Overheard at a car show

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The ones who pay admission to the gate and come in and make the comments ("hey, it's a flathead slant six!") are coming in to be educated, for the most part. This kid truly didn't know. I was standing on the other side of the car and showed him all the engine he thought a V12 was the neatest thing he's ever scene. And educating people about the 239 in the '54 is fun. (For the most part, thanks to reading Hot Rod and Camaro...errr Car Craft they are mostly educated on Chevy and have no idea that Ford made the switch to OHV a year before Chevy did.)
But when a guy can throw money at the hobby and never once learn anything about his car other than the rarity of it, is that a good thing or a detriment? And to treat others with a kind of attitude that says "I'm better than you because I own this.." will that have some kind of affect on the gate and those who are coming in to admire, meet and greet, and get inspiration for their own cars?
 
Seems to me that everyone and their father USED to own a Hemi Cuda - at least that's what they say.

I also love when I tell people that I own a Superbee, they always reply: "oh, the one with the big wing?"
 
ramenth said:
And to treat others with a kind of attitude that says "I'm better than you because I own this.."
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An attitude like that has always repulsed me whether it's a car at a show or anything else that's material.

That's why I like to go to small local shows. Not nearly as much attitude and most people there really know their cars inside and out. Who cares if they painted themselves or only paid 5 grand for the paintjob instead of 15k? These people are usually true enthusiasts who built there car in their garage, just like me. :) Yes the quality isn't the same as going to a "Goodguys" event but how many fiberglass and plastic early Fords can you honestly take? It also seems that the big event people save up a buttload of cash and just commission a car from a well known builder then sit in a lawn chair. How fun can that be? Ask one of these guys what gears they have in the quick change rear end and all you'll receive is a deer in the headlights look. Then ask them what cam they're running, what jets are in the dual quad holleys and how much total timing they're running. I've had guys just turn away and just talk to someone else about what wax they use and where they bought the stuffed animals. :toothy10:
 
I wanna go to a car show with ALL of you. Terrific stories!!!

Mine's never been in a show yet (no progress since 2006) but I can't wait to do some poser bustin of my own.
 
340john said:
I just got back from a car show in Macungie, PA... I heard a few comments that made me laugh. A man in his 40's looking at a '70 442 convertible with his son said "you don't see many 442's, people use these and clone them into GTO's, GS's and Chevelle's" Then I was looking at a really pretty '69 Charger Daytona, when I hear one guy say to his friend, "wow look at this, its a Charger with road runner package" What are some of the funny comments you heard at car shows ?
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PLEASE don't put all PA people in the same category as those meatball!!!!
 
whitey said:
PLEASE don't put all PA people in the same category as those meatball!!!!
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People are people no matter where they are from. I have overheard similar stories at multipal shows in NJ, NY, PA, FL, VA and so on. I would never put PA people down...I have alot of family from New Kensington/Pittsburg area.
 
70DartMike said:
One time I came back to the car at the beach and there was a guy doing a line of coke on my trunk. I ask 'WTF' and he says 'Chill man, it's like I'm doin coke in the 70's!'. I don't think so.

Another time I had a lady tell me she was positive my car was the same one she lost her virginity in, in the back seat. She says that the front fender even has this little rust spot. Well, that little rust spot just happened over the past 2 years, so most unlikely. Either way I don't really want to know if someone lost their virginity on my seats.
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Okay Mike, you win! haha :D
 
I am a car guy so I love Mopars, GM's and Fords, but the one thing I hate at car shows comes from the Chevy guys.... when talking about their engine they ALL have "corvette" motors! I always wonder where is this large field full of Corvettes without engines, so that guys could put the powerplant in their 78 Malibu's!!!!!!
 
sinister blue said:
I am a car guy so I love Mopars, GM's and Fords, but the one thing I hate at car shows comes from the Chevy guys.... when talking about their engine they ALL have "corvette" motors! I always wonder where is this large field full of Corvettes without engines, so that guys could put the powerplant in their 78 Malibu's!!!!!!
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That's actually a good point. I've heard that said by a lot of Chevy guys, even from the 'Vette owners. (You mean someone stole the original engine for their Malibu and you had to hunt down another 'Vette engine?) LMAO
 
My favorites are the ones about the 440 hemi's the guy used to own or his buddy in high school had.
 
ramcharger said:
An attitude like that has always repulsed me whether it's a car at a show or anything else that's material.

That's why I like to go to small local shows. Not nearly as much attitude and most people there really know their cars inside and out. Who cares if they painted themselves or only paid 5 grand for the paintjob instead of 15k? These people are usually true enthusiasts who built there car in their garage, just like me. :) Yes the quality isn't the same as going to a "Goodguys" event but how many fiberglass and plastic early Fords can you honestly take? It also seems that the big event people save up a buttload of cash and just commission a car from a well known builder then sit in a lawn chair. How fun can that be? Ask one of these guys what gears they have in the quick change rear end and all you'll receive is a deer in the headlights look. Then ask them what cam they're running, what jets are in the dual quad holleys and how much total timing they're running. I've had guys just turn away and just talk to someone else about what wax they use and where they bought the stuffed animals. :toothy10:
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Unfortunately, though, I think we've all seen a few guys like this even on the local levels. Mix a couple of Stingray 'Vette owners into the mix on local levels and you'll see it. At the Chevy garage we used to have joke: what's the difference between a 'Vette and a porcupine? A porcupine has pricks on the outside.
 
ramenth said:
Unfortunately, though, I think we've all seen a few guys like this even on the local levels. Mix a couple of Stingray 'Vette owners into the mix on local levels and you'll see it. At the Chevy garage we used to have joke: what's the difference between a 'Vette and a porcupine? A porcupine has pricks on the outside.
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You've got a point. That's why I qualified my statement with "most" and "not nearly as much", lol. Some judges are crooked at small shows too. :toothy10:
 
i had one guy ask me where i found my duster coupe? and i said to him excuse me he said your notchback duster where did you find it? i just laughed and told him brazil and they only made them on tuesdays for six months... he agreed and said he had heard that once before and i had another guy tell me my car was a 73 because in 73 they had no marker lights so i went along with him. lol people are crazy
 
daredevil said:
i love the 69 camaro guys with the ford 302s lol
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That kind of go's hand in hand with people looking at my Coronet 500 and saying "Wow, that thing must be fast...it got a 500 cubic inch motor"...while it really had a poly 318.
 
I had a 73 plymouth fury 4 door hardtop that I bought for $100.00 for a winter car about 20 years ago. In the late spring I cut the roof off and had a convertible. I even made a fake boot for the "top". I used to have people come up to me and say things like, nice Lincoln. Or , I havn't seen one of those in years!!! My favorite was, wow I never seen a convertible with a speaker deck!
 
340john said:
That kind of go's hand in hand with people looking at my Coronet 500 and saying "Wow, that thing must be fast...it got a 500 cubic inch motor"...while it really had a poly 318.
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I have those folks covered. ive got a net 500 with a 500. i cant count the people who wanted my coronet 440 parts car cause they all thought it had a 440
 
daredevil said:
I have those folks covered. ive got a net 500 with a 500. i cant count the people who wanted my coronet 440 parts car cause they all thought it had a 440
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I remember reading an article in Mopar Muscle about 20 years ago about Tom Hoovers personal '66 Hemi Coronet, where he took the 440 emblems so it didn't confuss people.
 
ramcharger said:
...I've had guys just turn away and just talk to someone else about ... where they bought the stuffed animals. :toothy10:
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LOL!!! That was a good one! I have yet to figure out the whole stuffed animal/miniature model on the rotating mirror thing. Kinda silly, IMHO.
 
Perfect timing for this thread.

Last Tuesday I stopped at a grocery store with my 68 Road Runner.
2 fellows were looking at it when I came out.
One asked me what I had in it.
I said "It's got a 383".
Thats when he asked "Is it one of them stroker 383's?"
I said "No"
He then said "Thats too bad, Man. The factory only made 500 of them strokers! Youda really had somthin if ya had one of them"

"THEY WALK AMONG US"
 
charger70 said:
Perfect timing for this thread.

Last Tuesday I stopped at a grocery store with my 68 Road Runner.
2 fellows were looking at it when I came out.
One asked me what I had in it.
I said "It's got a 383".
Thats when he asked "Is it one of them stroker 383's?"
I said "No"
He then said "Thats too bad, Man. The factory only made 500 of them strokers! Youda really had somthin if ya had one of them"

"THEY WALK AMONG US"
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Must`ve been a very confused Chevy guy. Did Mopar make an awful lot of cars 500 at a time or what???? .:toothy10:
 
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