Right Car, Wrong Country - Why Preconceptions Should Not Ruin Your Experience

Well, dear reader, you are not alone. I, too, have often found myself wondering what kind of exotic sports cars and luxury vehicles do some people on the Internet own and drive. This, of course, happens after reading some comments on social media or even the comment section of various online publications.

One cannot help but wonder what kind of eccentric billionaires are spending their time online and commenting on articles instead of living their best lives. They must be extremely wealthy since they can claim that a new S-Class is not any good just by looking at a couple of photos and reading one or several articles.

We are presuming that those people have read the article before commenting, but I learned years ago that it is unwise to presume things, especially when you consider the actions of other people.

With that in mind, imagine you have a vehicle that other people laugh about on the Internet. Such as the Fiat Multipla. Or about any Lancia (except the Delta Integrale). It also applies to the Mazda Miata (MX-5 in many markets), and the examples could go on for days. Should we speak about Saab?

If you happen to live in a country where German or Japanese cars are almost worshiped, driving a vehicle made by Alfa Romeo, Citroën, Rover, or any other brand that is less popular when sales are concerned, but the star of misconceptions, you know what I am writing about.

Many people are aware of this, I believe, but I will put my Captain Obvious cap and cape here and say that most vehicles are not as bad as the rumors claim they are. In fact, many suffer from a wildly exaggerated poor reputation.

Sure, there might be cases of catastrophic failure in one example or another, but they cannot all be as bad as people on the Internet claim them to be. In the case of the Miata, the jokes are about its power, but my day instantly gets better when one of my MX-5-owning friends picks me up in their car.

You see, I have figured something out in my latest holiday. I have noticed this before on previous visits to various countries, but now I even have a catchphrase for this. Hear me out: "Right car, wrong country." Yes, that is right, you may drive the right car, but you are doing it in the “wrong” country.

How does that work? Well, let us say you are driving a Lancia Ypsilon in France. You might find yourself having the only Lancia on the street, regardless of the city you live in. You will be sure to find it in parking lots, as the chances of someone parking an identical vehicle next to yours are extremely low. The same might apply for a Rover (yes, the defunct brand, not Land Rover) in Italy.

When you decide to sell the car, you may find that people on the Internet will think it is junk, just because of preconceived ideas that other people have. Do not despair, as you have done nothing wrong. Especially if you like the car as it is and for what it is.

This is where my theory comes into play! If you like the car that you drive, but few others have the same model or even the same marque in your country, there is nothing wrong with you or the vehicle. This is just a case of "right car, wrong country."

Mind you, this only applies if you are enjoying that vehicle and other people do not seem to understand why you bought it. If you could only afford a Yugo and hate it to death, it is not a case of "right car, wrong country." If you do love it anyway, great! Do you see where this is going?

I have come up with the theory during a trip to Italy, where I could not help but notice Lancia Ypsilon cars on almost every street. As you may be aware, it is only sold in Italy for a few years now, and sales figures are not bad at all.

I went through several Italian cities and kept seeing Lancia Ypsilon cars, as well as numerous Fiat 500s, a host of Alfa Romeo models, and many other Italian-made vehicles. Contrary to what people on the Internet will comment, the drivers of those cars were enjoying them as one would expect, and nobody was crying at the traffic light thinking about what atrocious vehicle they found themselves in.

As other people on the Internet might say, "haters gonna hate." If you are enjoying your British car in Italy, or your French car in Germany, fine for you. Since you bought the car with your money, you might as well enjoy it, right? Even if you may seem odd to other people, it's your car, not theirs.