Reeventu wrote:

I am seriously worried about some of the time and money some of you guys spend on your cars.

By the time you have bathed and powdered it and then added bigger wheels , different tyres, stuck on a few chrome bits, changed the colour of the badges, swapped all the bulbs to LED's , upgraded the headlights, changed the radio etc Do you ever go out in it.

Seriously , I can understand that you want a clean car and 'customised' to suit you BUT I cannot get to grips with the total waste of money on what is basically an everyday hack.

I spend money like water on my old cars much of which is essential , some is less so but at least the cars are not depreciating like a modern.

Lets face it the dealer will give you little if anymore for a super clean , tarted up car than a clean tidy standard one. In fact if the add ons are a bit odd then you make get less.

I'm not too bothered about clothes, it's the GF's that puts my monthly credit card bill up. I like spending money on my car, and going to nice restaurants. Good write-up EV.

I will just repeat my comments as before that basically each to their own.


I have great pride in my cars BUT the daily commute/workhorse/family car/hack , call it what you like it is just a tool to do a very important job, you cannot compare it to your pride and joy whatever that may be ?

Hmmmmm interesting, if not provocative perspective if ever there was?!

Mine is also a daily mobile office, but like my commercial dealings I like them to be clean...it reflects down. I recently interviewed a guy with a view to employing him, and offering him a company car...when I saw the way that he presented himself in his company Lexus, filthy and dented, I took the view that if that was his attitude towards his (funded) mobile office, then that was likely to be the case not just in the one that I was offering, but probably his business and home life as well. Some may think me shallow for not offering him the job based on my gut instinct, but first impressions count with me.

Each to their own, as you say.....  Foraging near Gaydon....
——————————————
MY13 HSE Lux SD4, Baltic Blue - current, 30,000> miles without fault
MY12 HSE 2.2 SD4, Sumatra Black - gone after 10 months/43,000 fault-free miles

I like keeping my cars clean, which is difficult when the company carpark is surrounded by ash lagoons and a coal plant. But I still expect the inside to be spotless!

Back in the 90's I was a coach driver for a large private (then) company in Gillingham, Kent. They were very concious on image which I think made me worse to be honest but even if the roads were wet you had to wash the coach before it left the yard so the only dirt on it was the journey to the pick up. Oh & there was no coach wash, it was a hose pipe & soft brush on a pole then you had to blade it off afterwards to stop it from staining.
When I first started there I got a day's suspension once for not hand polishing the coach. Obviously no company could get away with that now, not even sure how it was allowed then. (Past) Freelander 2 HSE 2010 MY In Rimini Red.
(Past) RR Evoque Dynamic Lux Si4 In Firenze Red.
(Past) RR Evouque Pure Tech in Barollo Black with bespoke Firenze Red colour coding.
(Present) Freelander Metropolis 2015 MY In Santorini Black with Ivory Premium Leather.

Funnily enough valeter my dad used to drive for a coach firm in the 1960's long since folded the last of the family died about a month ago , anyway my dad was taught by Ron (the owner) that he may have the oldest bus but keep it clean and polished and it looks just as good as the newer ones.

That is the philosophy I was brought up with, as you say no bus washers in those days just a bucket , long brush and a shammy.

EYorkshire wrote:

In fact I'm going to pay to have it professionally valeted this year because Pegleg noticed all my self made 'swirls' and the bodywork did look crap beside of his.

I feel sorry for the poor detailer who has to remove all those swirls, it'll take him weeks
I feel even more sorry for the hit it will make on yer wallet

Can't wait for the weather to get better before ad12323346457 gets a gander at my paintwork  Another member of the failed FL2 clutch/DMF club, twice.

I expect preparation has began already begun.

Funny you should mention it.....................
but no
House move has taken prority, power wash in bits and Mrs Pegleg has been tyding up the garage. Can't find my Megs anywhere and those silly rubber wheel arch whatsits have more warps than Starship Enterprise.
Now we've got 2ft of snow

Maybe i should let the East Europeans .................
I don't think  Another member of the failed FL2 clutch/DMF club, twice.

Interesting comments.

I agree that appearance both personal and car / home etc are important, and I certainly take note of the way someone turns up for an interview. My Father always said look at the shoes .....

My point is that there is clean and tidy ,and there is a next stage and maybe another etc. etc.

Do whatever makes you comfortable with your dress code / car cleaning / home cleaning etc but there is surely a balance which must include cost, and that was the reason for my initial comments.

buy a Hoover for £200 to keep your house clean, I buy also buy a machine polisher for £200 to keep my car clean and polished  Former Mod/Member, with the most post & Chicken George Arch nemesis

I love that some people here are passionate about their cars and treat them real well and enjoy cleaning and upgrading them etc. I think it's fair to say for some their car is much more than a functional thing, it's a fun hobby too.

Different people have different relationships with the stuff they own. Reeventu you're very much looking through your lens which is biased on the way you relate to your car. Others are different.

Live and let live!

As I thought, this thread has legs - To paraphrase an old saying " You can say what you like about my wife but don't you dare criticise my car"

Where do I stand - with this cold wind a lick and a polish until more clement weather and then AG super resin polish sealed with some AG high definition wax. MY 09 GS manual in Lago Grey, Wood Co arm rest and side bumper strips - now sold.

MY 15 SD4 SE Auto Orkney Grey with colour coded Bumper Door Mouldings