Featured Image Credit: Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/ National Motor Museum/Heritage Images/Getty Images
Topics: Cars, Apple, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Technology
Mia Williams
Topics: Cars, Apple, Elon Musk, Jeff Bezos, Tim Cook, Technology
Steve Jobs had a new car every six months thanks to a loophole in the law, and the reason he did it is unexpected.
There’s plenty of celebrities that do obscure things just because they have copious amounts of money.
Steve Jobs kind of took this to the next level - but not for the reason you might first think.
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The story all started after rumors circulated the former CEO of Apple replaced his Porsche every time it got a scratch.
This didn't happen to be true - but ended up getting back to Jobs' daughter Lisa Brennan-Jobs, who wrote about the rumor in her memoir.
Apparently, for years Jobs leased a brand new black Porsche 911 every six months.
After this, he switched to a Mercedes-Benz SL 55, continuing to get another halfway through the year.
The rumor about Jobs swapping the car every time it got a scratch led to an acrimonious exchange between father and daughter when Lisa was still a child.
She asked if she could have her dad's Porsche once he was done with it since he replaced them so regularly.
Lisa writes in her book: “‘Absolutely not,’ he said in such a sour, biting way that I knew I’d made a mistake.
"I understood that perhaps it wasn’t true, the myth of the scratch: maybe he didn’t buy new ones.
"By that time I knew he was not generous with money, or food, or words; the idea of the Porsches had seemed like one glorious exception.
“‘You’re not getting anything,’” he said. “‘You understand? Nothing. You’re getting nothing.’"
However, according to a former security worker at Apple, Jobs did replace his car every six months - but not for the reason you might think.
Under the law you could drive a brand new car for up to six months without a registration plate.
Jon Callas, who worked twice in security at Apple, told Inc.com he'd hear this is why Jobs replaced his car, but admitted the information came from other people and he didn't know about it directly.
He said: "Not a lot of money for a billionaire to have no plate.
"He's paying less than a thou per month - let's call it ten grand a year, to have no license plate."
This loophole in Californian law was closed in 2019, and now all new cars will have to get a license plate.
Jobs was diagnosed with a tumour in 2003, and died some years later in 2011.
Tim Cook took over as the CEO of Apple, and has been in the role ever since.
It was recently reported that Cook earned $63.2 million in 2023, so we'd imagine he too could get a new Porsche every six months if he wanted.