Simple yet Difficult Question....

So the other day my wife asked me why I was so obsessed with cars and such. It kind of caught me off guard, I really couldn't answer. It got me to thinking, why do I love cars. I honestly can't put my finger on it. To quote Joe Dirt, "Why are ****s good?". Well, they just are.

So why do you love cars?

I think for me it's the fact that I can make them work with my two hands. The fellowship with other car nuts(not to be confused with truck nuts. Lol!) And most of all, I look at them as functional works of art.

 

I like collecting, working, driving the oldies I have because they get thumbs up from most everyone. Don't cost alot to insure and register. BEST OF ALL, THEY LISTEN AND DON'T TALK BACK TO YOU!

 

The notion of the mobility of the soul, the manifest destiny of the psyche; the ability to quickly change ones surroundings and travel to new and exciting places; the mechanicalness and purposefullness of each system and part, underlying the mixture of form coupled with function.


****s are good.

 

I like that you can work on them yourself and have your choice of what you want it to look like. I really like that your car will always be different than the one next to you.

 

I just love the sounds of the engine, the design of them, to create something unique and amazing. I just love cars!

 

You can get rid of them!

 

when you drive down the freeway in your car and a guy in a 450 SL (or similar) says nice car, YEA for $40K less. I feel good!

 

You said it ****s. It takes your hands to work both.

 

The transition from normal life to something a bit beyond. Once you fire it up, the heart starts pumping with excitement, anticipation, familiarity, appreciation, and pride..with your personal knowledge, that you, and you alone, are the reason it is on the road.

 

Like so many others i would suspect, they make it easy to get in and forget about the world and whats going on at home.

 

Well, everybody needs a hobby. You might as well pick a cool one.

 

Heh heh.... you win!

 

I can't put my finger on it either. I don't drink, smoke, only curse when I smash my fingers so my only vice is old cars. I like the fact that I know just enough to keep them running and other old car people seem to be good people in general. It gives me a happy heart :0)

 

It gives me a chance to relax. Old cars and old bikes, grease and grinder dust all things that allow me to escape from myself. I'm just not a very nice person to be around.

But to answer your wife just pick something that she likes and reverse the roles on her. Doesn't work with mine she likes old cars and old bikes too.

 

Someone much smarter than me recently posted this on the HAMB:

To those who understand, no explanation is needed.
To those who don't understand, no explanation is possible.

The same would apply to those who love to do or just appreciate art, music, literature, etc. or anything that involves creativity. Sometimes there is no definitive answer to the question why? ... it just is.

 

To me t's just an obsession I'm born with. Some sort of permanent mental handicap

( honestly, I also think (but it may be just an excuse) it's also the combination af art/creativity, craftmanship, pride of accomplishment, freedom and the fact it can still have some practical use, that makes it 'right' for me)

 

It's the ultimate proof that knowledge, p***ion and effort result in something unique. You can't buy it; you have to build it yourself. For a man who will never be wealthy, it is a statement of accomplishment. For a man not born with a well-appointed garage, it's an expression of belief in himself.
Nah, it's what r8odecay said.

 

My parents wouldn't buy me an instrument for band.

 

I don't know about the rest of you guys, but I like everything that is old... old houses, old furniture, old toys, old cars.... I don't like just "cars". I like old cars.

don't ask me why.

 

I stopped reading after "****s".

 

The smell and sound of engines always does it for me. Cam2 is the best ****.

As a side note, my wife's friend asked if I wanted to drive their new Saturn Sky someplace a couple years ago. I said I wasn't interested. She says "Oh, you're not car guy, huh?". What the hell?!?!?! I own race cars, my old pickups, a pro street car, go to races and car shows all the time. I just sat and looked at her. She wanted to know what was wrong and I told her I was at a loss for words, that had never been said around me before. The wife was rolling on the floor. It was very odd.

SPark

 

I've liked mechanical stuff ever since I was old enough to tear up a Nylint dump truck, put together a simple tractor I saw in my mind with Erector pieces, make a semi tractor with Legos before they offered wheels, and learned to repair coaster brakes on my salvage yard type bicycle.
It just comes natural to me. I use it at work and on my stuff. I enjoy it.
Racing fuel burning in the morning is better than napalm.

 

This, posted by 40FordPU, to me, says it all perfectly. My thoughts exactly-
"The transition from normal life to something a bit beyond. Once you fire it up, the heart starts pumping with excitement, anticipation, familiarity, appreciation, and pride..with your personal knowledge, that you, and you alone, are the reason it is on the road."
Jim

 

A woman asked me the other day, after looking over my A roadster, "Is this a kit car?"
I gave her a long queried look. "Ah no, you just gather up a pile of parts, put them in a bag, shake it, and see what comes out!"

 

Mechanical power has always impressed me from the time I was a kid....no matter how small or large the motor is.....Especially torque! And I love the sound of engines/mufflers/exhaust/etc.
I also love that you can personalize a car/truck/motorcycle to make it yours...fancy, plain, in-between, or whatever YOU like.
Good question.
Cheers..........

 

Its the thrill of the hunt...The car ...The swap meets ...the looking in barns and woods.....the Saturday junk yards...I guess its just what we do....

 

Started with my first copy of Hot Rod Magazine in 1966

 

Theres no better feeling than popping a clutch and banging some gears with a 400 hp beast under you,well there is one better feeling but she talks back and you can"t call her anything you want either.All the old cars with all there different body styles just make you want to have one.I feel sorry for the young generation today ,they don"t have much to choose from. Pretty bad when the car builders have to try and copy old models ro sell cars.The Challenger and Mustang and the Camaro.

 

Some really good answers. Some funny answers. How much of an influence did necessity play? If you wanted a bike it was going to be a used bike/ used motorcycle /used car? After you could have new stuff the old stuff stayed around... cause you liked it. The old machines were familiar, rugged and reminded you of the old days. The new stuff lacks style and character by comparison. I remember a interview that asked a Hobo how did he end up riding the rails? He replied, " I pissed out of a moving boxcar and I was hooked"

 

first it was out of necessity to keep my heaps running but then it morphed into a self expression and craftsmanship/creativity thing. as sick as it sounds i think i like creating them as much or more than driving them. plus there's nothing as satisfiing as having a non car person stop you and say how cool your car is.