Drivers of More Expensive Cars Are More Likely to Break Traffic Laws

MissE

MissE

Well-Known Member
401
321
New Brunswick, Canada
Vehicle Model
Civic Si w/Navi
Body Style
Coupe
While I was watching the news tonight they mentioned a study done is California that showed that people driving more expensive cars (Lexus and BMW were mentioned on the news to name a few) were also more likely to break traffic laws and rules.

Here is a quote from one of the articles discussing the study where they observed drivers at an intersection:

“Trained observers hid near a downtown Berkeley intersection and noted the makes, model years and conditions of bypassing cars. Then they recorded whether drivers waited their turn.
It turned out that people behind the wheels of the priciest cars were four times as likely as drivers of the least expensive cars to enter the intersection when they didn't have the right of way. The discrepancy was even greater when it came to a pedestrian trying to exercise a right of way."

The study also determined that those of higher socio-economic status were much more likely to commit "socially unethical" acts such as cheating to win a prize or keeping extra chage given back to them by a cashier even when they realized his/her error. Full article here for those interested: http://www.latimes.com/news/science/...,5965885.story

Moral of the story... it seems the richer drivers are the bigger a$$es on the road. What do you guys think of this?
 
I seem to be having bad luck with semi drivers lately. Wonder if their study would be any different in other cities.
 
webby said:
I seem to be having bad luck with semi drivers lately. Wonder if their study would be any different in other cities.
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I'm guessing you would likely find similar results in most cities (although maybe not to the same extreme, 4 times as likely to pull a bogus move seems like a lot). There is a 4-way stop in my subdivision and twice in that spot I've had the same Porshe Cayenne take what was clearly my right of way. And where I'm from in Eastern Canada is probably about as different from California as any city out there, lol.
 
My own experiences have not allowed me to agree with their findings. I can't say whether I've noticed any differences. I'm also not sure where their cutoff would be for the "priceist cars"... 40K, 50K, 60K? I own several automobiles, and one was priced over 60K. Two were around 30K, and one is worth around 25K.

I don't think I violate more or less traffic laws depending on which vehicle I'm driving.
 
It might be true but I don't agree with it. At a 4 way stop on my way out of work I would notice every kind of vehivle (expensive or not) not give the right of way, even a cop car, lol. Also, on the highways I always see the econo cars always speeding.
 
i see it pretty often, usually im getting passed aggressively by bmws and other luxury cars, and theyre usually the ones getting pulled over too
 
not sure how "driver" and "Lexus" really works in the same sentence.. but I'm glad they are getting pulled over
 
webby said:
so you're not a porsche fan I'd imagine...
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Haha... I don't blame Porsche as a brand, I blame that seedy little man that bought one!

I think some people are just more likely to drive like an idiot no matter what brand of car they are driving, and some will be continue to be courteous drivers no matter what you put them in. Obviously many people buy more expensive cars just because they like the styling/quality of the car. But in other cases, you've got people buying a certain brand of car as a symbol of their "status" and what they think it represents... I'm guessing those people are probably already a bit of a jerk to begin with and just happen to use the car as a means of show-boating it.
 
I have noticed this when it comes to parking in the fire lane at malls and grocery stores...
 
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