Detailer`s... Are We Insane?

Dispatch

Dispatch

Member
In-sane (ĭn-sān′): is the act of performing of thorough cleaning, restoration, and finishing of a motor vehicle/motorcycle/boat/plane, to produce a show-quality cleanliness and polish. Insanity can be performed on a vehicle`s exterior and/or interior for long, drawn out periods of time.

Jk... its the definition for Detailer but when you think about what we do, the time/money we spend and the level of perfection we desire, its the same damn thing!:crazy::crazy2:
 
Some people might think that the money we spend and all the work we do on our cars constitutes insanity, and in some cases they are right. But many of us are simply built that way both in our personality and our values. For some of us is not a mental condition, it is who we are. We detailers (pro or hobbyists) have an elevated sense of pride in caring for our cars. But usually it is not limited to that but other things in life as well such as our lawns and gardens, our homes, maybe even our personal appearance. I have found over the years that people that are "insane" in caring for their vehicles usually are the same in how they take care of things in many other areas. And this all has to do with pride in our car and in our own work ethic; whatever we do we want to do it right and as best as we can, no matter the work involved or the expense. There is a fine line between insanity and pride - I guess it depends on your point of view.
 
shortspark said:
...I have found over the years that people that are "insane" in caring for their vehicles usually are the same in how they take care of things in many other areas. And this all has to do with pride in our car and in our own work ethic; whatever we do we want to do it right and as best as we can, no matter the work involved or the expense...
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I agree completely.

Eh, some folks think I`m pretty serious about this Detailing stuff, but I`m at least that serious about pretty much every aspect of my life. Actually, a whole *lotta* stuff is much more important to me and takes up far more of my resources. I doubt Detailing is in the Top 5 of my priorities, it`s just a part of doing the Vehicle Ownership thing properly.
 
Accumulator said:
I agree completely.

Eh, some folks think I`m pretty serious about this Detailing stuff, but I`m at least that serious about pretty much every aspect of my life. Actually, a whole *lotta* stuff is much more important to me and takes up far more of my resources. I doubt Detailing is in the Top 5 of my priorities, it`s just a part of doing the Vehicle Ownership thing properly.
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Well, we all know you`re crazy, the Youtube video of you, that circus clown and the goat says it all... :huh:
 
Dispatch- Heh heh heh...

Ya see, that`s why there`s nothing on the internet from/about me. I can always go all George Thoroughgood "..it wasn`t me".
 
Accumulator said:
Though actually there *are* some pix of me now...trying to keep people from posting them would`ve required, uhm...being a [jerk].

But yeah...everything`s forever on the internet, kinda a heavy concept.
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Hey have no fear, those photos will never see the light of day, for a price... :dnaughty
 
You ain`t crazy if people gives you compliment on how great your your car looks and you have to tell them its a 12 year old daily beater that was last detailed over a year ago ! ...LoL
 
EdLancer said:
You ain`t crazy if people gives you compliment on how great your your car looks and you have to tell them its a 12 year old daily beater that was last detailed over a year ago ! ...LoL
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My wife gets compliments pretty much weekly on her A8, people can`t believe it`s an `00, let alone that it hasn`t been polished for years.
 
WARNING: [Rant] follows...

Ya know...I wish we Detailers would quit talking about it in terms of "addiction"/etc. I figure we`re mostly just being, uhm...cute...you know, "just kidding!" and all that, but still..

I take the whole subconscious/self-talk topic very seriously. Yeah yeah, that again...gee, I take *everything* so seriously, but hey..IMO Life is serious business.

The subconscious will do its thing whether we want it to or not so you gotta watch what you feed it. People who joke about having issues often end up really having...issues.

[/rant]
 
Hmmm. At first reading this thread I was going to argue it isn`t insanity, but mearly people taking great lengths to care for a high value item they own in order to keep it looking it`s best for as long as possible...or doing the same for others not able to do the work themselves. Then I thought about how much time I spend talking about detailing, reading up on product reviews and techniques, and browsing products at various online stores. My argument fell apart before it started...detailing is a mental illness for sure!
 
Keep your cars long enough, and it`s not even about having them look nice, it`s a critical part of ongoing maintenance. The A8 is getting a seal replaced as I post this, over a tiny leak that I spotted while doing the undercarriage...same ol` same ol`, once again my Tech said how it`s great that I catch such stuff before it gets serious.

Meanwhile, a pal in the Jag Club who kinda :rolleyes: about my undercarriage detailing had to replace his car over a rusted-out subframe *that his Tech had to tell him about*. He`d been driving around in a decently detailed (by others) car that was unsafe to drive. Whole vehicle`s junk, a literal write-off because he neglected it and they`re not building those any more (Lincoln LS V8).

Shiny paint and swirlmarks don`t *really* matter unless you care about such stuff, and yeah I do. But IMO "Detailing" is a lot more than that.
 
Guys.Come on now. You`re looking at this all wrong. It not us who obsess with keeping it clean and nice. It`s those others with the smoke stained glass,dirty tires,brake dust crusted wheels, stained carpet, faded trim, dull lifeless swirl ridden paint! Now you see who has the issues. Them people are crazy
 
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