Old-People Cars

Before I get into this subject, I'd better give a disclaimer. Brayden, this blog is in no way relevant to the fact that you drive a Buick LeSabre. You are in fact, not old, but younger than I am. And who doesn't want a car with a leather interior? It's a really good car, just with a few stereotypes or abundant coincidences attached, as you all shall henceforth see, providing that my logic makes sense.

Now, I'm not terribly big on cars, nor do I pretend to know the names or models or years of anything fancy or groundbreaking. The names I know are those I see most common. There's our Plymouth Voyager minivan, a Chevy Suburban, and my dad's little Hyundai Accent. And then there's Buick LeSabre. I don't know if anyone else has noticed, but they're common cars, but not with every age segment of society. Look at the people in the front seat of most LeSabres you see, and they usually fall into the category of 'senior citizen.' Both my grandparents have one. I work at The Seville (the retirement home on Center Street just down from MV). One sweep through the parking lot and I filled up my hands and then some counting the Buicks. So what is it about this car that appeals to older people anyways?

Well, the model is old. Quoting the oh-so-reliable Wikipedia (which you should never do in anything more serious than a blog), Buicks appeared as a mass-produced car in 1959. This would be back when these current senior citizens were significantly younger and possibly in the market for a car. Maybe they fell in love with them then.

Also, if you've ever driven one, they are huge! Far longer than my dad's paperweight Hyundai. They're built like 50's cars, huge interior, huge trunk space, and the hood is monstrously long. No wonder they're some of the safest cars, with the fourth least insurance rate of any car out there. No one's beating up on a Buick without taking a beating themself. Back in the olden days, the cars were monstrous. No teeny two-door fold-back-the-seat and hold your breath commuter cars. Those cars were wide, spacious, flashy, and who cared about gas mileage? Older people might have a certain appeal to those huge cars.

Another thing that might appeal to older people is the nice features it has. As people get older, a lot of them have more money to use when compared to younger families. That's how they can spoil their grandchildren. I looked up the price if you were to buy a 2002 LeSabre in 'good' condition, and it's about $8500. Brayden said (I'm pretty sure) that they kind of compare to Mercedes, in how common they are on each continent. A Mercedes in Germany is not terribly expensive, yet they are quite nice. Buicks have the leather interior, separate climate controls for each half of the car, some have sunroofs, and they aren't the shabbiest looking cars either. It's a good deal, and it's as cheap of an almost luxury-car as you'll find. And maybe that's what older people are looking for when they buy a car. Something that looks really nice but isn't too expensive, being raised on frugality.

Either way, if you happen to look out your windows when you drive and notice other cars, when you see a Buick on the road test my theory and look who's driving. If it's an older person more than once than this whole crazy blog might be worth something! And again, I think Buicks are awesome cars (Brayden), so those who drive them should not be ashamed or embarrassed in any logical or feasible way.