I think the whole "what kind of CAR does he have?" dating culture persists in NYC in part because having a car is such a horrible pain in this town. It is suffering. Everything about a car is more expensive. It's not going to do much for you at all. You can't park it. You can't drive it (enjoy sitting in traffic.) So as far a peacock plumage goes it's still a big signal.
Personally, I think if you can't afford a full time driver too? It's an objective downgrade in quality of life.