blazinginder

....No it wasn't me



LeBron James aka King James himself bought the #1/40 car from Ray Catena Mercedes Benz in NJ for a cool 350k ...I was there today picking up a new car when it was brought to my attention that there was a 40th aniv. 65 hidden in an enclosed area at the dealership which had been sold to LeBron earlier in the week...
...I got a nice up close look at/around the car. As the guy who's pics I'm "stealing" below (Ghetto2315) mentioned, the indoor pics do it no justice but nonetheless if you have enough money to buy many exotic cars as he does, why not buy a beastly #1 of 40 for a nice premium over a measly "normal" CL65


oh yea, they also have a CLK63 Black Series available if anyone's interested let me know, I'll get you in touch with my guy there

RoydRage

I don't know...

But I saw A Mint Green S65 on 287 in Westchester approching the Tapp that was absolutely EVIL!!!

I mean 22's Custom body kit... Hood everything!

And it had like an exhaust blowoff pipe or something behind the front wheel on the drivers side... for the turbos are something... Smoked windows couldn't see inside... But it had to be a ball player...

The thing was NUTS Bro!

RoydRage

j_belll

its a beauty!

absent

Even when you have more $$$ then God ,paying $150k premium for a slightly different paintjob proves you are incredibly stupid.
Especially with relatively short $$ earning career like athletes.

sack5000

Send him a link so he will be better informed, his agent can type queries and respond to comedians on the board!!!!!!

WSH

Obviously mkt prices/values are determined by various divergent/convergent, often subjective, views.....no one "needs" a new CL65; and many who can't read/count look at world differently than others.....

Conversely, a pro athlete (or any other celebutard) could similarly laugh re: fact that enough middle-class/upper-class guys (presumably smarter and/or engaged in more productive pursuits) are willing to pay $X to watch some guys throw a ball through a hoop (or see some movie, etc), such that a TV talk show host can become a billionaire...or a golfer may be worth ?$500MM by time he's 40yo.....let the mkt determine what anything is worth....Darwinian selection often prevails over time anyway.....

FloridaE55

You're right - first of all, 80% of the people spotting him in that car won't be able to tell his CL65 Anniversary Edition apart from a CL550 - and the remaining 20% will share our opinion. Now put these wheels on a "regular" CL65 with a paint that comes close and you got the same "look at me"-response for much less.

If you have that urge to invest a fortune in one single car (Mercedes), he should have purchased the McLaren. Now that car looks different than the ordinary ones...

There are cars out there to demonstrate your success and wealth - buying such a car for that amount really proves how stupid you are..

blazinginder

You do make a point...but the people that buy these type of cars (for the most part) already have and/or can afford to buy any exotic car they want...

Chucky300

Kicker is - they know nothing about the cars except they look like a bad @$$ in them.

Ask P Diddy or whatever the hell he calls himself these days how much BHP is in a CL 65 and he will say "DOHHH"

Patentmat

Regarding his overpayment, remember, he IS driving Labron James's car. Resale value is actually being added to his own car simply because he was the one who bought it. Makes you think . . .

jl88

We're talking about Lebron James, not some bench-warmer. His yearly salary from everything is more than some of us will make in multiple lifetimes. Of course, he can get injured, but we also have a chance of getting killed driving to work. WHO CARES.

While the rest of us fuss and fight over the actual "value" of the car and how stupid he is to pay an extra $150,00000000,000000000000000 for a paint job, he'll get to enjoy the car. That's freedom that some of us envy, including myself.

He has a nice collection and this is just another collector's item.

Sunny55

That's sick....lucky LBJ

S-Clusiv

Well that was a bit a**h*le-ish and uncalled for, theres always greater and lesser, you drive an SL65 and to the average Joe it's just a SL500 with a bodykit and some wheels for and extra 100k give or take. (of course it's one of the finest pieces of machinery MBZ has ever produced.)

He may have bought the 1st 40th Anniversary Edition for one of numerous reasons you may not know, he may be a huge AMG buff, maybe an all around car enthusuiast with great taste and wants slimmer chances of the same car pulling up beside him anywhere. You just never know, to make such assumptions about someone you know so little about is just ignorant.


I'm done. Now, look at that beautiful CL65!

BigE

I wonder if you would call Jay Leno "Stupid"? This guy owns over 80 cars. He obviously can't drive them all. He bought them because he wanted to and he obviously has the means to do so. It's pure speculation to assume anything about how much Lebron or P. Diddy knows about the cars they purchase. They may be reading the same magazines we all read. They may have had the same big car posters hanging on the wall as a kid as we did. But the only difference between us and them....now they can actually buy without price being an object. With Lebron's $150 million endorsement deal with Microsoft and another $90+ million deal with Nike, I'm sure he's not losing sleep over the $350,000 check that he wrote for that car...which probably didn't come from his measly ($18 M) NBA salary anyway. Don't hate, congratulate. I wish that car was in my garage!!!

absent

There is a difference between SL500 and SL65.
There is no difference to speak off between CL65 and CL65 40 whatever...

Chucky300

Beg your pardon. Jay Leno buys 80+ cars because he is a Car enthusiast and because he LOVES cars. The same reason Ralph Lauren does. They go through the task of restoring cars from long and forgotten Eras and give them the magic they once had - but lost over the years.
They GENUINELY love the cars, the beauty behind the metal, and the feelings they get when they look at completed projects and how their contribution to restoring a true historical staple makes them true gifts to the automotive hobby.

Lebron James loves his cars because it makes him look like a rich homeboy amongst his "friends" ( who arent really his friends because they'd take a sh*t on him the moment he is out on hard times.... I assure you of that.
To him - its just another "Fly Dope car". I have no respect for him or any other person like him that buys the car for the reason they do.

dsb

Although you're probably right about his car knowledge, what does it matter? I don't know crap about lots of things, but if I had the money, it wouldn't stop me from buying it (ie. jet, yacht, etc). Besides, what else is he going to do with all that money?

atl2nyc

Maybe he is buying the car because it is a beautiful automobile. Maybe he is buying it because it provides a since of exclusivity since only 40 are being made. Maybe he like the color of the Alubeam paint. Maybe he wants to become a car enthusiast and this is a purchase to enhance his collection. Maybe he has learned from the mistakes of other athletes and has distanced himself from his fair weather friends and is trying to avoid the "homeboy" image, and thus is buying a production car as opposed to highly customizing a vehicle which most would consider too over the top for the mainstream.

I stress the word maybe because neither I, nor do I suspect anyone on this forum can speak to his rationale for purchasing the car. But he obviously has the financial means to purchase it as well as the business savvy to build his own multi-million dollar brand which will enable him to buy almost any car he wants.

The man bought a car that was well within his means. What's the need to pass judgement on him when you don't know him from Adam?

Chucky300

Doesnt matter - just too a slight bickering to the fact that people were praising him here....

BigE

Well I guess we need to send Lebron and Diddy's publicists a note that a couple of folks on the forum thinks that they should give up the Maybachs and top of the line Mercedes and push some pimped out Toyota Camrys because it is presumed that these superstars are incapable of really appreciating these luxury automobiles like a "true enthusiast". Give me a break.

Chucky300

LOL he was in Highschool when the NBA picked him up and gave me a 10 billion dollar contract while he was still in school.... please don't compare HIM to those that REALLY have the business savy to start a business.

I don't know if you have your own company - but were your first 5 years TOUGH ? Imagine someone plucked you from business school and handed you $100,000,000 + even before you demonstrated to the business world your capability?

Chucky300

nope - thats not my point.

My point is - the reason behind them buying the cars.

It has NOTHING to do with enthusiasm for the car. It has EVERYTHING to do with showing off.

And that is fine! Status symbols are perfectly fine - but just don't compare Lebron and Diddy to the likes of Leno and Seinfeld - who probably hand wash their own cars and observe every step of a restoration project.

User110

all i can really say is wow, **** the price, he can do it, so he did it.


his s63 or what ever is sitting at the dealership now by my car, JBONDOX, a member has worked on plenty of his cars, LB has a good car collection of his own u know, he can probably drive not just 1, but 3 or 4 cars for every day of the week if he wanted to presently.


its agreed that its a ridiculous amount to pay, but oh well, i think if we did have what he has to spend, BigE was right, its nothing.

but admittedly, most sports players who drive Ferrari's and such only buy them for one thing, to park it in valet in front of the club. my local shop owner for exotic cars here has his own collection, including a jaguar E type he built from scratch which can WALK most the Ferrari's and lambos these players buy. he tells me how he pulls up on em looking for a race, but never do it. lol, man i wish i was HIM!!




ALi

FloridaE55

Well, I don't think we are discussing if he can afford this car or not. You see, if this guy has an open fireplace in his house he could either burn wood or money in it. It's NOT a question of affordability. $100-bills burn as well, it's his money and this guy has enough of it. But could his decicision to burn money instead of wood be considered wise? I don't think so.

I can only speak for myself and I'm sure some folks might understand what I'm trying to say. Even if I would have plenty of money, I would still ask myself if I'm spending it wisely or not. So Jay Leno is a car collector? I guess I would do the same if I would have as much money as he has (I love cars, too). Would be interesting to know if he burns his money when he's buying a new collectable or if he's 'only' paying market value for them.

Back to this case: What I don't understand is the fact that he paid this huge premium for that car. This special edition is not that difficult to get. Last week, there were two of them available on autotrader.com - for MUCH less. And sorry, if somebody thinks #1 of 40 has a higer value than #40 of 40...

I also have one car more than I'd probably need - and I also know that they are in a different price-range. I got $3,500 off MSRP on the X5 - could I still afford that car if I would have paid $3,500 above MSRP? Certainly, but I wouldn't be that happy with my purchase. I'm just trying to say that it's not a question of affordability...

Trust me, there are so many rich people in this country who have more money than they could ever spend - but STILL don't waste it (in other words: still use wood instead of $-bills in their fireplace).

atl2nyc

Starting one's own business and building one's own personal brand require different skill sets and attributes. I said he had the savvy to build his own brand, not start a business.

To leverage your example, Leno and Seinfeld leveraged their God given talent of comedy and in time, parlayed that into multi-million dollars businesses. James used his God given athletic ability and knowledge of the game to obtain the NBA rookie-capped 3 year rookie capped 4$M max contract. He leveraged his own personality, business acumen and judgment in the selection of agents and opportunities to pursue and secure over 100$M in endorsements. There are several highly accomplished professional basketball players (e.g. - Tim Duncan, Steve Nash, Kevin Garnett, Gilbert Arenas, Dirk Nowitsk, etc.) who have not been able to do the same

Like it or not, high school is now the new proving ground for professional talent. He proved his capability on the hardwood in high school, but more importantly in the camps that college and NBA scouts hold to assess the talent level of high school phenoms. If I while in b-school produced a rock-solid or revolutionary business plan that major corporations coveted, rest assured that they would pay a premium to hire me and secure my services. In the world or professional sports, the going rates are higher, and thus the salaries scale more. And thus James can command a salary and endorsements to the magnitude that he does.

And to the point of being handed 100$M - if I came from a wealthy family that handed me 100$K to start my own business and it became a resounding success and a household name, does that mean my accomplishments would lack merit?

Bottom line is that we are all dealt different cards. Some people are able to play the hand into great success, others are able to maintain only the status quo and others fail miserably and lose everything they started with.

Regardless though, the closing point from my original note was that we don't know Lebron James. And to make assumptions and judge him based on what we think his situation might isn't fair. Or at least that is my humble opinion. If you choose to disagree then so be it.