McLaren, The Domain Northside – Austin, Texas

I was at The Domain Northside, as I mentioned yesterday, and saw this baby. A perfect opportunity for an iPhone snap. Over the years, I’ve seen my share of Ferraris, Lamborghinis and Aston Martins but it’s the first time I saw this. A McLaren. I’m not sure which model this is, but some research revealed that the base model starts just shy of $200,000. It looks like the wheels are an upgrade along with other options, I’m sure.

I mentioned a couple of days ago that I’m in Car Analysis Mode but something tells me that this vehicle is not going to be at the top of my list. Heck, I’m afraid just paying for the tires.

Given the choice, I rather go for luxury over sporty. But my pragmatic side weighs heavily on my car choices. If money was no object, I would get a sports sedan. A compact or mid-size German model, a BMW, Mercedes-Benz or Audi. But in reality, my fear of long-term maintenance costs scares me. Did I mention that I like to keep my cars for 15 years? However, if I were to go totally crazy and switch out cars every 4 years or so, the German cars would get more consideration.

The truth is, I rather spend money on photography, for gear and travel, than have an expensive car. But I know all of us have our passions. No knock against people who like fancy cars. I know that some of you out there think that I’m crazy for having 50+ cameras. But given that the bulk of my cameras are old collector items, many with dubious value, I didn’t spend much. We all have our foibles.