I live in Europe now, and it's far less pronounced here. Americans seem much more status and class conscious.

I'd say the difference is that Americans are obsessed with money, and they think you need to flaunt it just because you have it. The idea of having a rusty old beater car, let alone bike to work, if you're rich just baffles them.

Status and class here is much more subtle, you often can't tell from the way a person dresses (at least at first glance) and what he drives if he's a billionaire or secretary.

I think the pay difference in Europe is much lower. There’s also a ton of not quite poor, but certainly not rich people.