Art & Inspiration Odd reactions to your daily driver

Driving My 32 5 window down the Beach .Guy dropped to his Knees started waving arms up and down to worship the car ...like 100 people all over ..Funny

 

WOW you cant make that stuff up!!!!Bruce.

 

NOW THATS FUNNY! LOL Bruce.

 

Had a car show w/ a church festival 2005 or so and a little old lady (80's +)was walking around w/ daughter about my age, looking at the cars, stops by my roadster and starts talking w/ me about her husband back in her day had a "Fliver", I gather that's a "T" or an "A" from her description, no fenders, hood and top, loud, she got so excited, smiling, telling stories of racing down dirt roads and being scared 1/2 to death, but loved it. Made her day and mine seeing her so happy, well after all this I asked her if she would like a ride, the daughter gets all negative and said No Way can I let her go w/ you, saw the disappointment in Granny's eyes and offered to let the daughter take my car around block stating it's just like any other car, gas peddle on right, brake on left and a steering wheel, not hard to drive. Well you would have thought from her reaction I said something terrible as she got in a huff and dragged her Mom away w/ Granny saying thank you for the reminding her of good old times..... Hope when I reach that stage of my life, not that far away anymore, I'll remember the good times, memories of my car life, tons of fun times racing and rodding and who ever is taking me around let's me go for a ride if offered.

 

Used to go to Waynes custard/drive in, in Cederburg Wi. 2001/2010, great cruise, lot of cars, spectators, fun deal. One evening a group of people are hanging by my roadster, very interested, so...... I walk over to chat and hear it's an exchange student/family from Germany staying w/ a family from Cederburg, lots of questions, they spoke better English than Me, and asked if it would be OK to sit in car and take some pictures, sure no problem, my reply. They took 20/30/40 pictures w/ at least 15/20 people in and out of my car, went on for 1/2 hour or so, thanked me several times and somewhere in Germany my roadster is famous. The gentleman in charge of cruise observed all this and thanked me several times and gave me stack of food coupons, did not have to buy a burger or an ice cream the rest of season, every morning, I drink my coffee, read the HAMB and these memories pop into my old brain, a therapy of sorts and then I go out into garage for some more therapy or sometimes aggravation, but it keeps me going LOL

 

Cool stories wicarnut. ^^^^^^

 

i get the same thing in my shoebox. guess all mid-century cars look like mercs!

 

Not a car guy said "you drove that thing to the Gulf of Mexico?" I said"Yep , and back too. Its only a twentysix hundred mile round trip." Might add, Im an old guy too.

 

I know the type. She's probably stuffed mom in a shitty nursing home and stole all her stuff by now.

 

Reverse "Mommy Dearest". She definitely had a weird reaction, a wtf moment for sure.

 

I was at a gas station filling up my Ford, there's a old Plymouth at another pump, the driver says that my car looks almost ready for paint. I let it go at that, he was engrossed in an argument with the attendant over his change.

 

I've been driving old cars for 25 years and IMHO the casual conversations re my old cars are getting worse and worse.
Back in the 90s I often talked to old guys in the streets telling me that this was their first car or this was the car they learned to become a mechanic and all kind of related stories. Always interesting and often funny!

Nowadays hardly noone recognize the type of car I'm driving and people often ask stupid questions about fuel consumption or "who has restored that car?"

As I am not the kind of guy who drives his car to boost his ego I mostly answer such questions in monosyllables (what a word!) and hope that people leave me alone.

 

I often wonder how much my father in law is going to have to deal with when we finally get his car on the road. Fortunately he's a real people person and will talk to anyone and everyone. He'll probably be in 7th Heaven.

I'm just the opposite.




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Are those 25 years of experiences in Austria? (looking at your location info)
I grew up in Vienna/Austria until 1990 and hardly ever seen classic American cars on the streets in the 70s and 80s.

In the US the reactions depend on the location, I guess.
When I drove my truck in Austin TX from 95-97, I got a lot of interest and funny and cool stories.
Then in Los Angeles County from 1997-2005 the reactions were all across the board, depending on the city.

But the best personal stories from folks who were born in the 40s-50s I got after I moved to a small town in 2005 and mostly driving the 48 coupe.

 

Roadrunner - yes, that's my experience in Austria, I lived in Vienna, Salzburg and now in Upper Austria.
My daily driver since 1991 for many many years was an English 1964 Ford Cortina Mk I.
I still have it, but now with children and everything I mostly drive a modern car though.
Most people who had a Cortina in the early 60ies are in their 80ies now (or dead). Of course they were still around 20 years ago.
You're right about US-cars, you hardly see any, though we had a lot of US-cars here in the 1950ies. Most are gone and forgotten.
With my 50 Mercury I've never met a single person here who has recognized my car (apart from people from the US car scene of course).


Have you ever returned to Austria?

 

What I remember is that cars were mostly considered a tool to get from A to B and the Mercedes versus BMW rivalry with a lot of small VWs, Audis and Opels on the streets.
And only the wealthy could afford nice old American cars, which remained mostly hidden from everyday streets.

I have only visited Austria in 1995 for a week, but feel more at home in the US.
I love the freedom and space and that I can rebuilt my own 60+ year old chevs for the road and drive them everyday without having to pay a certified inspector for permission annually.

 

I guess that summarizes perfectly the advantages of living in the US for a vintage car enthusiast.
Not easy here with an old car, let alone modifying one.

 

Clunker single wide or double wide trailer???LOL.Bruce.

 

I went to a car show today with the State Trooper car. A lot of people looking and taking pictures of it. Guy come up with a soda dripping wet and puts it on my fender.Now I know she not a show car BUT.So I give his friend the STINK EYE and he sees it and grabs the cup off the fender and says sorry about that.. You always got a least one at each show .LOL. Bruce.

 

I should of said REALLY man????? LOL.Bruce.

 

That guy was nuts. What was he thinking

 

that's the SAME look my wife gives me whenever I get home from a swap meet!!

 

Clunker, I am not sure that was soda in his cup so go figure.LOL.Bruce.

 

I also lived in Australia for a couple of years before settling in the US.
The car shows there were as good as here, but the permits are as hard to obtain as in Europe as far as I remember.
Let alone the shipping and import cost !

I have such great respect for Euros and Ozzies who own and drive old American rides and in the shape they are in.
Such dedication and passion is inspiring!


I am trying to remember the odd reactions I got over the years, but most of them happened over 10 years ago, when driving in LA county and I just blew them off and out of my memory apparently.
But I just remembered one....

Around 2003 I was pumping gas at a major intersection gas station in Van Nuys into my 52 chevy truck, which I maybe wash once a year and gets driven when it rains.

It got orange/red rattle-can paint in 1993 from the previous owner, before I got it and finally the cheap gloss had faded, making the bright color less glowing.
As the gas flows into the tank, some guy with a spray bottle in one hand and a rag in the other comes up and sprays this newest hi-tech stuff on the passenger door and wipes it in, while giving me a bright and happy sales-pitch how I can restore my old finish to a new show-room shine for just $19.95

Took over a year for that shiny area to fade and blend back into the finish, so that stuff was probably worth it. At least for selling used cars.

That said, I am currently looking for an old affordable air compressor on local craigslist, so I can finally refinish my old truck after 21 years of planning for it ...

 

The same sales bozo with the spray bottle was walking up to me while I was filling my never-painted- since- 1937 - Chevy and I just looked at him and said "Really?" He just turned and walked away. It's as if everyones sole purpose in life is to have a "shiny" car.
We have plenty of U.S. Cars here, and it is sometimes a challenge to get registration for an old/left hand drive/hotrod, but it is worth it. Can't have any fun any other way.
But it sounds like we have the same type of "average Joe" who would not know their arsehole from their elbow when it comes to anything made more then 2 years ago.

 

I live in the land of the retired. Unfortunately for me, I'm not retired.

I daily drive a 1953 Chevy truck and hear about it from the old folks virtually everywhere I go all day long. It's tough to remain friendly about it when you're just trying to get to work or get your kid to school. But, I do realize that I've chosen to do something that's unusual. I have started getting a little smart ass though. When asked "what year is it" my response is usually "2016, what year did you think it was?". At least it's an ice breaker.

Right now, I'm driving the truck 250 miles a week. It doesn't seem to mind.

 

Got a good one a couple days ago, that was more unique than odd, but I have to write it down or I forget the spoken words ...

Gentlemen comes up slowly as I was shifting into rear and taking off after parking, asking "41 ..?" - I say "48, but ..." he interrupted and he finishes my thought ... "same body" as he glanced over it, standing right next to my rolled down window.
I am excited he knows and remembers and he says without hesitation ....

" I was born on the backseat of a 41 Chevy in Van Nuys while driving to the Hospital "

I cracked up, as he added ... "Very Nice" ... and stepped back respectfully and watched us pulling out and driving off with the souped 6 rapping through the straight pipes.

Folks keep walking up and commenting and telling stories almost every day.
But this one was so subtle and simple and real - I hope I never forget it.

 

Yeah Buddy!...Had my 36 Dodge pickup which sports a 49 Ford flathead at the gas station when this young fella who might have been 20 asked "hey is that a Hemi?" Nope its a flathead Ford V8, then he say's...."I'm building a Hemi in my garage"
So I thought, if your building a Hemi you would damn sure know what one looked like. I just smiled and said what cha gonna put it in?
He hadn't decided yet.

 

I'm driving the '59 Ford almost every day, to work on nice days, to the gym and my usual running around.

I was grocery shopping and this older couple was checking out the car while I was loading groceries into the trunk. The lady asked if I was the original owner...I said, yes I am.

Last week I'm at the gas pump gassing up and added a can of octane booster. The gym at the pump across asked what I was adding to the gas... I told him it was fuel for my flux capacitor.

Had a good one last night. I went down to the local school for a budget vote. There was a small crowd, moms talking and kids standing around. This girl of about 8 tells me that my car is cool. I thanked her.

 

Reading this thread this AM, how things have changed in my lifetime, the general attitude of people, younger generations w/ kids, more than once you see a kid climbing all over a car at a show and when owner tells kid, get off, parent rushes to kids aid and says, it's only a car, what's the matter with you ? Have seen some big discussion's over this type of thing and wonder, what happened to respect and courtesy ? Eating in a restaurant, kids running around being disruptive (out of control) another common happening. You see it in so many ways today, now living in tourist country, memorial day to labor day, it amazes me how rude and obnoxious people can be. Off my soapbox, I'm old and getting grumpy, Everyone have a great day !