Non Car People - who raises there people?

DeadSkunk (Warren) said:

I've been a car guy all my life and even my interest is waning. Maybe it's age , or maybe it's because I can cruise all the local car lots and see very little product that has an excitement level above that of my fridge. It'll be difficult to get my grandsons excited about some form of SUV/CUV

This. I was going to start a thread on this very topic.

But to the original post; I've had some work done at the house recently and cycled through several contractors doing various things. I ran about a 50% ratio of those who dug my motorcycles and those who didn't apparently see them...in the living room. Not too different than the ratio that notices the model train stuff in the utility room.

Ages vary, but it is more unusual for the younger to strike up a conversation about my stuff. That may also be a cultural shift in being outgoing/conversation starters. I find the younger people aren't as gabby as guys my age.

I understand where you're coming from, OP, but would you be real interested if someone had a guitar or BMX bike or surfboard collection? For some people, cars are just appliances. I honestly couldn't care less about surfboards or guitars (the BMX bikes might give me some nostalgia) so I probably wouldn't want to chat up about them when I'm working and just trying to get home.

ShawnG said:

A guy I know is just getting into the car hobby at around 50 years old. His first classic car is V4 powered Saab 96. He goes to car meets, tours, Carbs and Coffee, shows, etc. He's having Ferrari fun with Model T money. That's what it's all about.

We need more of those in the Triumph club.  I'm usually the youngest member in attendance at meets and I'm 50. There is some hope that as we Gen-Xers age, the kids move out and maybe have a bit more play money that will allow them to make up for aging Baby Boomers.

I agree about old cars being just fun. One of the "sponsors" in our Triumph club owns a couple of restoration shops.  Their annual open house parties are a lot of fun. Where else can I go and see two BMW 507's sitting in storage. Two of one of the beautiful cars ever built.  They will also have at least one "1 of 1" example of something getting restored. 

I'm not sure where my "car gene" came from. Not my parents or their parents, nor any close relatives or friends. My father has zero mechanical aptitude and has trouble just changing a light bulb. My mother isn't much better. But I did grow up during the era of "car characters" on TV, starting with Speed Racer cartoons and other shows like the Dukes and Knight Rider.  Even otherwise innocuous things like the Mystery Machine in Scooby Doo cartoons can play a part.  I don't know if more recent generations had the same exposure.

I've been a car guy since before I could walk according to my parents. My parents are NOT car people. Everything I know about cars has come from internet forums and friends. I didn't really have car-guy friends until I started autocrossing when I was in college either. Sometimes I wonder what it would have been like if I had grown up in a more auto-centric family. Would I have been as big of a car person, or would I have distanced my self from it (rebellious teen kinda attitude)?

I can't tell if my kids will be into cars yet or not. It certainly isn't something I will force on them but I hope it is something we can bond over as they grow up. Even if it just means they have some fond memories of spending time with Dad in the garage.

I guess I'm not a car guy either, cars/bikes are just types of stuff, and everyone has stuff of some kind.  I'm interested in what gets DONE with stuff.  Somebody that has a garage full of X stuff, that occasional gets driven to a show or something else, and gets polished in the driveway isn't going to catch my interest.  Maybe that person's wife with a sewing machine and patterns and stuff in the garage would interest me more, because you DO things with a sewing machine and patterns, you don't just have them and look at them.

Lots of great fabricators, machinists, builders I know aren't 'into' cars or motorcycle or planes or whatever thing it is that they might be working on making the most beautiful, perfect stuff that I've ever seen.  They're into DOING, and that's a big difference, because that's no different than using other types of tools (digital, aritistic, etc) and doing something with it.  There will always be people doing cool stuff, that it's not cars or motorcycles doesn't mean it goes away, it will just change.  But that human impulse to create, to do, will never go away.

I'm sure wagon and chariot builders lamented whatever the new thing was that replaced what they worked on.  Maybe future generations will lament these lame ass teleportation machines that people work on instead of hovering cars and supersonic trains or whatever.

I am a car guy, raised by a sort-of-car-guy but took a tortious path there.  I was really into RC as a kid but jumped into music (guitar, bands, etc) through my mid-late teens. Didn't rediscover racing and building cars until FSAE in college and a few E36 M3ty VWs I needed to keep running. Sometimes they come around, I did. 

I agree with having fits of waning interest over the years. I sold off all my beaters and projects a few years ago and am concentrating on just one car. That has helped a bit.

On a more philosophical note...

I have for a long time decided that the world is divided evenly into three kinds of people.

The fist is the inquisitive and imaginative type who try to understand how anything and  everything works and applies it for the the betterment of the herd. Significant levels of empathy.

The second is a predator type who is intuitive at understanding how things work and gaming the system to their personal benefit. Zero Empathy.

The third class sleeps, wakes up, eats and E36 M3s without giving much if any thought to the spaces in between. Probably the most content of the three.

It may be that you were dealing with the last type of personality. It just never occurred that there was anything of interest in front of him.

In reply to TheRX7Project :

I grew up in Hawaii so yes to the surf boards & a large number of motorcycle racing friends started on BMX bikes so yes to those as well but obviously those specific things weren't the point of your questions.  If someone has any kind of collection I'm likely to ask about it whether it's beer bottles or old Ferraris.

Our house is an interesting place; beyond the cars and motorcycles, I also have a train room and I have a collection of books. My wife is an avid gardener, she has a sewing room, is an avid cook and a she is also an artist. The walls upstairs are covered with her art plus the living room has a collection of African masks. Also my son is an avid gamer so we have a little bit of everything.

While I am not entirely serious about it, I must admit I am somewhat suspicious of people without some kind of hobby................unless of course they are a Tibetan monk, I could see how hauling engine blocks up those high steps might be an issue.

Just adding to the pile. I'm the only car person in my immediate family. Despite growing up with only Toyota Camrys and Honda Accords I was fascinated by anything with an engine: cars, planes, boats, you name it. My parents, sibling and wife have generally zero interest unless it's placating me in some way although my dad has shown some nostalgic interest in AMC Gremlins (God, help him). I'd like to think I'm not pushing any of my three children into the hobby but they've all been to races, track days and car shows with me. Our oldest definitely expresses an interest in how things work and therefore asks a ton a questions. I've had him help with oil changes and similar light maintenance but his interests are more in sports a video games at the moment. Our middle child's interest seems more sparked by color. If it's pink/purple she'll point it out immediately and run over to it. I also fear we have a "Jeep girl" in the making with that one. Our youngest honestly scares me. She has this no-fear mentality that I'm concerned will lead toward all sorts of reckless activities. If any of them get into motorsports it mosts likely her.

As for why people aren't interested, I've got several ideas and it looks like they've all been mentioned: price of admission and a prevailing sentiment about the environment are probably the biggest. The not-making-comments-about-customers-things concept makes a lot of sense too although I've definitely had a lot of service folks comment about my RX7s (and I'm happy to oblige in conversation).

I think car people just spontaneously happen independent of upbringing. My mom was not openly car curious, and I never met my dad so his car influence was minimal. I was all about cars from my first encounter with a matchbox. No interest in dolls whatsoever, much to my mom's dismay. As I got older I learned that my granddad on my mom's side was a petrol head, but he passed on long before I was a thing, so perhaps it skips a generation? 

DeadSkunk (Warren) said:

I've been a car guy all my life and even my interest is waning. Maybe it's age , or maybe it's because I can cruise all the local car lots and see very little product that has an excitement level above that of my fridge. It'll be difficult to get my grandsons excited about some form of SUV/CUV

I can relate to this as well.  There are plenty of capable cars out there now, but the odd and cool stuff are things of the past. And every car now is massively reliable and require almost no owner maintenance.  And truthfully, even average econo cars and big cars are in many cases equal to sports cars in terms of performance.  

DeadSkunk (Warren) said:

I've been a car guy all my life and even my interest is waning. Maybe it's age , or maybe it's because I can cruise all the local car lots and see very little product that has an excitement level above that of my fridge. It'll be difficult to get my grandsons excited about some form of SUV/CUV

I get it. There's not a lot of really interesting stuff on the lots these days.

On the other hand, it's never been easier to buy a car capable of excellent performance, sometimes at a pretty decent price. Maybe we're spoiled. Regarding your grandsons, there will be something for them to get excited about. I said it before (and was told I was wrong - we'll see), these things run in cycles. There will be something interesting in the future.

racerdave600 said:

DeadSkunk (Warren) said:

I've been a car guy all my life and even my interest is waning. Maybe it's age , or maybe it's because I can cruise all the local car lots and see very little product that has an excitement level above that of my fridge. It'll be difficult to get my grandsons excited about some form of SUV/CUV

I can relate to this as well.  There are plenty of capable cars out there now, but the odd and cool stuff are things of the past. And every car now is massively reliable and require almost no owner maintenance.  And truthfully, even average econo cars and big cars are in many cases equal to sports cars in terms of performance.  

As someone who vintage races it's pretty obvious I like older stuff but I do have to say I find new cars drive amazing.

So for the record; my dad liked cars but wasn't really a car guy as we think of it.  My uncle was a car guy but it was really my brother and cousin who got me into to cars, so much so that when I was 5 I announced I was going to be a race car driver when I grew up.

stuart in mn said:

It's not new.  Enthusiasts have been in the minority since day 1.  The majority of the population has always looked as cars as a mode of transportation only.

Agree, though it's a circular discussion. By definition, "enthusiast" means someone who gets more excited about something than the majority of people, which puts them in the minority.

I sometimes drive my self-built car, and when stopped at intersections, watch through my sunglasses the cars around me and the occupants. I'm amazed how few people even notice; they're all lost in their own worlds of day-to-day issues, dramas, and probably reading cellphones.

Look, I get it, not everyone notices unusual cars. I get it that there are many more distractions before the PC came along... but... they're on the road, presumably paying attention, having to navigate around other cars. How can they not notice anything unusual?

Oh, and I know the answer: they're oblivious, it's just too depressing to think about.

That said, and playing devil's advocate, I say that interest in cars started a downturn right around when emissions equipment, testing, and ECUs happened. Ever since then, people have been doing less and less because it's harder, more expensive, and/or illegal.

A recent car show I went to was a bunch of dead stock cars that were lowered and had $4000 wheels on them. Okay... and? There was no "and", it was just kind of depressing that it's what it's come to. Sure there are exceptions, but I do feel like the ground has shifted beneath our feet some.

GTwannaB said:

How about this theory. When I was a youngin cars broke down on a regular basis. More folks had to.be familiar with mechanical thing and more people had some form of tools. Now cars are as reliable as a washing machine, so they are appliances. 

Fair point. I remember a guy bragging about how fast his 60's car was, but admitted that he had to change the plugs every 3000 miles. Now it's what, every 100K miles?

My wife has zero interest in the car hobby.  But I got her to start watching Top Gear a few years back. 

She really liked it.  I mean like scheduling time to watch it and not just wandering in while I watched.

She finally admitted that though she still isn't a "car person" watching that show taught her why some people do have a high interest in cars as a  hobby.   

GTwannaB said:

How about this theory. When I was a youngin cars broke down on a regular basis. More folks had to.be familiar with mechanical thing and more people had some form of tools. Now cars are as reliable as a washing machine, so they are appliances. 

Funny, I got into tinkering with stuff and later on cars because I thought dad was a mechanical guy. Turns out that while he did appreciate a nice car, he was only doing mechanical stuff because he had 5 kids, no money and his cars were all crappy Morris Minors and VW Bugs. He used to do rallies, not because he was a car guy or driver, but rather because he was really good with numbers and like the navigator role of TSD competition. To me he was a "Racer" and it was way cool.

Tom1200 said:

Yesterday afternoon we had a new fridge for the garage delivered.  The delivery guy was in his twenties, he walked right past my sons VIP LS400, the F500, the Datsun and didn't even bat an eyelash at all the memorabilia tacked to the walls.  I'm sure he didn't even see the motorcycles.

We were probably his last delivery of the day so I get the guy was probably dog tired but clearly he simply wasn't a car guy.

A guy in his twenties not into cars; how does this happen? Who raises these people???................I don't comprehend this at all and I'm truly concerned about society.

 

He may have just delivered to a person with a garage full of 6 figure exotics.  He may also be told by his employer to not discuss things like this as down the road say in a week your garage is broken in to and then people will be asking who was in there recently and has anyone paid noticeable special attention to what is in your garage lately.  It is a Company CYA thing.

In reply to dean1484 :

He was steely eyed and never strayed from his mission, that's for sure.....................poor lost soul.

I can't help but picture Cobra Kai's Johnny Lawrence giving his "man, when I was your age we were into fast cars, hot babes, and rad music!" 

I will admit that the increasing costs of what were once cheap, spritely cars has pushed lots of people away. In the 90's and early 2000's, you could find any number of 80's dream machines for ridiculously low prices. What I wouldn't have done to get a 240SX back in 2003? Or an AE86...lordy.

Drift and sites like BringATrailer have made a lot of those clean examples far more expensive, especially cars that were easy to work on and fast from the factory.

The 1990-2005 model years also saw a big decrease in fun, simple cars. We got a lot of grand tourers and whiz-bang Japenese products, but aside from the Mustang and Camaro, everything else was FWD. I know so many people who's interest in cars dropped off after they replaced the motor in their DSM for 3rd time. 

Today I don't how a kid could afford to modify a fun car. Entry level wages suck. College is expensive. 

Great documentary re: car guys and their sons. 

https://jalopnik.com/legendary-1970-dodge-challenger-426-street-racer-known-1845983410

edit-I'M NOT CRYING, YOU'RE CRYING!

My oldest, he has his license and a car, and I can't get him to drive anywhere, especially by himself.  I think in the 4 months he's had his car and license he's driven once by himself.

In reply to pheller :

3 years ago we sold our tatty NA miata to a 18 year old kid for $1200. It's still a beater but the kid (training to be an aircraft mechanic) loves it and has been modding it since 10 minutes after he got it. There is still stuff out there if you're standards are flexible.

I remember 40 years ago seeing a teen about my age driving a 4dr automatic Corolla and shaking my head, wondering where his parents went wrong.

My Dad was a mechanic and racer. I was always interested in cars and bikes, and eventually became a mechanic and racer. I've had a project car since I learned to drive.

My youngest son, the one I expected to be a mechanic,  just seemed to understand mechanical things from a young age. The older one was more interested in playing hockey and combing his hair. While the younger one is definitely a car guy, and has put together some really nice cars, never developed hardcore skills. The older one is now a mechanic, has a C5, a DTS, a few Sidekicks, a newer Silverado and is building a big block square body Chev truck. He's got it bad. And he got it from me. And I got it from my Dad