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A friend of mine has been prodding me to get up and go to a Cars and Coffee for a long time now. Well this particular show was on his birthday. I don't like car shows in general and I like to sleep in when I can so getting up early to go to a car show is So I told him I'll get up and go to this one.
Anyways, I get up and head to the show where he was already there and saved a parking spot for me next to him with the other BMWs. I left the windows down so people could see inside but then I went AWOL. I went to the cafe and had a sandwich with tea while I was playing on my phone. After being gone for an hour, I come back and my buddy told me that other people would come by my car and wanted to talk to me about it. He told them I was gone. He then told me that that can be considered rude although he didn't care himself.
Unfortunately, one guy "caught" me and asked me the same old questions about it. I was respectful although I made my answers short. I just don't like being asked the same old questions about it. It's just a car. After that I looked at the other cars and got bored so I just started chatting up my buddy for the last part of the meet.
However, you guys are way more enthusiastic about cars then I could ever hope to be. So let me ask y'all. Is it rude for a car owner to not hang around and be accessible to the public for small talk or whatever?
Location: East of Seattle since 1992, 615' Elevation, Zone 8b - originally from SF Bay Area
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I only do classic cars shows, and not only is it rude, in fact it's a requirement of many shows that the owner stay by their car the whole time. Last time I showed my 1972 El Camino in a local big car show, I actually did stay by it and had many people ask questions. I took off about an hour to wander around and look at other cars but during that time had a friend who knew a lot about my car stand in for me. Cars & Coffee is a far more informal, almost drop-in type of event, so I don't think it's nearly as big a deal as those where there is an entry fee and prizes awarded.
Are you feeling OK? Pretending to care what others think of what you do is certainly out of character for you...
In the unlikely event that you're sincere... if your car is part of the "show" lineup, it's customary to be near it at least for a good while to answer questions, talk with attendees, etc. If nothing else, at least have a sign prepared that lists year/make/model, specs, customizations, what makes your car unique/special, etc. That way the questions you're tired of asking are already answered, and if you're interested, you can mosey around for a while to view other participants' cars and still make information available about your own.
I take my 65 Cobra replica to small shows and I usually park it and go looking at other cars and trucks, I love the trucks.
These shows are more like casual cruise ins where people/ cars come and go at will and there are no awards.
I think it is kind of silly to hang out by your car because so many ask silly questions. I do keep it light and fun because I'm a friendly guy. For me #1 question is "is it real" and I say "if it was I wouldn't be here and it wouldn't be painted purple" I then go on to tell them how the real 427 Cobras with a racing history go at auction for $800,000 and up.
At the last show I was at 3 people asked me if my shirt was the inspiration for the paint? The shirt was blue not purple so I didn't get it. Another silly question I have heard is from my fold up camp chairs which are purple and black. "Did the chairs come first of the car?"
I know people mean well and it is all taken as a joke but some guys insist on telling me about my car and they have zero clue like when I tell them that I used the drive train out of a 1990 mustang 5.0 and I bolted it up to the tubular steel frame that came with the kit. They then go on to tell me that the mustang doesn't have a frame..... UGH
I like to wander at car shows after all I know what my car looks like and I want to see others.
I only do classic cars shows, and not only is it rude, in fact it's a requirement of many shows that the owner stay by their car the whole time.
That's why I have zero interest in judged shows. I like to make the rounds.
I also have a bunch of informational items that I place on and around my car.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Cape Cod Todd
I take my 65 Cobra replica to small shows
I always talk to the Cobra replica guys.
Many of them say the purists dismiss them because they're not "real", but I think they're cool.
I go to our monthly cars and coffee often and I rarely see the owners of the cars standing by them. Maybe because ours is in a country club for cars (custom garages with cars parked in front of the doors) Seeing parked cars bores me to no end. Everyone (hundreds of people) including myself stand and watch cars take off leaving the complex. Watching a Mclaren P1 and twin turbo Lamborghini Murcielago take off hard was music to my ears!
I've been doing this for a few years and no way I am sitting by my car for 4 or 5 hours straight. At regular shows I hang around the car until the judges come by, then it's off to get something to eat and check out the rest of the vehicles. After that it's back to the car for the rest of the time. At the Cars and Coffee event I attend most people just mingle and talk cars and bikes. A few stay by their cars but, that's the exception not the norm.
I took the OP going to new car shows, not to show his own car but I have a similar dilemma. I regularly go to the annual car show in Philly. Not wanting to go alone, I often cajole family members to go with me, and I always regret it. Nobody is really interested, they get bored and start skipping around. I want to visit every booth from one end to another. The last thing you want to do is to go somewhere with someone who doesn’t want to be there. They keep rushing you and you don’t enjoy it. I much prefer to just go alone.
Nah it's a Cars and Coffee and I went to show my own car but my friend knows I hate going to car shows. He really wanted me to go because I guess he likes the car I have. Anyways, I didn't think most owners would hang around their cars all day. I could have went and had my tea and entertaining myself the entire time. I went because the meet fell on his birthday.
I don't show my car competitively. Car shows can get "political" just like anything which comes down to subjective judging.
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