Status first?
Expensive cars rev up entitlement
A multitude of parking spaces at the Mill are home to lavish rides like this one, most of which come as birthday presents. “I would say that, yeah, getting a car for your 16th birthday is expected around here,” Senior Abby Delbene said.
August 27, 2016
“I prefer to earn it. It makes me appreciate it more,” author Sonya Teclai once wrote.
Peachtree City is one of Georgia’s more affluent areas. Many of Starr’s Mill High School’s students are very privileged. That privilege extends to the clothes students wear, the phones they carry, and, of course, the cars they drive.
A 2016 Mercedes Benz gleams in the parking lot of Starr’s Mill. Its sleek exterior calls attention to students and demonstrates the lifestyle teens live in Peachtree City.
Luxury vehicles and sports cars are readily seen when cruising through the parking lot at The Mill. There are students driving nicer cars than adults, because their parents are able to afford this opulent lifestyle.
Buying a teenager such a costly vehicle sends the wrong message to the inexperienced driver. “Personally, I can guarantee that my child won’t be driving a very expensive car when they get into high school, but other people have different opinions,” principal Allen Leonard said.
Senior Abby Delbene had a similar opinion. “When I have kids of my own I’ll probably get them used cars.”
These expensive vehicles enhance a student’s feeling of entitlement. It is important to instill good values in teenagers like earning what they work for rather than just getting handed what they want.
Not only are the students not paying for their own cars, but odds are that the students driving the brand new BMW’s aren’t paying for and keeping up with the maintenance it requires to keep it. Part of owning a car is taking responsibility and it’s hard to teach responsibility if it’s never been a focus to begin with.
People always want the newest and nicest thing.
— senior Abby Delbene
With responsibility comes respect and it’s hard to respect a brand new car when it’s just handed to you.
“In our community we have a lot of families that have the resources to provide their families with a lot of things,” Leonard said. It seems outrageous for a teenager in high school to be driving a 60,000 dollar car.
“[There are] parents out there who believe they want to have their children in the absolute best,” Leonard said, but the only places students have to drive are: school, sports, and work. So why should it take a Mercedes Benz to do the job?
Generally, expensive cars that are capable of reaching higher speeds encourages teens to abuse the power of the pedal, which often results in horrific accidents. “Unfortunately high school students are the worst drivers out there,” Leonard said, “typically we don’t have a lot [of accidents], [but] every year we have some [accidents].”
Several students admit to juvenile driving tendencies. “Teenagers and high schoolers are prone to getting into accidents, and you don’t want to have to worry about ruining a really nice car,” senior Mackenzie Byars said.
Thankfully, at the time of this article’s publication, no accidents have occurred on Starr’s Mill’s property yet this school year.
Some students receive expensive cars from their parents because it’s part of a family tradition. “My dad had a Mustang, my mom had a Mustang, so we are kind of a Mustang family,” senior Austin Zaharoff said.
An acceptable first car for a young driver is one that is safe, one that is far from extravagant, and most importantly, one that is earned, regardless of their parents bank account status.
“There are some arguments out there for having your kids in the newest car actually puts them in the safest car,“ Leonard said.
Just because it is affordable doesn’t mean it is reasonable. There are a variety of vehicles that are safe as well as sufficient and do the job just as well.
The culture of Peachtree City remains strong and will for a while. These fortunate students “always want the newest and nicest thing,” senior Abby Delbene said. “It’s human nature to want to show off what you have.”
