Remarks from neighbors

I knew I wasn't the only one who gets these comments but it is nice to hear other people get this. As it was a warm day here I decided to do the first full detail of the year.



Had lots of looks while I was doing the whole thing. One of my neighbours went by a couple of times over the hours and said "Are you still at it?" I told her I was and had a bit more to do. All told it was 5-6 hours but the car looks amazing. Thank you to everyone on the site for all your techniques and product comments. I've learned a lot in the past few months and know I have a lot to learn.



I was really pleased when my next door neighbour got home and told me that my car looks new and that it's the best I've ever had it.



Makes it all worthwhile! Will post photos on the detail in a new thread.



Paul
 
the best comment i ever received while washing my car:

i don't like fords, but your mustang is really nice! :xyxthumbs



other comments:

you have the cleanest cars in the area. (from the same guy who said above comment)



your cars looks so good. do you think you can do mines? i can pay you for it. :)
 
This is a great thread. :xyxthumbs I guess I'm not alone in dealing with all the comments about my cleaning my car. Seems whenever I go to clean my car someone has a smartassed comment about it. I sometimes feel like a heroin addict looking for a dark, quiet corner to shoot up in peace. :o



The comments I often hear are "You are going to wear the paint off cleaning it all the time!" "Can you do mine next?" and of course the "It's just going to get dirty again" or "Do you ever drive that thing or just clean it?"



One time a neighbor made a comment about my wearing the paint down and I couldn't take it anymore. I snapped back "What do you care if I do?". He never said a word again. I guess that's one way to handle it.



Hate to say it, but I basically don't clean my car around other people anymore unless they are like minded detailing nuts like myself. It's good that there are so many like myself here. I feel right at home. :) :wavey
 
I don't see why you guys get so bothered when people say "Me next!" It's obvious they don't really mean it, it seems like a flattering comment. Now the guy who offered to help with the sponges with the rocks in them, I think he needs to be introduced to the asphalt, via your foot.
 
mrecktid said:
I don't see why you guys get so bothered when people say "Me next!" It's obvious they don't really mean it, it seems like a flattering comment. Now the guy who offered to help with the sponges with the rocks in them, I think he needs to be introduced to the asphalt, via your foot.
Click to expand...



It's not so much that I get bothered, it's just very annoying thats all.
 
nogrille said:
I had a classic last week. I started washing the car at about 10.30am and some of the local "kids" (read 17 year old idiots) walked past and into one of the houses.



I went about my business until lunchtime, had some lunch and went back out again.



I was just finishing off at about 4.30 when the kids came out of the house. One said to the other "F**k me, that dude's still washing his car!"



I had to chuckle to myself.....
Click to expand...



ha ha ha, that is hilarious. :lol
 
Somedevil said:
Last summer, one of my neighbors walked over to me and said:



"I'm a good detailer myself. Let me go get my sponges and I'll give you a hand."



I told him no thanks, but he didn't listen. Next thing I know, I look up and see him dunking these two black (used to be yellow) sponges in my soap bucket. He moved toward my car and I yelled out "noooooooo!". I swear to you this whole thing seemed like it was happening in slow motion...



So there he is, the guy with the rock filled dirty sponges, standing over the hood of my car, dripping crap on my hood and he looks at me and says;



"what's wrong?".



So I started to tell him about wash mitts and the two bucket approach and he interrupts me and says:



"You know, I don't think I want to help you. You're a little bit weird".



--somedevil
Click to expand...



That is absolutely hysterical! We have all heard the same quotes one time or another. While I may be inclined to do my family's cars, but when others ask, I usually tell them they can't afford it. :p
 
I'm lucky enough that my neighbors like to keep their cars clean. Most of them wash their cars at least once weekly, that's sometimes more than I do! Of course, they don't really do it properly, I have one neighbor who washes and dries with a squeegee. But, I still get the comments and looks especially when I'm crawling around cleaning the undercarriage or wheel wells.
 
Somedevil said:
"You know, I don't think I want to help you. You're a little bit weird".



--somedevil [/B]
Click to expand...



:D excellent! You should have asked him to bring his ride over to compare swirl marks! :D
 
ive heard me next so many times its not that its annoying it just gets old many times its the same people that say it its like yo either bring ur wallet and swirl wagon over or get some new smart *** comments :)



i love hearing "you know its just gonna get dirty again" or "weather calls for rain later in the week" im gonna keep the comment someone posted about the butt and poop and wiping ahahaha that will be a great on to come back on someone with
 
Two summers ago, before I was an autopia member, I tried claying my car and the MacGuiar's 3 step for the first time after washing my car. I live in a condo/townhouse so I was out in front of the garage on a nice sunny day.



At any rate it took me about 4-5 hours by hand to do the whole car w/ the whole process and during that time my next door neighbor came and went about three times as it was a Saturday and she was running various errands. It just so happened that each time she left and came back I happened to be working on the left front fender. By the last time she came back she remarked, "Well it looks like you've pretty much got that fender nailed down!"



She and I both had to laugh at that one!
 
My parent's neighbor always said "my car next" for years and years whenever I washed my car when I was living at home. It annoyed the crap out of me!! The poor guy passed away the other day, and now I kind of miss hearing him say that.
 
G.A. has some stories.



Sorry, I really wanted to refer to myself in the 1st person for some reason :o Anyway,



I get the usual "Me next", and "You missed a spot" comments. But, my neighbors go above and beyond the call of detailing annoyance duty!



When people ask me if I work, I lie and say, "No". It's way easier than explaining detailing. I also hate the "How much do you charge?" I always respond by asking "What do you want?" Of course, they always say they want everything. Then I'll tell them something like "For your Suburban, I wouldn't have a hard time charging you around $200." That shuts 'em up.



A while ago, I quoted my neighbor $100 for everything on their Land Cruiser (way low for the job...) She didn't call back.



Now, to avoid these damn annoying questions, the conversations usually go like this:

"What do you charge?"

"Alot".



I'm glad my Dad's gotten into helping me out here too. When friends ask him what I do/charge, he says I'm damned good, and damned expensive.
 
Haha, great stories so far. I've heard the same lines as everyone else. I live in one of the most populated cities in Ohio, but my driveway is longer than most around here... so the neighbors would have to take a walk or yell pretty loud... most don't bother. I'm sure they are wondering about me, though, lol.



When people ask what I charge, lately I've been kind of laughing a bit and tell them that I charge "a lot" for my work... then go into more details. Everyone so far has given me answers like "Oh, that's reasonable then, I remember paying xxx years ago and you do a much better job". Then again a lot of guys around here with nice cars play it off like "Oh, that's not much at all!" but then never have the cash to back it up
 
Somedevil said:
Last summer, one of my neighbors walked over to me and said:



"I'm a good detailer myself. Let me go get my sponges and I'll give you a hand."



I told him no thanks, but he didn't listen. Next thing I know, I look up and see him dunking these two black (used to be yellow) sponges in my soap bucket. He moved toward my car and I yelled out "noooooooo!". I swear to you this whole thing seemed like it was happening in slow motion...



So there he is, the guy with the rock filled dirty sponges, standing over the hood of my car, dripping crap on my hood and he looks at me and says;



"what's wrong?".



So I started to tell him about wash mitts and the two bucket approach and he interrupts me and says:



"You know, I don't think I want to help you. You're a little bit weird".



--somedevil
Click to expand...



I have a had "one of those days" in the office today, thanks for posting this, made me feel a whole lot better.



My neighbour made a smart comment one day to me about how many times I wash my car, I answered with "is this the 4th or 5th time you have mown your grass this week?" he looked at me for a second walked into his garage, walked back out with 2 beers, handed one over and said......"yeah I guess we are both nuts"



Cheers

Dave.
 
mrecktid said:
I don't see why you guys get so bothered when people say "Me next!" It's obvious they don't really mean it, it seems like a flattering comment.
Click to expand...



After the 2,051th time it gets rather old. :p



To be honest, I wish people would just leave me alone when I clean my car. Why does my cleaning my car concern them? Another line I've used is "Am I bothering you?". they usually say "No". To which I answer "So why are you bothering me?"



Yeah, I'm not so nice but I'm really sick of being hassled and queried everytime I pick up a bottle of QD and a towel. :rolleyes:



To be honest, my neighbors don't bother me. People mind their own business around here, it's other people who have something to say for the most part. Often fellow car enthusiasts will have something to say. Seems some people take pride in how dirty their car is and regard a clean, nicely detailed car something to turn their noses at. I've heard the term "Garage Queen" a number of times even though I probably drive my car more than they do. :nixweiss
 
MongooseGA said:
Now, to avoid these damn annoying questions, the conversations usually go like this:

"What do you charge?"

"Alot".



I'm glad my Dad's gotten into helping me out here too. When friends ask him what I do/charge, he says I'm damned good, and damned expensive.
Click to expand...



:D If you don't mind I will be using both of those lines in the future:xyxthumbs
 
Jinba ittai said:
To be honest, I wish people would just leave me alone when I clean my car. Why does my cleaning my car concern them? Another line I've used is "Am I bothering you?". they usually say "No". To which I answer "So why are you bothering me?"
Click to expand...



:lol



My neighbors are pretty good for the most part, just the usual comments.



They do get a little concerned when the leaf blower comes though, that and the fact my car is on the louder side.
 
I get the same comments as everyone else and while they are annoying I realize that most are just trying to be friendly....they aren't trying to be a smart a$$.



My favorite looks and comments come when it is 35 degrees and I have a bucket of warm water and QEW and they are walking the dog all bundled up like it is the North Pole.....a close second would be when I wash and a thunderstorm is less than 5 minutes away or maybe even already raining.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top