I really don’t pay specific attention to what guys do or used to do anymore, I’m not here a lot anymore. I do remember a guy that put his car up on jack stands to clean the wheels on the inside and did this EVEY WEEK and HAND WASHED the car 3 xs per week. I take care of my C5 and keep it looking as nice as I can because it’s a toy. I don’t need it; it’s just for fun when I feel like driving it. These are just a few of many things I have seen here.
Do these guys keep this up for years or does that passion lose it’s novelty and they dump it for some milk toast SUV or cross over that runs on AA batteries for 100 miles and then charge the AAs?
I’ve seen pictures of guys that have their Corvette in front of their house and the car looks like it has more $ tied up in it than the house is worth.
Lowering………..?
I haven’t looked at this kind of stuff in awhile but guys would say “slam it”
These lowered cars were SO LOW that other members and myself would asked “how can you even drive that thing? I’m talken about maybe 2.5” off of the pavement at it’ highest point.
Oh, let’s not forget how every member would say they have 10 coats of ZANO (WTF SP?) which was a given. ZANO, ZANO, ZANO, bhah blah blah.
It seems like whatever is the fad the lemmings jump over the cliff following the rest because they have no idea what to do expect but to follow the trend.
“What color goes with this? “What Lloyds BS should I get”, what color do I like, heehee
Is this how inane these people USED to get when they were WAY WAY over the edge into this entire thing.
So, I guess the bottom line is that I’m just curious about what others hear (us old timers) and myself think of this.


OK, the end of my manifesto.

 

I'm bored I actually did read the whole thing...lol

 

"Seriously, some time I wonder about the people posting here."

YEP

 

I look at this from this angle.... What ever floats your boat, go for it. I may question but I try not to judge. The passion these vehicles bring is great but you have some that swing way to the right, and some that swing way to the left.. I'm neither, I'm somewhere in the middle, but that's me. I enjoy seeing a nice clean and beautiful C5 at the many Vette shows and I'm very glad some over do their ride, because in my little brain I say to myself " I always wondered what that would look like, now I know"..... So enjoy it, just say, "Nice" move on and enjoy the fruits of life whether it be one coat of Zano or a million coats.. did you check out that guys arms, wow.. Drive safe..

 

Let me add this twist. I recently purchased a black on black 02 C5. It had less than 30k when i dove it home form Trenton, NJ. The first thing I did when I brought it home was wash it. And have done so every week that I have owned it. It has been waxed more than once and have taken the wheels off to clean them. That being said, two years ago I bough my wife a black on black Audi TT. It has been washed twice a week, or more, since we drove it home, and I own a 2003 F 150 that has 214k miles on it, that for the ten years that I have owned it has been washed at least once a week and waxed monthly. People find it difficult to believe that my truck has that many miles on it and has not been garage kept.My point is that some people like to take care of thier cars. It never fades, or at least it hasn't for the 34 years that I have owned cars.

 

It's a hobby....

Some enjoy one...some don't.

 

I hear "You always seem to be working on that thing, is it that messed up?" and my response is always the same, "no, it's in amazing shape, I just enjoy working on cars and always have." It doesn't matter what I do to the car, it's a hobby, and I thoroughly enjoy it.

This is also why my cars always look new. Except for a few minor nicks, the 10 year-old Monte Carlo I recently gave to my oldest daughter still looks like it did when I picked it up from the dealer. It still gets mistaken for a new, or nearly new car despite having well over 130k miles and 10 years of driving on it.

 

What blows my mind is when you see, lets say, an 02 with 8000 miles on it. How do you buy a 50K car just to polish and sit in the garage? I have a friend with a C5 that just sits that way.

It's even more widespread with Harleys. Lots of people bought them just to say they have one. I'm trying to sell my 00 with 34000 miles and finding out I'll be taking a huge hit. Told a friend I would feel even dumber if I hadn't riden it.

 

Some people perhaps do go a bit overboard on washing/waxing, buying the latest gadget, etc on these cars, but in all honesty, if they have the time, money and desire to do so, that's OK by me.

 

This one time at band camp . . .

 

Didn't you know that following the crowd is the American way ? Most people don't have a mind of their own , they depend on other people for any ideas.

 

I'm a S L O W reader how do I get back the 5 mins of my life I wasted reading this?

 

Same here. I enjoy taking care of all my vehicles.

 

There are extremes on both ends for any type of hobby or passion. Believe it or not, there are Toyota Camry waxers as well...

I just don't understand the need to figure everyone out. Just enjoy your car the way you like it and let others live their lives. It's not like over-modding a car is hurting anyone. Except perhaps our eyesight.

 

Okay, I admit it....I actually read the whole thing too.

 

I'll bet the guys you're referring to don't think they're too insane. Just about everyone is passionate about something in their lives. You name it, you can find someone who indulges, maybe over-indulges in it. And all of us wonder about some of the things others do, too. For instance, I'm somewhat surprised at the over-the-top passion that some sports fans exhibit but that's just me (and I was a professional referee at the collegiate level LOL!).

For me, I was interested in cars as far back as 8 years old. I remember going out and taking the spark plugs out of my Mom's old Pontiac straight 8 every day, looking at them and maybe cleaning them up, and putting them back in - I was just ten years old at the time and a wrench in my hand was just heaven. Today at 63 I currently have three seasonal cars - the Vette (all stock) and two that I've built - and a 3400 square foot heated shop well equipped to care of all of them plus our daily drivers and truck and trailer. A little over the top? Some (perhaps many) would agree, but it keeps me feeling younger than my years, and my wife of 40 years - one of those seasonal cars is hers - knows where I am when I'm out of her visual range.

Perhaps the line between sanity and too much is the ability to keep it all in perspective. The guy who has a Corvette or a truck or an Audi or an expensive toy is probably a successful guy or girl. They've kept their eye on the ball - put in the time in their careers and family first so they have the ability to own expensive toys, and they have the energy left over to enjoy having and taking care of them as they wish.

 

My car actually looks better with far fewer wash days. My neighbor showed me how he uses 3D waterless car wash, I tried some and now don't have to actually wash my car nearly as often as I used to. Meguires just recently introduced something similar.

But yes, there will always be fanatics when it comes to almost anything - biking, fishing, card-playing, you name it.

 

My ex mother-in-law bought a Harley just so she could say she owned one. She tried a couple of times to learn how to ride it, but she soon gave that up. I was the only person in the entire family, my side or my ex's, that knew how to ride a motorcycle and actually had a license to ride one legally.

Guess what I was doing on the weekends?

 

 

I'm one of those insane guys.

Zaino polish to the paint monthly, and billet aluminum wheel polish monthly.

Weekly I start with full wheel well cleaning, wheel/tire cleaning, full engine detailing, full interior detailing, leather seat conditioning, full paint detailing, Rain-X windows. The list goes on.

I honestly spend 4-8 hours per week detailing my car. Well over 8 hours if it includes Zaino polish, and must more if I do a complete Adams metal polish to my wheels. Not because I have to, but because I enjoy it. My car looks like it just rolled off the assembly line, and I hope to keep it that way for years to come. It has not seen water from my hose since 2004.

I prefer to do my own maintenance on my cars to the best of my ability (all fluids, brakes, troubleshooting etc...etc..etc...)

I'm so insane I even created a web site about my car, and posted procedures on how to do things that I have learned over the years.

www.ToqueZ06.com

I have always taken very good care of my possessions. You should see how clean I keep my daily driver...

I guess I'm just insane about my love for cars....

Toque