Do you feel a kinship with people who drive the same make/model car as you?
I was thinking about Jeep drivers and the whole duck thing. But what about you Kia Sportage drivers? You got a club? Is there a Secret Brotherhood of Chevy Traxers?
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Lol no
I might be curious about the car itself, just to figure out how it may or may not differ from my own, based on the year it was made, but I don't give two shits about the driver. I generally don't like other people, and car brand ownership makes no difference in this equation.
Used to drive a
Tank1995 Volvo 940, and more than a few times did someone approach me to talk to a fellow "vintage Volvo enthusiast".Now that I drive a 2019 Volvo XC90 T8, people assume that I am a Volvo enthusiast based on the fact that I've had two Volvos in a row. The truth is that I really liked the durable tank that was my old car, and I really like the comfort of my new car. They are not similar in any shape or form. They just happen to both be Volvos.
And that's why you are a Volvo enthusiast. You fall in love with the old tanks and then you grow up to appreciate the comfort. Thats the life cycle of a Volvo enthusiast.
I'm very happy to bring you this news of you being a Volvo enthusiast, Mr./Ms. Volvo Enthusiast.
Eh, not really. I was very close to buying a BMW X5 instead, but I couldn't find a 7 seater nearby. I don't feel enthusiasm towards the Volvo brand in general, I just happen to have had two cars that I've really liked. The logo could've said Lada for all I care.
Thats just more descriptions of a Volvo enthusiast lol.
Exactly. You don't have to be a mega-fan to be 'enthused' by a car brand.
One would think it at least involved some enthusiasm
Hey now, I'll have you know that the Ladas have very stylish linoleum
Definitely! I have an MX5 (miata), and the camaraderie between strangers is great. Majority of people will wave to each other as they drive past and I often get stopped for a chat in petrol stations etc. It's one of the reasons I would really hate to get rid of the car because it's just an extra dose of fun compared to everything else I have owned.
I have an NA and I pop the headlights for my NB and ND brothers. I begrudgingly nod to the NC sailors. Just kidding. Every Miata gets the pop.
😌🥹😌🥹😌
I think this is only for sports car people or people who are into cars. I don't think the majority here understand it. I've had other supra and sports car people follow me to work or gas station and just chat about the supra. I have a few friends who I still talk to on a weekly basis from car meets and supra car shows or track days. It's just another hobby to enjoy with other people. I don't think people outside of this understand it.
I have 2 cars, a CX-50 and a '91 Miata. I feel no kinship with other CX-50 drivers but Miata drivers I definitely do, especially NAs and NBs.
I had an old BMW. I park in the back of retail parking lots because I don't see the point in circling lots to find a space that is 40ft closer and you can pull through the spaces. Lots of times I would come out of the store and another BMW would be parked next to mine, like there was some automotive kinship or something. There would be five open spaces, some guy and my car. It was always weird.
One day you come out and there's an impromptu BMW meet up in the grocery parking lot because of you.
That sort of thing actually does happen if your car is weird enough.
I will salute and recognize any other man driving a minivan particularly a Honda Odyssey. They know real practicality, and value. Chance are also good that they care less about their image than the do about being useful.
I've been begging my wife for a minivan. You can fit whole 8x4 sheets of material in them! Wanna buy a tree? Lay that thing down! Friend moving a small couch? Smash that baby in there! Anyone who thinks a pickup truck is a better work truck than a van just is afraid. Pickup trucks are really only good for bulk materials like mulch/dirt/stone/etc. Most of them can't fit a sheet of plywood without propping it up. Minivans can hold like 10 sheets flat with the added bonus of keeping them out of the elements.
My wife and I were in the market for a new car and she faught me pretty hard on the Minivan. We wanted to go with a Honda and we needed something with a 3rd row because of kids and family. So we were between the Pilot and the Odyssey. We went to the dealer and climbed around inside of each car and pressed all the buttons to get an idea of what they are like. As we were leaving she was like "God Damnit... I love the Odyssey"
And that's how we became Minivan people.
They're are times when I don't even need 10ft lumber or 4x8 plywood but I buy some just to rub it in while an f150 is trying to figure out how to strap theirs down.
Toss on a tow hitch and boom even more practicality. What's that, an Odyssey with 6 kids and a trailer full of camping gear?
Need to borrow my riding lawnmower? Sure!
The only reason I'm seriously considering replacing mine is because Honda can't seem to make a range extended plug in version.
Minivan was actually my first car, a hand-me-down from my parents! Got me most of the way through college. We need the room now too, but my wife is strongly opposed :p
Rent one on your next trip, pay up if you can get one with extra luxury!
Short of that have a friend with one show up and do something crazy like pull a 2nd row seat out with the car seat still attached and blow her mind.
A maxed out Odyssey or Sienna will have more luxury than any similarly priced SUV and it will get better mileage and do more.
60k gets you a basic Chevy Tahoe, or top tier Odyssey.
Hah, we did rent a rather nice one, and she's doubled down since!
I don't think it's about the functionality, the idea of it offends her
Fellow Ody driver here. Image means nothing to me. My car is a utility to get my family from spot A to spot B. The Odyseey does that in the best possible way. It's comfortable, roomy, I can slide seats around, put up or down the 3rd row. I can fit suitcases and bikes in the trunk at the same time. It gets pretty good milage, and it's a Honda so it should easily get well over 200k miles with basic maintenence.
I got a really good deal on a one year old model with the Sport trim at the dealership that they couldn't get rid of because it wasn't "new" and therefore the interest was higher. I just got the loan through my wife's union and that problem was solved.
It's "Sonic Gray" with the black rims and details. I threw some big magnetic flame decals on the back quarter panels just to let people know how serious I am about appearances.
Sometimes when we are in a rush to get somewhere, I flip down my sunglasses and say "I'm engaging sport mode" and turn on the sport mode and use the paddle shifters.
I fuckin love this thing.
That was 4k ago
Every time someone mentions that car i think of the podcaat Dungeons and Daddies. So funny.
Sometimes I really miss my old Toyota Sienna. It could do so much so easily.
Most recently, bringing my elder kid home from college last spring took 3 trips when the Sienna could have handled it all at once. Or maybe it’s trying to bring a Christmas tree home without losing all the needles. Or maybe it’s all the mulch I’m still buying and spreading
Nah, most brands have customers that treat their car like an appliance. They aren't interested in a shared culture around their car. Jeep specifically cultivated that culture through "its a jeep thing" advertising, and it's since taken on life of its own. Some other ones I've seen though
VW owners will throw up peace signs to other owners. Especially popular with Beetle drivers.
Mini cooper owners act like golden retrievers and start flashing their lights and wiggling the car when they see each other.
Subaru WRX/STI owners leave each other little bottles of vape juice
What about Saab 9-2X owners?
When I drove a pickup? Lol no pickup drivers are 99% assholes and pieces of shit.
Now that I'm driving an older model car? Also no, I see a parts bin I can pillage when my car dies.
Only because they don't make them anymore. I always give a 👋🏼 —or a 🤘🏼 if their stickers are funny. 😋
Prius Club member local 619 checking in
I have a default grey Camry. I lose it in the parking lot all the time and feel kinship whenever I run across someone else also looking for their generic, vanilla car.
Sort of, if they drive a Subaru Outback (as I do) or a Forester (as I considered) because these two drivers are Subaru people. Doesn't apply to other models because those are less designed for outdoor functionality.
But there are a lot of us in the Pacific Northwest.
Yeah there does feel to be a Subaru community. Not as strong as Jeeps. But definitely, one of the stronger ones between car drivers.
Yeah, but better than Jeeps because our cars don't suck. Jeeps didn't used to suck, but they sure do these days.
Pssshh, the older wrx count for outdoors too!
Agreed.
Somehow a little bit, yeah
A little, we have something in common
Some people make the things they buy and own a big part of their personality.
I don't know why. To me, a car is a box with wheels that I use to get from point A to point B. My main criteria for judging a car is miles per dollar.
And let's say you choose to drive the car with the highest miles/dollar available. You see someone else roll up next to you at the stoplight in the exact same vehicle.
There's no subtle nod or mental "yep" to acknowledge the sensibility of the person next to you? :>
When I was more involved with cars? Sure. Not anymore - but I also don’t drive anything special and just want the thing to start and move.
When you’re young/poor and interested in cars you’ll work with what you got - and if you got a Kia - you’re probably on a Kia motorsports forum/subtikytok.
I feel more of a kinship with people driving the same speed as me on the motorway.
I still remember when the audi a4 I had been behind for 200km took an offramp about 50km before me...
I love a highway buddy
The way lemmings see their cars is the way normies see their computing devices.
yes
(i don't have a car)
Kinda, I used to drive a fairly rare variant of 4Runner so when I saw an identical one I got a bit excited. Then I accidentally won an auction from a university in town for a surplus police car (it's a much longer story) so now I get amused when I see another idiot like me driving a similar model surplus police car
What kind of 4Runner?
03 Sport edition v8, it has the gray matte trim like the SR5 but better off-road package. That was the only year I believe with the matte trim.
Ah, neat. I was wondering because I've got a second-gen and also notice when I see similar ones, just because they're so old now (even for 4Runners) that a lot of them are no longer running. Sadly, that even includes mine at the moment, though I hope to fix it sooner or later.
Good luck getting it going again. It was hard giving mine up, still in the family but I miss driving it. The thing was a beast and is still going strong.
Not really, but Subaru owners are (especially the Outback, Crosstrek or any of the wilderness models) are a bit of a cult.
Yeah but some of them can be shitty. I'd give the deuce ✌️to any Subaru driving by, but the vape bros tend to not return it if your car doesn't have the hood scoop for the turbo. I was driving the NA 2.5L 2007 Hawkeye Impreza.
Weird gatekeepy shit goin' on with the vape bros.
We recently bought a Rivian and I've noticed all of the other Rivian drivers wave. So we wave too.
I drive a Jeep and don't feel a kinship with Jeepers. I used to. Mine is a 2001 and in those days I could drive across town and see 1-2 other Jeeps. We'd wave, and if we stopped at a red light next to each other, there's a good chance we'd talk and possibly invite each other to go offroad or even just stop and have a beer or something. Most Jeepers knew their Jeep inside and out and had built, modified, installed and worked on every inch of them.
Nowadays, it's weird. There's 3-4 Jeeps at every red light, so why wave? A lot of Jeeps are superhero or cartoon themed which is the dumbest most childish shit to me. There's orange Nero jeeps and blue Dory jeeps, green Shrek jeeps, and they're all covered in so many damn LED lights they could signal Jupiter. I've never got into the duck thing either.
That's enough of an old man rant. I won't get into how I've seen Jeep events cancelled due to light sprinkles, how Jeep "offroad shops" mostly just sell LED lights and Jeep branded clothes now, or that time a trail leader interrupted me giving excellent advice to a Jeep experiencing brake fade coming down a mountain, to recommend taking the Jeep to the dealer.
Always. I don't make a big deal out of it but i do notice and feel connected.
I currently have a common car but it's fun when you have an uncommon car and so have your own exclusive club!
But either way, I think it's normal (for people who care at all about cars). Us humans are wired for connection, after all.
When I had my Kia Soul I would joke about sharing the "Hamy nod" (referencing the dope hamster commercial Kia used years ago), which was unbridled poppycock. Not even the drivers of the two other identical vehicles in town would even look my way, let alone nod, wave, or acknowledge we drove the same vehicle.
Hyundai Kona? LOL, I may as well be invisible.
Unless you're in a Miata, Jeep, Harley, or some other extremely rare vehicle, it's just not a thing so far as I can see.
The only car "club" things I'm ever curious about have more to do with what you do with your car, rather than what make and model you drive. Autocross, track days, Gambler 500, things like that.
Otherwise, make and model don't matter to me, I'm just delighted whenever I see anyone else driving with a manual transmission.
Fiat 500, and yes I do, but nobody else who drives one seems to feel the same way.
I did when I drove a Saab. I got it right around 2009 or so when the brand was dying off anyway. GM pretty much killed it, but the market finished it. Anyway, was always fond of them bc they're safe and they weren't common in the state anyway.
Now, I give a little rev for other manuals/standard trans I notice at a light as an acknowledgement they're not alone. I usually get a little smile or nod haha. Easy to tell on flat ground and no brake lights on.
My current car is fairly common and boring grey so no.
My previous car was and old Renault Kangoo which is even more common but was red which is not that common. I saw this exact same model and color from time to time but it's mostly used by farmers or construction workers so not much kinship there. One time we were driving on a mountain road and exact same red Kangoo was driving the other way with a couple similar age as we inside. We all noticed started laughing.
No more than someone using the same toaster. Why are people weird about their cars?
I’m not defending it, but I think it is because it is a big ticket purchase / decision, and that other person reached the same conclusion. So they are at least in some small part similar by some axes. And I think relationships really work that way. The universe is made up of many circles / relationships, and the more overlap one has with another, or the smaller those rings the closer the relationship. Cars are just a fairly tertiary one.
I think the kinship thing only really applies to specific types of vehicles, like sports cars or off road vehicles. And then, it's more likely that the vehicle would be part of a hobby. I highly doubt any two Toyota Camry drivers in the world would see each other and think "Ah, my Camry brethren."
As the owner of several weird/fun cars + one "normal" one (a minivan), I can confirm. I've actually joined clubs and gone to driving events in the mountains and other meetups with people who've owned the same weird car as me, but would never think of seeking out a community of minivan enthusiasts.
Because they are in them so much. It's not just a tool but also a personal space. I've got comfy pillows in my car, for example.
No, and it's weird. Okay, the duck thing is kinda sweet, but it's expanding beyond Jeeps. I've seen other makes/models with ducks. I feel like having one duck gets you into the duck club quicker than having a Jeep with no ducks, though a Jeep with no ducks invites ducks more than any other car without ducks. Nobody's out there putting the ducks on random cars. But I see more places selling ducks themed after things adjacent to what they sell.
No
If anything I compare my car's condition to theirs.
Rolling parts-cars.
Even though motorcycle "subculture" is no where near as popular as it once was, there is still this weird thing where two people passing each other on their bikes will often wave at one another. It doesn't seem to matter what model you're riding. I've never really understood it but then I don't see riding a motorcycle as part of my personal identity. It's just a mode of transportation that's cheaper and a bit more more fun than a car.
I think the fact that it's not as popular as it once was, makes it make more sense for riders to go "oh hey, one of us" and wave
Buddy of mine is a biker and he hates this. He’s complained about it to me on more than one occasion. “Man, I don’t wanna be in your fucking club. I just wanna ride my bike.”
I did when I drove an old VW Beetle, I'd wave to anyone in a classic VW. Generally, anyone driving one is probably cool. That did not extend to new VWs.
I see a mini, I point at said mini and shout MINI!!! like it's some sort of sport.
We're called miniacs for a reason.
A 2008 Silver Toyota Yaris Sedan. I sure do. It's amazing the things still run so we'll.
I drove a 2000 Honda Accord for about 15 years and in the later years I definitely did. New car, not so much l.
I have a Bolt EV and I give a finger wave to any fellow non-Tesla electric vehicle driver, that's all.
I had a first generation Nissan Leaf. Only the most dedicated EV enthusiasts would have one. Every person with one (that I met) was excited to chat about it.
I can't afford a car, so no
Yes I have 90s Toyota truck and did not realize it was a collectible with a devoted cult until I bought mine. I frikken love it and nod others when I see them.
I also recently bought a Chevy Volt to be my daily driver so that my Yota will last my life. I know on Reddit the Volt community is active and bigger than I expected. In person I check others but haven’t noticed any camaraderie yet.
Kind of similar, I drive a service van for work and it's kind of funny how when I see another van from another company we always give each other a polite wave but if it's another van from my company we always flip each other off.
I have a Subaru and a Gary Fisher bike.
I used to drive an Isuzu Trooper, at the time I got it they already hadn't been made for about a decade, they weren't super common to begin with, and I think a lot of them got cash-for-clunkered, so they were a pretty rare sight
Always got a wave when I passed someone else driving one.
And not for nothing, I really liked that car.
No, ive always thought this was a strangely tribal concept, and dl judge people who make their car that much of a part of their identity. Next they will be wearing red hats and rationalizing why Epstein wasn't that bad.
No. The closest I get to this is motorcycles, for the joy of riding. But that's not limited to make/model, and the connection is still very limited.
Back when I drove a VW Kombi, we would hang out the windows to wave at other Kombi drivers. This is in Australia.
I can confirm that motorcyclists have a strong kinship with each other, no matter the make/model of bike (except for scooters). If you see 2 bikers pass each other, you'll sometimes see us give each other a "wave"
Yes, I drive New Beetle and lift my hand every time someone comes in with the same car.
I feel a kinship with all cyclists.
No.
I don't drive (own) a car, so no. But I also don't feel any kinship with people wearing the same pants or watch I wear. Or using the same pen.
That being said, I will feel kinda closer to anyone I can see reading a book instead of doomscrolling their phone. But That's (my) emotions speaking: I worry to see less and less people spending actual time reading books, so I'm always happy to see someone doing just that.
I did when I drove a jeep wrangler because it was funny.
if someone rides the same bike as me then they know what the problems with it are and we can talk maintenance
it's not a kinship though. thats fucking stupid
I initally say i don't because my cars my car - it goes from A-B colour, make bleh...however i do associate certain cars to a tosser kinship...so maybe i do. I will never buy those cars.
I don't get the thing about Jeeps. Ducks or jeep worship. I do remember i bought a jeep being a negative thing.
yes it's me and everyone not in the duck cult
The Longest Johns sang "There is no bond like drivers of the same model car" and they are right. If I ever can buy my chosen model in the future I sure will feel a bond to others that had the same idea
when i got my suzuki many years ago, i saw a guy driving the same model, so i looked at him and raised my fist in solidarity. He took a split second, looked back with his best serious che guevara face, and saluted me back with his fist raised
I used to. While most of my cars have been non-descript, recently
No, all their cars are shit except mine specificaly
Used to never care. Not one bit.
And then I treated myself to an E60 M5.
Day 2 - some random guy compliments it and starts a chat.
Random talks at the lights. In the parking lots.
Someone walked up to me in Belgium and asked if he can take a photo. Of a disgustingly dirty car that had been driven 1200 miles in the last 24 hours. I just shrugged it off and said sure, go ahead.
Point being - I am now aware of it being a thing. It's also a pleasant feeling, so now I try to do the same. Last one I complimented was an E34 M5. Guy made the appropriate smile of acknowledgment back.
I super duper don't which is rough on me when I'm driving my jeep. The area I live in has an exorbitant number of them and there's a culture of having to acknowledge every single one you pass.
I happen to look away or down any time I see one coming.
I'm not a curmudgeon, I have just never wanted to be part of a culture because of something I own. That barrier is so low, you can basically guarantee that half of the group would be people you don't care for.
I notice the same when driving my 59 beetle but bugs are so rare now, it's not much of a trouble.
I do not care at all. But other people with the same car often wave at me and seem really friendly and enthusiastic, then i feel kinda bad and sometimes wave back. Then i feel stupid
That’s me! Waving! And then they just look at me weird and I’m like “did you see my car though it’s like your car it’s the same car” with my eyebrows and my stupid smiling face and then I feel stupid
Replace "car" with "computer". Sounds silly? Is silly.
replace "car" with "dildo"
No. Who the hell do those people think they are?