What about used cars? Does price determine a luxury used car? In his book, “What You Should Know About Cars”, the late Tom McCahill told about two friends who had purchased new cars. One friend bought a new Cadillac and the other a new Volkswagen Beetle. Four years later, both cars were worth the same amount of money. This book was published in 1962. I suspect as more time passed, the Volkswagen would probably command a higher price than the Cadillac. I guess that makes the Volkswagen Beetle a luxury vehicle.
I think today the comparison could be made between a BMW and a Toyota Corolla.
I remember hearing criticism of people in lower economic levels for driving big old cars–Cadillacs, Chryslers, etc. Yet, when I looked at the book prices, five year old Fords and Chevrolets had higher book values than upscale cars back in the 1950s and 1960s. When my mother went back to work in 1954, my parents had to buy a second car. After looking at used Fords and Chevrolets, the Fords and Chevrolets my parents could afford had one wheel in the junk yard, and the Fords and Chevrolets that were in decent shape were out of their price range. My dad wound up buying a 1947 DeSoto coupe which turned out to be an excellent car.
So what is my definition of a luxury car? A luxury car is a car that has high dollar depreciation.
The mind of the beholder.
I would say the newest technology and features from the engine, transmission, interior features, headlights etc. Also a big factor would be a quiet cabin, they use more insulation to minimize road noise, certain kinds of windshields and windows as well, and some even have noise cancelling capabilities in the stock stereos. You would also need higher than average horsepower and torque, I would say around 200 bhp for a sedan would be the minimum in my opinion. I’m not saying it should be fast and have a 0-60 or 4 secs or anything like that but rather when you’re on the highway and you need power it’s available to you when you need it. It’s a combination of all of these things that would be considered a luxury vehicle.
I think reclining rear seats could make the Avalon a Luxury car for mid middle class folks. Some government positions are luxury jobs like Secretary of Steak. Sub-Prime Minister not.
Like I said before, I don’t remember what year but somewhere around 1978 during a fuel shortage, my wife was taking an advanced degree at the University about 45 miles away and would need to commute. We looked for small cars but the prices were pretty high then. We came across a 73 Lincoln for $800 and bought it. Very nice car that I would call a luxury car for $800.
Back in my younger day’s any car I could afford that ran good and everything worked I would consider a luxury car.
Back when I was a kid, a neighboring farmer who had done well bought a new 1951 Olds 98 with the then available all the trimmings, including automatic transmission.
We considered that a luxury car and were green with envy.
In my case, anything I can’t afford is a “luxury car.”