Anti-OCD
 

Curious to know if there is anyone else out there anti-OCD with the Z like me. I like my car, its a great car (except for minor details), it is a very expensive piece of hardware, but I feel as if I am the only one in this forum who is not OCD about their car.

last time I washed my car was over a month ago, I have put close to 16k miles in one year, and they where decently hard placed miles.

I respect very much how some of you guys take care of your car, and some of the pics you post with it all shiny are incredible... but really does anyone else think that while its a great car its still just a car, not an investment?

I don't see any car as an investment, a house is.

However the car cost pretty money so I will take care of my Z as much as I can.

Ditto here. Cars are lousy investments but such fun. Make 'em last and look nice as long as possible to minimize the hit and maximize the longevity and pride of ownership. Extra effort with a Z, as it's not mere equipment, like my Altima. That car gets good care and conscientious maintenance, as do all my possessions and equipment, but it's not fawned over and doted on like the Z.

its not that I treat the car bad, I do stay away from pot holes, clean up any bird crap on the paint, good fuel, good oil, etc... but not to the point of washing the thing 3 times a week... I give that kind of treatment to my road bicycle.

but i guess I am alone in this...

cars aren't investments. its something you buy and use, it just happens to be expensive. You don't buy your clothes or video games or whatever and say 'hmm how much will this be worth in 5 years?' you enjoy them

I think the problem is that since some cars are so expensive and since we often have to pay for them over a few years, it feels like they are investments. But in reality, they are just expensive toys/tools which will depreciate and lose much of their value.

What is precious and must be treated as such is our lives. Our health, our emotional well being, our physical fitness and the wellness of family and friends. We can share driving experiences with them and laugh and smile as we enjoy our good fortune.

That is my two cents.

i think if you have the time to wash your car 3x a week you have quite the free time or not be so dirty

an investment is something that retains or increases value(hopefully)...purchasing a car doesn't fit this bill (unless your buying some classic car and plan to keep it in a showroom). i consider a car as an expensive toy. while i dont wash my car every week, I do try to take some care (washing it every couple weeks, giving it a wax every 2-3 months, claying 2x a yr).

as much as i love it if i can keep my car looking as new as possible, i have to reserve some of my time enjoying it driving around :)

I don't see it as an investment. I see it as an extension of my penis. I wouldn't throw rocks at my penis, or smash it in a door...so there ya go.

Even a house isn't an investment - it depends totally on inflation. Housing bubbles pop...same with cars of yesteryear, they sell for less than what inflation + original purchase price. A few exceptions based on rarity, but for the most part, you'll never come close to breaking even.

You hint at what I'm after.

If I need it, I get what's cheap and use it until the wheels fall off. Still, I like to keep it nice as long as possible...like my Frontier - still looks great but the windshield, I noticed this morning, already has pitmarks from the road salt/sand over the past 2 months (bought in January). Disappointing, but I'm not going to run out and get a new windshield...I washed it by hand for the first time last weekend. I didn't do that great, but it looks brand new from anything more than a few feet away. Water spots up close...just needs another wash/rinse and it'd be great - which I could do at a pressure-washing place and be happy.

My Z, I didn't need. I wanted it, therefore it goes into another category. I bought it in June, and have washed it by hand maybe 3 or 4 times. It's garage kept...it's my precious. /golem

My Civic (my wife's actually) is pure utility. It's an 05 that has minor hail damage, 75k miles, chips and rust spots where the chips were never fixed, and all I do with that car is maintenance, and according to my blackstone report, I'm going too long on oil changes...lol. I think we've washed it by hand 3 times since we bought it. It's due w/ salt/sand/film on it now, just I've not done it yet. Probably this weekend...might start working on touching it up as well.

My motorcycle is also utility w/ some fun thrown in if the weather is right. It was my previous until I got in a wreck and nearly totalled it, and myself ended up with a broken wrist. It's such a pain in the *** to wash it, I don't until it's really bad. Bugs everywhere, road film and crap...I have to pull the seat to get the tank bib off, and pop off the saddly bags. More work than what it's worth - lol...

hahahhahhahahaha

+1

Yeah I beleive my English sucks, and has been misunderstood... i am far from thinking the z is an investment, Its just a daily driver to me... but i feel a lot of the people here while they understand a car is not an investment, well at least soemthing like this, they treat it as such... it was more of an observation.

the difference is that i dont think my z as a car. just a toy. and a toy needs to be clean and shiny and good looking all the time...well, that's how i play.

i have 2 dd's i use for work. they are dirtified and have not been washed since thanksgiving. :D

that's all.

What's that line from The Transporter?

"I always say, the way a man treats his car is how he treats himself."

:)

I think you're going to find this on any "enthusiast" forum......

For instance, New money guys buy Porsches, etc. and treat them like crap. It's all about image to them. Enthusiasts treat them like their first born child. There's a certain amount of both here with lots of in between. On any main stream affordable performance car you'll find both with probably more treating them like regular DD's.