8.炫富利器

????有的時(shí)候，人們購買某件東西，看重的不是它的實(shí)用性，為這個(gè)東西花多少錢才是重點(diǎn)——比如有人花350萬美元只為與股神巴菲特吃一頓飯。德國車還沒有到那個(gè)地步，但是也快了。比如2013款四驅(qū)渦輪增壓的保時(shí)捷 911跑車售價(jià)高達(dá)137,500美元，要想把保時(shí)捷車標(biāo)鑲到中控臺還要另加330美元。買德國車的人經(jīng)常愛報(bào)怨這種事，好讓別人知道他是多么有錢。

8. The price is very nearly the object

????Sometimes, how much you pay for something -- as opposed to its function -- is the point of the exercise, like paying $3.5 million for dinner with Warren Buffett. German cars haven't gotten to that level yet, but they are getting close. Such as charging $137,500 for a 2013 Turbo 911 Porsche with all-wheel-drive -- and then asking for another $330 to apply the Porsche crest to the lid of the central console. Buyers of German cars love to complain about this stuff so you'll understand how deep their pockets are.

9.獨(dú)有，再獨(dú)有

????史托克俱樂部（Stork Club）發(fā)明了一個(gè)“俱樂部中的俱樂部”的點(diǎn)子。這個(gè)俱樂部會(huì)給明星大腕專門開一個(gè)房間，好讓他們躲開粉絲的圍追堵截。如果你覺得一輛4.7萬美元的寶馬5系不夠顯示身價(jià)？花90,695美元來一臺特殊配置的5系如何？奔馳的“黑色系列”（Black Series）把這種手法上升到了一個(gè)新的高度。它在奔馳AMG的基礎(chǔ)上對性能進(jìn)行了升級，外觀、內(nèi)飾和座椅均采用特殊設(shè)計(jì)，整車重量更輕了，但同時(shí)這樣一款C級轎跑的價(jià)格也飆升到了12.5萬美元左右。

9. Exclusive and super-exclusive

????The old Stork Club invented the idea of a club-within-a-club when it opened the Cub Room for celebrities to hide out from the hoi polloi. A regular $47,000 5-series BMW not good enough for you? How about a specially equipped M5 for $90,695? Mercedes has made this an art form with its Black Series -- special seats and trim, less weight -- layered on top of its AMG performance upgrades that hike the price of a C-class coupe to around $125,000.

10.對手不爭氣

????的確，還有誰能與這四家德國廠商爭鋒呢？雷克薩斯（Lexus）的質(zhì)量和服務(wù)也許更勝一籌，但它缺乏霸氣，也缺乏歷史傳統(tǒng)，因此只能居于二流地位。凱迪拉克（Cadillac）憑借高性能的V系列車型幾乎已經(jīng)達(dá)到了高端車的國際標(biāo)準(zhǔn)，但是它必須在這個(gè)水平上再保持幾十年，人們才會(huì)真正拿它當(dāng)回事。至于法拉利（Ferrari），盡管名頭甚大，但它只是保時(shí)捷的一個(gè)小競爭者，因?yàn)楸r(shí)捷的銷量是它的20倍以上。

????譯者：樸成奎

10. Everybody else is in second place

????Really, who can go up against this quartet of winners? Lexus may deliver higher quality and better service, but its tentative presentation and lack of heritage consign it to second-tier status. Cadillac has labored mightily to raise its game to international standards -- and nearly gets there with its high-performance V-series -- but will need to execute at this level for another couple of decades before being taken seriously. And for all its panache, Ferrari is a boutique competitor to Porsche, which sells more than 20 times more cars.