people talk about how they met the right person, just at the wrong time? That’s exactly what I feel about my Infiniti. As a college student, a sports car just isn’t the ideal car.
All things considered, I’m still willing to give my childhood dream a second chance. Some day in the future, I’m certain that a sports car would be the perfect complement to my life.
