Gazing out the window as an 11-year-old, I remember spotting a Ferrari 458 zooming by my family’s much more humble and ordinary car. Little reaction was drawn from middle school me, only acknowledging that it was a cool red sports car. Little did I know that it has a 4.5L V8 engine — an especially powerful type of engine — and produces 562 horsepower. Also unknown to me then was the extent a car like this would become an obsession in just five years.
Despite my ignorance of cars back then, I had actually been looking forward to driving ever since I was little. More than a year ago, after a light but tedious process, I finally earned my driver’s license. Right away, my parents wanted to get me a car to relieve the responsibility of driving me everywhere, a win-win for everyone.
I researched extensively for potential cars that I could drive. My parents were originally set to buy me an electric car to eliminate gas costs, but then realized that the gas-powered practical mid-size SUV Volkswagen Tiguan — with its reliable build quality and spacious interior — would also be a solid choice.
This research in turn pushed me into full-on car addiction. It started off as just speccing out (building on the website) my dream cars but shifted to looking at what I might actually want to own in the future, including the Mercedes G63, E300, Porsche Taycan, Cadillac Escalade and more.
Soon, cars began popping up everywhere on my social media, which dragged me even deeper into my obsession with this expensive hobby. My fixation on performance cars immediately shifted to even pricier supercars (sports cars with extreme design and performance), hypercars (supercars upward of $1 million and top speeds of 200-300 mph) and luxury cars (cars focused on comfort, features and equipment). But I mean, who would ever spend so much money on one singular machine? I would NEVER. Unless …
All this sparked my journey of car-spotting, taking extensive pictures of any extraordinary cars I come across. As with almost any car enthusiast, I developed a dream car and the perfect 3-car garage to store them, well aware of the low probability I would ever achieve these goals. Unconventionally, my dream car is a Bentley Continental GT, pricing at a mere $250,000. While most dream of owning a sporty supercar, I value the luxuriousness and comfort that the Bentley provides. It’s a perfect combination of both luxury and sport, creating a fine balance with the car.
My dream 3-car garage is much harder to create, as tons of models and makes flow through my mind. Lamborghinis, Ferraris, Rolls-Royces, Bugattis and other high-end brands all contend for a coveted spot in my garage. Ultimately, I made a hard decision to stick with the Bentley Continental GT, Mercedes G63 and Pagani Huayra R. Considering that the Pagani costs $3.4 million, it drives me crazy that most of these cars will remain a dream.
Through the twists and turns of this obsession in the past few years, I’ve gained immense appreciation for cars, obtaining much more knowledge on the performance and prices of cars that I didn’t know or care for before. How will I achieve my car dreams? Now that’s the question.
