"Look but don't touch"....

I was at a show in southern Oregon a few years back and met a couple of guy's the night before at a little cruise in. On Saturday night there was a cruise night so I parked my car in a parking lot and here comes those 2 guy's with there cars. The one guy has a car like mine so he parked it next to mine. I went accross the street for a while when I returned the guy and his wife were sitting on there car and his buddy was sitting on mine. For one thing it wasn't his car to do so but I just finished putting the car together two nights before as I put a brand new paint job on the car. I was polite as they were friends of a friend in that area but he didn't do it again.
Then 2 years ago I was at the Puyallup Wa. Good-Guys show and on Saturday night at the live band area there were a few couples out dancing to the music. Someone was trying to get thru the area with there car so one of the idiot dancers thought it would be funny so he flopped on the car hood on his back with his arms and legs flopping in the air like a turtle on his back. He thought it was real funny. The owner of the car just sat there until the guy got off the car. If it were my car he wouldn't have walked away. I couldn't believe it when I saw that.

 

I made up a sign that went like this.

"What fucking part about do not touch my fucking car do you not fucking understand?
My wife thought it was a little rash. I thought it was fine. Worst is if you have smooth running boards, they seem to attract every kid that has golf spikes on.
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Like I told the kid. "Your musics not too loud, its just like OKC, it sucks."

I also saw a sign that said "You toucha my car, I toucha your face!"

 

Slightly OT, but...
This reminded me of a 20 yr old kid I met about 5 years ago. He was in the passengers seat of a car at the pump next to me as I was filling up the Amphicar. I heard his mom began to describe my car to him so I guessed he was sight impaired. I went over and asked him to come take a look (my Grandma was blind so no I did not sanitize my words) at it. I showed him where the exhaust was so he wouldn't burn his hand and watched as he felt up my Amphi for about 15 minutes. Visualizing every curve and part. As it turned out he was on his way home from the hospital after loosing his sight in a car wreck just a few weeks before. He got tossed out the window and his truck landed on his head. I won't describe his injuries as described to me but suffice it to say he should not have survived. He was scared of how people would treat him now. He did say that he was happy that I understood his disability and what he's going through. I took his hand and placed it on my wheelchair wheel without a word. He smiled and said "Geez, I ain't got it so bad, at least I can walk" while I am thinking inside "Geez, I ain't got it so bad, at least I can see." What a point of view from a blind man. It's all about perspective.

We talked for a while about the school for the blind he was going to and his plans. I suggested that he meet me at a local lake and I would gladly let him drive my Amphi into the lake. He laughed and said he only wished he could see the peoples faces as a blind guy drives a car into the lake with a guy in a wheelchair screaming STOP STOP!! Now that is some funny stuff! I never heard from him again and I truly wish he would have taken me up on the offer as it was absolutely serious!

 

Okay, so my old truck's a POS in most people's eyes. I can deal with that, it don't hurt my feelings one bit. But I get pissed when some dumbass thinks it's okay to just lay all over it like it's there for their convenience. I love it when kids get excited and want to climb in and twist the wheel and make motor noises and all but when I'm parked at a car show and come back to find a bunch of "street rodders" leaning all over it sipping their beer I see red quick. Not spectators mind you, "street rodders" with their trailer queens parked all around me all using my truck like a table in a bar. Oh, and the hoods not a heater in January either.

 

Your car may be just a fucking car, but my car is countless hours of my life.

And if I dont want people touching it, I shouldnt have to justify that...

 

Such behavior should be expected and anticipated at an event titled the "Rust Revival".

So one can only assume that you invite every stranger walking up and down the street to walk right in your house and pop a squat on your couch. I mean, it's just a f'ing couch. A consumable item.

 

Oh I see! I didn't realise that, but now that you've set me straight perhaps I should sell my pride and joy for big bucks and buy a silver freaking Honda.
On second thoughts, no, maybe you should.
Paul

 

I'd respond, but nobody, I mean nobody. Touches my keyboard!!!!!!

 

im cool with my friends touching my car no matter how nice it is but strangers better not i see all kinds of crap at carshows with people running thier fingers all over a nice car

but on the other hand if a completly nude woman wanted to touch it that would be fine................95% of the time

 

My line:

It's a car, not a couch...

 

Just drive your vehicle, and you won't have to worry about someone touching it.

 

I was at a rod show a couple of years back, went away from the car for a bit and when I came back some arsehole had lifted his kid in the car, I asked him what he was up to and he said "its ok mate the wee fella just wanted to pretend he was driving it" I asked him how he would feel if I went and helped myself to his belonging, and he couldn't quite get where I was coming from, I had to very politely tell him to fuck off, Ive seen it time and time again, what the hell is wrong with these people.
Touching my car in that manor is as bad as some prick trying to fuck my wife, its going to end in tears.

 

One of my car buds had some neighbors who let their young kids sit, walk, play on their vehicles in the driveway. Those cars were full of dents and all beat up. Can't you just imagine the havoc if that family attended a car show? Or how they would treat their own vehicles when they got older? It was like watching monkeys gone wild. Gary

 

I own a a 1958 BMW Isetta that I used to bring to shows. Being it has an odd front door entry and articulated steering assembly that tilts with the door, I'd leave the door open so all could see how it operates. That was until uncontrolled kids would climb into the car and jump up & down on the seat tugging at the wheel and column controls. After that it was always locked up. You never know who will climb into your ride...

 

Obviously you have had no upbringing! Your parents(if you had any) along with you,should be slapped,very often,just because yer a dumb shit! You have no clue do you......consume that dick head!

 

I pulled into a cruise night in my roadster on a hot summer night, the flathead was right at running temp for the last hour...
I walked away to grab a soda,
I turn around, middle aged guy has his complete weight on his elbows on my door top.
I make my way back over to confront him and out of nowhere a toddler starts running, hands straight out towards my smoking hot engine and exhaust.
I scoop up the little guy a split second before his little hands became bacon....
you know where this is going!
Guy goes nuts on me for "touching his kid"!!
After a quick discussion he walks away making comments such as:
"you shouldnt bring your car out in public if you dont want it looked at" and
"youre lucky my kid didnt get hurt or this car would have been mine"

I really cant stand alot of people...

 

this one's been covered in its own thread but i think its a worthy story to add it here again

We were eating breakfast at our local diner and came out to find a guy walking around the car checking it out. he was an older gentleman and we just figured he was reminicsing on old times; which isperfectly fine; we love for people to "enjoy" the car as much as we do. We were standing in the parking lot saying goodbye to family when i look over and the guy is opening the passenger side door. okay; now im a bit shell-shocked and i cant believe what im seeing. Now he climbs on in! ARE YOU KIDDING ME??!! He's in the car sitting on the seat; leaned over staring at the dash, etc. by now we're quickly walking over and the guy is clueless. by the time he realized we owned the car; we were standing at the doors staring at him when he proceeded to get out and say " nice car; i wanted to get a better look at the original dash." ...I couldnt believe it...

We devoted an entire winter to that car to make it nice. every night we were in the garage in sub-zero temps stripping paint, fixing dents, primer, paint, etc. Several weeks just went in to prep and paint stages! The car isn't perfect by any means but it looks nice and its eye catching. I dont know about anyone else; but A LOT of time, dedication, and love went into bringing that car back to life; not to mention hard earned money! The last thing i want is for some kid to run his nasty hand down the side of it or a mother smashign a stroller into the side of it because she couldnt get by. If someone wants to sit in it; that's fine...just ask first! I took the time out of my day to bring this car down and share it with everyone; and i enjoy doing it but i dont appreciate complete disrespect from others.

 

I'd agree with that. Mine is basically a pile right now but it's starting to come together and once I have it looking like something other than a rolling terd I'm not to hide it away but neither am I going to want people poking my car.

 

************************************************

EXCUSE ME?! WTF does a show's name have to do with keeping one's paws off someone else's property? Just because the show isn't titled "Concours Big Money Car Snob Show And Shine" doesn't make it ok for your yard rats to to use it as a jungle gym.

Roger

 

You guys who think that your car is "just a car" are obviously not real "car guys". To most of us, our cars are our sweat and tears and years of late night work trying for perfection. And if you can't appreciate someone else's love and dedication enough to respect it then just get in your rusty ass rat rods you spent a day building and just go mud bogging in it.

 

the main problem is that people today are stupid, and don't feel that they should be told by anyone that they can't do anything. also, the auto industry has allowed them to try on any car they see at auto and trade shows.

i don't feel that we should slap a kid for touching our cars, i say we go straight to the parents and give them a knock up side the head.

just a few of my thoughts.

-danny

 

Bingo. Don't mess with other people's shit unless they say it's okay. Parents, are y'all listening??

And that being said, this past Saturday at the Top Notch Burgers movie night in Austin, there was a truck on display. Under the hood was a little plaque that said, "If the door is open, get in" or something to that effect. I thought that was cool as hell. And, yes, the driver's side door was open.

 

A while back, I came out of a ball game to find about 6-8 people camped out around my OT lowered daily driver Chevy shortwide. Now granted it wasn't painted yet, only in primer, but, 3 people were leaning on it and a woman had her 5 year old sitting on the hood bouncing his heels off of the grill. I walked up to the woman and "politely" told her "I don't allow my own kids to sit or climb on my vehicles. Why would i allow yours to sit on it?" She just stood there with a dumbass look on her face while her husband, one of the jokers that had been leaning on the fender, comes over and, fortunately, apologizes and takes his child off my hood. I was mad and greatly out numbered but glad that they realized their mistake and it didn't escalate to the point of some one getting their ass kicked, namely-Me.

 

I agree with Danny. My old auto tech teacher always said: "Look with your eyes, not with your hands!"

 

No experience with car shows (yet), but last weekend at the March Airshow, several of our guys had their planes damaged by the crowd. Kids and adults climbing up on the wings, chinning themselves on the cockpit sides, putting their kids up in the cockpits, etc. It was an out of control mob scene. As fragile as car finishes are, imagine if your car was fabric rather than steel! Oh and if you say something, you're the one who's a prick.
Anyway, events with other enthusiasts seem to be cool. Everyone gets it and controls their kids and guests, but free events that are just open to the public, no more.

 

Touching is part of our early devolopment process, and if you have young uns around, its easy to see how it aids in the learning of many things.
That said, i guess some of us learn respect, and some dont.
So, to sum it all up, theres nothing that can eradicate this kind of pest, and car people will always have to suffer these fools.

 

Trailer queen or rust bucket.........If it's not yours, respect the property of others.

 

Open chromed motor roadster,so I'm coming back to the car at a show and see a mother had just told here little one to clime up there and she'll take a pick. I picked the little one up off the aircleaners and handed her to mommy very fast,at the point mommy shouts go to hell freck. Good thing the motor was not still hot,poor kid would of got burned to hell.

 

Ha, I have been around cars and bikes all my life literally. I have a real good friend that owns a '50 Riviera that I did a lot of the work on including me and him doing the final assembly. The hood opens on one side or the other side. for the life of me I can never remember how to open his hood.

Once in the '80s I had a daily pickup that was a kind of a raked down on the snout monochrome thing. Not a real HAMB truck but it was passable ans got me around quite nicely. I popped into a quick trip for coffee and a bag of donettes. I came out and there was this late corvette parked near it, this fella with a corvette jacket ( a real silky thing) was in front of my truck with his foot on my glossy painted front bumper talking to about half a dozen chicks. I didn't say a word I just marched over to the vette and parked my ass on his hood and proceeded to eat my donuts and drink my coffee.

He through a fit, I guess it was OK to throw a foot up on my bumper but it wasn't OK for me to sit on his plastic wonder. Go figure.

I think that we haven't really defined touching, sometimes I find a hand print or smudge on my car where it is obvious that someone got close and looked inside or the like. I really don't flip over that, putting your foot on the bumper is a totally different kind of touching.

 

No it is NOT a "f ing car" to me! I didn't knock on the guy's door and chat with him about his 100 damn cats for 10 years so I could buy just a "F ing" car. I didn't spend countless nights in the cold and heat rebuilding everything cuz it's just a "f ing" car. It's a "F ING DREAMCAR!"

Why are you here anyway? You obviously do not understand why we do what we do. You must drive a throw-a-way jap-opean-plastic no personality, history-less, future-less, POS that is a "consumable" item. That is fine cuz as they say there's an ass for every seat and I can tell from this statement in this forum that your seat is taken.

My cars are not "consumables!" Are you kidding me?? They are enjoyable part of who I am. They give great pleasure to many, hope to some and smiles to all. They are works of art, sweat, blood and often times my last dollar.

I suggest you take your happy little ass back to the Prius forum where you can talk about your consumable car parked next to all the other throw-a-ways. Consumable? Just like the Mona Lisa is a consumable.