Philosophy Friday: Is Liking Cars Inherently Materialistic?

It may seem like I chose this topic at random, but it’s actually something that’s interested me since my increased activity on Instagram. It seems there are two sides to the spectrum of people interested in automobiles. On the one side, you have those with the most expensive cars and they insistently brag about how great their car is. It’s worth noting, very few of these people work on their car ever. On the other side, you have people who are less braggadocious and work hard to maintain their car. Many of them have even built their car practically from the ground up. So the question is not really whether those on the braggadocios side are being materialistic, but instead whether good honest car nuts are materialistic. The answer is yes we are, but I’m going to answer more important questions. This includes: is our materialism healthy? what drives us towards this materialism? and where’s the line between an interest in cars and greed? This post won’t provide a definitive answer, but I will give my best.

What is materialism? Is it bad?

In philosophy, materialism refers more to the idea that there is only the physical realm, and that physical things are most important. However, most people define materialism as an unhealthy obsession with consumerism and physical possessions above your physical well being, family and “true happiness” which can not be bought. Merriam Webster sums up the colloquial definition: “a preoccupation with or stress upon material rather than intellectual or spiritual things” and the philosophical ones “a doctrine that the only or the highest values or objectives lie in material well-being and in the furtherance of material progress” and “a theory that physical matter is the only or fundamental reality and that all being and processes and phenomena can be explained as manifestations or results of matter”. I am referring more to the colloquial definition, but the more technical definition will come up.

Can One Justify Buying Expensive Cars?

So sure, we can all think of at least one rich person we’ve seen buy a car they don’t need, wrap it in gold chrome, and treat the car like a plaything. One of those people is British Youtuber KSI, who bought a Lambo, which he wrote an entire rap about, and then he just put it into storage. Also, there are rich tw@ts like Mo Vlogs using their wealth and access to expensive cars just to get attention online. What he does takes almost no talent and minimal effort. These types of people are materialistic, and there is in my opinion something morally wrong with what they are doing. What about people like Tax the Rich though? On their Youtube channel, these cars are glorified as works of fine craftsmanship fit only for the finest gentleman driver to hoon. So does treating supercars as sort of mechanical art work justify the expenditure as opposed to treating them as fast toys? I do know that what Tax the Rich does is less materialistic than your typical gold chrome wrapped Lambo/Ferrari/Range Rover/GTR owner, but does it still qualify as materialism? Yes, but if anyone is worthy to own supercars, it is people who maintain them, drive them, and appreciate them.

Instagram and Youtube Tuner Showoffs.

We all know the type of person who pays good money to have the perfect custom build. We all dream of having nice cars, but some of these people I see don’t want the car for their own appreciation. Instead, they want the envy of fellow car enthusiasts. They think a car has to be the fastest, best offroad, flashiest, and etc. to have any value. They also don’t like cars that are overly unique for some reason. One example would be the guy who thinks he’s special by buying a WRX, putting 30k+ into it, slapping on n ugly body kit, lowering it, and having everything done in a shop or bolt on. Same goes for a lot of GTR owners, Evo owners unfortunately. Then they take this car and use it to gain popularity, possibly even cash. They splatter tons of pics on Instagram and submit their car to these shout out pages which only ever shoutout specific types of cars. Seriously, these guys are ruining the wrx for me by the sheer number of posts dedicated to just this one type of car. Sure, your expensive STIs, Supras, Silvias, and etc. are cool, but we want to see more than just the staple jdm crop (same goes for euro guys), and we don’t always need it to be an expensive build either. Personally, one of my favorite car builders has to be Corbin Goodwin. From the No F*cks Given RX-7 to the epic mix of ostentatiousness and awesomeness in the form of the “Trolls Royce”, his cars are artistic, funny, self-aware, and interesting. Is Corbin’s obsession materialistic in the same way as the average ignorant speed junky? The focus may still be materialistic, but once again, there seems to be a level at which that materialism is healthy.

How Companies "Cash In" on Car Culture

For every passion, there is a someone trying to turn that into money to line their pockets. In the car world, this is especially true. First of all, people want you to think your car is inadequate and will sell you tons of modification parts, some that work and some that do not, so be careful who you trust. Also, the automotive merchandising business is the most lucrative in the entire world period. Yes I said it. For example, Disney Pixar’s Cars franchise makes bank, with about 2 billion a year in merchandise alone, not to mention that the movie itself capitalizes on the automotive culture. Then you have the Fast and Furious series which also makes bank on merchandising, has included box office record breaking movies, and a mega hit song to commemorate Paul Walker passing away. That song has over 2 billion views. The analytics says that’s over a million dollars in ad revenue off of a video that advertises a movie and the song. There’s also tons of automotive toys and merch unrelated to movies such as Hot Wheels, Revel model toy sets, rc cars, car pillows, graphic tees, hoodies, mugs, clocks, posters, and more. Btw, those last three I offer on redbubble.com. Redbubble has tons of other car stuff too. There’s even car related monthly box services to send you useless cr@p, just now it’s useless car nerd cr@p instead of useless regular nerd cr@p. Someday I will probably do my own box service. Hey, I think I know what cr@p you people would enjoy. So just know, that in all this there is a side of the car world which just wants to take your love of cars and drain your wallet, just as with people who are into sports, movies, anime, you name it. It’s not all bad, just remember that you don’t need to buy an overabundance of merch to prove you are into cars. Only buy car stuff when you really want it, and you are interested in the prospect of owning it for your own enjoyment.

It's about more than just the car

At the end of the day, the most redeeming thing about being into cars is that it can be more than just about the cars and be about the experience too. For builders, it’s the process of building a car from something pedestrian, into a star show car. For racers it’s about competition, pushing yourself to master your mighty machine through the intense mental battle. For some drivers, it’s about the sound of the engine, the almost spiritual feel of driving, and sometimes sharing that with a passenger. It’s also about sharing the love with friends, working on each other rides, exchanging compliments at a car meet, racing against friends new and old, and even discussing cars on the interwebs (how revolutionary). Cars bring people together even if at times we squabble over our favorite brands, types, and nationalities of cars. Through our materialistic pursuit, we all share a very non-materialistic bond. This bond is something not all manufacturers appreciate, but maybe they should understand that cars have a greater impact on the world than their material merits. Being into cars is a materialistic pursuit in many ways, but it’s about more than just the physical cars.

The Bottom Line

Well, simply put, most of us need a healthy amount of materialism in our lives, the good kind, not the bad kind. It’s why capitalism works! We all need hobbies to make life more bearable, and being into cars is materialistic just like pretty much all hobbies. However, if anybody tells you there is something wrong with being into cars, chances are they have their own personal materialistic obsession. Unless your hobby is thinking (I do that a little bit on the side). Don’t let anyone tell you your 240sx is sinful, but remember that there is more to life than just your car. Don’t be fake, don’t be ignorant, don’t brag (at least not excessively), don’t shame poor car guys, and don’t buy too much useless merch (link to buy my useless merch below), and it’s about the people and the experience, not just the car. If anything, we should feel sorry for those who feel they need an expensive car to complete them. It’s cool to strive to own nicer cars, but remember to stop and question whether you are doing it for the fun of it, or just because of greed. So that about wraps up today’s car philosophy. Peace out to all the honest dedicated car people out there, you’re why I write these. #blogpost