Musings after attending a car show

Eric7810

Eric7810

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I am not a car show guy. It’s not my scene. I love cars, but the air of a car show never set well with me.

Well, I went to a local show tonight to try making some business connections.

I walked around probably 40 cars of all types and ages and did not notice even one that had tire shine on it. Cars showing up with petrified bug salads on their windshield, dried dirt on their Radial T/A’s, paint jobs ruined with swirls.

One person with a Regal Type T when I asked about their car care routine gave me the classic line “oh, I do my own detailing”. The car was wasted.

I don’t have any specific point with this post other than to say, car shows where I am from are the most confusing events you can imagine. Everyone with knees pad on bowing down worshipping a totally hammered 72 Nova. I show up with a restored 1998 Chevy Silverado detailed like crazy with zero swirls and no one gives a ####.


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Eric7810 said:
I am not a car show guy. It’s not my scene. I love cars, but the air of a car show never set well with me.

Well, I went to a local show tonight to try making some business connections.

I walked around probably 40 cars of all types and ages and did not notice even one that had tire shine on it. Cars showing up with petrified bug salads on their windshield, dried dirt on their Radial T/A’s, paint jobs ruined with swirls.

One person with a Regal Type T when I asked about their car care routine gave me the classic line “oh, I do my own detailing”. The car was wasted.

I don’t have any specific point with this post other than to say, car shows where I am from are the most confusing events you can imagine. Everyone with knees pad on bowing down worshipping a totally hammered 72 Nova. I show up with a restored 1998 Chevy Silverado detailed like crazy with zero swirls and no one gives a ####.


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Click to expand...

I have experienced the same, Eric.

There are very few "car guys" who give a crap about paint condition. Us AutoGeeks cringe at that, but it's the truth.

They are into every single aspect of the car (Year, model, options, rarity, mods, etc.) except paint condition.

I work at a Ford dealer, and I posted a while back about a guy with a 2005 Ford GT (dark blue) in our parking lot standing around it with a few other guys admiring it.

As I walked up on them to give my admiration for a rare 250k car, the paint swirls just screamed "Help me!!!). Lol

To each his own, but damn........
 
I remember going to a car show shortly after doing my first detailing course, I was so disappointed. It was a local Ford car club, but they'd invited a couple of other clubs. They called it a "Show n Shine". Maybe one or two were acceptable, the rest were rough. I think there's a lot of fear out there, especially if you haven't had hands on with some equipment or techniques. They don't want to make things worse. They'd never admit it though. The worst thing I've seen was a guy with an old 911 who at a self wash place applying wax, Mother's I think, before spraying, because it made washing it so much easier. He just drove and started applying wax on the dirty paint. Because he used to be a panel beater he knew what he was doing. So many swirls.

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I've never had any luck with car guys, especially tuners.

The price is always too high and they know someone who can do it cheaper.

Best of all I'm just a production detailer. I'm not out there quoting full paint corrections. Just production buffs lol.
 
Same with muscle car guys....

$$$$ in motors etc.

They think detailers and paint correction should be cheap...

Sigh, prolly gonna give it up in couple years and just kick back and enjoy a beer with old age!

Tom
 
Been to lots of car shows.....hot rods, tuners, lifted 4x4's, Corvettes....and I'm always amazed at how poor the paint is on most of the cars....even the Corvettes.
 
•I have mostly attended: “The All-Comers Are
Welcome” and “All Proceeds Go To Charity” types
of car shows—events where I know in advance
that there will be very few actual Show Cars
present. (Show Car owners know all too well the
hazards associated with such events!)

As such:
-At “TACAW”/“APGTC” car shows I expect basic
cleanliness, not perfection (and I sure don’t go
about looking for either, just for criticism’s sake
or otherwise).

-Much more FUN to be had in participating in plain
old fashioned visiting with fellow enthusiasts and
past acquaintances.

-Oh yeah: and the food trucks. :hungry:

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

•Conversely:
-It’s when I attend “Classic” car shows, where it’s being
advertised as having actual Show Cars on display; or
any of the annual Manufacturers’ Automotive Shows;
is where I’m guilty of scrutinizing every square inch of
the Show Cars—often to the owners chagrin, I must add.



Bob
 
I find the same thing at car shows I have attended. Most notably at Detailfest. They had such sweet cars, here we are where I learn so much about car detailing and most cars were a mess.
 
It's kind of funny to see this post. I grew up in Metro Detroit, and saw the same thing...major car guys who were content to just wash the car and when they went all out they might throw on some tire shine. I love cars and have been lightly modding them for as long as I've had them, it was my love of cars that sent me down the detailing path. When you have a black car that started off shiny and gradually became swirled, how can you not notice that? I sure did and started learning how to take care of the car's paint too.

Having said that, sometimes detailer enthusiast me, fights with car enthusiast me. Track the car versus "heck no, all that rubber and dirt on the paint?"
 
Big Dave said:
Most car guys, are NOT detailing guys. They just think they are.
Click to expand...


100% aggree.


Here's a question for you all....


The guys you see on TV on all the "Car Guy Shows".


Do you think they're detailing guys?


Do you think they know the difference between a Swirl and a Squirrel?


I'd LOVE to here your thoughts - so reply with what you think.


:dig:
 
We have to get the word out about Autogeek to these car guys so that they can preserve their vehicles the way they ought to be.
 
Bill D said:
We have to get the word out about Autogeek to these car guys so that they can preserve their vehicles the way they ought to be.
Click to expand...


We tried with 2 TV shows. :dunno:


Here's what I've come to do - I divide Car Guys into 2 groups.

1: Bolt-on Guys

2: Finish Guys


Bolt-on guys simply bolt cars together. They will look right at a swirled-out car and say to themselves,

That looks nice!


They just don't see it. They don't get it.



Finish Guys will bolt or "build" a car and then make sure it's finished out right. When they look at a car, they not only look at the fitment of the body panels and everything else - they look to see if the paint finish quality matches the build-quality of the car.

I'd say Finish Guys are far and few between.



:)
 
I am thinking out loud here... what if you could show these people who are not interested or don't know about detailing?
Not saying this is 100% thought out and input and brain storming is encouraged.
Some of the bigger shows have vendors, why not get a vendor space, along with your favorite AIO products, a selection of pads and towels and offer to do a small 2x2 area to show them how you can make their paint better?

Find a good spot on the car that will represent before and after such as the hood, trunk or spoiler?
Mark out an area with a good examples of swirls, scratches or whatever, do that area then let them see the difference for themselves.
Seeing is believing, and some may not even have noticed the swirls or scratches because it was never pointed out to them.
A good example of this is my wife, she did not see those things until I started pointing them out. Now she sees them and points them out.

I know some car guys are not going to let anyone touch their car but themselves, but with a few good demos, the news will get around fast.
Once you do that one area it's going to stick out like a sore thumb and they are not going to want that there so they will come back asking for more.

I know there are more details to work out on how to approach this,things like worrying about damaging someones paint while doing this but i think if you use the Mike approach of do no harm and start out with least aggressiveness you would be pretty safe. I think any improvement you can show someone they will be convinced.

Spend a little money for a vendor space, use a good product, don't charge for the demo, you would be out some time, product, labor but if done right it would end up making you money.

Some of you will read this and say "boomerman" you are a silly newbie, this will never work, and that may be true but maybe as a collective we all give input and figure out why it may not have worked the first time and make it work.
 
It might be an uphill battle. Autogeek and Meguiar’s do rent tents at shows and events to demonstrate defect correction yet the overwhelming majority of car guys still don’t see swirls. :(
 
Bill D said:
It might be an uphill battle. Autogeek and Meguiar’s do rent tents at shows and events to demonstrate defect correction yet the overwhelming majority of car guys still don’t see swirls. :(
Click to expand...

I am talking about the smaller ones not the big mega ones.
 
Good thread !

Im also floored at people that can't see the dull, scratched, swirled surface of there vehicle.

I do find that a short conversation and a few pictures usually at least makes them aware.

Kind of like teaching someone how to do a magic eye so they can see the image. :detailer:
 
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