Father Defends Buying 16-Year-Old a Luxury Car and Refuses to Spend on Ex-Wife’s Kids

A father turned to the Reddit community after facing backlash from his ex-wife for buying their 16-year-old son a luxury car. The father, 47, says he and his ex, “Anna,” 44, have an “okay relationship,” but their values and lifestyles have always been different.

“We actually have an okay relationship, but things didn’t work out because I focused on my career and she’s more of a ‘follow your heart’ person,” he explains, adding that he sees her as financially careless.

The two divorced when she was pregnant with their son. Anna later had two more children — a 15-year-old boy and a 14-year-old girl.

The father says Anna “always complains that I spend money on our son but never on his siblings.” He notes that Anna’s husband sometimes buys gifts for his own son, but the gesture isn’t mutual.

“While that’s nice of him, I’m not interested in the whole blended family thing. I have one child, and that’s it,” he says. He adds that he doesn’t buy Anna’s other children birthday or Christmas presents, nor does he take them on vacations.

Tensions often rise when he takes his son out of school to travel. “She thinks it’s unfair to his siblings and that I’m making him fall behind, but that’s not the reason — she’s just in denial,” he writes.

The latest argument came when their son turned 16. “I got him his dream car, which was a ‘luxury’ car,” the father says, though he downplays the label.

“The way I see it, any car is a luxury since new models can be expensive, so I don’t think it makes him spoiled,” he explains. He adds that the car was within his budget and says, “Since I’m not breaking the bank and he’s my only son, he should have what he likes.”

Anna, however, was unhappy with the gift. She reportedly told him he got their son a car “he could ‘kill himself’ with” and argued that “with that money, I could have gotten all three kids cars or at least money for future ones.”

The father says this upset him. “Her kids aren’t old enough to drive, and when they do, why would I be the one to buy them a car?” he writes.

The argument escalated, and he admits he may have gone too far. “I might be the a– because I did call her THAT word in front of our son, and I told her I didn’t care about her kids,” he recalls.

Anna reportedly called him “heartless,” but he defends his feelings. “That’s just how I feel. I don’t want to be anything to them,” he insists.

The new car is now with the father. “I have the car right now because she won’t let him keep it at her house, which feels petty,” he says.

In the Reddit thread, one commenter sided with the father: “Anna needs to understand that her kids are nothing to you, whereas your son is her husband’s stepson. That is not the same at all.” The commenter adds that as long as he isn’t encouraging his son to mistreat his half-siblings, “everything is good.”

The father agreed. “Exactly, none of them fight with each other, and they seem to get along. I’d say everything’s good.”

Now, he is left wondering if he went too far by making his feelings about Anna’s children so clear.