Seen on BBC World News America: Bill Gates drove away in a Ford Focus after an interview

[Bozita]

It appeared to be his car. He drove. No chauffers.

Loved to see that Ford Focus.

[DBoon]

1. He has nothing to prove to anyone

and has enough class to realize that

[lithiumbomb]

4. He's promoting Sync, an option in the Focus

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ford_Sync

[DBoon]

15. If it was Larry Ellison

and if it was Oracle's software, he would insist on a Bentley

[Kutjara]

2. I don't know if he still does, but he used to...

...fly coach class, too. He's noted for being, shall we say...frugal. There's a story about him in the unauthorized biography "Hard Drive." In the late 80s, when he was only worth about $10 billion or so, he was spotted in a 7/11, holding up the checkout line while he hunted through his pockets for a $0.50 Haagen Dazs coupon. After watching this for about five minutes, an exasperated customer, slapped two quarters on the counter and said, "this one's on me, Bill." And Gates took the money.

Driving a Focus is definitely in character. He probably bitches about the cost of filling it up, too.

[whistler162]

6. The more he pays for gas the less goes to.....

http://www.gatesfoundation.org/default.htm

[Hannah Bell]

8. His tax shelter & policy-making arm, you mean?

[maui9002]

9. For the record, the Gates Foundation

is contributing billions to what I regard as worthy progressive causes <http://www.gatesfoundation.org/nr/public/media/annualreports/annualreport07/index.html> and Bill's dad, together with billionaire Warren Buffett, have been outspoken critics of the proposed repeal of the estate tax, something that most multi-billionaires oppose. As billionaires go, I think Bill Gates is relatively friendly to progressive causes.

[Occulus]

12. You'd think, with all that money,

he could see to it that an OS was made that worked as advertised.

:D

[DemoTex]

11. Gates wouldn't buy a corporate jet .. and David Allen wanted one. So ...

David Allen bought himself (privately with his own money) a Boeing 757. Or so the story goes.

[Kutjara]

14. Another great story about Gates and Allen.

In the early days of Microsoft, Dave Allen sold around $2,000 of M$ stock to buy himself an old car. Gates held on to every share. By the mid 90s (when I read this story), the stock Allen sold was worth an estimated $20 billion (which is why Bill Gates was worth $50 billion at the time, but Allen was only worth $30 billion).

The beater that David Allen bought with the proceeds from the share sale is officially the most expensive car ever made.

[MercutioATC]

3. Gates also owns several Porsches...including a 959.

http://www.fantasycars.com/derek/cars/959.html

[Kutjara]

13. Both Gates and Allen bought a 959.

But they've never been able to get them into the country. The cars couldn't be modified to meet US safety and emissions standards (despite the fact they exceeded the US standards of the time by a wide margin, but didn't use the "approved" equipment for doing so). As far as I know, the cars are still sitting in a dockside bonded warehouse in Seattle.

[TheWatcher]

5. Easily Dazzled by appearances, I see,

Yes, it's true, Gates lives so simply for a man of his means.

:rofl:

[Hannah Bell]

7. don't he, though?

http://peter.freeblog.hu/archives/2007/06/23/Sipping_wine_on_the_beach_of_Bill_Gates_house_in_the_sunset/

[Liberal In Texas]

10. Funny story from a few years ago about Gates and Buffett in Gorat's parking lot

in Omaha after one of their dinners:

After paying $35 in cash for the two dinners, Mr. Buffett prepared to drive his fellow billionaire back to the airport. But his first new car in 10 years, a Lincoln Town Car whose license plate says "THRIFTY," wouldn't start. Mr. Gates says despite their best efforts, neither he nor Mr. Buffett could unlock the steering wheel. So the two richest men in the U.S. were stranded in Gorat's parking lot, until they called a taxi to pick them up.

http://webreprints.djreprints.com/882011413375.html